I only shoot with Canon cameras, so my experiences with lens are only for Canon. My first lenses are Canon 28-135 f3.5-5.6 IS and 75-300 f4.0-5.6 IS lens, and I still have them. They are great lenses that start my journey with photography. As time goes by, I found myself demand more for my gear. After I bought better digital cameras with higher resolution, the lens I had did not keep up with them. I asked a friend to lend his L lenses to me to try out on my new cameras. Wow, the differences of performance and image quality are very noticeable. The L lenses are much faster with focusing and tracking, meanwhile give sharper images. This changes my view toward more expensive L lenses.
Here are some key areas that L lens outperform the regular lens.
Speed of focusing and tracking.
While my Canon 75-300 IS lens keep hunting for a focus point, the 70-200 L lens get to the object at almost no time. The difference is so huge, and I sold my 75-300 lens due to that reason. I tried to capture some images of my son playing. I’d say about half of those images taken from 75-300 lens are blurry, and 80% of them are not sharp. The 70-200 L lens led to drastically improvements with clear and sharp photos.
Image quality
When higher resolution camera (10 MP or higher) are used, image quality of L and regular lens becomes more apparent, especially with details such as hair, grass and tiny objects.
Wide aperture opening
Wide aperture lenses can allow more light come into the camera sensor; therefore, result in higher shutter speed and reduce blurriness under low light condition. If you are shooting indoors without a flash, a lens with a f2.8 or wider aperture is desirable. Wide aperture also helps with blurring the background and distancing the back ground from the main object.
L lens usually has larger apertures than regular lens with comparable focal length range. Some of the most commonly used lens are listed as follows:
Canon EF 70-200 L F2.8 or F4.0 vs Canon EF 70-300 F4.0-5.6
Canon EF 24-105 L F4.0 vs Canon EF 28-135 F3.5-5.6
Canon EF 24-70 L F2.8 vs Canon EF-S 18-55 F3.5-5.6
Canon EF 50 L F1.2 vs Canon EF 50 L F1.4
Canon EF 85 L F1.2 vs Canon EF 85 L F1.8
L lens may not be your best choice if the following is true to you.
With limited budget
The cheapest L lens are Canon EF 17-40 F4 L and Canon EF 70-200 F4 L. They cost about $600-700 at current market price. Other L lens are all over $1,000.
Canon EF 16-35 f2.8 L -- $1,500
Canon EF 24-70 f2.8 L -- $1,400
Canon EF 24-105 f4 L -- $1,100
Canon EF 70-200 f2.8 L -- $1300
Canon EF 70-200 IS f2.8 L -- $1900
Canon EF 70-200 IS f2.8 L II -- $2500
Canon EF 28-300 IS f3.5-5.6 L -- $2400
Canon EF 35 f1.4 L -- $1,350
Canon EF 50 f1.2 L -- $1,500
Canon EF 85 f1.2 L -- $2,000
Canon EF 135 f2 L -- $1,000
Canon EF 200 f2 L -- $750
Canon EF 300 f4 IS L -- $1,250
Canon EF 400 f5.6 IS L -- $1,250
Canon EF 400 f2.8 IS L -- $7,000
Canon EF 500 f4 IS L -- $6000
Canon EF 300 f4 IS L -- $1,250
I’d say most regular zoom lens are under $600 except for the ones with wide aperture of f.28.
Camera becomes cheaper and cheaper. For about $800, you can buy an entry level DSLR with a kit lens. It is good for most casual use. I don’t believe that the price of professional equipment is meant for purchase by most consumers.
With weight concern
Most L lens are very heavy. They use quality materials and are designed to be durable. The Canon 24-70 and 70-200 L lens I have weight about 3 lb each. If they are attached to my Canon 1DS mark II and a canon speedlite 550ex, you will have about 10 lb in your hand. I usually end up having sore hand and arm after a half day of shooting. In addition, the gear bag I carry around weights about 30 lbs when fully loaded. You do need some muscle to use professional gears for an extended time such as a wedding. On the other hand, most regular lenses are less than 1.5lb, which make them a lot easier to be held.
When you make your purchase decision, how you are to use your equipment should be the biggest deciding factor. Don’t just buy a cheap lens if you’d like to shoot sports for your kid’s football league because you will not be able to capture the motion. It is not necessary to spend thousands of dollars for a lens that’s going to sit in a closet with out being used. Of course, if money is not an issue, buy the most expensive one that you can afford. Better lens always has better potential of producing nicer images. Remember, lens and cameras are just tools. Good gears in good hands can create stunning art works.
If you have comments or questions regarding your lens purchase, feel free to drop me an email. I will do my best to answer your questions.
For my works that’s created by Canon L lens, you can visit my website for sample images
www.aperturephotoart.com
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Choose DSLR or Point And Shoot Camera
Before I became a professional photographer, I did not have much knowledge of cameras and their accessories. I mostly used point and shoot camera to take photos and set everything to auto for simplified operation. I thought my pictures were okay for most occasions until the day I received my order of Canon 20D. Though that camera is a product of year 2004, it is still a very useful tool for me today.
There are huge differences between the little point and shoot cameras and DSLRs. I’m just highlighting some key differences.
1. Image quality.
DSLRs have much better images quality over the point and shoot camera. I’ve owned Sony P-1, Canon PowerShot SD400, and Canon SD870. All of these little guys capture good images only to some extend. When compare an images side by side with ones taken from my Canon 20D, you will notice the differences. Photos are much sharper from Canon 20D. The other DSLR I have also produce awesome image qualities especially the pro level cameras.
2. Responsiveness & Performance.
Point and shoot cameras are not designed to be fast and responsive. Lots of time, the images were taken a couple of seconds after the shutter was pressed. This increases the chances of missing important moments. It is especially true for candid shots. Most of the recent DSLRs can start and operate instantly. Shutter lags are only one tenth of a second or better.
There is no comparison of continuous shooting capability between DSLRs and point and shoot camera. While pro level DSLR, such as Canon 1D series can records up to 10 images per second, most of point and shoot cameras struggle to get 2 or less images in a second. There is no substitute of using DSLRs in a sports event.
3. Interchangeable lens
All the point of shoot camera has only one build in lens; thus limiting its ability to shoot at varying focal length. Although some of the DSLR like point and shoot camera can reach 10x zoom, drawbacks of the image quality and performance cannot be overcome. Large lens selections are available for DSLRs of all major camera brands. You can choose the lens to suit your needs. You may buy budget line lens at beginning, and gradually switch to more expensive lens when your skills improve and shooting style change. At the time of camera upgrade, the lens you’ve accumulated in years are still useable.
4. Easy of use
This is the area that point and shoot camera may have the upper hand. Complex menu setting and control system can easily scare camera novices away. My mom was never a fan of my DSLRs, and thought they were not designed for seniors like her. She is much happier with the little Canon SD400 for its simplicity. Only a click of a button, she got the image taken.
5. Cost and weight
When you have a better product, you normally expect to pay more. This is true too when it comes to camera. DSLRs are generally much better built with better components and software. While price range of majority of the point and shoot cameras is between $100-$500, DSLRs can cost up to $8000 for the top pro model. My workhorse Canon 1Ds Mark II and Canon 1Ds Mark I Cost $8000 when they were first released. When added with pro lens, flashes, and other accessories, the equipment cost can reach $15,000-20,000 easily. Pro level cameras are definitely not someone’s toy. Their hefty price tag can only be justified if they are put to commercial use to make money for their owners. With the sagging economy, plenty of photographers are struggle just to recover their equipment investment.
My camera bag weights about 30-40 lbs when fully loaded with camera and lens. Carrying that bag around should for several hours wear me out quickly. Some of the point and shoot camera, such as Sony TX series can easily slip into your shirt pocket.
I hope that I’ve summarized the major differences between DSLR and point and shoot cameras. Which one to purchase will be determined by how you want to use it. If you have specific questions regarding a model, please feel free to drop me an email. I will do my best to answer your questions when I’m free. You can also look at the images on my website to get some feel about what pro camera can create.
www.aperturephotoart.com.
There are huge differences between the little point and shoot cameras and DSLRs. I’m just highlighting some key differences.
1. Image quality.
DSLRs have much better images quality over the point and shoot camera. I’ve owned Sony P-1, Canon PowerShot SD400, and Canon SD870. All of these little guys capture good images only to some extend. When compare an images side by side with ones taken from my Canon 20D, you will notice the differences. Photos are much sharper from Canon 20D. The other DSLR I have also produce awesome image qualities especially the pro level cameras.
2. Responsiveness & Performance.
Point and shoot cameras are not designed to be fast and responsive. Lots of time, the images were taken a couple of seconds after the shutter was pressed. This increases the chances of missing important moments. It is especially true for candid shots. Most of the recent DSLRs can start and operate instantly. Shutter lags are only one tenth of a second or better.
There is no comparison of continuous shooting capability between DSLRs and point and shoot camera. While pro level DSLR, such as Canon 1D series can records up to 10 images per second, most of point and shoot cameras struggle to get 2 or less images in a second. There is no substitute of using DSLRs in a sports event.
3. Interchangeable lens
All the point of shoot camera has only one build in lens; thus limiting its ability to shoot at varying focal length. Although some of the DSLR like point and shoot camera can reach 10x zoom, drawbacks of the image quality and performance cannot be overcome. Large lens selections are available for DSLRs of all major camera brands. You can choose the lens to suit your needs. You may buy budget line lens at beginning, and gradually switch to more expensive lens when your skills improve and shooting style change. At the time of camera upgrade, the lens you’ve accumulated in years are still useable.
4. Easy of use
This is the area that point and shoot camera may have the upper hand. Complex menu setting and control system can easily scare camera novices away. My mom was never a fan of my DSLRs, and thought they were not designed for seniors like her. She is much happier with the little Canon SD400 for its simplicity. Only a click of a button, she got the image taken.
5. Cost and weight
When you have a better product, you normally expect to pay more. This is true too when it comes to camera. DSLRs are generally much better built with better components and software. While price range of majority of the point and shoot cameras is between $100-$500, DSLRs can cost up to $8000 for the top pro model. My workhorse Canon 1Ds Mark II and Canon 1Ds Mark I Cost $8000 when they were first released. When added with pro lens, flashes, and other accessories, the equipment cost can reach $15,000-20,000 easily. Pro level cameras are definitely not someone’s toy. Their hefty price tag can only be justified if they are put to commercial use to make money for their owners. With the sagging economy, plenty of photographers are struggle just to recover their equipment investment.
My camera bag weights about 30-40 lbs when fully loaded with camera and lens. Carrying that bag around should for several hours wear me out quickly. Some of the point and shoot camera, such as Sony TX series can easily slip into your shirt pocket.
I hope that I’ve summarized the major differences between DSLR and point and shoot cameras. Which one to purchase will be determined by how you want to use it. If you have specific questions regarding a model, please feel free to drop me an email. I will do my best to answer your questions when I’m free. You can also look at the images on my website to get some feel about what pro camera can create.
www.aperturephotoart.com.
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