Canon 50mm f1.4

Zascar

I just upgraded to full frame – I bought a Canon 6D and I’m loving it. I have a 25-105 and a 70-200 f4. The 24-105 was not great on crop as its not fast enough – but it’s fantastic on full frame now. However, sometimes I need more than f4 and I want a really fast prime. I’m thinking the Canon 50mmm f1.4 as it’s pretty well regarded and super fast for the money – about €200 second hand. I was also considering the 40mm f2.8 pancake – but I think I should go for the fastest I can get

Has anyone got this lens, opinions on it? Any suggested alternatives?
Thanks

Tiriel

What do you need it for?

(The old need vs want question.. but I have to ask!)
I'm a prime user, I don't own any zooms.

Zascar

Sorry I should have said that. With f4 I find myself running out of light and having to bump up the ISO, hence the need for a fast prime. I'll be using it for portraits and street photography - general low light stuff

Splinters

It'll probably cost a little more but maybe look into the older Sigma 50 1.4. It absolutely runs rings around the Canon 50 1.4 and with the release of the newer Sigma 50 1.4 Art (which is even better again) the older Sigma 50 will have dropped a bit in price. I had one when I was a Canon shooter and it was a beast of a lens. I think I paid 350 second hand but I'd say you can get it for less these days.

Tiriel

Zascar wrote: »

Sorry I should have said that. With f4 I find myself running out of light and having to bump up the ISO, hence the need for a fast prime. I'll be using it for portraits and street photography - general low light stuff

I use a 28mm f1.8 and a 100mm f2. I'd like to swap the 100mm for an 85mm f1.8 based purely on feedback from others.. but I'm pretty happy with both. Super fast.. zoom with your feet. They almost ruin any other lens I borrow/hire because I expect instant results!

Edit: I have the 50mm f1.8 also.. but the lens most often on my camera is actually the 28mm.

Zascar

Interesting. I like the Sigma stuff and yes the new Art lenses are stunning but well out of budget. There are a few here: http://www.adverts.ie/for-sale/q_sigma+1.4+50mm/price_250-500/

So you think the sigma kicks the canon's ass and its definitely worth spending an extra €100 on it?

Tiriel

Zascar wrote: »

Interesting. I like the Sigma stuff and yes the new Art lenses are stunning but well out of budget. There are a few here: http://www.adverts.ie/for-sale/q_sigma+1.4+50mm/price_250-500/

So you think the sigma kicks the canon's ass and its definitely worth spending an extra €100 on it?

Sorry, mine are all Canon.. so I don't really know in terms of quality difference there.

LUZ

i use the canon all the time, (its the only lens i have at the moment), its not very sharp at 1.4, and has alot of purple fringing but much better at 1.8 or 2.0. i use it alot for gig photography and lightroom is a good fix for the purple.

inkedpt

I've a canon 50mm 1.4, if you're in Dublin city center you can try mine

Zascar

Just got one yesterday Got a great deal on Donedeal, €200 delivered. Only had a few mins to play about with it yesterday but it seems great so far! Can't wait to get out and try it properly this weekend!

TheMightyI

Zascar wrote: »

I just upgraded to full frame – I bought a Canon 6D and I’m loving it. I have a 25-105 and a 70-200 f4. The 24-105 was not great on crop as its not fast enough – but it’s fantastic on full frame now. However, sometimes I need more than f4 and I want a really fast prime. I’m thinking the Canon 50mmm f1.4 as it’s pretty well regarded and super fast for the money – about €200 second hand. I was also considering the 40mm f2.8 pancake – but I think I should go for the fastest I can get

Has anyone got this lens, opinions on it? Any suggested alternatives?
Thanks

Slightly off topic, but can i ask what the main improvements you have seen from switching to the 6D?

Potentially going to make a similar change soon myself.

Zascar

Huge improvements. I should have done it years ago. Full frame really feels like what a camera is supposed to be like. Also having way better controls on the camera itself makes it a lot nicer/easier to be in full manual control. My 600d kinda seems like a toy now. The much wider frame is fantastic, possibly the best aspect. My 24-105 is at home on this camera, didn't feel like that on the crop body. Low light capability is excellent. Highly recommended overall. It has gone way down in price now too: http://www.eglobalcentral.eu/canon-eos-6d-body-only-digital-slr-camera.html

TheMightyI

Thanks - that's re-assuring to know. I currently have a 700d, so my move would be very similar to yours.

stronglikebull

I used to use a 550D, but bought a 6D with an 85mm 1.8 and 50mm 1.4 lens in January for €1500 off of Adverts (a bargain), and like Zascar, the old 550D feels more like a toy now too. Maybe it's all in my head, but when I use the 550 now it just doesn't feel right. It's a great backup camera, or to take to an outdoor event where you don't want to risk your expensive gear, but you wouldn't regret a 6D. The price difference from that to something like the 5D MkIII is phenomenal, so unless you're loaded, go with this one.

The extra controls on the camera, auto-ISO, speed of the multi shot, and the overall look of pictures from the prime lenses on the full frame make it better than the old crop camera, for me.

Fat_Fingers

Zascar wrote: »

My 600d kinda seems like a toy now.

lol.. yeah , i know exactly what you mean. I moved from Canon 600D to Nikon D750 and 600D now feels like a fisher price camera

kelly1

Just curious, why 50mm? For me 50mm on FF is too middle of the road. Not long enough for portraits, not wide enough for indoor group shots.

i.e. I find the perspective too "ordinary".

85mm or 35mm for me

CelticRambler

Once upon a long time ago, I treated myself to a Canon 1000NF and took an interest in "proper" photography. Then life, love and a whole bunch of children got in the way and the interest got sidelined! Twenty years later, I'm finally picking up where I left off.

I'll never be a pro, and this camera will be (ab)used by my teenage children too for "training" purposes, so I'm looking at a 1200D body (can buy new for 260€ in France) and hoping to use my original EOS EF USM lenses 35-80mm & 80-200mm, which I understand will equate to 55-//-300mm after applying a 1.6x crop-factor for the 1200D.

Here's my question: before I let things slide, I'd felt the need for a 50mm prime but never got around to buying it. Looking at the various offers now, I see that the 50mm is still popular even though it's effectively an 80mm. Is it still worth buying, or should I be looking at something in the 24mm to 35mm range?

Supplementary question: if it is still the beginners prime of choice, I'm seeing three different lenses/prices on my usual supplier's site -

CANON-EF-50MM-F/1.8 II @93€;33
CANON-EF-50MM-F/1.8-STM @ 128€53
CANON-EF-50MM-F/1.4 USM @ 324€90 :eek: (Are my original USM lenses worth that much more than their modern STM equivalents? )

Apart from the lower f/ value of the third (it's very likely that I'd be using this lens in low light conditions) is there likely to be much practical difference for me between one and the other?

For completeness, the 24mm (CANON-EF-S 24MM F/2.8) is currently on offer at 164€84

magicbastarder

i have a DX (nikon) body, and the 35mm is my go-to lens. looking at conn's cameras site, there doesn't seem to be an affordable lens in that rough range though.

Zascar

The f1.4 version has better build quality, and way better focusing. I got mine for 200 second hand and miles prefer it to the 1.8 - I use it a lot more too - However I now have full frame and the lens 'makes sense' to me on full frame but I didn't love it so much on a crop/

The 1.2 version of his 50mm canon is well over €1,000 - And its a very very popular wedding lens. The 1.8 is fine for most people though, still a fantastic lens.

Magic, do you have a 50mm too? I'm thinking of a 35mm but since I already have a 50mm I'm thinking of going a little wider, maybe 28-30mm.
Thoughts?

magicbastarder

my wife has a 50mm for her camera, but i rarely borrow it; partly due to room in the camera bag though, rather than lack of utility.