Best lens for night time parades

[Luvscrappin]

I have a canon 70D and was wondering what everyone uses for the night time parades at WDW. We went last Christmas and I rented the sigma 18-35 1.8. I got some pretty good shots, but wondering what everyone else uses. We will be there for the Halloween party this year and hopefully Christmas as well.

 

[WilsonFlyer]

Canon 70-200 2.8 v.1.

 

[elmoandzoey]

70-200 really? I can imagine that would work well from far or if you just want closeups but how would you be able to get a complete float in your shot with that? I've used a 17-50 f2.8 and found it pretty handy for nighttime parades if I set the ISO accordingly. I might try my 10-22 next time with a higher ISO setting just because I found 17mm to bee a bit too tight at some instances.

 

[havoc315]

Depends on the shots you want to get. A 70-200 can be great to get detail of the participants and floats. On full frame at 70, it would be wide enough to get the context... But yes, you won't get a whole big float.
A more standard 24-70 works better for getting in more of the whole parade, though some may find those shots less interesting.
I would not use ultrawide -- ultrawide puts you much too distant, unless you are literally inches away from your subject.
Aperture really isn't a huge issue. The parade is all lights.... Faster aperture doesn't hurt but really isn't critical.

 

[elmoandzoey]

On fullframe, I can see where 70 would be good for close up. Pretty much what 55 would get you on a crop. 70-200 on a crop would be really just shooting close up. I guess that is where preference really comes in. The ones below were done at 55mm. Going to 70mm on a crop would have gotten me just heads


Jimmeny Cricket @ Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade by jagwriter78, auf Flickr


Peter and Wendy @ Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade by jagwriter78, auf Flickr

 

[WilsonFlyer]

70-200 really? I can imagine that would work well from far or if you just want closeups but how would you be able to get a complete float in your shot with that? I've used a 17-50 f2.8 and found it pretty handy for nighttime parades if I set the ISO accordingly. I might try my 10-22 next time with a higher ISO setting just because I found 17mm to bee a bit too tight at some instances.

If I'm shooting a parade for serious shots, I'm shooting from the balcony at the train station on a pod. If I'm shooting curbside for fun, I usually opt for my 24-104 f4L. I shoot FF on a 6D most of the time in the parks, though I take my A6000 or 70D on occasion (especially at AK on the crop).

I tend to disagree with the assessment above about the lack of need for aperture in nighttime parades. To me, 2.8 is almost a necessity.

The tag line is NIGHTtime parades. Did I miss something?

 

[elmoandzoey]

Okay, shooting from the balcony it makes sense to use a zoom lens. I've only ever shot curbside hence I was a bit flabbergasted by the 70-200 suggestion. I guess we should add where we shoot from when making lens suggestions And you are right, the OP was asking about nighttime parades. I just recently shot the new DL parade and for that you really do not need f2.8. Everything is so damn brightly lit, you will do ok with a kit lens. For Electrical, Christmas or Halloween parade, I'd take a 2.8 for sure. I shot it with a kit lens once and was not satisfied with the result at all. However, depending on your camera, you may be able to make up for the smaller aperture with a higher ISO setting.

 

[mom2rtk]

OP, my favorite lens ever for night parades was the Canon 17-55 f/2.8 IS. I used that on my T2i at ISO 3200. I would have loved to go higher but that was just too much on that camera.

The holiday parades are a mixed bag. Some floats have lighting, some do not. So even a 2.8 will be challenged to get the job done.

My greatest success to date has been with the Tamron 24-70 f/2.8 IS on my 6D with ISO at 6400.

A Christmas Fantasy by mom2rtk, on Flickr

 

[Luvscrappin]

Thanks for all the great replies! I do own the 17-55mm f/2.8 so maybe I'll just go with that. I can't wait to see what I can do with this combo!

 

[mom2rtk]

What is the top ISO you are happy shooting with on the 70D? If you can't go over 3200 and be happy with the results, there will be parts of the parade that frustrate you at 2.8. But there will be others that turn out great.

Something you can do is find a well lit position along the parade route. If I'm not mistaken there are spots on top of some of the buildings? Regardless there will be some walking characters that will be a challenge regardless.

Another option is to add a flash with the exposure compensation dialed down quite a bit, although you'll get opinions on both sides of that issue.

 

[WilsonFlyer]

The 17-55 2.8 curbside on a crop 70D will be a winner. How do I know? I've shot parades with that lens on that camera at night.

Part of the challenge here is that we (I) didn't realize you already had that lens. That lens would be an "L" lens if it weren't for it being a crop lens (EF-S). It is probably the singularly BEST value in the entire Canon lineup for crop lenses. That lens is just a winner. Period.

The only problem with the 17-55 is that it doesn't have any reach, but it's not built for that. Curbside, you will be FINE. Enjoy.

As far as ISO 3200 on the 70D? The 70D shoots 3200 like 100, with EASE. You'll be hard-pressed to find anything wrong even pixel peeping. Throw that bad boy on Aperture Priority and set it to 2.8 and have at it.

 

[Luvscrappin]

I am so looking forward to using my 17-55 2.8 on my 70D this year for both trips and the parades. It's awesome when you find out you already have exactly what you need Thanks for all your input and advice on settings!