Glass/body or both?

[magicaxeman]

Scenario:

You've just been told you will loose your sight in the next 15 yrs, with it getting progressively worse during that time.

Do you make do an mend with the kit I have or sell everything bar your camera that you own and hopefully raise enough cash to either :

Sink the money in better glass for the 500D?

Buy a 5DmkII ?

Buy a 7D + 24-105L?

Then shoot as much as you can with the best you can get for as long as you can..ie make the best of it.

 

[TinaC]

Get the best glass I can. Being very short sighted as I am and having spent a long time this way I have thought about this a long time, so glass for me.

I hope this is hypothetical? I acknowledge that we are not all Monet, but would hope to emulate his perception and doggedness

 

[RevOnline]

Scenario:

You've just been told you will loose your sight in the next 15 yrs, with it getting progressively worse during that time.

Do you make do an mend with the kit I have or sell everything bar your camera that you own and hopefully raise enough cash to either :

Sink the money in better glass for the 500D?

Buy a 5DmkII ?

Buy a 7D + 24-105L?

Then shoot as much as you can with the best you can get for as long as you can..ie make the best of it.

What sort of stuff are you looking to photograph? What lenses have you already got?

 

[magicaxeman]

Mainly portraits and moths/flowers indoors.. I currently have a nifty fifty and 85mm F1.8 for portraits, a tamron 17-50, tamron 55-200 and sigma 170-500 for birds outside the window.
I'm just finishing sorting out speedlites and using a mix of a 580ex (softbox) and 430exII (small umbrella) each side and a Nissin Di 622 with Lumiquest soft box on the background, all controlled by an ST E2 on the camera, and of course natural light/reflectors.

Glass wise on the crop I was thinking of a 24-70 F2.8L, 28 F1.8, 50 F1.4 and maybe if I got lucky on raising the cash and secondhand deals a sigma 100-300 F4 and a 1.4x TC or 100-400L, for moths indoors I was thinking of the 70-300 IS as that will give me the reach from the bed and a couldnt hand hold a 70-200 F2.8.

*Tina* I wish it was hypothetical..

If I changed bodies I was really thinking of going FF and just adding a 24-105L, but I have to admit I'm concerned that in my limited space I really need something faster to throw the background out.

 

[Cistron]

Scenario:

You've just been told you will loose your sight in the next 15 yrs, with it getting progressively worse during that time.

Do you make do an mend with the kit I have or sell everything bar your camera that you own and hopefully raise enough cash to either :

Sink the money in better glass for the 500D?

Buy a 5DmkII ?

Buy a 7D + 24-105L?

Then shoot as much as you can with the best you can get for as long as you can..ie make the best of it.

Have you been diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration?

The larger the viewfinder the better. So, I'd go for a full-frame camera.

 

[RevOnline]

Mainly portraits and moths/flowers indoors.. I currently have a nifty fifty and 85mm F1.8 for portraits, a tamron 17-50, tamron 55-200 and sigma 170-500 for birds outside the window.
I'm just finishing sorting out speedlites and using a mix of a 580ex (softbox) and 430exII (small umbrella) each side and a Nissin Di 622 with Lumiquest soft box on the background, all controlled by an ST E2 on the camera, and of course natural light/reflectors.

Glass wise on the crop I was thinking of a 24-70 F2.8L, 28 F1.8, 50 F1.4 and maybe if I got lucky on raising the cash and secondhand deals a sigma 100-300 F4 and a 1.4x TC or 100-400L, for moths indoors I was thinking of the 70-300 IS as that will give me the reach from the bed and a couldnt hand hold a 70-200 F2.8.

*Tina* I wish it was hypothetical..

If I changed bodies I was really thinking of going FF and just adding a 24-105L, but I have to admit I'm concerned that in my limited space I really need something faster to throw the background out.

It's a tough one. I agree with the above that the FF might be useful in terms of viewfinder size, but I've also got to think that sooner or later the cleverer AF of the 7D is going to come in useful. Perhaps the best thing to do would be to wait what happens with the 5DmkIII? I think the 500D will be ok for now.

In that case, the answer for now is glass. As you're looking at the Sigma 100-300 and 100-400 for the garden, and the 70-300 for inside the new 70-300 L sounds like it is going to be pretty ideally suited to you. You'd have to see if you could hand-hold it but that rules out spending on two separate lenses doing very similar things if so. I'd certainly wait and see for that one. October it's due I think - it's expensive but compared to the 100-400 and the current 70-300 it's not going to be too bad and you've got time to save. I suppose getting the current 70-300 wouldn't be a bad stop-gap - buy a second-hand one and you won't lose much when you sell it.

The 24-105mm is my pick for a walkabout lens, but I'm not sure what good it is going to do you for the stuff you've listed...it just seems like a waste of money here. It's not got anywhere near enough reach for wildlife and for portraits it is nowhere near as good as having primes in the same range.

If I was you, that is where I would be spending now this second. Primes will last you forever regardless of what camera upgrades you make. For the 50 1.4 look at the Sigma version - I prefer it, there are a couple of good threads about it on the front page at the moment for you to weigh it up. On top of what you've got I'd say the 28mm for full-body portraits and depending on how you've got things set-up, maybe the 100 or 135 for headshots. Or if you're very much only using one of your current primes, go for the top of that range.

 

[magicaxeman]

I think you might have a point on a slightly longer lens for head shots and wider for bodies.
*see image at bottom, 85mm F1.8 as camera, no cropping etc and dad in place, though slightly too close to the wall (bring him out 1ft).*

After using the 1.8's unless a 2.8 is pinpoint wide open I think I would find it limiting (I tend to shoot at 2.8 when I can) so am thinking primes over zooms here.

Taking a critical look at what I have and after having tried some weight tests....
Weight I think is going to rule out the camera upgrades, both are over 800grams, as I struggle a bit after a while with the 17-55 + 580ex on the 500D I have a feeling I wouldn't manage the load and don't want to be stuck with a 7D or 5D that I can only use on a tripod.
It would be more sensible to try a 50D and see if I can handle the load with a 730gram body, it still has things to offer such as custom modes and better AF.

I guess glass wise my ideal solution would be an 18-135 F1.8 or 2.8 if its super sharp wide open, but neither exist, actually the Tokina 50-135 would be great but I would struggle to lift it.

The 70-300 focal length range is a real nightmare, the faster stuff is too heavy, even the standard IS version may be to heavy, so that just leaves lightweight, and a cut in IQ as I want to be able to hand hold this lens.
The long end, well realistically I wont be able to afford F2.8 and I'm not so sure I need a zoom, I could probably do better by getting a prime, so maybe the 400mm F5.6 is worth a look? its reputedly sharp and as it will be permanently tripod mounted IS isn't an issue, either that or look around for an 300mm F4 secondhand and add a 1.4x extender, I tend not to shoot under F8 outside anyway.

It's just horrible when you know money is finite, and its a once only purchase, so you struggle to make sure you don't make an expensive mistake, something the previous posts have already helped prevent (thanks to all).

Oh the eye problems...glaucoma (can be stopped where it is) and cataracts, the downside to them is I might not be able to be operated on as my other health problems make any surgery a very high risk adventure and they have already indicated they wouldn't want to even think of doing them until I am in my mid to late 60's.
Sadly the rate at which my eyesight is deteriorating would mean I would be effectively blind long before then.