IGX

What are you going to use this for? These are great lenses (engineering marvels), but their practical use is pretty limited to specific applications outisde of compensating for a small dick.

Fashion? Glamour? Captive wildlife photography?

Don't get touchy.

I've used previous incarnations of this lens over a decade ago. The point is that for most people, this lens is simply jewelry.

Fixed lenses and a little bit of moving your body back and forth is more instructive and will get better photos than someone standing in one spot and zooming in and out. The fixed lenses are cheaper, higher quality, and faster.

Pros and serious amatuers can use zooms to good end. My question was why you bought this one.

Relax.

I used this lens for sometime:

http://www.amazon.com/Leica-Noctilux-M- ... B00009XW3A

Believe it or not, Leica has managed to make a 0.95 lens:

http://gizmodo.com/5048115/leicas-11000 ... our-camera

I believe Stanley Kubrik comissioned from Leica ~ 0.75 lens once.

The Canon 1.0 50mm is a great lens.

In any case, the worst case scenario with the fancy lenses is that if you take care of them you will get most your money back. With the Leicas, you will probably get more once they are out of production.

Jack wrote:This lens is widely used for wedding and portrait plus glam so that's me. I also love street/urban photo-work and nature work, and my upcoming art show is nature themed. I mean man, this lens was made for ME. I it.

Long lenses make people look a lot prettier. Worst thing to do with a woman is to convince to her clothes off and shoot with a wide to medium focal length lens.

For my money Leica gives you great bokeh. The 50mm 1.0 Canon does a pretty wonderful job at that as well, if you buy into the fact that bokeh is anything other than BS.

Jack, I cannot recommend that the 1.2 50mm for the Canon more highly. It is sick. Beautiful lens. Head and shoulders above the 1.4. It definitely gives the Leica a run for its money at a 1/9 of the cost.

The 85 1.2 is equally amazing.

The Canon is only around $1200 or so. I have never spoken with a Canon guy who regretted the purchase.

The only problem is getting focus at 1.2 or so. The DoP is so small that most folks have to focus it manually. My eyes can't do that with a ground glass focusing screen. But portraits are very amazing. You can focus on the eye and the tips of most folks eye lashes will out of the DoP.

Needless to say, that in low light it performs amazingly. Again the lack of a rear floating element makes the lens difficult to focus at larger f-stops.

How is the eye relief on the camera body you use? When I had an SLR, I always used a Nikon simply for the eye relief.

If I had a Canon the 1.2 50mm would the lens I would shoot 90% of my "candid" stuff.

Someday you might want to consider the a cheap RF body that can mount wide Leica lenses (16-24mm). Voigtlander makes some interesting stuff. You would relegated to film, but it is fun to work with such a wide lens, especially in interiors.

BTW IMHO, the most important piece of photo EQ is a decent tripod, monopod, and ballhead.

Number of pixels, lenses, film whatever can't make up for movement.

I even would use a monopod with my 70's and 80's disposable Canon RFs when I would do urban stuff for the local newspaper. The monopod got stuff I never would have and serves as deterent to would be criminals and acts as a decent weapon.

FWIW.

Canon EF 16-35mm f2.8L II USM

Any thoughts about this one here. I am planning to buy a new Canon for myself and I am just thinking, what are the best two lenses at the beginning. This one Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM is the "other one".

Thanks Jack. That 200mm is the one to have but I was thinking a good basic lens. Once you get a good one you don't have to buy too many lenses........

D-O-B wrote:Thanks Jack. That 200mm is the one to have but I was thinking a good basic lens. Once you get a good one you don't have to buy too many lenses........

You sound like your planning a long trip..with some wildlife photography thrown in.

That is my "main goal" for 2009. I am planning a very long and wild trip to somewhere very far. Lot of Iron and wildlife and tons of pic's. At the moment I am working very hard to be a better, even good photographer................... <<<<q

Jack. one more......



Canon EF 24-70/2,8 L USM