low light. 50mm f1.8 vs 17-55 f2.8

shaylou

shaylou

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Shayne
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Using a Canon t3i/600D
Which lens would be a better (and why) walk around lens for taking out at night. I will be beach front with a lot of shops with light but it's going to be low light. I want to get good pics of my girlfriend walking around.
I have the 50 and getting the 17-55 soon, so I have a choice. My guts says the 50 because of apiture but I'm not sure but I knew where to go for help (right here)! Thanks.
 
As you have the 50mm you can try it at f1.8 and f2.8 and see if f2.8 is too slow for the shutter speed, ISO, noise etc for the use you have in mind. The 17-55 has IS (I think) but she'll have to stand very still and so will you.
 
woof woof said:
As you have the 50mm you can try it at f1.8 and f2.8 and see if f2.8 is too slow for the shutter speed, ISO, noise etc for the use you have in mind. The 17-55 has IS (I think) but she'll have to stand very still and so will you.
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I am not sure how the two will compare in this situation. They are both I.s. lenses but the 17-55 is a much better lens overall as far as I.q.
I'm going with it over a L lens. (Mostly because of I.s. vs no I.s. and f2.8 vs f4). I just don't know if this is a factor or if the lower f-stop always wins in low light.
 
shaylou said:
I am not sure how the two will compare in this situation. They are both I.s. lenses but the 17-55 is a much better lens overall as far as I.q.
I'm going with it over a L lens. (Mostly because of I.s. vs no I.s. and f2.8 vs f4). I just don't know if this is a factor or if the lower f-stop always wins in low light.
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I'm pretty certain the 50mm f/1.8 doesn't have IS.

I have the 17-55 f/2.8 (and the 50mm f/1.8) and it's an awesome lens. I fin that sometimes a wider aperture than 2.8 can leave too much out of focus so beware of using the 50mm at 1.8.
 
shaylou said:
I am not sure how the two will compare in this situation. They are both I.s. lenses but the 17-55 is a much better lens overall as far as I.q.
I'm going with it over a L lens. (Mostly because of I.s. vs no I.s. and f2.8 vs f4). I just don't know if this is a factor or if the lower f-stop always wins in low light.
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The 50 has NO IS! 17-55 has IS shoot wide open with the IS on lower shutter speed and boom there u have it. You can't compare these 2 lenses with one another as they Are 2 different beasts.. Get the 17-55 and you'll have both the zoom is more versatile than a prime but a prime is faster. I would have both.
 
It's also probably worth considering the focal lengths, if you shoot at 17mm then you can get away with using a slower shutter speed without the risk of camera shake showing as opposed to shooting at 50mm.

I'm not very good with the technical side of things so please someone correct me if I'm wrong here but to my understanding and taking into account the crop factor then it could be the difference between shooting at 1/125s and 1/30s so there could be almost 2 stops of difference; which could mean the difference between shooting at say ISO 200 and ISO 800 on the 600D.

Bring in the fact that the 17-55mm has IS then you may even get another stop advantage again.

Is this right? I'm not sure lol :)
 
Phall82 said:
I'm pretty certain the 50mm f/1.8 doesn't have IS.

I have the 17-55 f/2.8 (and the 50mm f/1.8) and it's an awesome lens. I fin that sometimes a wider aperture than 2.8 can leave too much out of focus so beware of using the 50mm at 1.8.
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Sorry your correct, the 50mm is not I.s. I have a steady hand and got so use to no shake I just assumed it was. I really like that lens, and the price is unbeatable.

So if your out walking around at night which lens to you use.
 
shaylou said:
Sorry your correct, the 50mm is not I.s. I have a steady hand and got so use to no shake I just assumed it was. I really like that lens, and the price is unbeatable.

So if your out walking around at night which lens to you use.
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The 17-55 would be my choice as a lens, but depending where you're going, security at also play a part. The 17-55 looks, and is, much more expensive and more prone to theft.

The 50mm will still take great shots but it's not as flexible. Personally I prefer a zoom if it doesn't compromise on quality.
 
Phil789 said:
Is it really? I thought the 50mm f/1.8 was widely regarded as one of the sharpest and best IQ lenses.
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:lol: no, not even close - only reason people rave about the 50mm is because it used to be super cheap. it has slow AF, not very accurate AF, only a 5 blade diaphram and soft wide open.
 
Phil789 said:
Is it really? I thought the 50mm f/1.8 was widely regarded as one of the sharpest and best IQ lenses.
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It's a great lens but when I use it side by side with something like the 85mm I do notice that the 50mm doesn't seem to be able to resolve detail as well, but I can't comment on the 17-55mm. Another plus may be that both the 17-55mm and the 85mm are USM which is always handy :)
 
Why do you have to choose? Take them both, there's hardly any weight penalty to a 50mm lens in your pocket.

By the time you finish reading this thread, you will still be unsure which lens to take as we all have different opinions. Take the camera out with both lenses, and your girlfriend, take loads of images with both lenses, then load them into the computer.

Then study them with your girlfriend and you will see what you can achieve with each lens, and you will be a much better photographer for having done the tests yourself instead of reading opinions.

Enjoy, and remember the best lens/camera/flash/tripod/girlfriend is the one you have with you when you need it :)
 
Although I'm sure this will make your thought process more difficult, but have you thought about the Tamron 17-50 f/2.8? If you have a steady hand it's a much cheaper option than the Canon and gets great reviews. I've had this lens as well and although it was a really good lens I missed the IS so I bought the 17-55bit this may not bother you.
 
gman said:
Bit of an oxymoron moment going on! ;)
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:thinking: I thought I was advising doing the tests to see for yourself which lens is better for the op's intended use, as I am doing with the D800 - I have not offered any opinion as to which lens the op should use :thinking:
 
david357 said:
Why do you have to choose? Take them both, there's hardly any weight penalty to a 50mm lens in your pocket.

By the time you finish reading this thread, you will still be unsure which lens to take as we all have different opinions. Take the camera out with both lenses, and your girlfriend, take loads of images with both lenses, then load them into the computer.

Then study them with your girlfriend and you will see what you can achieve with each lens, and you will be a much better photographer for having done the tests yourself instead of reading opinions.

Enjoy, and remember the best lens/camera/flash/tripod/girlfriend is the one you have with you when you need it :)
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I adgreed,if you have both lens give both a try.

You will enjoy trying both :)
 
david357 said:
Why do you have to choose? Take them both, there's hardly any weight penalty to a 50mm lens in your pocket.

By the time you finish reading this thread, you will still be unsure which lens to take as we all have different opinions. Take the camera out with both lenses, and your girlfriend, take loads of images with both lenses, then load them into the computer.

Then study them with your girlfriend and you will see what you can achieve with each lens, and you will be a much better photographer for having done the tests yourself instead of reading opinions.

Enjoy, and remember the best lens/camera/flash/tripod/girlfriend is the one you have with you when you need it :)
Click to expand...

I couldn't agree more...
 
POAH said:
:lol: no, not even close - only reason people rave about the 50mm is because it used to be super cheap. it has slow AF, not very accurate AF, only a 5 blade diaphram and soft wide open.
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I know it feels like a little plastic toy to hold and it is very cheap but in terms of the actual image quality it produced I had only heard good things until now.
 
david357 said:
:thinking: I thought I was advising doing the tests to see for yourself which lens is better for the op's intended use
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It was your opinion that he take all the lenses then you were saying not to take people's opinions. It was just a joke with the play on words that's all. :)
 
I realize that actually taking pics with the two lenses and comparing them on the laptop is the best way to determine which lens works best in these conditions.
The question was posted in an attempt to get feedback from people that have used these lenses in this situation or have a good enough understanding of these lenses that they my contribute educated opinions.

Thanks for your help.
 
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