Canon 50mm help please

Jared

Jared

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Should i spend the extra money and get the 50mm 1.4 usm or save £200 and get the 1.8 50mm?

I want to be able to take razor sharp images that will enable me to crop and still see detail and none of that soft pixelated look.

The 1.8 is appealing as it's so cheap but there must be a reason for this?

Camera is a 500d.
 
I think someone else has done virtually the same topic in the last few weeks but I'll leave you to research that.
As one who was lured away from a perfectly good Mk1 1.8 model for the "must have faster" of the 1.4, I'm first of all going to say that the latter has a reputation for being sharper at 1.8 than 1.4! Take away the faster AF and the lesser AF noise of the 1.4 and you've spent a few bob (!!) for little benefit.
In terms of time with a lens, I find that I use a variety of 50mm-ish MF lenses far more - usually on a 5D - than I do with the EF50mm 1.4 and I reach for the EF only when I need speedy AF. For example, here's a candid which didn't quite work as I couldn't get MF on food going into the open mouth at first sight and to loiter for a second opportunity left me vulnerable to being seen. With the EF I'd have got the shot I wanted, first time. Why mention this? Because if you aren't in a hurry with your shots you could get an MF in 1.4 and mount adapter for under £100.

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The 1.4 is a little more accurate focussing, has nicer bokeh and better build. The 1.8 is awesome value and tac sharp from f2.2
 
I didn't like 1.8 for awful out of focus area rendering, and terrible build quality.

1.4 is much better, but as word of caution I would buy a proper lens hood for it and never remove it. They are known to break even after gently tap to the front thread.

85mm f/1.8 is an even better lens, and this time built really well.
 
The 1.8 is such low money why not buy that and try it... If you don't get on with it, or you're not getting the results you expect then sell it on and pick up the 1.4.

Me, I LOVE my 1.8 and it's easily my most used lens, I'm more than happy with it. Yes it feels cheap and like a toy but so what, it's cheap and produces some stunning results :)
 
I have the 1.8 but often borrow the 1.4 and shoot lots of stuff with wide apertures. It feels that the 1.8 focuses a bit quicker than the 1.4 in low light and isn't noticably less sharp at 1.8. The 1.4 is much better made and sounds much nicer. The 1.8 weighs almost nothing. The focus ring on 1.8 is awkward to use if you are thinking of doing video and have to focus manually. If money isn't an issue I'd get the 1.4 but the 1.8 is so nearly as good it is much better value. If you buy the 1.8 I'd be very surprised if you're disappointed in it's optical ability. It's a pity Canon don't do a range of primes of this style and quality.
 
For me it was all about the feel of the lens rather than performance. You would doubt that the 1.4 and the 1.8 are from the same manufacturer but I guess its down to getting what you pay for. The increased cost seems to come from build quality and the bigger glass area in the 1.4, bigger glass means more light but not always better light. In this case I think it is a sharper image from the 1.4 but you would be hard pushed to say which lens took which shot in a sequence of prints.
Bottom line, if you have the cash to buy the 1.4 do it, if not go for the 1.8 knowing you are not going to see any massive difference in IQ.

M.
 
tikkathreebarrel said:
In terms of time with a lens, I find that I use a variety of 50mm-ish MF lenses far more - usually on a 5D - than I do with the EF50mm 1.4
Click to expand...

Bear in mind that you've got a big viewfinder image on that 5D.
I've gone from a 400D to a 7D and I find it far easier to manual focus now.

FWIW, I've got both lenses and I use the 1.4 on my camera almost all the time, but the 1.8 is capable of some amazing pictures. It just looks and feels like a piece of crap :D
 
From someone who has owned both the 1.4 and the 1.8, and ended up rather disappointed with both, just get the 1.8. Massively cheaper, and in the greater scheme of things, both are pretty crap lenses.
 
Woz! said:
Bear in mind that you've got a big viewfinder image on that 5D.
I've gone from a 400D to a 7D and I find it far easier to manual focus now.

FWIW, I've got both lenses and I use the 1.4 on my camera almost all the time, but the 1.8 is capable of some amazing pictures. It just looks and feels like a piece of crap :D
Click to expand...
You should see what a piece of crap it looks on a 1dsII!
 
Ha - I never noticed you'd upgraded from the 40D.

Surely it can't vignette as badly as the 1.4? Thinking corners that aren't far from black :gag:
 
If you have never had a large aperture lens or a prime, then go for the 1.8.

If you look around, you could probably get it for ~£55 new/refurbished. If you later go for the 1.4, then you haven't lost a lot, you could re-sell it if it is kept nice (albeit for less), or just use it for times where there is more danger to the lens.

If you want crisp shots, use the 1.8 lens without a UV filter, and don't cry if it gets scratched. You might get that lump in the stomach, but just think how much larger it would be for something £200 quid more.

No lens is perfect wide open. So what you are really looking at, is using a lens at 1.8 (the sharp starting for the 1.4 I believe), or 2 (where I get sharp shots from my refurb 1.8).
At f/2, I am impressed by this lens.

The reason I suggest going for the 1.8 if you have never used a prime before, is that it takes some getting used to, you might not like the feel of a prime. I find, portraits difficult on my crop (1.6) camera with this lens, it is too close for me.
 
Thanks everyone still unsure.

I currently have a 50mm 1.8 pentacon auto M42 thread lens and adapter but I really want af and slightly better optics.
 
trencheel303 said:
Ha - I never noticed you'd upgraded from the 40D.

Surely it can't vignette as badly as the 1.4? Thinking corners that aren't far from black :gag:
Click to expand...

have you seen the vignette from 50/1.2L and 85/1.2L? That's what I call black.
 
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