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portrait lens for canon
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Hi everyone, I am new here and I’m a beginner. I have three questions :) so far :) I hope you could help me.
1. I am looking to buy a portrait lens for my canon 1000d. I don’t want it to be too expensive, but I still want a good quality one. I wonder could you recommend one that is very good and not too dear ? Even though I don’t want to spend lot of money on it, I would rather pay more and have a very good lens than pay less and have a good lens :) If you know what I mean.
2. I’ve read somewhere that sigma lenses can be cheaper but the quality is not as good as canon. Is this true ? Is there a visible difference in picture quality ?
3. This question might sound silly, but I wonder how did you get used to shooting pictures with a tripod. I mean did you not feel kind of embarrassed first when you tried to unfold your tripod on the street ? As if everyone was staring at you ?
looking forward to your answers and suggestions :)
Kristina
Consider the Canon EF 50 mm f1.8. On your camera it will be equivalent to 80 mm. This should be fine for portraits. They cost about £90 in the UK.
Sigma lenses are pretty good if you are on a limited budget. In general Canon lenses would be better but there is no reason why you should not buy Sigma.
Not many people use tripods in the street unless they are taking architecture shots. Tripods tend to be used for landscapes/seascapes in remote places or portraits in a studio.
Cheers.
John
Hi Kristina welcome to the site, I am not a Canon user so cant really comment
on their lenses, but I do use Sigma lenses and find them excellent value for money
and also very good quality, but as John said the 50mm lenses in all brands are
generally very good value! As to the tripod question………well if using a tripod
means a better picture who cares who’s looking? If you feel a little shy, bring
a friend along or go out with a group once you have used it in public a couple of
times you wont think twice about it.I’d second the Canon 50mm f1.8. You should be able to pick one up for under €100. Watch the adverts here or over on adverts.ie. For a bit more money consider the 100mm f2.8 lens, which will double up for macro work.
Regarding tripods, they are often not necessary for street shots unless long exposure times are required. A happy medium for shots on dim days is a monopod – a single leg that is easier to carry, less intrusive and can allow you to hold the camera at eye height.
However, as a beginner, I’d strongly recommend learning how to adjust aperture and ISO settings to help you shoot hand held by shortening the exposure times. Additionally, developing good practice for holding the camera steady while shooting will help greatly. I’d stringly getting a book from the library (I find Tom Ang good) and asking questions here, particularily with example photo’s posted.
b318isp thanks for the advice !
I did an introductory photography course couple weeks ago but to be honest it is still a bit confusing for me… I am starting another one in September, so I am hoping to get better and gain some more knowledge :) What book would you recommend ? I was already looking for one on the Amazon but there’s so many of them…also I’m wondering when you were learning the basics of photography what did you practise on ?
I would not recommend any one book (although there is a book on exposure that is regularly recommended around here), as said, I find Tom Ang’s stuff very good. Going to a library is cheaper and you can sample a variety of books to suit what you want from them.
For me, nothing beats some hands on practice. Set your camera to Av and practice shooting, say, a single flower head against a more distant background – varying the aperture as you go. Shoot f4, f8 and f16 to see the difference. This alone will be a great starter to learn what these numbers mean and the consequential effects of depth of field.
After that, I’d then learn about ISO settings (easy), followed by learning about exposures (harder). Those three elements will give you a good foundation, but learn one thing at a time.
By all means, post pics and ask questions. If you see a picture posted by someone, do ask about how it was taken.
thanks for that you are very good !! I really appreciate it. .. btw I love your photos.
If you see any picture of mine and want to find out how it was taken, or what settings were used or why, then you either ask directly on the post or on Flickr. I’d be only too happy to reply.
Hi Kristina. Welcome to the site. As for using a tripod in the street, I don’t usually use one, but if people stare at you if doing so, they are usually under the impression that you know more about taking good quality photographs than they do. :D As for practicing technique, just shoot plenty and as b318isp suggested, experiment with the settings. I saw a great virtual camera site on the internet lately, which shows visually how different apertures etc effect the photos results. Not sure where I found it, but will try to find the link for it again and will post it if successful.
Hi Kristina. Just found that link http://www.camerasinteractive.com/virtual_camera/main.htm Very handy to use on rainy days. :lol:
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