Right lens for a gig?

DJMorgan

DJMorgan

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Daniel
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I did an event on the weekend just past, but iv been using my normal 18-55mm, Any clues to what would be the best lens to use at a gig ?

Cheers :gag::thumbs:
 
Depends how close you can get but I use my Tokina 11-16 for a lot of stuff I do at events. Works well for me.

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BertRoot said:
Depends how close you can get but I use my Tokina 11-16 for a lot of stuff I do at events. Works well for me.

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Really great Shots there.

Making the best use of the equipment you have to hand is what it is all about. Not how much you have to spend. We can all say we would want the absolute finest, but unless you are being paid a handsome fee, it just boils down to making the best of it. The above shot proves it.

Graham
 
blue max said:
Really great Shots there.

Making the best use of the equipment you have to hand is what it is all about. Not how much you have to spend. We can all say we would want the absolute finest, but unless you are being paid a handsome fee, it just boils down to making the best of it. The above shot proves it.

Graham
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Aye a girl I know shoots events with a 400D and an 18-55 and gets some great results. I didn't get the 11-16 for this sort of stuff but it is a very handy piece of glass if you are close up and it is great wide open.
 
Try the old nifty-fifty 1.8.

excellent quality for a lens that is really cheap as chips
 
i have to agree with fastworldimages on some of that, the IQ isnt that bad in my opinion... but it does hunt a fair bit in very low light, and you will still need to use a minimum ISO 1600 ive found... you can see some shots using the 50mm at our site www.stagezero.co.uk nearly all of them on there are with a nifty 50, bargain lens but you can get alot of 'duffers'
 
The other thing with a 50 is the lack of ability to zoom which at an event is a requirement in my opinion plus you can't get up nice and close either. I never use anything longer than my 17-40 to be honest.
 
BertRoot said:
The other thing with a 50 is the lack of ability to zoom which at an event is a requirement in my opinion plus you can't get up nice and close either. I never use anything longer than my 17-40 to be honest.
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Im often shooting at 16mm and 70mm.

2 seperate lenses but could be also covered by two primes. The zoom is good for a stage work espec in the pit when the artist is moving about the stage or you need to get shots of someone at the back, but alot of the time most people find they just use one extreme end or another.

But dont rule out a good prime, the fact they are fast glass (such as a decent 50mm 1.2) can be alot more useful in low light than a different focal range. Id happily shoot on a fast 50 (but not that crappy 1.8 piece of plastic) in some of the venues around, I just feel that so many people kiss the arse of the 50mm 1.8 when actually its not very good.
 
fastworldimages said:
I just feel that so many people kiss the arse of the 50mm 1.8 when actually its not very good.
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Amen, I got shut of mine and was thinking of getting something nearer 30mm to be honest but will see where I go with that in the future.
 
BertRoot said:
Amen, I got shut of mine and was thinking of getting something nearer 30mm to be honest but will see where I go with that in the future.
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Mines 'off' on permanent loan lol... Even on a 1d the low light performance was terrible lets not even go there on my old 1.6 crop body :cuckoo:

Remeber that the sensor plays a large part of a lenses useability to, for example my 16-36 is great on my 1.3 but not on 1.6 crop imo...

then theres obviously the FF sensor which would be like a 10-20 on the 1.6 crop with that lens etc...

So different lenses will also be useful/not useful depending on the sensor size, add into the fact that a canon nifty 50 is no use to a nikon user ;)
 
DJMorgan said:
I did an event on the weekend just past, but iv been using my normal 18-55mm, Any clues to what would be the best lens to use at a gig ?

Cheers :gag::thumbs:
Click to expand...

Personally I'd go for a fast 50.
 
I did my first gig a couple of weeks ago. I have to defend the 50mm f1.8, yeah it hunted for focus a bit but most of my best shots were from it (Canon version though). If you're just starting out and don't want to spend a fortune on fast lenses then it's a good choice. Here's a couple of my shots, both 50mm f1.8 and ISO800 I think. I use a 400D so pretty poor low light performance anyway.





I also had a Sigma 24-60mm f2.8 for full body and full stage shots, I picked it up on eBay for £150 so there's no need to break the bank :)
 
hi daniel

i did a shoot this week (in your home town - http://biSPAM/joydivisiongig) and used a tamron 24-75 f2.8. most people on this forum have waaay more knowledge than me, which will hopefully help you.

but my only other point to remember is the best zoom of all - your legs. time and time again for me it's not about what glass i have, it's where i am stood that dictates the final results.

here is what i do:

- contact venue / band before hand. get good access before the day!
- charge batteries and have spare cards
- put a drink in your photo bag (who wants to go to the bar when they've got a good spot at the front?)
- get there for soundcheck, say hi to the bands and promoter etc
- find a good spot and stay there. wet your pants if you have to. you can get new internal organs, but you can't do the shoot again.
- shoot ALL bands if poss, but concentrate on first three songs

get home, sort 'em out, stick 'em online and post 'em everywhere!

best of luck and put more up as you do them!
paulb
 
On APS-H I take: 17-35 2.8, 50, 70-200. If you get close 17-35 looks mega. 50 is perfect 75% of the time (65mm looks great) then the 70-200 gets the close ups of guitarists hands, crashing cymbals etc.
 
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