Lens for Canon 7D

[ShelleyD]

Ok..so now Ive gone out and bought a 7D! Have put the 30D in mothballs and am on the lens hunt (again)...My dilemma is this..which lens for the 7D!! 24-70 L, 24-105L or the 17-55 F2.8. I am not too concerned about losing the wide angle (?) if I go for either of the first two - can always get a wide angle lens later!! Am just wanting a good quality lens to start off with the 7D. any suggestions would be really appreciated!

[AndrewKulin]

I have the 17-55 F2.8 - wonderful lens. Very sharp and very little CA. Is subject to flare though that could be due in part to my using a UV filter in front. There were reports (at least early on) that this lens was prone to sucking in dust inside the lens. I have not seen any dust on my copy, and it is pushing 3 years of use, and on order of at least 10 K actuations.

Use it with a 40D.

[wavemachine]

Really depends what you are going to use it for and at the end of the day they are all good lenses.

If you are going to wonder about with the camera a lot then the 24-70mm is quite a heavy lens but it does have a 2.8 aperture which is handy in low light and gives more control over DOF.

The 24-105 is F4 so does not give the same oportunities with low lights or quite as much control with DOF but it has a good zoom range but does not cover the wide end very well as with the previous lens.

Remember with the crop factor of the 7D a 24mm lens is equivalent to 38.4mm (FOV).

I have heard good things about the 17-55 but then you are restricting your zoom range.

I have a 7D and am more than happy with my 17-85mm that came with it as a general purpose lens for Zoom work I have a 70-200mm F4 which is superb although I should have gone for the IS version. For portrait etc I use my EF100mm Macro and 50mm f1.8 (bargain at under 100 notes). I also have a Sigma10-20mm for wide angle specific photos.

So really comes back to what you are going to photograph most of as to which lens will be the most beneficial.

[chris-p]

Well, it depends on what you want to shoot. The 24mm lenses are not very wide on the 7D while the 17-55 is a more "normal" viewing angle zoom.

[KeithT]

A friend of mine matched his 7d with the Canon EF-S 15-85 3.5-5.6 IS USM. Seen here: http://emedia.leeward.hawaii.edu/fra...n_efs15-85.htm

It gives stunning IQ results, maybe not up to L series standard build wise, but one that was built for the 1.6 crop factor. Why put lenses on your camera that were originally built for 35mm film and not digital?

[Forseti]

Originally Posted by KeithT

Why put lenses on your camera that were originally built for 35mm film and not digital?

One good reason would be that an EF-S lens, leaving aside the issue of how good or otherwise they may be, can only be used on a crop factor type camera. Should the OP at some stage decide to purchase a full-frame camera then any EF-S lens will be redundant. Within that limitation then your question is a valid one.

In broader terms, the 7D is, in my opinion, one of the best digital cameras produced by Canon to date - and certainly not cheap. With a camera such as this it would be a shame to use anything other than the best quality lens you can afford.

[KeithT]

Forseti, I have heard that argument before and frankly it doesn't sit comfortably with my logic. It's all if's and but's. What the OP should be doing is matching the correct lenses to his camera and not working on the assumption that he, or she, 'might' go full-frame later. To me a lens built for the 35mm/full-frame format is a total waste on a crop camera, as the photographer will only be using the centre of the lens anyway. I honestly see no advantage in doing this from a technical, or cost point of view. And if the OP had had thoughts of going full frame in the first place why didn't he or she buy a used 5d classic, for which there are many good used examples coming up for sale right now and a lot cheaper than a 7d. Sorry, but the best quality lenses for crop cameras are the latest breed of EF-S lenses. They are not cheap and the lens I mention above is as good as the 24-105 L and probably better on a 7d.

[ShelleyD]

Thanks everyone for your answers. I certainly have something to think about now!! Will let you know what I decide.

[Forseti]

Originally Posted by KeithT

To me a lens built for the 35mm/full-frame format is a total waste on a crop camera, as the photographer will only be using the centre of the lens anyway. I honestly see no advantage in doing this from a technical, or cost point of view.

Oh I certainly take your point about the if's and but's regarding going full-frame Keith although not too sure regarding the rest of your post. The best part (or sweet spot) of most lenses is in the 2/3 rds out from centre with deterioration towards the edge of the lens. For this reason a full-frame lens on a crop sensor camera is anything but a waste as the latter is essentially using all the sweet spot of the lens.

[KeithT]

I'm sure I'm right in thinking that the new EF-S lenses are built so that the whole of the lens is used and not just the centre 2/3rds. Images from the lens I have mentioned above are as stunning as anything I have seen from my 24-105, which whilst an L series lens and very good, is still not the best of the L series bunch. I'm sure L series lenses on a crop camera are great, but so are the more costly EF-S lenses. Their only let down is build and lack of weather sealing, so if that is worth a few hundred £s extra to have that's fine. If I was to pay double the money for a lens to fit on the 7d than was necessary, I would want a pretty good reason to fork it out. It surprises me how many people do though.