Full Frame prime lens

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Jimbosyourman

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Looking to purchase a full frame prime lens for canon. My choices are sigma 85mm 1.4 or sigma 50mm 1.4 . Does anyone have experience of both of these and if so which one would you recommend ? Is there any others i should consider. I would use it for general purpose and portrait as it would be my only prime. Does anyone have one of the above for sale
 
If you have the budget and don't mind manual focus then the Zeiss 50/1.4 Planar T would be a great choice
 
I have both and prefer the 85mm , I prefer the IQ and lovely creamy bokeh.
 
50mm is much better suited to general purpose use. Personally I prefer 85mm for portraits but 50mm is perfectly usable. So if you can only buy one lens buy a 50mm.
 
Dogfish_magnet said:
The sigmas way better than the canon , I had both and let the Canon go
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Sigma is pretty good (and my Canon must be exceptional) but the price difference is quite significant - essentially you can buy an extra 50mm f/1.4
 
daugirdas said:
Canon 85mm f/1.8 is the best...
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Hmmm. A pretty unique opinion you have there :D

I haven't tried the Canon but what put me off it from looking at images on line is the shape of the bokeh, the Canon gives angular at some apertures due to the number/shape of the blades but the Sigma is more rounded.

That matters in lenses like this.

Of course it's all opinion and the look that you want so if you want the angular bokeh the Canon is the one to buy.

Jimbosyourman said:
Looking to purchase a full frame prime lens for canon. My choices are sigma 85mm 1.4 or sigma 50mm 1.4 . Does anyone have experience of both of these and if so which one would you recommend ?
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I have them both and use them on my 5D.

Of the two I'd say that the 85mm is the better lens and it's sharper at f1.4. But, the 50mm is on my camera most of the time and although I don't use it much (I mostly use MFT) when I want to use my 5D the chances are that the 50mm will be fitted to it.

They give completely different FoV's so really it's down to the FoV you want.
 
It is the smooth boken that has made me consider the sigmas over canon own lenses. Thankyou all for your input
 
Got to be the 85 1.4. I spent a long time saving up to buy mine, I could have had the Nikon version, but I didn't want it, I wanted the sigma for its unique look.

So glad I got it, however I had to sell it last month due to various reasons. I miss it like crazy now!
 
FWIW - If I had one prime it would be a 50mm

I was very impressed with the Sigma 85 1.4 when I owned it. I've had a couple of Sigma 50mm 1.4's and Canon 50mm 1.4's.

IMO the Sigma is way better wide open, but stopped down I prefer the Canon.

The Canon 85mm f/1.8 is a bargain - super fast focussing and excellent IQ - the Sigma is better for sharpness, bokeh and the ability to get a thinner dof. The Canon is way better value, but I'd rather have the Sigma.

What I am ultra-impressed with is the new Sigma 35mm f/1.4. This makes a great general prime and can be used for environmental portraiture. It comfortably beats the Canon 35mm f/1.4 L in most respects.

Phil
 
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If I had to choose 1 prime , it would most likely be a 50mm 1.4 or faster
 
munkee said:
50mm is much better suited to general purpose use. Personally I prefer 85mm for portraits but 50mm is perfectly usable. So if you can only buy one lens buy a 50mm.
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Agree. I had the Sigma 50 1.4, loved the photos I was getting with it but then sold it because I wanted something lighter. If you dont mind the size/weight and end up with a working copy you will not regret it. I bought 2x Sigma 85 1.4 that both suffered from a damaged focus motor so decided to go for the Nikon lens. The focal length is great for portrait and specially on a full frame.
 
I have actually chosen 35mm f2 for my low light prime, but that's just me. Sony agrees with me with their RX-1. :D

For portrait, the 85mm is the one to get. I actually own 35mm, 50mm and 85mm, the 85mm gives most pleasing portrait as the person's face looks flat and looks most pleasing.

The 50mm is an odd ball to me, it's not wide enough for in-door use (on full frame) and has more distortion than 85mm for portraits. my 50/1.8 never gets used, luckily it's cheap.

Each to their own. get your zoom lens and see which FoV feels right for your portrait work.
 
Just to throw another opinion in there...

I own the Sigma 50mm 1.4 and the Canon 85mm 1.8 primes, and I love them both. I've also just ordered the Sigma 35mm 1.4. I use a 5D.

Out of the two I currently own, the 50mm has gotten far more use - mainly photos of my kids and friends, but also at the few weddings I've shot. I agree completely with the comments that it's a bit too wide for your usual portrait shot, and a bit too long for indoor shots, but it is very usable. Much more so than the 85mm.

However, if I'm shooting your typical portrait shots, the 85mm wins every time. Unless you're going for a more environmental portrait, in which case the 50mm is pretty good, but it's kind of inbetween being wide enough for an environmental portrait and long enough for a single person portrait.

So, I will probably sell my 50mm as soon as the 35mm arrives, and keep my 85mm.

However, if I didn't have the option of the 35mm there is no way on earth I would sell my 50mm. The 85mm delivers when you need it, but if you are looking at having just one prime, I'd say the 50mm would be the best choice. You don't realise how tight 85mm is until you are suddenly in a situation where you need to get more than one person in a shot, or get a full length portrait. When that happens (and it will happen, a lot) I reckon you'd wish you went for the 50mm.

If on the other hand you plan to add a wider prime to your collection in future - get the 85mm, either Sigma or Canon. From my experience of the Canon it is brilliant. I certainly have no urge to buy the Sigma, or indeed the Canon 85mm f/1.2. It really is very good indeed.

It's hard to shoe-horn this in without sounding like I'm trying to sell something, but...my Sigma 50mm might be up for grabs soon. It's been in to Sigma for calibration and is now pretty much perfect. I'm just waiting to take delivery of my Sigma 35mm before I decide whether I can live without it!

Edit: If I do sell it I will post it in the classifieds section, as per the rules!
 
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Ive used a 50m f1.4 sigma with a 5d mk2 and mk3 and it was a fantastic lens (in hindsight I should have kept it) I sold it and now have the canon 85mm f1.2, its sounds corney but the 85mm is just spectacular. You cant describe it but any hum drum image comes to life when using it.
 
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