Best Glass for 7D

J

Jon Chema

Active member
Overall I need to buy 2 pieces of glass for my 7D to make my rig useful. I've got a cheap 50mm f1.8 canon lens but obviously that is junk compared to anything in the L series. I am looking at the Canon L series 24-70mm f2.8 lens but am kinda worried about the $1k price tag. Have you guys worked with any of the Tokina or Sigma lenses? I see that I can get the same lens made by sigma for $350. Does anyone have any experience with this lens?

Jon
 
I went with the Canon 17-55mm f/2.8 IS and the Canon 70-200mm f/4 IS for my T2i. I recommend getting lenses with image stabilization, as it gets rid of the microjitters that plague DSLRs.

If you wanted to save some money on the wide zoom, you could get a Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 VC. I've got one for sale in the Marketplace:
http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=207719
 
Jon Chema said:
Overall I need to buy 2 pieces of glass for my 7D to make my rig useful. I've got a cheap 50mm f1.8 canon lens but obviously that is junk compared to anything in the L series.
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The "nifty fifty" isn't junk. It's an excellent lens. Almost nothing from Tamron, Sigma, or Tokina will be very significantly better, optically. If you want the best, then get the best. But please understand that it's not necessary for shooting great video.

I'm personally not a huge fan of the look from Canon L lenses. I prefer to use an eclectic bunch of old manual focus lenses myself.
 
ydgmdlu said:
The "nifty fifty" isn't junk. It's an excellent lens. Almost nothing from Tamron, Sigma, or Tokina will be very significantly better, optically. If you want the best, then get the best. But please understand that it's not necessary for shooting great video.

I'm personally not a huge fan of the look from Canon L lenses. I prefer to use an eclectic bunch of old manual focus lenses myself.
Click to expand...

Don't get me wrong...the 50mm 1.8 is great. I've taken some great low-light photos with it and honestly for the 80 bucks i spent on it you can't touch anything as good. However, its not good for video as its hard to pull focus on the barrel and a FF lens gear is hard to fit on it. Thats what I meant. I would love to use some old Manual focus Zeiss glass ideally- not sure how much I could get some primes for though. I shot some test footage on the 17-50mm f2.8 Tamron today and it was decent for the money. Please understand I'm not an "L series snob" but think they are good lenses- just overpriced.
 
I have the Canon 50/1.8v1 with metal bayonet. I did a test shooting stills with almost 15 different lenses in the 50mm range which can be seen over at Cinema5d. This test included Zeiss Planars, Canon, TAkumars, etc. What was the best lens in terms of sharpness and lack of CA? The Canon 50/1.8. What was interesting was that I asked people to do a blind selection of their choice of lens based on the charts I shot. What was their favorite lens? The Canon 50/1.8. What is even more interesting is that they chose the least expensive ones in terms of quality. What came in last? The most expensive one. Sometimes you don't get what you pay for.

That being said, the focus ring on the Canon 50/1.8 isn't really adapted for manual use and video. A real shame. The next best lens is pretty close in price. The M42 Zeiss Pancolor 50/1.8. You can pick one up used for around $100. It is solid, metal and glass, with a good focus ring and great optics.

In fact the reason why 50/1.8's are often the sharpest is because they are the least difficult to create optically speaking. No need for huge glass or a ton of elements. No need to jump through hoops to deliver at that f stop and focal range.
 
yoclay said:
I have the Canon 50/1.8v1 with metal bayonet. I did a test shooting stills with almost 15 different lenses in the 50mm range which can be seen over at Cinema5d. This test included Zeiss Planars, Canon, TAkumars, etc. What was the best lens in terms of sharpness and lack of CA? The Canon 50/1.8. What was interesting was that I asked people to do a blind selection of their choice of lens based on the charts I shot. What was their favorite lens? The Canon 50/1.8. What is even more interesting is that they chose the least expensive ones in terms of quality. What came in last? The most expensive one. Sometimes you don't get what you pay for.

That being said, the focus ring on the Canon 50/1.8 isn't really adapted for manual use and video. A real shame. The next best lens is pretty close in price. The M42 Zeiss Pancolor 50/1.8. You can pick one up used for around $100. It is solid, metal and glass, with a good focus ring and great optics.

In fact the reason why 50/1.8's are often the sharpest is because they are the least difficult to create optically speaking. No need for huge glass or a ton of elements. No need to jump through hoops to deliver at that f stop and focal range.
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Wow didn't know that Zeiss made a cheap lens like that. Do they still make it or would I have to find it on eBay?

Thanks,

Jon
 
I fit a redrock lens gear just fine on my 50mm 1.8.

see bottom left of image.

kodak.jpg



IMG_2376.JPG
 
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Amuse-WS, did you use a rubberband around the 50? Looks like it.... Also, what Redrock Kit do you own? Deluxe Shoulder Mount?
 
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