Canon mid-priced prime lenses

[Jon Fairhurst]

There's a discussion about lenses in another thread where the 28/1.8, 35/2, 50/1.4, and 85/1.8 were discussed. I have those and the 200/2.8L II and have taken photos from the same location (balcony of the Dan Panorama Hotel in Tel Aviv - I've been participating in IEC standards meetings) with those lenses for people to compare.

You can download the RAW files here:
http://dirksnowglobe.com/images/lens...viv/28mm18.CR2
http://dirksnowglobe.com/images/lens...Aviv/35mm2.CR2
http://dirksnowglobe.com/images/lens...viv/50mm14.CR2
http://dirksnowglobe.com/images/lens...viv/85mm18.CR2
http://dirksnowglobe.com/images/lens...iv/200mm28.CR2

These were all taken at f/4, 1/1250, 100 ISO.

Let the pixel peeping begin!

[Tito Haggardt]

thanks for this
is the camera in standard mode
or is it in a custom mode, flattened with reduced saturation and contrast?
i am asking this as Phil Bloom suggested the flattening to make the media more post friendly
probably just highlighting my ignorance here
but i am wondering how that might effect prime performance if at all
aloha
tito

[Jon Fairhurst]

Hi Tito,

The JPEGs were converted in Natural Mode with Contrast and Sharpness at minimum, and Saturation one step below mid-range.

The RAW images are available, so you can apply any picture mode that you would like.

[Jim Newberry]

Thanks Jon; it's really helpful to get the raw files to look at. Another resource I like is lens reviews at FredMiranda.com: FM Reviews - Main Index

[Tramm Hudson]

Originally Posted by Jon Fairhurst

There's a discussion about lenses in another thread where the 28/1.8, 35/2, 50/1.4, and 85/1.8 were discussed.

I just wrapped a shoot as part of the 2009 National Film Challenge. We used primarily the Canon 85mm f/1.2 L II lens and I have really mixed feelings about it. As a still portrait lens, it is amazing. The autofocus is glacial, even with the 1.8x speed up over the original f/1.2 L model, but that works ok for studio settings.

For video, however, it is an exercise in frustration due to those darn focus motors. There is no manual focus -- rotating the focus ring sends commands to the AF motors. Registration marks just won't work since the motor only runs at a few speeds. Even when racking manually, the motors won't rack any faster than their fastest speed, making it easy to get ahead of the actual lens position. Shooting at f/1.2 makes for beautiful images, but trying to focus on moving actors is just too hard.

On the plus side, however, it might work with a computer controlled focus system, rather than trying to use the focus ring. The lens reports 10cm steps at about 2m focus distance, so keeping track of the depth of field should be pretty easy. Perhaps the mating of the 5D and the Impero will make this more usable.

Here are two screen grabs from the film (before color correction, etc):