Spectro

[Lizziejane]

Which lens would you recommend for shooting Spectro - a 24-70 F2.8, or a 50 F1.4?

This is supposed to be a vacation, but I'm freaking out about "missing" shots I really want!

 

[disneyboy2003]

Which lens would you recommend for shooting Spectro - a 24-70 F2.8, or a 50 F1.4?

This is supposed to be a vacation, but I'm freaking out about "missing" shots I really want!

Can't you just bring both? That 50mm f/1.4 lens is small enough to fit in your pocket, purse, or backpack. That way, if you're not getting enough light with the 24-70mm lens, you can easily switch it out to the 50mm lens.

 

[ukcatfan]

I have shot it a couple times at 50mm, and it does seem a little tight. If you can position yourself at a curve where you have a large unobstructed distance to the floats, it becomes more manageable. Also, remember that f/1.4 is not very forgiving on DOF.

 

[Lizziejane]

yeah, I'm worried about the 50 being too tight, and the shallow DOF. I guess my question should have been, is F2.8 fast enough to shoot spectro without flash? Or does anyone even shoot a parade like that with flash?

 

[scoot241]

I used my 30mm f/1.4, so out of the two I would pick the 50mm f/1.4. I shot at ISO 800 with the 30mm, and I was getting apertures of 2.0-2.8 or so with -2/3 exposure compensation at 1/50 of a second. (I was using shutter priority). I do think it's possible to shoot Spectro with the 24-70mm, but the 50mm will give you more room to work aperture-wise.

 

[AndrewWG]

I haev shot Spectro with both the 30mm 1.4 and the 50mm 1.8. I certainly enjoyed the wider angle photos over the super tight 50mm. I am sure that you know, but i was thinking at the time that I could just sit back a bit and use the 50mm. HaHa! You can't sit back a bit at a Disney parade. If you do, you are 3 or 4 people from the street at that time. Oh well, lesson learned.

All of that just to say, I would give the 24-70 a try first and quickly switch to the 50 if you find you arent getting enough shutter speed.

 

[Lizziejane]

Ok, so I will try the 24-70 first, but have the 50 on hand.

Now don't anyone laugh at me, but...I have ALWAYS avoided changing lenses out in the open. I have a fear of sudden wind gusts and junk blowing onto the sensor. In three years, I've never changed a lens outdoors! Am I being overly paranoid?!

 

[AndrewWG]

Ok, so I will try the 24-70 first, but have the 50 on hand.

Now don't anyone laugh at me, but...I have ALWAYS avoided changing lenses out in the open. I have a fear of sudden wind gusts and junk blowing onto the sensor. In three years, I've never changed a lens outdoors! Am I being overly paranoid?!

In a word... Yes. I think so anyways. I change lenses outside all the time. However, I am as careful as I can be to avoid windy areas or block the wind as much as possible.

 

[Groucho]

Re: changing lenses outside... I tend to turn my back to the wind, but the main thing is that I have the new lens in one hand while removing the lens with the other hand, so the amount of time that the lens mount is exposed is, oh, usually around half a second or less. It's also nice to have the mount pointed downwards a little, so that gravity is on your side.

As for Spectro... definitely the 50mm! That gives you a full two extra stops of light, the difference between shooting at 1/25th and 1/100th. You can shoot it with an F2.8 but I think you'll have lots of blurry shots and/or very high ISOs. I didn't find 50mm on a crop body to be all that bad; of course I haven't made a serious attempt to shoot it in a few trips but when I did, it was with a 50mm F1.4 and I was very happy with the results (and I think they still hold up nicely.)