Advice..what lens

[davet4]

After a long wait I am finally going to do it and splash out on the 5dmkiii , but what lens should I go for ???. I know this question gets asked a lot, but hey, everyone is different and this is a hobby for me, so i do not make any money from my pic's and I want to choose the right lens. I generally take a mixture of pic,s landscapes, night shoots not so much sport or portrait stuff.

After splashing out on the body I will have a limited budget for a new lens. I have one of three in mind, either the 100mm macro usm(the older usm one) as this can double as a small zoom, the 50mm f1.4 or the 17-40 f4L

Now, I do have some old glass, from my old EOS 5 film days, a EF 35-135mm & a EF 100-300, I suppose this would be like putting a mini engine in a Ferrari, but will do until I can get more £££ together,

So out of the three...keeping mind the old glass....what would you suggest ???

 

[paul13walnut5]

The 17-40 is the most logical in terms of range.

Not a fast lens, wasn't stellar on my APS-C, and reviewed worse on full frame.

What about something with a faster aperture for the night stuff, say an off brand f2.8 zoom, or a canon prime?

Something like a 24mm f2.8 (non-IS perhaps if you can find one) or Tokina 16-28 f2.8, if you really want to go UWA!

 

[Eli]

Out of the three I'd get the 50mm 1.4 since you've already covered a large range of focal length with f4+ and something for lowlight would be useful, but why not get a 5d mkiii with 24-105 kit? Probably cost just a little tad more than buying it with a 17-40, and it's a great all rounder lens, and then save for a 50mm 1.4 after!

 

[AmbientLight]

I agree with Paul here. The 17-40mm should be your best choice.

For night shots f4 might not be ideal, but this lens will serve you quite well, if you shoot from a tripod or other supporting surface. For its price the 17-40mm is really a nice choice.

In case you would like to do hand-held night shots without having to venture into higher ISO ranges you might want to add a 24mm f1.4 prime later on, which should serve you fine for landscape shots as well.

 

[Loswr]

I'd get the 24-105L as a kit lens - it's the kit lens for very good reasons.

 

[crasher8]

As someone who has the Mk3 and all of the lenses you mentioned I would go with the 50. Just to have the classic normal on an amazing body, a fast lens at that as well. Shoot with the prime to learn the body since the lens will have a very small curve. Then I'd get the 24-105.

 

[rpt]

I'd get the 24-105L as a kit lens - it's the kit lens for very good reasons.

+1000
You can save money by buying it as a kit lens. Very versatile. I love it. I don't have the money for the 24-70 f2.8 or I would have got that. @davet4, like you it is a hobby for me too. Having said that, I then went on to get the 40mm pancake and the 100L macro in a span of 6 months. I had a 100-400 from before. You'll see. Glass accumulates...

 

[SPL]

I always think the Canon 50mm 1.4 is a great lens in your bag, and one to do a lot of photographic exercises and one to learn from. But,.. I have to agree with Neuro with 24-105mm f4L. I have one and use it quite a lot on my FF,..very versatile and great all around lens.

 

[bholliman]

I agree with those that recommend getting a kit with the 24-105 lens if possible.

Sounds like you might have already ordered the 5D3 body-only however. If that's the case, and you want to start out with an inexpensive general purpose lens, I'd recommend the 40mm pancake or 50 1.4. Both inexpensive and good for general use, decent for low light. Your older lenes will give you zoom options until you can upgrade those.

 

[davet4]

Thanks for all your great suggestions, as there is a lot to learn about the 5d, maybe the 50mm is the best option, I still have the old glass as a back up...and then save up for the better lens later......thanks again

 

[Marsu42]

I generally take a mixture of pic,s landscapes, night shoots not so much sport or portrait stuff.

For night shoots (w/o tripod that is) and f4 lens like the kit zoom isn't ideal, so I'd second the 50/1.4 option - but don't expect a stellar af system, it's only a micro usm and not a "real" ring usm.

Now, I do have some old glass, from my old EOS 5 film days, a EF 35-135mm & a EF 100-300, I suppose this would be like putting a mini engine in a Ferrari, but will do until I can get more £££ together,

Until a week ago, I shot with a 90s 28-105 usm lens which was surprisingly ok when stopped down to f8 and not pixel peeping - but with my old 100-300 usm lens the age really showed and cropping from 100 is better than zooming to 300 on the 18mp sensor unless you're only shooting for web size :-o

However I can't help it: The general advice is lens over body, and if you really think about putting these lenses on a 5d3 you should probably re-think about your camera body decision and go for a 6d - esp. since you wrote you don't shoot sports, and that's what the 5d3/1dx af is for.

 

[gary]

Absolutely the 24-105 as a kit with the mkiii. I did it this way and have not looked back an excellent lens with great versatility. The price will fall well within your range on todays prices.