Daniel,

I'd recommend a Canon lens, since you'll be using it with stills. Having image stabilization (IS) is nice, as you can shoot in lower light. I've heard it said that IS doesn't guarantee that you can get a good shot at 1/20, but if you take multiple shots, it guarantees that some of them will be good. That would be a couple stops better than you can get with a non-IS lens, so it's cost effective.

Regarding the range, it depends on what you shoot. I got a longer lens, since my wife tends to shoot closeups. If you shoot in tight spaces or like landscapes, get something wider.

For video primes, you can get starter lenses cheap. My son got a 200m f/4 Nikon for $35. I got a 24mm Vivitar (Nikon mount) for $20. 28mm f/2.8 Nikons are cheap, as are 50mm f/1.8 lenses.

Personally, I find that the downside of inexpensive lenses isn't sharpness, it's light fall off. You need to stop down the aperture a bit, if you want even light in the corners.

And remember, you can un-twist your Canon zoom, if you want to control aperture for video.

The combination of a photo lens that you can untwist, and a few cheap primes to cover the rest of the range is the perfect way to start. That lets you learn your preferences, so you will know exactly what lenses to buy or rent in the future.

Regarding off brands, I have an old Sigma 28-70mm EF zoom that I used with an old Canon Rebel film camera. The aperture opens to f/2.8, which sounds good on paper, but gives terrible light fall off. I get the feeling that Sigma's marketing plan is to offer large apertures at low prices, but the performance at these apertures is sub-par, so beware.

Note that you can correct for light fall off in post, but your dynamic range will vary across the screen, since the processing is done in the 8-bit domain. Some fall off can actually look artistic, but don't take it too far.

...
Just bought the 5d mkii, and I have been reading through this forum with great interest. I bought the camera to broaden my skill base and dabble in stills whilst still having the capability in shooting video. I have a few questions on lenses before I buy my first one...

I find it remarkable that you've bought a top of the line prosumer camera body and then start to wonder what kind of lenses would be good. The 5D MKII is by no means a cheap body for the average amateur. I assume you're a non-professional (like myself) by the nature of your question. The lens has a far greater impact on IQ than the body. (besides availabe/created light and talent of course)

Having said that...it would help if you would state what kind of walk-around photography you're into and what kind of budget you're on. I assume you have some money to spend considering the pricetage of the 5D II body. Of course you can screw a 50mm 1.8 on the body and produce excellent results, the combination will look (and feel) unbalanced however. It's like building a Ferrari with a diesel in it.

...
Im looking to buy a zoom lens for walk around stills and then rent/ buy primes over time for the video usage. First and foremost is the zoom lens,

If I go with the Nikon 20-200mm VR I presume I loose the VR/IS bonus, alternatively if with the Canon 20-200 I have no aperture control if I use it for video. Any experience with either or??

the 24-70mm both Nikon and Canon are my other alternatives no IS on the canon though. Am I right in saying that you loose the Nikon VR when using an adapter? also does this affect AF functions too??

Im basically looking for a good quality zoom lens for stills but can be used for video when required, any good recommendations??


The best walkaround lens from Canon is the 24-105 kit lens IMO. I've owned the lens on my 20D and 40D but never fell in love with it. I traded it for the Canon 35mm 1.4L and never looked back. The colour, contrast and sharpness of the 35mm is really something else.
Back then I didn't need the IS really (long end I use the 70-200mm 2.8 IS, short end IS is less usefull). At this point I could use the IS for video work although I heard the IS is picked up by the internal mic and a tripod is really the best solution anyway. Let's hope canon will deliver a 24-70 IS F2.8L :)

The 24-105 produces excellent IQ (check out Canon Digital SLR Camera & Lens Reviews (http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/) or fredmiranda.com) It has a very good zoom range for stills and video work and isn't too light/heavy. It's a perfect lens but somehow not for me.
If you need extra shallow DOF go for the 24-70 F2.8. With the high-iso/noise capabilities of the 5D the extra stop of light isn't too big an issue. Same argument for the lack of IS really, for stills: just dial the ISO up. Unless you're printing A3 and up it's hard to tell the ISO setting from the picture. Of course IS won't help you to freeze motion, so if you shoot sports or other moving objects the IS will be useless.
Both lenses have been compared extensively (google it). Ultimately you'll need to rent/borrow both lenses for a longer period if you can't /won't afford both.
For video the IS can be very handy if you do not want/can carry a tripod along. That's the sole reason why I'm contemplatinng over the 24-105 again but it's really too expensive for my not-too-frequent noob-homevideo making.

Lenses I use most atm: 35mm 1.4, 85mm 1.2 II, 17-40 4.0 and the 70-200mm.
I find that the canon primes often give that 'extra' look with color, bokeh and contrast. It's hard to explain but that's the reason I use them most often.
For general walk-around photography they're (almost) useless if you need close-up's of people or buildings. The 35mm is too wide for close-ups and the 85mm looks intimidating to most ppl because of the large glass surface.
For my personal use the 35mm suffices. If I expect longer shots I take the 70-200mm along. I find the 85mm harder to compose for walk-around use, so it's rarly on my body when I walk around.

...
How much picture quality do you loose when using other 3rd party Sigma/ Tamron
etc is it worth buying Canon/ Nikon for that extra quality and to maximize the mkii potential?


The IQ of 3d party can be pretty good and sometimes better. They're are many pixel-peeping sites who compare lenses extensively. (Welcome to Photozone! (http://www.photozone.de) )
Personally I think the Canon 5D MKII with a Tamron is a weird combination but my girlfriend has accused me frequently of being a 'brand-snob' :)

For video a lot of 5D users buy Nikon lenses. After investing over 5.000€ in Canon glass I simply refuse to buy Nikon glass just to control aperture. Maybe not the most rational approach but I've known to be stubborn.
ATM I just shoot video to play with. I can work around the aperture control pretty quickly so it's not really necessary for my current use. If I shoot more video and Canon won't deal wiuth the problem by firmware I might buy Nikon glass but for now I just work-around with the issues.

The (cheap) 17-40mm is good for video when I don't want to fuss about focus. Of course you'll end up with 'ordinary' camcorder results but that's no problem for me in those situations. For shallow DOF and/or low-light I use the (not so cheap) 35mm or 85mm.
Depending on your still-requirements and budget you could opt for the 35mm 1.4L for both, it won't dissapoint you. The canon 50mm 1.8 has terrible manual focus (non hsm) so I'd go for the 50mm 1.4. For sole video use go for Nikon.

Summarized: I would go for the 24-105 IS 4.0L. Rent later the 35mm 1.4L and/or buy Nikon primes if you plan to shoot a lot of video and see for yourself what works and what not.

I find it remarkable that you've bought a top of the line prosumer camera body and then start to wonder what kind of lenses would be good. The 5D MKII is by no means a cheap body for the average amateur. I assume you're a non-professional (like myself) by the nature of your question. The lens has a far greater impact on IQ than the body. (besides availabe/created light and talent of course)


I am working as a full time professional cameraman, I own an EX1 and the reason for the 5d2 purchase was to supplement the EX1 like many here seem to be doing plus it was financed through the sale my Z1. You are right in saying that I am a relative amateur in terms of stills photography but along with my years working in TV I hope to expand my skills base and use the 5d2 along with the ex1 in a professional environment. I'm getting the best of both worlds. I would like to stress I am not a complete novice who has money to burn on the best equipment, this choice was purely made on a professional basis.

Thank you for your advice, from my own research I think I'll be buying the 24-70mm as my walkabout lens. What I am looking for is versatility and a good travel lens, all aspects of photography interest me but to begin with I'm looking for a good zoom to give me the versatility I'm also considering the 35-70mm Contax for the manual control. As I stated like most, good fast primes is what I'm after but like many again I will have to wait a while to save. I'd like to think Canon will give us the firmware soon and we'll have the choice to buy Canon primes for video would be nice to use on a letus/ EX1.

Regards,
Daniel

That explains a lot :)

You really can't go wrong with the 24-70. It's one of the most popular zooms of the canon line-up and holds it value very well (like most L glass).
If the lens doesn't suit you, trading/reselling it for a good price shouldn't be a problem unless Canon decides to market an IS version :)

I'm way out of my league with professional/prosumer video work but you can always go with cheap Nikon primes and fit those to your letus adapter as well?

The 24-70mm f2.8L is not a bad lens but a little heavy for a walk around. The construction is quite plastic and does not wear too well with serious use however in EF there is no better alternative at f2.8. I have one and quite like it but can see the advantage in the 24-105 at times. Personally I've shifted to using a wide zoom and a tele zoom with a 50mm in between a lot of the time. If you want to stay Canon then the 17-40 f4L and the 70-200 f4L are a great combination for not too much money.

Dan

How is the 24mm-105mm 4.0 L IS for video? Too dark?

I'll be shooting with the following lenses this weekend, will let you know what I think.

Canon 15mm Fisheye
Canon 24 F1.4 L USM
Canon 50 F1.4
Canon 85 F1.2 L USM
Canon 100 F2.8 Macro
Canon 200 F2.8L
Canon 300 F2.8L IS

Nicholas,

Will you use the untwist, tape or mylar methods of decoupling the lenses, or will you let the camera choose your aperture?

BTW, that's a sweet collection!

I'm really interested in seeing how a 90-100mm macro footage holds up without IS handheld and on a tripod.

up to 70mm I heard isn't a big deal, but I did notice it with 85mm lenses, albeit it was bearable.

If 90-100mm macro shots are possible on a tripod/monopod then I'd love to get one.

but that 150mm sigma is also so tempting too. (yes I know that's too far without IS LOL)

Jon, I'm renting them for the weekend along with a 5DMII. I'm going to play around and will see whats the best way to lock aperture, so far I only know about the untwist method from the Vimeo tutorial by Tyler Ginter. I'll have a few hours to figure it out tonight, then I have to shoot.

I'm really interested in seeing how a 90-100mm macro footage holds up without IS handheld and on a tripod.

up to 70mm I heard isn't a big deal, but I did notice it with 85mm lenses, albeit it was bearable.

If 90-100mm macro shots are possible on a tripod/monopod then I'd love to get one.

but that 150mm sigma is also so tempting too. (yes I know that's too far without IS LOL)

@ 90-100 without IS is pretty difficult with just photos, let alone video. should look great on sticks though.

@ 90-100 without IS is pretty difficult with just photos, let alone video. should look great on sticks though.

Fancy meetin' you here.

Have you toyed with such lenses.

I'm torn over the 90mm Tamron and the 150 Sigma.

The tamron is cheaper and the wideness would help in live action and double as a portait lens, BUT that sigma is outstanding image wise and 150mm is longer and I'm a sucker for macro, extreme CUs, but may be a specialty lens vs. general purpose...decisions decisions

DP Review has an Image Gallery up with the specs of which lens was used for each shot. I found it very helpful in examining image quality and choosing my next lens. Canon EOS 5D Mark II Review samples Gallery: Digital Photography Review (http://www.dpreview.com/gallery/canoneos5dmarkII_samples/)

Does it matter if your lens is AIS or not if you're doing video?

What about if you're doing stills? I might want to shoot some of those, and it'd be nice to get a lens that's best for both.

Thanks.

Does it matter if your lens is AIS or not if you're doing video?

What about if you're doing stills? I might want to shoot some of those, and it'd be nice to get a lens that's best for both.

Thanks.

Canon IS lenses are still sharp as hell even with IS...

But you really start noticing the jitters at about 85mm...85mm it's subtle, but after a while you start getting a bit nauseated.

Does anyone know if the 24-105mm kit lens comes with a lens hood? Ordered one and didn't find it listed on the contents description.

Thanks!

Yes it does. And it is a great all around lens, get some 77mm ND's and a circ polarizer.

For what it's worth, I've been shooting 5D2 video for two months now with the 50mm f/1.4 and 70-200 f/4 L IS. But my favorite lens, by far, is the 24mm f/1.4 L II. I really like getting ultra wide angle field of view (that was hard to do on my XH A1) and thin DOF at the same time (thanks to f/1.4). It works really great hand held in low light, and allows me to get very close to the subject (which is great when I don't have an audio engineer, so the microphone is camera-mounted). What I dislike is that the shutter speed is tied to the focal length, so I seem to get something around 1/30 shutter speed most of the time, which I dislike, but don't see anything I can do about that.

Highly recommended.

...I seem to get something around 1/30 shutter speed most of the time, which I dislike, but don't see anything I can do about that.There's always the mylar trick. At least you'll be able to get the 1/45-ish setting.

DP Review has an Image Gallery up with the specs of which lens was used for each shot. I found it very helpful in examining image quality and choosing my next lens. Canon EOS 5D Mark II Review samples Gallery: Digital Photography Review (http://www.dpreview.com/gallery/canoneos5dmarkII_samples/)

Great link, thanks Guy.

I have the 50mm 1.4 and the 100mm macro.

I think the lens I would buy for shooting is the 24mm 1.4

For the longer lens stuff I would probably use my XHa1/ Letus setup anyways. I love the idea of this small camera with a fast wide lens on it.

Yes it does. And it is a great all around lens, get some 77mm ND's and a circ polarizer.


I just bought the Singh-Ray Vari-N-Duo... its a variable ND with built in polarizer...
haven't tried it out on the camera yet but it does work just looking thru it and adjusting
the ND/Polarizer... also ordered enough step rings so I can use it on most of my lenses.

here's the link...

Singh-Ray Vari-N-Duo Polarizing Variable Neutral Density Filter (http://www.singh-ray.com/varinduo.html)

I just bought the Singh-Ray Vari-N-Duo... its a variable ND with built in polarizer...
haven't tried it out on the camera yet but it does work just looking thru it and adjusting
the ND/Polarizer... also ordered enough step rings so I can use it on most of my lenses.

here's the link...

Singh-Ray Vari-N-Duo Polarizing Variable Neutral Density Filter (http://www.singh-ray.com/varinduo.html)

Please let us know how that works out. I was considering getting one as well, it's just that they seem ridiculously expensive. It would cost nearly three times what I paid for the old manual Nikon lens that I would put it on. As of right now, I'm leaning more to getting some ND filters and doing things the old fashioned way.

I'm still building my lens kit. But my question is what lens hoods are you guys using for the outdoor stuff? The flower petal style hoods, rubber hoods,....? (Post a link if possible)

JS

my question is what lens hoods are you guys using for the outdoor stuff? The flower petal style hoods, rubber hoods,....?

Maybe I posted in the wrong thread...but I'll answer my own question for now. Seems the Canon hood is the best choice, at least for IS zoom lenses. It has a bayonet mount rather than the screw on type (which could be an issue if using auto focus?). It's not the petal style though, and cost 3x as much.

JS

ok so I'm a news stringer and my XHA1 is in the shop so I want to use my 5d mark II while my XHA1 is out. what would be a good lens to use for low light video I have a few lenses but they seem to not look like video I have seen here on line shot in low light with the same camera. is there a cheap way ok inexpensive way to get great low light video? the lens I own are canon 75-300 1:4-5.6 19-35 1:3.5-4.5 and the 28-135 1:3.5-5.6 now keep in mind I need something with a zoom after all most time police dont let us right up close to a fire, wreck, or shooting.

Any thought anyone

ok so I'm a news stringer and my XHA1 is in the shop so I want to use my 5d mark II while my XHA1 is out. what would be a good lens to use for low light video I have a few lenses but they seem to not look like video I have seen here on line shot in low light with the same camera. is there a cheap way ok inexpensive way to get great low light video? the lens I own are canon 75-300 1:4-5.6 19-35 1:3.5-4.5 and the 28-135 1:3.5-5.6 now keep in mind I need something with a zoom after all most time police dont let us right up close to a fire, wreck, or shooting.

Any thought anyoneThere is no zoom that will give you the sort of great low-light video that you will have seen from the Canon 5DII. They simply don't make a zoom with a large enough aperture. Most of that cool low-light video that you have seen was shot with an F2, F1.4 or even F1.2 prime lens. The telephoto zoom with the largest aperture that Canon make is an the 70-200mm F2.8L & that that can in no way be described as inexpensive at over $2000.

However if your normal camera is an XH-A1 then using your 5DII with any of your current zooms should still give decent video if you shoot at higher ISO settings (high gain in XH-A1 terms) although it will be grainier than if shot with a fast prime there will be less grain
than using the XH-A1.

I'm using Nikkor lenses with an adaptor for the 5d. 24mm 2.4, 50mm 1.8 and 85mm 1.8. They work great, the only issue is some glares and a slight vignieting at high iso and higher fs numbers. But at a range of $300 a lens it's hard to beat.

I am looking for a good zoom lens for the 5D for Video shooting only.

Are there any lens that I could hand held (because of IS) - my understanding is that there are not....

Would the 24-105mm f/4L IS USM AF Kit Lens work well and still provide shallow enough DOF at F4?
I hear that at F1.4 etc and low values its extremely difficult to focus.

I hear that at F1.4 etc and low values its extremely difficult to focus.

Sure -- lower f-stops make it harder to focus, but with a faster lens you can always bump the aperture (to make it easer to focus), while you can't do the opposite with a slow lens (i.e., to get shallower DOF). There's a reason why fast lenses are harder to manufacture, and hence cost more.

-- peer

Would the 24-105mm f/4L IS USM AF Kit Lens work well and still provide shallow enough DOF at F4?.
Of course. F4 on 5D mark II is very fine.

Whatever lens you buy, the camera will probably shoot the lens wide open in lower light. It set my 85L at 1.2 ISO 400. At ten feet dof is an inch or two. I've figured out how to work around this, but I only have coarse control over aperture. A lens like th 17-40 f4 is a good choice. It's probably sharp enough wide open, and slow enough at f4.

I don't know if I posted this here, but with EF lenses the camera wants to set shutter at 1/focal length.

Yes I hear all about fast lenses for video andi'm scratchingmy head. The DOF for a movingsubject is too thin.....I've got a chance to pick up the 17-40 F4L at a great price and it seems the way to go when my 24-105 F4L is not wide enough. The DOF is awsome and would work good to get an adequare DOF.

You will want fast lenses later when you become more used to pulling focus, I can pull focus at f1.4 on a 50mm lens now in a few takes, and you can always use a smaller arpature on a fast lens if your not ready yet. I recommend the faster the lenses the better, you'll be better off later on too.

I don't know of a way to get faster than f2 below 50mm inexpensively on Canon.

Don't use Canon glass! There's nothing wrong with the older manual lenses. In fact, they can often be better. All my mid-focal range glass are Nikon AIs or Zeiss. You can pick them up for a song on eBay, great quality lenses and perfect for manual control.

This is my complete set that I use for the 5D2. I've swapped and changed over a period of time and I'm more than happy with my set as I have it now. I use all of them regularly except for my Nikon 24 which has become somewhat redundant of late.

Canon EF 14mm f/2.8 L II USM
Canon EF 17-40mm f/4.0 L USM
Nikon 24mm f/2.8 AI-s
Zeiss Distagon ZF T* 35mm f/2
Nikon 50mm f/1.2 AI-s
Nikon Micro 55mm f/2.8 AI-s
Nikon 85mm f/1.4 AI-s
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS USM II (with the 1.4x and 2x extenders)

I wanted good, fast glass, but I had a ceiling limit, so did the best I could. For example, I couldn't justify the cost of choosing a Canon 50mm 1.2L over my Nikon 50mm 1.2. I'm aware the Canon 50mm 1.2 is supposed to be superior than the Nikon, but I don't know that for myself (only what I read from a review or two). Maybe someone here has tried both, but I love my Nikon 50.

I think that 5D MKII owners need a mix of glass, if they shoot stills and video. I have a few Canon lenses, mainly for shooting stills. You need AF for stills IMHO, trying to manually focus on lenses that were designed to auto focus is tough.

For the wide end, I have the Canon 17-40 F4 L, it is a great lens on the 5D MKII, but the lens I shoot the majority of the time for video is my good old cheap Nikon 50mm 1.4 AI, it is superb to manually focus, smooth and nice feeling. I also love using my Nikon 105mm 2.8 D Micro on the 5D MKII, it is the sharpest lens I own, looks amazing,

For the long end, I have the Canon 70-300 F4.5-5.6 IS. Not a great lens but nice for stills. I rarely use it for video. I have used the 24-105 F4 L, it's okay but nothing special. IMHO, you need at least one or two really fast lenses for the 5D MKII. The DOF comes into play when you are close to the subject more. If you are getting medium shots from 10' away. the shallow DOF is not an issue. If you are getting CUs with the 1.4 wide open or at a 2.0 or 2.8, yes, it takes some practice to be able to do any kind of manual focus tracking but it can't done. When I shoot in decent light or light sets with the 5D MKII, F4.0 or 5.6 is always my goal, regardless of lens speed because all lenses look their best at those apertures and the DOF is usable, not super shallow, but shallow enough.

Dan

Got a truck load of M42 lenses - anyone using the Super Takumar 50mm f/1,4?

Don't use Canon glass! You are obviously not taking your own advice as 3 of the 8 lenses you list are Canon EF:-)

You are obviously not taking your own advice as 3 of the 8 lenses you list are Canon EF:-)

LOL! Hence the reason I said, "All my mid-focal range glass are Nikon AIs or Zeiss."

But to be honest, it's hard not to steer completely away from Canon glass. They do have superb lenses. My point is that for the price, a Nikon 1.2 50mm you can pick up a perfect used copy for under $500, whereas you'd have to pay three times that to get the Canon version of it.

What's the difference aside from automatic control? Very little in my opinion. Plus, it has the advantage of your images looking a little organically different to most other photographers who are likely to stick with Canon lenses for this body. A unqiue image is what we all strive for so there is some method to my madness!