Canon Lens Advice Please

[gosilver]

My brother has ordered a new 5D Mk2 with a 70-200 f/4 IS lens. A few of us have put together a sum of approx $600 for his 40th birthday gift and would like to get him another lens. He likes to shoot candid portraits, architecture and landscapes.

 

Any experts here have any advice as to what we should buy?

 

(Whatever we purchase will be exchangeable with the store but we'd like make an informed purchase!)

 

Thanks

[Twisties]

The 70-200 will not be useful for landscape. He'll want a wide angle for that. The 17-40 f/4L is well thought of but perhaps a bit over your price point. There are several other Canon wide angle zooms you can look at that run a bit less, or a lot more, but I think this one is most likely viewed as the best value in that range and closest to what you are asking. The next cheaper choice would probably be the 17-85 f/4-5.6 IS lens which is in your price range.

 

 

[David]

The very best lens wider than that, fitting your description, is the 24-70L. It's the standard walk-around, scenery, candid portrait lens for full-frame sensor Canons (is that model?). Not sure if it fits your price, but that's the lens.

[rkd]

The 17-40 would be a nice choice, but not that 17-85 - at least not for a full-frame body.

 

How about the 28mm 1.8 for indoors / ease of carry and a lensbaby to play.

[Twisties]

The very best lens wider than that, fitting your description, is the 24-70L. It's the standard walk-around, scenery, candid portrait lens for full-frame sensor Canons (is that model?). Not sure if it fits your price, but that's the lens.

 

The 24-70L is about double what they have budgeted. The 17-40 runs about $700.

 

I agree with rkd the 17-85 would not be a good choice. Sorry for that poor suggestion. But I think as rkd points out, that lens won't work right with the full frame sensor on the 5D. The EF-S means it's set up for the smaller sensors. You need a lens that is an EF, not an EF-S.

 

Jan

[David]

Yes, but the long side of that lens (40mm) would make a really poor portrait choice, and that was part of the criteria.

[Twisties]

I thought the 70-200 would work for the portraits, no?

[David]

Oh, yeah. Sorry, I missed that. It would be a great lens for that. Doh.

[Twisties]

So to summarize for the OP:

 

The 17-40 is a good lens worthy of the camera but won't do as much as the 24-70 would for him. I think we all agree the 24-70 would be the lens to have if it weren't for price. The 17-40 is still a bit above your price range. If you can't swing the lens then consider perhaps a tripod ($300 - $400), a good camera bag (if his camera didn't come with one, $70 - $200), some high quality filters (to fit the 70-200), some extra memory, a good quality flash unit, or an extra battery. You could put together a very nice and useful package of these items for him with that budget. The 28 mm lens suggested is another option, though I'm not familiar with it myself.

 

Personally I think some high quality accessories would beat a cheaper wide angle zoom with that camera.

[Lets_Play_Two]

Personally I think some high quality accessories would beat a cheaper wide angle zoom with that camera.

 

I agree with this suggestion. A 21 mp body needs L glass and you won't find that for $600. If he likes landscape work, a good polarizing filter would be good, as would a flash for the portrait photos. Could even throw in a flash diffuser like a Gary Fong.

[AnRSguy]

Don't even look at EFS lenses, they will not mount on a FF camera, 5D, 5D Mk II, or any of the 1D series cameras. Their circle of illumination is not sufficient for the larger sensors.

 

The 17-40 is a great lens but a bit short for portraits. You might consider the 85mm f1.8, a wonderful lens and moderately priced around $400. The 1.8 will allow shallow depth of field, often desirable in portraits.

 

For wide-angle lenses, the 24mm f2.8 at about $300 is a nice choice too.

 

Obviously, these are not zooms but their speed makes up for that and the bigger aperatures also offer a lot more flexibility.

[Rphoto]

You can get good value on whatever lens you choose by buying used. I buy most gear at keh.com. Even their bargain (BGN) grade is quite usable and they tend to conservatively rate everything. Also have a two week no reason return policy and 60 day warranty. I bought a Canon 20-35 2.8L for under $500 and it is my "normal" lens on 10D, which I also bought there. Got a 28-135 IS for under $300 and it is good middle range lens. Just my two bits.

 

Rob

1999 R1100RT

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