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Wide angle on a Canon full-frame
#1
Dear All



although I am not fond of these queries myself, I am still going to ask:



What would be a good general landscape/ street wide angle lens for a Canon full frame (5D mII) camera?



(a) Canon 24mm/F1.4

Praised on all forums and test, P-Zone test pointed out its limitations (f1.4-f2.8 mainly).

PROs: sweet in its sweet spots, built quality, Canon compatibility

CONs: price, limited wide-open performance



(<img src='http://forum.photozone.de/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/cool.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='B)' /> Canon 16mm-35mm/F2.8

PROs: versatile, price (given its versatility), decent performance in its sweet spots

CONs: not overly impresive image quality (as far as I can judge from P-Zone testing)



© Zeiss Distagon ZE T* 21mm f/2.8

PROs: good image quality

CONs: same price as Canon 24mm/F1.4 and worse (in most apestcs) image quality in same settings (apertures), no weather sealing



Just FYI, I am fond of primes and my set-up would be just WA lens + 70-200mm/f4 IS. Perhaps, if needed, I will carry also Canon 50mm/F1.4 that I already have.



Thanks for your comments,



Ed
#2
How much does the 2 stops matter to you?

How wide is wide enough for you?

How much does AF matters to you?

Why not consider the 17/4 TS and 24/3.5 II TS as well? While primarily targeted towards architecture photography, they can also be used for landscape photography.

For street photography most will opt for a 35mm lens on FF. How about you?



Note that the answers to these questions are very subjective. What is right for some may not be right for others. Also, what is your current WA lens and why do you want to replace it?



Welcome to PZ.
#3
Yakim, cheers for a swift reply. See my comments in the text:



[quote name='Yakim' timestamp='1281442474' post='1628']

How much does the 2 stops matter to you?



IMO the 2 stops would be nice, if the 24mm was 'well' usable wide open (which it is not really, amongothers while the bokeh is not too pleasing). They do matter, however, in view of the fact that a f1.4 lens is getting 'well' usable already at f2.8-3.5. Otherwise, high-ISO of the 5D mII is of more importance than the two stops.



How wide is wide enough for you?



24 mm on a FF



How much does AF matters to you?



It does, hyperfocal distance setting is not always viable and I am not sure I can effectively focus by hand (these days are long by <img src='http://forum.photozone.de/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='B)' />.



Why not consider the 17/4 TS and 24/3.5 II TS as well? While primarily targeted towards architecture photography, they can also be used for landscape photography.



Very interesting point - have not thought about a TS, mainly because of the price tag (& extra cost for 82 mm filter). I do some architecture as well so, generally, why not.



For street photography most will opt for a 35mm lens on FF. How about you?



I like a wider perspective BUT am not against having a 35 mm (all-round - landscape, streetscape, general indoors) + 70-200 mm (portraits + compressed landscape) setup.



Note that the answers to these questions are very subjective. What is right for some may not be right for others. Also, what is your current WA lens and why do you want to replace it?



None. Have been using 50 mm (exclusively) on a 1,6x crop factor for several years, training composition & having fun.



Thanks, Ed
#4
[quote name='edonir' timestamp='1281440182' post='1624']

(a) Canon 24mm/F1.4

CONs: price, limited wide-open performance

[/quote]



I got news for you... it's [url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/genotypewriter/4698284415"]better than the Nikon 24 1.4[/url] and doesn't have those [url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/digitalrev/4295926790"]ugly fringing issues[/url] the uber-expensive new wide Summiluxes have even after stopping down. So the 24LII is the best of its kind... but why do you care about the 1.4-2.8 performance if you're talking about landscapes?



If I'm big on 35mm FF landscapes I'd much rather go for either the TS-E 24LII or the TS-E 17L... how can you go wrong with either?



If it's a versatile solution that you want, then there's nothing better than the 24LII on Canon or the 24G on Nikon.



GTW
#5
Hi Ed,



I hope you don't mind, I have added some comments.

[quote name='edonir' timestamp='1281443504' post='1629']

Yakim, cheers for a swift reply. See my comments in the text:[/quote]



[quote name='Yakim' timestamp='1281442474' post='1628']

How much does the 2 stops matter to you?



IMO the 2 stops would be nice, if the 24mm was 'well' usable wide open (which it is not really, amongothers while the bokeh is not too pleasing). They do matter, however, in view of the fact that a f1.4 lens is getting 'well' usable already at f2.8-3.5. Otherwise, high-ISO of the 5D mII is of more importance than the two stops.

[/quote]

Well, I don't agree with you here. Bokeh, for a 24 mm lens, is actually very pleasing. You have to shoot low light and properly white balance your shots to really appreciate it however.



Regarding this lens not being usable at F/1.4 to F/2.8, again, this is internet myth, IMO spread by those who don't know how to use this lens. This lens was actually regarded the top in its (world) class even by 16:9.net, and we're talking the 24L Mk I here. The Mk II is even better. I don't think it gets any better at all in this class (fast 24 - 25 mm lenses), not even the Nikon 24 F/1.4G (although I probably get comments about the latter remark <img src='http://forum.photozone.de/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='B)' />; IMO they are probably about equally good, with a slight edge to the Canon I think).

Quote:How wide is wide enough for you?



24 mm on a FF



How much does AF matters to you?

It does, hyperfocal distance setting is not always viable and I am not sure I can effectively focus by hand (these days are long by <img src='http://forum.photozone.de/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='Big Grin' />.

Hyperfocal distance doen't really work too well on digital anyway, DoF is a little less than with film, and behaves differently. If you stop down far enough, it becomes feasible again, but not at wider apertures.

Quote:Why not consider the 17/4 TS and 24/3.5 II TS as well? While primarily targeted towards architecture photography, they can also be used for landscape photography.



Very interesting point - have not thought about a TS, mainly because of the price tag (& extra cost for 82 mm filter). I do some architecture as well so, generally, why not.

Obviously apertures aren't as wide, (F/4 for the 17 and F/3.5 for the 24), but IQ is unbeatable with these lenses. Nothing better in existence for dslrs, AFAIK. And if bokeh is important to you, the TS-Es actually have marvellous bokeh, at any f-stop. However, they are MF only, although with a 5D II and Eg-S focusing screen that is not a problem at all IME.



Quote:For street photography most will opt for a 35mm lens on FF. How about you?



I like a wider perspective BUT am not against having a 35 mm (all-round - landscape, streetscape, general indoors) + 70-200 mm (portraits + compressed landscape) setup.

35 mm is still WA on FF <img src='http://forum.photozone.de/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='Smile' />. Personally I prefer 50 mm for street and general photography, but as Yakim also said, these types of choices are very personal.



Quote:Note that the answers to these questions are very subjective. What is right for some may not be right for others. Also, what is your current WA lens and why do you want to replace it?



None. Have been using 50 mm (exclusively) on a 1,6x crop factor for several years, training composition & having fun.



Thanks, Ed


You should really try an 85L in that case.... <img src='http://forum.photozone.de/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='Big Grin' />



Kind regards, Wim
Gear: Canon EOS R with 3 primes and 2 zooms, 4 EF-R adapters, Canon EOS 5 (analog), 9 Canon EF primes, a lone Canon EF zoom, 2 extenders, 2 converters, tubes; Olympus OM-D 1 Mk II & Pen F with 12 primes, 6 zooms, and 3 Metabones EF-MFT adapters ....
#6
If you are only planning on purchasing 1 lens, the versatility of a zoom lens is something you may want to consider a bit more. Sometimes you don't have the luxury to zoom in/out with your feet because of a wall or cliff. If you have multiple primes, you just switch, but if your only have 1 WA lens, you might not get the shot you want.



Not available yet, but the recently announced TOKINA AT-X 16-28MM F/2.8 seems interesting as well.
#7
Hi Edonir,



I have the Zeiss 21/2.8, and I can say that it is an extremely sharp lens. It has very few issues except the moustache distortion, which is sometimes a problem. But overall, it's a piece of cake to focus, and is easily on a par (if not better) than any of the Canon offerings.



That said, it is the only Zeiss lens I am unsure about, purely because I don't often need a very wide angle lens. In terms of versatility, I have recently thought that the canon TS24 might have been a more useful purchase, but it depends on what you like to take photos of.
#8
I own Carl Zeiss 21mm Distagon ze and am extremely satisfied with it after using/tried almost all the Canon wa-lenses. Colour, contrast, and also bokeh are very pleasing. and the lens is super sharp even wide open. The difference between 24mm and 21mm in FF does not sound big, but it is. If aperture f1.4 is absolutely needed Canon 24mm f1.4 may be good, too.

Here is one test from the web:

http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Revie...eview.aspx
#9
[quote name='edonir' timestamp='1281443504' post='1629']

I do some architecture as well [/quote]



IMHO this is a key sentence here as for architecture the TS capability (and especially shift) can be indispensable. So yes, it is slow and can't AF but it can move.



http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Revie...eview.aspx
  


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