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Title: What zoom for portraits? Post by: groundhog on December 14, 2009, 04:21:47 PM I have a Canon 40D and have just been using the 18-55 mm IS that came with the camera. I want to buy a zoom lens to use for portraits...mainly children and some families. I had been looking at the Canon 70-300 IS USM, but someone told me that the Canon 55-250 IS would be good. Do you recommend one of these over the other for portraits? Or should I look at a different lens? I mainly shoot outdoors or using natural light and/or a bounced flash indoors if that helps. Thanks!
Title: Re: What zoom for portraits? Post by: Bob Atkins on December 14, 2009, 05:36:28 PM I probably wouldn't recommend a zoom for portraits, at least not an inexpensive one. For portraits you typically want something between about 35mm and 85mm on a crop sensor camera like the 40D and ideally something f2.8 or faster, In a zoom that gets expensive. For example the EF 24-70/2.8L (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00009R6WT/bobatkinsphotogr).
I'd probably go for the EF 50/1.8II (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00007E7JU/bobatkinsphotogr) if you want to keep the cost down, or the somewhat better EF 50/1.4 USM (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00009XVCZ/bobatkinsphotogr) The new Tamron 17-50/2.8 VC (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B002LVUIXA/bobatkinsphotogr) stabilized lens might also be worth a look. While I think the EF 70-300/4-5.6 (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0007Y794O/bobatkinsphotogr) is a great telephoto zoom (I have one myself), it would not be my first choice for portrait work. I actually have a page on portrait lens choices you might like to look at - http://www.bobatkins.com/photography/tutorials/portrait_lenses.html Title: Re: What zoom for portraits? Post by: groundhog on December 14, 2009, 06:19:38 PM So even with the EF 50/1.8II would do better than my 18-55 IS kit lens? What are the major differences between the EF 50/1.8II and the EF 50/1.4 USM? Thank you very much for your help.
Title: Re: What zoom for portraits? Post by: Bob Atkins on December 14, 2009, 08:12:31 PM Well, while the EF 50/1.8II (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00007E7JU/bobatkinsphotogr) is pretty good (and great value), the EF 50/1.4 USM is better for several reasons.
First it's better built. The EF 50/1.8 II is all plastic (including the lens mount), has no distance scale, no dedicated manual focus ring (you rotate the front of the lens) and uses a DC micromotor. The EF 50/1.4 USM (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00009XVCZ/bobatkinsphotogr) is better constructed with a metal lens mount, focus scale, dedicated foucus ring and uses a micro USM motor with full time manual focus (no need to switch from AF to MF before manually focusing) This means that focus is quieter, faster and more accurate. The 50/1.4 is also 2/3 stop faster and has better background blur characteristics (bokeh). |