Author Topic: Wanted: Canon Lenses  (Read 10342 times)

gimp

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Wanted: Canon Lenses
« on: June 20, 2014, 01:52:25 PM »
PM me if you're looking to divest yourself. I'll be wanting some of the following over the next several years, as budgets permit.

Canon EF:
- 70-200mm f/2.8 IS II
- 400mm f/5.6, maybe f/4
- 24-105mm IS L - $500 on the dot, no more no less
- 135mm f/2

Sigma:
- 35mm f/1.4

Samyang/etc (10+ brands, don't care which):
- 24mm f/1.4

Misc:
- Cokin filter set and holder large enough to fit a Samyang 14mm f/2.8
- Anamagic anamorphot

ketchup

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #1 on: June 20, 2014, 02:08:44 PM »
I don't have any to sell, except some old-style FD-mount Canons, but it looks like you're looking at EF-mount.
- 135mm f/2
That lens is godly.  My photographer girlfriend has one, and it is stellar for portraits.  It's her favorite lens.

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #2 on: June 20, 2014, 05:22:56 PM »
Yeah, that's why I want it. I saw a couple at a reasonable price but wasn't ready to buy. I think I'll make either that, or the 400mm, my graduation gift to myself this year...

I thought about using adapted FD lenses - after all, portraits don't need infinity, right? - but decided against it. Good thing for you that the A7 came out because people just love themselves some old glass on that thing.

ketchup

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #3 on: June 20, 2014, 09:16:59 PM »
Hers was around $900 from eBay I think.

I've used the FD lenses with micro 4/3 format cameras, and they work fantastically on them, and are dirt cheap.

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #4 on: June 23, 2014, 01:46:42 PM »
I've seen em for $750 on craigslist locally. I might go with that price, maybe this year.

Kudos on using the old glass on MFT cameras. If I was doing it, I think I'd get a 50 1.2 for like $250. What's your favorite?

ketchup

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #5 on: June 23, 2014, 04:03:04 PM »
I had a 55 1.2 that was a beast of a lens (bought locally, and flipped onto eBay), that and the 50 1.4 are pretty wonderful.  They adapted to about a 100mm on MFT.  I used them primarily for shooting video with a Panasonic GH1 and GH2.  That 50 1.4 was probably on the camera for 95% of non-wide-shots.  I loved the look it gave.

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #6 on: July 18, 2014, 12:55:38 PM »
Those are beautiful lenses. Unfortunately, not exactly my cup of tea. I mean, if the 24-70 is the right price, maybe? But I only want the normal zoom range for hiking, where an f/4 aperture is no worse than 2.8 since I'll be stopping down to f/8 anyways. And the 16-35 is great but I prefer primes (20mm and 14mm). So unless the 24-70 is $700 or so, I'll definitely have to pass. But thanks a bunch for posting, I appreciate the offer.

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #7 on: July 25, 2014, 11:51:13 AM »
Yay, got a 24mm 1.4. For half the price I thought I'd have to spend, no less!

Secret Stache

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #8 on: July 29, 2014, 08:13:35 AM »
I'm adding nothing to the conversation, just wanted to say i glanced at the title and thought I read Cannon Lessons so I had to click.

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #9 on: July 29, 2014, 11:28:51 AM »

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #10 on: August 01, 2014, 05:39:29 PM »
Does it come with the quad-rail tripod mount, or is it just a rumored drawing?

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #11 on: August 06, 2014, 03:30:30 PM »
135 f/2 obtained as well. Woo! Gonna test drive it soon.

This ends the great camera gear purchase of 2014. If anyone wants to sell me their used 6D in 2015, send me a PM... in five months.

SingleMomDebt

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #12 on: August 12, 2014, 12:17:40 AM »
I have a seldom-used Canon 60D with a 18-135 mm lens and a 50 mm lens for sale. will hit you up in 5 months, if interested. ;)

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #13 on: August 12, 2014, 03:12:25 PM »
Weelllll, 60D isn't exactly what I'm looking for, 6D is. But if your 50mm is a mark 1 (metal mount), we can talk about that...

SnackDog

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #14 on: August 12, 2014, 04:40:14 PM »
Lenses are a slippery slope which many people fall far down before they realize it.    If you buy the right lenses, the first 2 or 3 can have great added value.  However, returns tend to diminish after that while, oddly, costs tend to go up.  One buys more and more esoteric lenses which are sometimes less practical.

Will your lenses pay for themselves? How much are you willing to spend on your hobby and what are the tradeoffs in terms of extra working years?

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #15 on: August 12, 2014, 06:37:14 PM »
I save 50%, pre-tax, of a large salary in a high cost of living area. I don't care at all if I spend another 1% on a hobby. I'm going to work until I die because I love my work; freedom to me means something different than to you.

Unfortunately, my purchase of the 24mm f/1.4 fell through so now I'm on the lookout for another. (Ebay seller sucks.) So if anyone wants to sell me one...

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #16 on: January 06, 2015, 08:36:44 PM »
If anyone wants to sell a sigma 35/1.4 (preferably with a dock), or a 6D, or a 5D3, or some nice 77mm or 72mm filters, I'm still buying. The rest is bought.

Though I am loving the crashing prices of the 5D3 - the 6D has hardly gone down, but I've seen 5D3 bodies for 1750 on craigslist. One for 1400 but I suspect it wasn't a legitimate deal. I might wait until they're 1500, especially if canon releases a 5D4/5Ds/whatever they call their upcoming rumored body. If anyone wants that money in their investment account earning interest now instead of four or six months from now... :)

TheFirstMan

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #17 on: February 02, 2015, 06:34:52 AM »
The FredMiranda.com forum buy/sell boards are great for finding any of these at a decent price pretty quickly. And you can often resell for about what you paid for a quality lens, even after a year or two.

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #18 on: February 18, 2015, 08:25:42 PM »
That's true, but the FM folks tend to want a better price than I'll pay. I'm hoping someone here decides their hobby is wasteful and wants to get rid of their stuff on the cheap. :)

queenie

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #19 on: March 07, 2015, 12:30:56 PM »
I'm considering selling my Sigma 35mm Art.  I haven't decided yet.  It might not make sense for us to do a sale though (I'm assuming you are in the States) since I'm Canadian.

I have and love the Tamron 24-70mm and I thought I'd want the Sigma for the extra stops, but so for it just seems redundant for me.  I'm holding onto it a little longer and forcing myself to use it exclusively before I decide for sure if I'll let it go though.

I'd also love to get a 135mm, but I'm afraid that it's just me being ridiculous since I already have a 70-200 2.8.  And I have a 100mmL macro (when I bought it, I was debating heavily between the two because I didn't think I could justify a 100 and 135).  I'm pretty sure that I just need all the lenses though.

JohnnyDollar

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #20 on: March 08, 2015, 07:19:14 PM »
Have you a specific use-case in mind?  When would you carry the 135 and not the 100?  (and vice versa?)

The 100L is beautiful and handles everything from head shots/portraits to tiny floral work.  It's sharp enough to count scales on butterfly wings, and I've shot tolerable (albeit not production quality) micro-mini orchid inflorescences handheld with nothing more than the 100L and an embarrassing amount of direct winter morning sunlight.   

The 70-200 is another workhorse-- from the sidelines you can cover most of a football field, and with a monopod and a TC you can park behind an end zone with a steaming travel mug and a lap blanket and still GSD. 

All of which adds up to: I'm having a hard time imagining when I'd want the 135 and neither the 100 nor the 70-200 f/2.8 would fit the bill. 

Now, if you said "Johnny, 1x macro isn't enough; I fantasize about wearing a microscope over my shoulder" I'd say get yourself an MP-E 65 and a nice pair of rails.  Maybe a focus-stacker.  And if you said "Johnny, it ain't photography if you can recognize the subject" I'd say that's what Lensbabies are for....

queenie

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #21 on: March 08, 2015, 07:57:50 PM »
I have no logical reason.  I just want them all.

I know it's completely irrational.

JohnnyDollar

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #22 on: March 09, 2015, 06:05:11 AM »
Queenie --

I hereby award you my very first Facepunch, individually numbered (#0001) and signed.  May you wear it in good health and better light. :)

Yours Truly,

Johnny Dollar

queenie

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #23 on: March 09, 2015, 07:50:40 AM »
That made me giggle.  I truly own and accept my totally irrationality re: camera equipment.  In fairness, I buy used lenses and I generate income with these purchases to offset the expense of the hobby.  But I still know it's ridiculous, and that's why I'm considering selling the 35 and I haven't bought a 135 (yet - no promises).

I have no other expensive obsessions though!  I don't care about clothes or shoes or make up or hand bags or beauty treatments.  I don't travel.  This is my one weakness.

JohnnyDollar

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #24 on: March 09, 2015, 06:28:16 PM »
Oh, it's a lighthearted facepunch to be sure - you're talking to a guy who doesn't make money off his obsession^Whobby who cheerfully upgraded from a 20D to a 1DX and hasn't regretted it yet.  I have, however, walked into trees, fallen off ledges/into bodies of water, gotten bowled over by rollergirls and footballers alike, chased butterflies, been duped by squirrels, you name it.  If this is wrong, I don't want to be right. :D

Not to say I wouldn't mind making some side coin on said obsession, but frankly if I broke even on gear I'd consider it a victory. :D

-Johnny

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #25 on: March 23, 2015, 03:25:48 PM »
I love you guys.

Queenie: Do you use your 24-70 much? I got a Canon 24-70 mk1 for a pretty good price. Used it literally once, only because I was going to be on a beach and didn't know what focal length I wanted. Honestly, simply backing up and using my 135 made the 24-70 mostly redundant in that situation... think I will sell it.

But that's my style. I'd go for 35 + 135 instead of 24-70 and 70-200. (Well, currently I go for 24/1.4, 50/1.4, 135/2, and 200/2.8 depending on what I need.) I just... don't really like zooms. It really depends on your style. I use any of those lenses as my single walk-about lens - yeah, even the 200 makes for a great walkabout lens; it just means choosing what to shoot is different.

I have a 100/2.8 macro, non-L. I don't need the L. I only use it for macro stuff - product photography, analyzing my PCBs, that sort of thing.

queenie

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #26 on: March 23, 2015, 05:18:27 PM »
I used my 24-70 almost exclusively until I got the 35. But I think I like the 24-70 better - it seems sharper to me. Maybe I got a soft copy or maybe I need to recalibrate. Not sure yet.

I do a lot of indoors shooting though (my kids plus newborn shoots) so a wider lens is necessary for that stuff.

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #27 on: March 23, 2015, 07:16:33 PM »
Do you have a sigma dock? Your lens may be back- or front-focusing. The dock lets you calibrate. If I had any modern sigma lens, I would spend some time with some charts and tape measures to make sure the AF was dead-on at multiple distances.

queenie

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #28 on: March 23, 2015, 07:17:52 PM »
I don't have the dock. I really need to micro calibrate it and see, I just haven't sat down to do it yet.

SunshineAZ

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #29 on: April 20, 2015, 04:11:46 PM »
LOL I never expected to find a Canon lens discussion on a Mustachian forum.  One of my 2 non-frugal hobbies (photography and SCUBA diving).  A few years back I sold my 2nd car (a paid off  Miata *sniff* I still miss it, but it was no longer practical as we lived in the boonies on a dirt road), anyway I used the money to buy lenses, yeah I know *facepunch*.  But I take nature and Hummingbird photos as a hobby and I have sold some photos at the local gift shop.  I have the following lenses:

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM (heavy!)
Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Lens (use for sunsets, etc.)
Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM (heavy, but not as bad as the 200)
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L IS USM Macro Lens (fun for bugs)
Canon EF 50mm f/2.5 Compact Macro Lens (don't use much)
Sigma "Bigma" 500mm (but I got that before the 100-400 and I don't use it much anymore)

And then I saved up an got a Mark 5D III, so now I will not be upgrading for a while, or ever.  (And I kept my 60D as a backup.)  And NO I don't take them diving.  :)  I have a cheapo camera for diving. 

I can't wait to FIRE so I can spend all day chasing hummingbirds. (I live in the hummingbird capital of the US, we get more varieties than anywhere else in the US.) 

I am interested to know about calibrating lenses.  I have heard of it, but I have no idea what it takes to do it.  I only really got into photography when we moved here and I was obsessed with taking a clear hummingbird photo.  LOL



JohnnyDollar

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #30 on: April 20, 2015, 07:01:06 PM »
In a nutshell: http://www.reikan.co.uk/focalweb/index.php/versions/version-comparison/

that, a tripod, a brightly-lit printed target, and a decently-long hallway are all you need.  I don't have a 5 or 60-series body but I believe at least the 5 supports at least some degree of microadjustment.

Roughly what sort of shutter speeds do you need to
a) stop motion on a hummingbird and
b) get a sharp body and nice motion blur on the wings?

SunshineAZ

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #31 on: April 21, 2015, 02:46:30 PM »
In a nutshell: http://www.reikan.co.uk/focalweb/index.php/versions/version-comparison/

that, a tripod, a brightly-lit printed target, and a decently-long hallway are all you need.  I don't have a 5 or 60-series body but I believe at least the 5 supports at least some degree of microadjustment.

Roughly what sort of shutter speeds do you need to
a) stop motion on a hummingbird and
b) get a sharp body and nice motion blur on the wings?

I normally try for stopped focused wings, and my normal settings are auto shutter speed, 8 or 9 aperature, 1200+ ISO, and a bright sunny day.  Previously I used all manual focus, as the wings really mess up autofocus, however, my new camera has adjustable focus points and I have been having some success by limiting the focal points to the top center area.  As for the blur, I get that when I have less than good light, but I have never tried to optimize the settings for that. 

gimp

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Re: Wanted: Canon Lenses
« Reply #32 on: May 01, 2015, 05:08:14 PM »
Sell your bigma :) I don't think there's much use for it, it's been outclassed by the new super-telephoto zooms (various 100-400, 150-500, 150-600s).

I've been a good boy this year - no new lenses! But instead I sold a few I wasn't using and gave one away.