Hi. I can either afford a Canon 200mm F2.0/L lens or the Canon 1D Mark IV camera, but not both. Currently I have a Canon 300mm F2.8/L and a Canon 5D Mark II.
My photo interests are indoor sports photography, including diving, basketball, volleyball and wrestling. Would I get a bigger bang from the lens or the camera for low light action?
I would go with the lens. The 5D II is fairly decent for indoor sports but if you're having trouble with the auto focus and ratio of keepers to OOF, you might want to consider the camera with the more professional level AF.
But since you have the 300 2.8 already and are considering another telephoto I'm assuming the 5D is working alright
I have a 5D and a 1 series - i cant believe you are considering all this money on glass with a 9 point AF system. why not buy a 200mm f/2.8 and a used 1dmkIII and think about it for a while?
Bodies may come and go, but good glass is forever.
Five years from now, are you going to get the same value out of the 1D4 as the 200/2L IS? I suspect not.
The 1D4 will take great pictures, and your keeper rate will be higher than with the 5D2, but it has an APS-C sensor, so you may find yourself still wanting the 5D2.
Personally, I would rent each and find out. That will be the true test.
I would recommand switch your 5d mark 2 to 1d mark 3, then buy 200mm 2.0L (if you don't want to spend much money).
I agree 'Bodies may come and go, but good glass is forever' & 'Canon 5D Mark II is not the best choice for sports regardless it is indoor, low light or what not'.
Thanks everyone for your recommendations. You've given me a lot to consider. Now I'm wondering if I can sell my 5D2, 70-200 2.8, and 300 2.8 for $5K, so I could afford the 1D4 and 200 2.0 + $5K.
Kent R. Klein wrote:
Thanks everyone for your recommendations. You've given me a lot to consider. Now I'm wondering if I can sell my 5D2, 70-200 2.8, and 300 2.8 for $5K, so I could afford the 1D4 and 200 2.0 + $5K.
- Kent
I think you may just be out of your mind.
I would never drop two lenses for one. Period. My question to you is, do you feel that you are missing "the shot" because of the AF system of the 5D? If not, then go for the glass, because as others have said, it'll last a life time. If you are getting a restrictively low keeper rate, then spring for a used 1D3. IMO it will be all you need. A lot of the features in the new 1 series are more marketing hype than actual leaps in picture taking technology.
Kent R. Klein wrote:
Thanks everyone for your recommendations. You've given me a lot to consider. Now I'm wondering if I can sell my 5D2, 70-200 2.8, and 300 2.8 for $5K, so I could afford the 1D4 and 200 2.0 + $5K.
- Kent
Don't do that.
You should get more than $5K for all three of those items, but don't do it. I don't think it's a step up, because the 1D4 is APS-C and not 24x36mm. No matter how good they make the 1D4 sensor, it will not match the 5D2.
Furthermore, the 300/2.8L is an excellent lens. I don't know if you have the IS version or not, but both are very good. You're giving up on a lot in order to get both the 1D4 + 200/2L IS, which in the current economic conditions, doesn't make a lot of sense to me.
As I mentioned before, rent. The worst mistake you can make is to sell existing gear to finance the purchase of equipment you are not sure will serve your needs.
wickerprints wrote:
The 1D4 will take great pictures, and your keeper rate will be higher than with the 5D2, but it has an APS-C sensor, so you may find yourself still wanting the 5D2.
how often do you use the 300/2.8 and how much do you need the extra stop of 2.0 v 2.8?
If you dont use the 300 so much then selling it and getting the 200/2 + a 1.4 TC could make a bit of sense
But also how much headroom do you have to up the ISO and gain that stop back (the Hi ISO performance of the 1D4 needs to be seen first)
could you get the 200/2 and a good working 1D3?
Nov 21, 2009 at 10:12 AM
Steve Spencer Offline • • • • • • • Upload & Sell: On
For your interests I don't see where you need the 300mm lens. Perhaps this is a reasonable compromise: sell the 300 f/2.8L IS, get a 7D and the 200 f/2L IS and a 135L.
I feel that you would have more versatility using your 70-200 f2.8 on the 1DMarkIV. With wrestling you will be too close with the 200mm f2. The high ISO capability of the Mark IV will cover any lack of the one f stop advantage. Also with volleyball you can get both sides of the net or individual players. A non zoom lens for these sports will put a cramp into your versatility. I too would hate to see you getting rid of both the 5DMarkII and the 300mm f2.8. But one of them has to go to get anywhere near the money you need for the MarkIV.
APS-H 1.3 crop