I would get a 50mm. Hope Tamron would launch a 50mm similar to the recent 35mm f/1,4 sooooooon.
Upvote
0
Thanks for sharing your love for 135/f2! i have misrepresented my situation in the opening post as I do in fact have the 135/2 and love it for basically the same reasons and wouldn’t part with it unless I switched brands. Thankfully it is so much more affordable than the modern L primes. However I’m also interested in trying out a modern, well corrected lens as I don’t have any that fit that description at the moment. In that sense a 50 would pair better with the 135 than an 85mm, but still leaning towards the idea of the f2 zoom.Since you have clarified that it doesn't have to be an RF prime, I'd say the L prime I'd hate to be without the most is my EF 135mm f/2L.
It has a look none of my other lenses, prime or zoom, have.
Yes, it is the cheapest L prime ever.
Yes, it's more than a little long in the tooth.
Yes, there are other lenses in the short to medium telephoto range that score significantly better shooting flat test charts at relatively close distances.
But I don't desire a lens that can let me be the best flat test chart shooter in the world.
I desire more a lens that renders a three dimensional world the way the EF 135mm f/2L does.
Correcting the field of focus to be flat enough to score well all the way to the edges and the corners of a flat test chart seems to mean giving up the smoothest rendering of out of focus areas. Just look at the EF 85mm f/1.4L IS and see that Canon's designers sold its soul in order for it to perform better shooting flat test charts than the EF 85mm f/1.2L II. But where is the rendering of out of focus areas that the EF 85mm f/1.2L II can give (even when stopped down to f/1.4 or narrower)?
Thanks for sharing your love for 135/f2! i have misrepresented my situation in the opening post as I do in fact have the 135/2 and love it for basically the same reasons and wouldn’t part with it unless I switched brands. Thankfully it is so much more affordable than the modern L primes. However I’m also interested in trying out a modern, well corrected lens as I don’t have any that fit that description at the moment. In that sense a 50 would pair better with the 135 than an 85mm, but still leaning towards the idea of the f2 zoom.
It’s still fun hearing (and helpful to hear) what people would choose if they could only have one high-end lens.
I agree - it's a tough decision but 85mm would be my choice too - ideal portraits, can crop to 70-200 equivalent and use panorams for wider angle static landscapes ...Been thinking about pulling the trigger on the RF 85 as there is a sale on here in Australia. Although it is a focal length I would use I’m hesitant because to be honest, as expensive as they are I can probably only afford one RF L prime. I shoot primes mostly and can’t afford to shell out for the whole set when they all come out.
I realise everyone’s use case is different (mine is primarily nightscapes and family/portrait) but was curious if anyone had thoughts on this (and whether it is a lens that is released in RF yet or not)
Thanks!
If that's your reason, it's the 1200mm f/5.6 to give you more $$.A 800mm f/5.6 (and sell it to get some other Primes instead )
I would choose 85 for everything portrait, I have the 50 also, and for close ups , it’s just wrong. But, I couldn’t live with only 85 and no 50. Those are my only two lenses and work excellent together.Sorry for the confusion, post could have been clearer for sure. Not that it matters at this point but the Idea was you may want/need a handful of lenses to cover your use case, but if you could only afford one really high end prime lens, like a pricey new RF lens, what would it be. And why- which I didn’t put in the post.
Didn't know there was oneIf that's your reason, it's the 1200mm f/5.6 to give you more $$.
Photo from TDP https://www.the-digital-picture.com/Pictures/Picture.aspx?Picture=2009-03-31_17-06-04Didn't know there was one
I second that at once.I sold all of my L primes except for my 100L. ...
I guess 100L is my answer...
$180,000 https://petapixel.com/2015/04/28/bh-is-selling-a-used-canon-1200mm-f5-6l-lens-for-just-180000/That's some serious looking glass (and metal) Don't even want to think about the price
IS isn’t used when on tripods so are you thinking of hand holding?...and not even IS
The joke insinuated that, yesIS isn’t used when on tripods so are you thinking of hand holding?
I am not arguing with anyone who can hand hold that monster.The joke insinuated that, yes