Karla
Looking to invest in an additional lens or 2 for younger children photos indoors & hoping to limit my flash use. Also, I am assuming I'll need a different lens for gloomy outdoor shots? Getting a dslr300 flash w/ diffuser to help. Amy suggestions? Thanks!
Answer
A "fast" lens is needed when you want to limit the flash. The lower the f/stop number, the "faster" a lens is by allowing more light into the camera...f/2.8 and lower are considered "fast" lenses.
To help explain it, here are some full stop f-numbers, each one allows twice as much light as the one after it (or half the light if you you go the other way)...
f/1.4f/2 f/2.8 f /4 f/5.6 f/8 f/11 f/16 ....f/1.4 is twice as big as f/2, which is twice as big as f/2.8, which is twice as big as f/4, and so on. Therefore, f/1.4 is 128 times larger than f/16.
For example....
with the 18-55m f/3.5-5.6 "kit" lens...zoomed out the maximum aperture is f/3.5, and zoomed in it is only f/5.6.
Compare that to 17-55mm f/2.8... the maximum aperture is f/2.8 throughout the range. The f/2.8 lets in almost twice as much light as the f/3.5 and 4 times as much as f/5.6
If you had a lens that was f/1.4 (like the 50mm f/1.4). The f/1.4 lets in about 6 times more light than f/3.5 and 16 times as much as the f/5.6
Now, for lens recommendations, I tend to use the 50mm f/1.4, 85mm f/1.8, and the 70-200mm f/2.8. But even then, sometimes a fill light/bounce flash is required (and I ALWAYS use a diffuser on the flash)
A "fast" lens is needed when you want to limit the flash. The lower the f/stop number, the "faster" a lens is by allowing more light into the camera...f/2.8 and lower are considered "fast" lenses.
To help explain it, here are some full stop f-numbers, each one allows twice as much light as the one after it (or half the light if you you go the other way)...
f/1.4f/2 f/2.8 f /4 f/5.6 f/8 f/11 f/16 ....f/1.4 is twice as big as f/2, which is twice as big as f/2.8, which is twice as big as f/4, and so on. Therefore, f/1.4 is 128 times larger than f/16.
For example....
with the 18-55m f/3.5-5.6 "kit" lens...zoomed out the maximum aperture is f/3.5, and zoomed in it is only f/5.6.
Compare that to 17-55mm f/2.8... the maximum aperture is f/2.8 throughout the range. The f/2.8 lets in almost twice as much light as the f/3.5 and 4 times as much as f/5.6
If you had a lens that was f/1.4 (like the 50mm f/1.4). The f/1.4 lets in about 6 times more light than f/3.5 and 16 times as much as the f/5.6
Now, for lens recommendations, I tend to use the 50mm f/1.4, 85mm f/1.8, and the 70-200mm f/2.8. But even then, sometimes a fill light/bounce flash is required (and I ALWAYS use a diffuser on the flash)
what is the best walk around/portrait canon L lens for the 50d? I mostly take pics of kids!!?
Kitty
My camera is about 2yrs. old and I mostly take pictures of kids but I do both indoors and outdoors.......I have read numerous reviews and even called Canon to ask their recommendation
24-105mm f/4
24-70mm f/2.8
I don't understand the difference between f/2 or 4 and all reviews seem to say something different!!! I know what end result I am looking for---sharp crisp images without hours of editing which I haven't totally learned yet either!
One more thing.....my daughter is very sensitive to light and squints before the flash if she is expecting it!!
Please HELP!!!
I do thank everyone for their wisdom and time! We live in a VERY small rural area so really internet classes are my only option, our local library is very small as well so not much to pick from! I do agree that I need to learn all I can on my own to totally understand.......I'm trying!
Answer
Let me first say that L-series lenses do not take inherently better photographs and most people can't tell the difference between images shot with L verus non-L lenses. These are great lenses but, it may not be necessary to spend so much money to get the results you want. FWIW; between the two, the 24-105L is significantly lighter and easier to walk around with. It also covers a wider range of focal lengths than the 24-70L and is image stabilized. Having said that, the 24-70L shows less distortion at its wide end and is one stop faster. You've already mentioned you don't understand this key difference so I'll cover that.
The difference between f/2.8 and f/4 is one stop of light. In practical terms, this can mean the difference between a blurry shot at 1/30th of a second and a relatively sharp shot at 1/60th of a second. It might also means the difference between a realtive clean shot at ISO 800 (@f/2.8) or a noisy shot at ISO 1600 (@f/4). Those are the simplest examples to illustrate what 1-stop means but the bottom line is that if you don't already fully understand this, you are about to spend a great deal of money on a lens that by itself, will not improve your images.
Another note, your 50D is a 1.6x crop body. In simple terms this means your field of view with either of the lenses you've asked about will be fairly narrow and not necessarily ideal as a walk around lens but, they'll be just fine for portraits. The 50D and similar Canon cameras are typically sold with with 18-55mm or 17-85mm lenses that are nearly perfect as walk around/portrait lenses for 1.6x crop bodies. Alternately, the 50D was sometimes sold with a 28-135mm lens which was designed for 35mm film and full-frame digital cameras. Most people find the 28--135mm lens really isn't wide enough when they are out, walking around and may opt to replace it with an 18-200mm super zoom for that allows them to do almost everything with just one lens.
If you are seriously considering spending the money to buy a 24-70L or 24-105L for your 50D but don't plan to upgrade to a full-frame camera like a 5D/5DmkII, two additional lenses you should also consider are the EF-s 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM and EF-s 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM. These are not "L" lenses because that designation is exclusive to full-frame Canon lenses but, they are as good a any L as far as optical quality is concerned. The difference is that EF-s lenses are designed specifically for 1.6x crop-bodies like your 50D with smaller sensors. When I shot the 40D (almost identical to the 50D, just a year older), my walk around/portrait lens that said on my camera almost all the time was the EF-s 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM.
One final note, your daughter is likely blinking because of the pre-flash that tells her to expect the main flash. Consider half-pressing the shutter to focus/meter and then waiting a second or two before you actually take the picture. If you don't already have one, also consider a shoe-mount flash like the 430EXII.
Let me first say that L-series lenses do not take inherently better photographs and most people can't tell the difference between images shot with L verus non-L lenses. These are great lenses but, it may not be necessary to spend so much money to get the results you want. FWIW; between the two, the 24-105L is significantly lighter and easier to walk around with. It also covers a wider range of focal lengths than the 24-70L and is image stabilized. Having said that, the 24-70L shows less distortion at its wide end and is one stop faster. You've already mentioned you don't understand this key difference so I'll cover that.
The difference between f/2.8 and f/4 is one stop of light. In practical terms, this can mean the difference between a blurry shot at 1/30th of a second and a relatively sharp shot at 1/60th of a second. It might also means the difference between a realtive clean shot at ISO 800 (@f/2.8) or a noisy shot at ISO 1600 (@f/4). Those are the simplest examples to illustrate what 1-stop means but the bottom line is that if you don't already fully understand this, you are about to spend a great deal of money on a lens that by itself, will not improve your images.
Another note, your 50D is a 1.6x crop body. In simple terms this means your field of view with either of the lenses you've asked about will be fairly narrow and not necessarily ideal as a walk around lens but, they'll be just fine for portraits. The 50D and similar Canon cameras are typically sold with with 18-55mm or 17-85mm lenses that are nearly perfect as walk around/portrait lenses for 1.6x crop bodies. Alternately, the 50D was sometimes sold with a 28-135mm lens which was designed for 35mm film and full-frame digital cameras. Most people find the 28--135mm lens really isn't wide enough when they are out, walking around and may opt to replace it with an 18-200mm super zoom for that allows them to do almost everything with just one lens.
If you are seriously considering spending the money to buy a 24-70L or 24-105L for your 50D but don't plan to upgrade to a full-frame camera like a 5D/5DmkII, two additional lenses you should also consider are the EF-s 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM and EF-s 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM. These are not "L" lenses because that designation is exclusive to full-frame Canon lenses but, they are as good a any L as far as optical quality is concerned. The difference is that EF-s lenses are designed specifically for 1.6x crop-bodies like your 50D with smaller sensors. When I shot the 40D (almost identical to the 50D, just a year older), my walk around/portrait lens that said on my camera almost all the time was the EF-s 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM.
One final note, your daughter is likely blinking because of the pre-flash that tells her to expect the main flash. Consider half-pressing the shutter to focus/meter and then waiting a second or two before you actually take the picture. If you don't already have one, also consider a shoe-mount flash like the 430EXII.
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