Which lens for which night time show and attractions

[ColleenS]

We leave in 2 days and suddenly I'm nervous about what lens to use where.



I'm particularly wondering about
Spectro
Wishes
Fantasmic
Illuminations
Dark rides
Primary walk around for the parks
Universal Studios


Here are the lenses I have:

Canon 24-70 2.8L
Canon 50 1.4
Canon 16-35 2.8L (rented this for the trip figure it would be good for shots of the castle and general atmosphere)
Tamaron 28-300 (I think it's 3.5 or something pretty high) I only use this lens when shooting soccer games and occasionally baseball. The only place I can see it being useful is at AK, even then it's slow, though I did get some decent shots on the Safari last time.

So what do you guys think? I really appreciate any opinions. I get nervous changing the lenses and don't want to do it too often at the parks.

 

[Anewman]

I would probably say that the Canon 24-70 2.8L can do all of the above reasonably well. With the 50mm filling in for dark rides and spectro, and the 300mm Zoom being best for the safari.

 

[Msslaydbug]

I am with the above poster. My favorite lens in the 24-70 2.8L

I don't have the 50 1.4 ( have the cheapy 1.8) but I also take this lens as well.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

What body will you be using?

I also agree that the 24-70 should be your walkaround lens. if you're using a 1.6x sensor body, I'd keep the 16-35 handy for wide shots.

As you suggested, I'd only bring the 28-300 for the AK and use it on the Safari and on the trails. It's probably f/6 at the long end, so I'd do the safari when there is a lot of light, not first thing in the morning or at the end of the day.

You'll probably be wanting for reach at Fantasmic! The 28-300 is too slow and the 24-70 is too short. I'd go with the 24-70 and be prepared to crop.

I think the 24-70 will be fine for Spectro. I would only use the 50 for dark rides.

 

[Groucho]

I would definitely recommend the 50mm F1.4 for Spectro. You give up two full stops with the F2.8 lens, and those are two stops that you'll probably going to need if you want to get really nice shots. (Some of my shots were ISO 1600, F1.4, and 1/90th shutter - at that point, there's nowhere left to go but into Blursville!) The 50mm is also a fairly good focal length for Spectro IMHO, though not wide enough to get entire floats if they're right in front of you.

With the 28-300mm, you may even want to use that only on the walking attractions at AK, and use the 28-70mm on the Safari, and go to ISO 400 or maybe 800 and a low-ish F-stop (F4 maybe); you may end up doing some cropping afterwards but chances are that the quality of the lens is superior enough that it will be worth it. Regardless, I think shutter priority is the way to go on the Safari ride (and that's not what I used last time ).

 

[Master Mason]

I just spent 2 days in DL, the 24-70 never left my the camera, I still have to process the shots, but Not once did I wish I had a wider lens, a couple of times I wished I had more reach. I left everything but the body and the 24-70 in the car. I just got it and wanted to see what I could do with it.

I will post some pics later tonight when I am done processing, right after I go take a nap, it was a long drive home.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

I would definitely recommend the 50mm F1.4 for Spectro. You give up two full stops with the F2.8 lens, and those are two stops that you'll probably going to need if you want to get really nice shots. (Some of my shots were ISO 1600, F1.4, and 1/90th shutter - at that point, there's nowhere left to go but into Blursville!) The 50mm is also a fairly good focal length for Spectro IMHO, though not wide enough to get entire floats if they're right in front of you.

I didn't remember it being that light. I just went back and looked at some old shots and you're right. I was shooting with a 17-40mm f/4 lens and I was wide open, at ISO 1600, and my shutter speeds were 1/180s, 1/180s, 1/90s, and 1/30s. Because the effective focal length was 27mm, they worked OK, but I'd have rather had them a bit faster. That's probably one reason why I had so few keepers.

I'm not sure that I'd like a 50mm lens, especially on a 1.6x body. I think I'd take my 24-70mm f/2.8, which would work out to 31-91 on my current body. Given the choice between f/2.8 and a good zoom range or an f/1.4 and a locked 80mm focal length, I'd chose the former. I suppose part of it would depend on what your parade viewing distance is and how likely you were to shoot your kids, who would presumably be very close to you.

Do you use a flash for Spectro? I'm thinking that next time I go, I'll probably use a flash but dial it down quite a bit. Most Spectro shots I see tend to either blow out the lights or lose the non-lit part of the subjects in the shadows. I think with just a bit of light thrown at the floats, you'd get better faces, costumes, and such.

 

[ColleenS]

Thanks guys, you have no idea how much I appreciate your imput

I'm printing this thread out so I have it for reference. I think with Spectro I'll play it by ear and know I may change the lens if the one isn't working.

I'll be sure to post my results when I get back!

 

[Groucho]

I'm not sure that you could dial down a flash in Spectro to keep the correct look that you see when watching it live. Everything is designed to be seen by only the lights that are on the floats and performers.

Some brighter floats might work fine with F2.8, but I think that several are going to need that extra light-gathering that you get with an F1.4 - for some shots, it's going to be the difference between getting the shot or so.

Now, a lens that's somewhere between 24-30mm that's an F1.8 or so, that might be able to do about as well while still getting wider photos. But you won't be able to get close to the performers.

I guess the ideal is to have three cameras ready, one with a 26mm or 28mm F1.8, one with a 50mm F1.4, and one with an 85mm F1.4. That should take care of it.