Canon 16-35/4L IS. It's as sure as death by 16 ton weight, and as perfect as a lens can be. It's impossible for this lens to fluff up; if I don't get the shot, it's my own fault. More so than with any other lens.
Canon 24/1.4L II. Do I need this lens? (which cost me over $1000 to buy new) No. Do I love to shoot with it? Hell yes. Even though it's finicky to focus in difficult light conditions (where the aforementioned 16-35 is so sure-footed that it's scary; unfortunately, that one does not do f/1.4 or even f/1.8 - the latter being my preferred aperture when I'm shooting with the 24 as the aberrations are reined in some).
Canon 70-200/2.8L IS. It's been my go-to lens for over 8 years now, and though I also own a Tamron 70-300/4-5.6 now, the Canon is still my default choice of a telephoto lens. Even so, lately I've been thinking of replacing it with a second version or even some manner of a 100-400/4.5-5.6, but either way I lack the resources to do that.
Sigma 14/2.8. This is a deeply flawed lens (soft at edges until stopped way down, flares too easily, the AF is again pretty erratic in bad light - the latter makes it my "spray and pray" lens more so than any other. But I love the output and while I don't whip it out every day, it made me some very memorable keepers. I've been keeping it for 6,5 years despite its shortcomings - that must be saying something.
That about concludes the tour of my lens shelf, by the way. Whatever I didn't like, I jettisoned one way or another. The Tamron is along for the ride... for now, and I also own a 50/1.8 II that is impossible to sell anyway. I guess my lineup would have been pretty standard for a journalistic cannon fodder 6 or 8 years ago (though with a different 16-35); not so now because everyone and their grandma are now shooting full frame cameras, and that demands a standard zoom more than a wide-angle one, so most people switched to 24-70 of some sort. I can admit that I never owned one.
And yes - I don't remember any lenses in the past that I regret not owning anymore. Maybe because my Minolta system was put together so haphazardly, and after I switched to Canon I've been steadily building up, not winding down.
Canon 24/1.4L II. Do I need this lens? (which cost me over $1000 to buy new) No. Do I love to shoot with it? Hell yes. Even though it's finicky to focus in difficult light conditions (where the aforementioned 16-35 is so sure-footed that it's scary; unfortunately, that one does not do f/1.4 or even f/1.8 - the latter being my preferred aperture when I'm shooting with the 24 as the aberrations are reined in some).
Canon 70-200/2.8L IS. It's been my go-to lens for over 8 years now, and though I also own a Tamron 70-300/4-5.6 now, the Canon is still my default choice of a telephoto lens. Even so, lately I've been thinking of replacing it with a second version or even some manner of a 100-400/4.5-5.6, but either way I lack the resources to do that.
Sigma 14/2.8. This is a deeply flawed lens (soft at edges until stopped way down, flares too easily, the AF is again pretty erratic in bad light - the latter makes it my "spray and pray" lens more so than any other. But I love the output and while I don't whip it out every day, it made me some very memorable keepers. I've been keeping it for 6,5 years despite its shortcomings - that must be saying something.
That about concludes the tour of my lens shelf, by the way. Whatever I didn't like, I jettisoned one way or another. The Tamron is along for the ride... for now, and I also own a 50/1.8 II that is impossible to sell anyway. I guess my lineup would have been pretty standard for a journalistic cannon fodder 6 or 8 years ago (though with a different 16-35); not so now because everyone and their grandma are now shooting full frame cameras, and that demands a standard zoom more than a wide-angle one, so most people switched to 24-70 of some sort. I can admit that I never owned one.
And yes - I don't remember any lenses in the past that I regret not owning anymore. Maybe because my Minolta system was put together so haphazardly, and after I switched to Canon I've been steadily building up, not winding down.