macro & portrait lens

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fleaz

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I'm considering trying out macro photography however I'm not made of money. So I may be replacing my EF85/1.8 with either a EF100/2.8 or a Tamron 90/2.8

Any recommendations?
 
I've got the 100m f/2.8 and I absolutely love it! It's a great macro lens, but shines at portraits too. Have a look through your shots, and see how many you've actually taken at f/1.8. If it's a commonly used aperture, then you could always keep your 85/1.8 and get a set of extension tubes for macro stuff?

I've never used the tamron, but I have heard it praised highly. I got my 100mm last year, when second hand they were only going for about £200, now they're over £300 though, so that might be a bit part of your decision!

Chris
 
I've got one of the Tamron 90mm Macros and love it for macr work and portraits on 35mm and FF digital. IMO, it's a little long for indoor use as a portrait lens on a Dx (APS-C) body so I used a 50mm for that purpose.
 
If you do decide to change, I may be interested in your EF 85 f1.8 if it's in near mint condition and the price is right.

I'm just about to buy one so sooner rather than later might be better if you're selling.
 
Sigma Macro lens are reasoanble priced and fair well, unfortunately, not had experience with the Tamron, but when I compared the Sigma against the canon, there was little in it, apart from the cost saving.

Might be worth a look :shrug:
 
Ed got in before me I am looking at buying EF 85f1.8 so will you put me down as very interested in buying yours
Going to give my wanted ad a little bump
Cheers Bob
 
I had the EF 100mm macro and it was a superb macro lens. I know someone with the Tamron 90mm and they are producing amazing results with it, both macro and portrait. If I was in the market now I'd be going with the Tamron.
 
Bob said:
Ed got in before me I am looking at buying EF 85f1.8 so will you put me down as very interested in buying yours
Going to give my wanted ad a little bump
Cheers Bob
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I'm not in the market anymore, just ordered an EF 85mm f1.8 from Kerso!
 
Chumpalot said:
I'm seriously considering the Tamron 90mm...
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Photoplus magazine (Canon) did a test on all Macro lens a short while ago and really rated the Tamron lens (can't see it being much different on a Nikon body). :)

Why don't you see if a local camera shop has this and others in and if you can take your camera with you and try them to see which you prefer the feel of / use of / results. :shrug:

I did this when looking for a lens at our local Jessops and they could not have been more helpfull :thumbs:
 
In that case, you could get a set of extension tubes or a raynox adaptor...they'll work with your 85mm, or any other lens, and it's a cheap way of getting into macro!

Chris
 
I have the Canon EF-S 60mm Macro and I really love that. I have however heard many good things about the Tamron 90mm lens. On a 1.6x crop body though I feel 60mm is a good focal length for portraits:) so that is all that is stopping me jumping to a 90mm or 100mm macro.
 
chris321 said:
In that case, you could get a set of extension tubes or a raynox adaptor...they'll work with your 85mm, or any other lens, and it's a cheap way of getting into macro!

Chris
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I am thinking of getting a dedicated macro lens. I do hear quite a bit about the raynox, is it any good?

DLS_Creations said:
I have the Canon EF-S 60mm Macro and I really love that. I have however heard many good things about the Tamron 90mm lens. On a 1.6x crop body though I feel 60mm is a good focal length for portraits:) so that is all that is stopping me jumping to a 90mm or 100mm macro.
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60mm might not be that suitable for shooting insects and I'm trying to avoid EF-S lenses as much as possible
 
fleaz said:
I do hear quite a bit about the raynox, is it any good?
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It really can be used to great effect:

http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=124655&highlight=raynox

http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=120870&highlight=raynox

http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=120434&highlight=raynox

Which I think you'll agree are just awesome!

Speaking from experience having the 100mm f/2.8, it does make a great portrait lens, but realistically only for headshots unless you've got a LOT of room to move about it!

Chris
 
chris321 said:
Speaking from experience having the 100mm f/2.8, it does make a great portrait lens, but realistically only for headshots unless you've got a LOT of room to move about it!

Chris
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I use my 85/1.8 for headshots as well, mostly use it outdoors.

Thanks for the links!
 
I have the 90mm Tamron f/2.8 AF SP Macro lens which is a really wonderful lens. This is the lens previous to the current offering which has Di added to Tamron's alphabet soup designation.

The Di is "SUPPOSED" to be optimized for digital but, I don't know how any lens could be sharper than my non-Di Tamron which has IQ equal to my L glass lenses. I have used this lens on 10D, 30D and 40D cameras and it worked great on each body.

The non-Di Macro lenses are scarce but, can occasionally be had on the used market. I got my on USA Bay for $125 USD including shipping. That was really a bargain.

The 90mm might be a bit long because many photographers don't have th camera to subject space that this focal length requires (especially on a 1.6x camera). However, if you have the space, 90mm is a wonderful focal length and Tamron produces beautiful creamy bokeh. It is aptly named the "Macro Portrait Lens"

BTW, don't consider the older f/2.5 "Adaptall" Tamron lens - there will be problems fitting it to an EOS camera.
 
andyred said:
Photoplus magazine (Canon) did a test on all Macro lens a short while ago and really rated the Tamron lens (can't see it being much different on a Nikon body). :)

Why don't you see if a local camera shop has this and others in and if you can take your camera with you and try them to see which you prefer the feel of / use of / results. :shrug:

I did this when looking for a lens at our local Jessops and they could not have been more helpfull :thumbs:
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Thanks for the advice. Never really thought about taking my camera to a shop to test out lenses. :naughty:

rpcrowe said:
I have the 90mm Tamron f/2.8 AF SP Macro lens which is a really wonderful lens. This is the lens previous to the current offering which has Di added to Tamron's alphabet soup designation.

The Di is "SUPPOSED" to be optimized for digital but, I don't know how any lens could be sharper than my non-Di Tamron which has IQ equal to my L glass lenses. I have used this lens on 10D, 30D and 40D cameras and it worked great on each body.

The non-Di Macro lenses are scarce but, can occasionally be had on the used market. I got my on USA Bay for $125 USD including shipping. That was really a bargain.

The 90mm might be a bit long because many photographers don't have th camera to subject space that this focal length requires (especially on a 1.6x camera). However, if you have the space, 90mm is a wonderful focal length and Tamron produces beautiful creamy bokeh. It is aptly named the "Macro Portrait Lens"

BTW, don't consider the older f/2.5 "Adaptall" Tamron lens - there will be problems fitting it to an EOS camera.
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Thank you for the advice. Very helpful indeed. I think my mind is made up now. :woot:
 
rpcrowe said:
BTW, don't consider the older f/2.5 "Adaptall" Tamron lens - there will be problems fitting it to an EOS camera.
Click to expand...

Although it's still a fine choice for other mounts, of course.
 
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