Which Prime Lens to compliment the 5d Mark iii with Kit Lens?

[Cptn Rigo]

The 'slow' AF is way over-rated and talked about by those who don't actually shoot with it. I regularly use it with the 1dIV and 5d3 to shoot indoor volleyball and while hit rate is lower than 70-200, it is definitely usable for fast-action (if you have any sense of timing and are willing to shoot mulitple frames).
As for its' portraiture value, it is unsurpassed in sharpness, even wide open if you place your focus point properly.

As to the OP's original 'prime' question, since he has the 24-104 range covered, I'd cast my vote (again) to the 135...

+ 1

The 135L is Unreal

 

[Waterdonkey]

The Guy on Digitalrev.com does a good video about this. He does however come at the question from a very different angle. That is to say less technical point of view then some of the replies above. I'm not making fun of any one- it's just that he (he's called Kai) talks about how the lens feels and how 50mm is a kind of natural field of view on a FF camera. If I had any real computer skills I would leave the specific URL here, but you know google Digitalrev.com and 50mm and theirs are among the first videos come up.

 

[wickidwombat]

The Guy on Digitalrev.com does a good video about this. He does however come at the question from a very different angle. That is to say less technical point of view then some of the replies above. I'm not making fun of any one- it's just that he (he's called Kai) talks about how the lens feels and how 50mm is a kind of natural field of view on a FF camera. If I had any real computer skills I would leave the specific URL here, but you know google Digitalrev.com and 50mm and theirs are among the first videos come up.

this one?
5 Reasons Why You Need a 50mm lens

 

[wickidwombat]

more here

Battle of the Fast 50mm's: Canon f/1.8 vs f/1.4 vs f/1.2
Battle of the Bokeh: Canon 50mm f/1.4 vs Sigma 50mm f/1.4
Battle of the Bokeh: Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D vs Canon 50mm f/1.8 II

 

[Waterdonkey]

Yes those!
Thank you Kindly wickidwombat

 

[TC1006]

Thanks to all for the suggestions. I received my 5D3 last week with the 24-105 kit lens, 50 1.4, and the 135L. I have to admit, I've been a little intimidated by the camera's AutoFocus system especially coming from the 40D. I've been reading the manual and hopefully get better by practicing.

 

[RLPhoto]

Hi All,
I am looking to take advantage of the double rebates going on with Canon Lenses and was looking for a good prime to compliment the 5D3 with the 24-105L. I am switching from a 40D with a 17-55 2.8 to the 5D3. I also have a 50 1.8 which I thought was a bit narrow on a cropped sensor body for some of the indoor shots I was doing.

I was looking at the 35L, 50L, or the 85L. Ideally i'd like to have them all, but is there one that is a better lens than the others? I've heard many people rave about the 50 1.2L.

I will mostly be shooting pics of my daughter and family. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Thank You,
SMG

Edited: Changed 50 1.8 from wide to narrow.

I Chose the 50L and 135L for FF camera. The 85L and 135L are simliar in look and performance but the 135L is 1000$ cheaper.

The 50L has a unique look that isnt found on any other 50mm's for SLRs. Its great.

 

[bdunbar79]

Go cheap and get the nifty 50 (50 f/1.8 II). It's so cheap it won't strap you and stopped down it's razor sharp. The 50 f/1.4 is better, and more expensive, but still cheap ($360ish). When I first bought my 5D Mark II a few years ago I had the 24-105L kit lens and picked up a quick nifty fifty. I didn't regret it. Of course as my photography expanded, my lens selection got significantly more expensive. But here you have nothing to lose. Purchasing the 50L you are doing a serious investment. You can get many other primes that are very sharp stopped down for that price. If you need 50mm wider than f/2, the 50L makes sense. But if you're shooting above f/2.8, any of the primes at 50 f/1.4 or f/1.8, 85 f/1.8, 100 f/2 are great. My recommendation is to not go expensive first. Of course, there's always the new 40mm pancake lens.