Lens for shooting babies & toddlers

[berryfiasco]

Hi,

I'm thinking of investing in a prime for shooting babies & toddlers.
Is there any lens that is worth recommending?

Budget is a criteria, so no L lenses.

I'm toying with the idea of either 28 or 35mm.
But i'm wondering what forumers might say or add.

Please advise.

 

[niccon2]

Hi,

I'm thinking of investing in a prime for shooting babies & toddlers.
Is there any lens that is worth recommending?

Budget is a criteria, so no L lenses.

I'm toying with the idea of either 28 or 35mm.
But i'm wondering what forumers might say or add.

Please advise.

i see you are using 17-50 zoom, do you find yourself using a particular focal lenght more often? 35mf2 will be good. what is your budget like? 30f1.4 from sigma has good review as well which you might want to explore a little before deciding.

 

[wahseng]

Get 50mm

 

[tecnica]

i see you have a 17-50 already, so i guess a 35mm prime will strike a balance somewhere.

i myself use the 17-55 for my niece, works great when she keeps moving around.

 

[berryfiasco]

i see you are using 17-50 zoom, do you find yourself using a particular focal lenght more often? 35mf2 will be good. what is your budget like? 30f1.4 from sigma has good review as well which you might want to explore a little before deciding.

I usually shoot around 30+ upwards.
less than $600 probably.
Does the sigma has the same AF problems likewise with their 50mm?

 

[Halfmoon]

I hv the 35mm f2..... bokeh is not so great, using five blade design, but if u are shooting at high aperture, it is sharp, handy and compact.... good in low light too....

 

[berryfiasco]

I was doing some googling, there are recommendations even for 85mm 1.8.

Is this lens reasonable, esp taking pic inside a room? won't it be too tight?

 

[Halfmoon]

I was doing some googling, there are recommendations even for 85mm 1.8.

Is this lens reasonable, esp taking pic inside a room? won't it be too tight?

In a room, this lens is too tight...... it also hv purple fringging issue when shoot open.....

 

[niccon2]

I usually shoot around 30+ upwards.
less than $600 probably.
Does the sigma has the same AF problems likewise with their 50mm?

shop warranty unit is about 600-650, i think. sigma unit must test throughly at shop, not sure about the af issue.

 

[gundamseed84]

Errr just curious what is it about your 17-50 that cannot do such as you need a prime? There are certain key advantages to prime lenses but they might not be applicable to your needs.

Which focal length depends on your style. Shoot toddler as a whole? Close up face shots?

If you ask me I would opt for a focal length outside 17-50mm AND if it suits the style I shoot. E.g. you want close up shots with thin dof kind of effect then I might opt for 85mm. However with your budget I guess only 85 f1.8 fits the budget. The purple fringing might not be too big an issue as long as you are not shooting towards bright light source?

Wanted to suggest sigma 85f1.4 but that's out of your budget.
85mm is fine for close up shots or maybe up to half a toddler's size since your baby is small in size...unless you are taking about an adult and you want to take half body size then it might be too tight.

Otherwise the next best alternative is sigma 50 f1.4 or 30 f1.4.

 

[SkyStrike]

I was using my 17-50 f2.8 for a large bulk of time, till recently I put on 50 f1.8. Thou 50mm is tight (let alone 85mm), but it's the only lens in my collection that gives me enough light to prevent my ISO from bursting 1600 to 3200. Conditions I'm shooting under is a indoor room lit by a ring florescent light. (still quite dim, I think it's the light cover..)

I'm considering a Sigma 30 f1.4. But do note that larger aperture does give you enough light, but you have to be careful of the shallow DOF also. On my f1.8, I'm already facing some issues with the DOF at close distance.

 

[berryfiasco]

Errr just curious what is it about your 17-50 that cannot do such as you need a prime? There are certain key advantages to prime lenses but they might not be applicable to your needs.

Which focal length depends on your style. Shoot toddler as a whole? Close up face shots?

If you ask me I would opt for a focal length outside 17-50mm AND if it suits the style I shoot. E.g. you want close up shots with thin dof kind of effect then I might opt for 85mm. However with your budget I guess only 85 f1.8 fits the budget. The purple fringing might not be too big an issue as long as you are not shooting towards bright light source?

Wanted to suggest sigma 85f1.4 but that's out of your budget.
85mm is fine for close up shots or maybe up to half a toddler's size since your baby is small in size...unless you are taking about an adult and you want to take half body size then it might be too tight.

Otherwise the next best alternative is sigma 50 f1.4 or 30 f1.4.

i've no issues with 17-50, i love the range. which somehow has hindered me in learning how to use a prime. But i've an idea that prime has a better DOF.
I usually shoot around 30+ upwards.

I'm thinking of getting prime, then play around those creative shots, small hands on mine, & so forth. newborn.

Seems like 50mm might be a good choice.

 

[SCULDER]

50mm with wide aperture (f1.2 or 1.4)
and macro (f2.8) to shoot details on their delicate fingers, eyes, feet etc.. sure it'll make ppl go "aaaawwwww...."

 

[SkyStrike]

i've no issues with 17-50, i love the range. which somehow has hindered me in learning how to use a prime. But i've an idea that prime has a better DOF.
I usually shoot around 30+ upwards.

I'm thinking of getting prime, then play around those creative shots, small hands on mine, & so forth. newborn.

Seems like 50mm might be a good choice.

50mm will be sufficient for a newborn....So far, my experience is like, when using 50mm the shots taken are usually adults holding baby, 1/2 body "portrait", or baby on bed. So 50mm can be generally fine.
But when there are more movement in a walker (5-7months), or when he/she starts to crawl, (quickly), you may want to consider a wider one. As the baby can "run" to you faster than you can focus...

 

[pckee]

50mm will be sufficient for a newborn....So far, my experience is like, when using 50mm the shots taken are usually adults holding baby, 1/2 body "portrait", or baby on bed. So 50mm can be generally fine.
But when there are more movement in a walker (5-7months), or when he/she starts to crawl, (quickly), you may want to consider a wider one. As the baby can "run" to you faster than you can focus...

Agree and good advice from SkyStrike.


Congrats TS.
I am using tamron 17-50 f2.8 as well but on 400D. So my ISO performace is worst than yours. I think it is better not to invest too much on the prime just for your baby. If you really want to try out just get the 50mm f1.8. Baby grow very fast, few months later u will be busying entertaining him/her. When my son was on walker, i it is really they "run" faster than you can focus. Honestly i use my hp to capture my baby more than using DSLR.

Also for my case i din have much time to shoot. Envy you have such time.....hehe.....enjoy your moment with your little one.

 

[nightwolf75]

50mm is a good lens for shooting kids, IMO. most of my kids' pics are taken with the 50/1.8 (either canon or nikon). small, light, f1.8 and at under $200 (cheaper if used), the 50mm lenses are unbeatable in price and performance at that price.

(this is done on the canon 50mm/f1.8 @ f1.8)

 

[iboey]

I use solely 35mm F1.4 on my 5dmk2. i find that 50mm is too tight on full frame for some situations.

This is my baby girl at 45 days old.

 

[slim86]

babies.. hmm get a fast prime with usm will help u best. why fast? most likely ur shot will be indoors. why a prime? most likely u will shoot about a distance between 35-50mm in APS-C. why USM? i guess u want to capture that precious moment right at that time u see it, USM focus speed is as fast as u see and click ur shutter.

so for canon lens i will suggest a 35mm 1.4L or 50mm 1.4.

but u can try with 50mm 1.8II (best value), i think the focus speed is good enough, it is a sharp lens but to me the colour is dull compare to L lens, and so its likely u need to do PP for color correction.

 

[thoongeng]

i've no issues with 17-50, i love the range. which somehow has hindered me in learning how to use a prime. But i've an idea that prime has a better DOF.
I usually shoot around 30+ upwards.

I'm thinking of getting prime, then play around those creative shots, small hands on mine, & so forth. newborn.

Seems like 50mm might be a good choice.

hmm you can still use a zoom as 'prime', just fix the desired focal length by not touching zoom ring / taping it
and don't think DOF is affected by a 'zoom' lens. It's affected by aperture & focal length & sensor size
the creative shots you mentioned should be able to be done by your lens, unless you really wanna get close then you may need macro lens
so actually I think you can save the money and just use what you have

if you wanna buy actually the 30-60ish mm primes within your price range have their pros and cons, no 1 best lens... some of the lens I did reseach on:
Canon 28F1.8 - wider, but corners are soft, more expensive
Canon 28F2.8 - nah, just fix your zoom at 28mm
Sigma 30F1.4 - wider, brighter, but corners are soft, more expensive and bokeh is harsh
Canon 35F2 - wider, cheaper, lightweight but less bright, bokeh is harsh
Canon 50F1.8 - great price-performance ratio, light but may be a bit tight in small rooms
Canon 50F1.4 - brighter, but be a bit tight
Canon 50F2.8 Macro - can go close, great quality, but not 1:1 and not as bright
Canon 60F2.8 Macro - can go real close for details, opens up macro opportunities, great quality, but tighter and not as bright

(celebrating my 100th post ;p sorry OT)

 

[Halfmoon]

50mm is a good lens for shooting kids, IMO. most of my kids' pics are taken with the 50/1.8 (either canon or nikon). small, light, f1.8 and at under $200 (cheaper if used), the 50mm lenses are unbeatable in price and performance at that price.

(this is done on the canon 50mm/f1.8 @ f1.8)

Was this shot somewhere in Hougang??? :think: