Newcomer looking for advice on lens selection

[Frankt0652]

Hi all, just joined today. From Mona Vale Sydney. Have been interested in photography the last 3 years. Have come to terms with my Canon 7D, my Canon 28-300mm and Canoin 100mm Macro lens, looking to join a Camera Club near me. Also looking for a new lens in between my two above for portraits etc. Have spoken to a few people in camera stores but they dont seem to know a great deal about equipment, perhaps just went to wrong shops! Anyone have any suggestions on Canon lenses?

Many thanks

[Koko]

Welcome your in the best place to learn.
I love my Canon 24mm - 105mm is on the camera most of the time. As for Portraits you can't get better than your macro Lens..

[nardes]

Although I am not a portrait photographer, I understand that on a full frame camera, an 85to 100mm mm focal length lens is generally considered optimal for portrait photography.

I would guess that it would produce classic results and balance the proportions and perspective between say, the closer features, such as the tip of the nose and the further features, such as eyes, eye sockets, ears, etc. without distorting their relationship as generally perceived with the naked human eye.

I also understand that lenses in the 85mm region can be had with a maximum aperture of up to F1.8 which also produces some nice bokeh to flatter the portrait.

On your APS-C sized 7D, this would translate to 85/1.6 = approx. 53mm, so I guess a 50mm or 60mm might be suitable candidates?

If the fl is too short (e.g. wide angle) then it’s likely that the relationship between the facial features will become grossly distorted and unflattering, whereas too long an fl may well flatten the perspective too much.

Cheers

Dennis

[ricktas]

welcome. A good 24-70 f2.8 is also worth considering. My Sigma 24-70 is the sharpest lens I own straight out of camera.

[Arg]

The Sigma 17-70mm is a good zoom range for portraits and made for APS-C cameras.

[Kym]

:gday: & Welcome
- lets see some photos in the main CC forums (http://www.ausphotography.net.au/forum/forumdisplay.php?5) maybe try a competition or 2 and have fun!

[CandidTown]

Why not invest in a 50mmf1.8
On your 7D it will be like 85mm which is a classic portrait length.
The build quality of that lens is not good, and the auto-focus is slow and noisy, but...
the optics are great, its very sharp and fast and at around $100 its the best value glass on the market... imo

J

[Dennis Estigoy]

My dream lens for portraiture would be the 70-200 /2.8/IS... and the 50mm/1.4. I reckon 50mm/1.4 would be ideal for your 7D. 24-70/2.8 also is my dream all round lens for portrait and streetscape! These are fast and sharp lenses and pretty good in low light situation. You can get them all either in canon, sigma or tamron! If you don't like to bring your tripod all the time , get something with "IS" image stabilisation as they say in Canon. Third party lenses has a different term to their image stabilisation. If you fond of built quality then go for "L" lens in canon or "EX" lenses in sigma, these lenses are heavy duty and built like a tank!

[Wayne63]

Welcome to AP, enjoy the site and look forward to seeing some of your pics in the forums

[Pixley]

The Canon 100mm Macro that you already have is a great portrait length - maybe a tad too long for indoor shots but should be super sharp. Otherwise the Sigma 17-70 or Canon 24-104 would be versatile without blowing the budget. :-)

[Mary Anne]

Hello and Welcome to AP.. Stick with the primes they all produce beautiful creamy backgrounds I am another one for the Canon 50mm f/1.4.

[Frankt0652]

Thank you for the info. I guess sometimes my 100mm macro just needs to zoom a bit to get the pic I need, such as a bird just out of range etc, The 28-300 does the job but is sometimes just a bit too cumbersome when climbing up rocks, trees etc to get that great shot. Will have a look at teh 25-105mm .. thanks again will let you know how I go !

[ricktas]

Thank you for the info. I guess sometimes my 100mm macro just needs to zoom a bit to get the pic I need, such as a bird just out of range etc, The 28-300 does the job but is sometimes just a bit too cumbersome when climbing up rocks, trees etc to get that great shot. Will have a look at teh 25-105mm .. thanks again will let you know how I go !

Hope we get to see some of your photos soon.

[RememberThis]

Welcome to the forums,

I think best bang for your buck is 50mm 1.8, cheap and gives great shots. L series Lens are always nice but are expensive. if you have the coin go a 70-200 2.8 :D