What Lens to Rent??

SixPapaCharlie

SixPapaCharlie

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I am going to ride to Airventure this year and I am looking to take my DSLR.
It is a Canon T1i and most of my lenses are for portraits.

I am not sure what I am looking for w/ respect to telephoto lenses so I am going to rent one.
What would you recommend from this page for under $150

I will probably be taking some shots from the air en-route and certainly on the ground at high speed targets (looking to @Lowflynjack )

I borrowed a friends crappy zoom once and the subjects all had a purple haze around them (Not a Jimmy Hendrix one) so I want to make sure I can get some really clean pics on this trip.

https://www.lensrentals.com/rent/canon/lenses/telephoto

Thanks!
 
Don't forget to take the door off ;)

twin-s.jpg


either that, or borrow one of these:

6.jpg
 
The money in lenses is in the f/____ (maximum aperture). The lower the number the wider the aperture and the better for low light scenarios. If you plan on taking all of your pictures during the day, I wouldn't bother getting an f-stop less than 4. If you are photographing planes in flight, you would want the aperture around 10-12 anyway to "blur" the prop.

F-Stops are sometimes listed in a range between min/max zoom. f/4.5-6.3

That Sigma 50-500 looks interesting, but it's like everything else. It's a compromise. Zoom lenses this versatile will pay for it with picture quality, but a normal person wouldn't be able to tell the difference.
If you get a 150-___(focal length), you will not be able to take a picture of much if you are less than 30ft away. A 50-___ will still allow you to shoot a portrait at 15 ft.

I would go for the Sigma 50-500 since I didn't see this one on the list.

upload_2016-7-11_2-46-4.png
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
I am going to ride to Airventure this year and I am looking to take my DSLR.
It is a Canon T1i and most of my lenses are for portraits.

I will probably be taking some shots from the air en-route and certainly on the ground at high speed targets (looking to @Lowflynjack )
Click to expand...

Tough call! For air-to-ground or air-to-air, I almost exclusively use my 70-200 f2.8L IS ii. At an airshow you'll find you can't zoom out far enough to easily get photos on the ground with that lens, especially since you're using a crop camera with the T1i. I also carry a 28-105 for the closer photos. You'll also find 200 isn't great for ground-to-air photos during the airshow.

Since you don't want to switch lenses while walking around, I hear pretty good reviews on the 28-300. It's a push-pull to zoom lens which is awkward at first, but 28-300 is an incredible range. http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/319784-USA/Canon_9322A002AA_28_300mm_f_3_5_5_6L_IS_USM.html

Not what you would want as an exclusive lens, but I have a friend who is famous in the aviation photography world. He's recently been working with Sigma and mostly using their lenses. He's been getting some great photos at airshows from the ground with a monster lens, the Sigma 150-600mm f5-6.3 DG OS HSM | S. I really want to try out this lens someday.
 
Agree with maciej on pro glass only. You want the 70-200 f2.8
And you want to rent the 2X lens extender for those airshow shots with the plane(s) far away from you and for those great shots on the ground where you can't get close enough
I carried the Nikkor F2.8 zoom for over 20 years as my daily lens (I have a really strong grip now)
The IS version would really be better, but hey, it's only money.
Shoot with as large an aperture (lower number) as the light will allow so the background goes blurred (bokeh)
I will do 99% of my shooting at f2.8 or 3.5 except when it is crazy bright
Shutter speed is your friend to reduce blurring - more is better
F8 will be the sharpest aperture for the lens
Get as close to your subject as you can and frame tight (if you are shooting a portrait and you can see both ears, you are not framing tight)
Airplanes of course we want to see all of it from wing tip to wing tip
Normally I set the camera for aperture priority, meaning I choose the aperture and the camera controls the shutter speed - just keep an eye that the shutter speeds don't get too slow (blur) or crazy fast

Look up your camera review to find what the testing shows as the best ASA for highest definition and color (usually 100 but ymmv)
Also use the review to see how high an ASA you can choose before an unacceptable loss of definition
I normally have the ASA on a manual setting, but for bright sun and airplanes against a bright sky leaving the ASA on auto works ok
Use a monopod (borrow one) - it is handier than a pocket in your underwear
 
I carry a 100-500mm Sigma zoom. Works well enough. Sometimes I even put a teleconverter on it. You can buy it outright likely for the price your rental of a big hunk of Canon glass is going to cost you. You don't need a particularly fast lens to shoot airshows and you'll pay for it in arm fatigue holding such up.
 
Great discussion guys.....I'm sure I'm not the only one learning a bunch....keep it going!

Thanks!

Jim
 
Hire Jack and take him with you. He'd probably do it for $150. :D
 
mscard88 said:
Hire Jack and take him with you. He'd probably do it for $150. :D
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Beer and BBQ!

Dr. O gave a lot of good tips above, but I think I would simplify.
  • For prop planes on the ground that have the engine running, us Shutter Priority (TV). Get a lens with Image Stabilization, then you can slow the shutter speed down to 1/80 or lower, I go as low as 1/30 handheld with my camera if the plane is not moving. When Dr. O mentions ASA, it's more commonly referred to as ISO today and that is what it is called on your camera. Agree with keeping it at 100 when there's plenty of light. On your camera, the reviewers claim you can go to 1600 in low light. I would try to stay around 400 in the mornings, go higher as the sun rises.
  • For prop planes flying by, also use Shutter Priority (TV), but 1/80 will most likely be blurry unless you're very good at panning. Push the button, follow the plane with the lens even after you think the photo is taken. If they're taking off or landing, 1/80 will work fine. On a high speed pass, use 1/125 or faster.
  • For prop planes on the ground, use Aperture Priority (AV). These cameras are very good, let them do a lot of the work for you. Especially early in the morning, the light is changing every minute, the camera will make the adjustments.
  • For jets, the above settings work fine in Shutter Priority, but you're not trying to get prop blur, so you can speed it up to 1/250 or more and get sharp photos almost all of the time. Do this on a prop plane and you stop the prop, which makes pilots mad!
Have fun, practice as much as you can.

This P-51 was at 1/40 with my 70-200 f2.8 IS ii, handheld. It's hard to get a sharp photo with shutter speeds this slow. Practice! You at least want prop-blur, preferably the whole prop circle.
23489645831_020f8191c9_b.jpg


The other P-51 that day coming at me light lightning and I sped it up to 1/250 and got some prop blur. Anything slower and the whole thing would have been blurred.
22945093183_e91f10637b_b.jpg


And on takeoff at 1/80th I got the full prop blur.
23204213819_53dfbe47c5_b.jpg


Push the button, follow the plane with the lens to get that sharp plane, blurry background. Gives a nice sense of speed! 1/100th
21081311030_432aa18e33_b.jpg
 
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Jack, I have a Nikon D810. I could bring my 70-200 f/2.8 pro glass to OSH, but it's big and heavy. Last year I bought the Nikon 28-300 f/3.5-5.6 for travel. It's considerably smaller but still has decent glass, not to mention tremendous range. I'll probably bring this to OSH. What do you think?
 
Nice pics Jack, especially the Mustang. You sell prints?
 
Why rent? Buy the lens of your desire (used) and sell it when you're done using it. With a little patience on the buy and sell side, you might even make a profit. Certainly you will not lose $150. I have done this more than once to try lenses and always come at least close to breaking even. At best, a small profit.

No patience on the buy side? Both B&H and Adorama have used lenses and the prices IIRC are not wildly above the private seller market. They will also buy used lenses but they're going to need a margin, so doing the round trip with one of them will probably be expensive.
 
colojo said:
Jack, I have a Nikon D810. I could bring my 70-200 f/2.8 pro glass to OSH, but it's big and heavy. Last year I bought the Nikon 28-300 f/3.5-5.6 for travel. It's considerably smaller but still has decent glass, not to mention tremendous range. I'll probably bring this to OSH. What do you think?
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I don't know much about Nikon, but I've heard that's a great lens. 28-300 is a great range, from close to far! As long as it's a sharp lens, which I hear it is, I would go for it.

My lens/camera is heavy, but I wear a sling and let it hang from my shoulders when not using it. It makes it a lot easier to deal with.
 
mscard88 said:
Nice pics Jack, especially the Mustang. You sell prints?
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Thank you! I've never sold any unless it was a specific photo shoot for someone, usually air-to-air. As long as I get credit for the photo, I'm usually happy to share!
 
airdale said:
Why rent? Buy the lens of your desire (used) and sell it when you're done using it. With a little patience on the buy and sell side, you might even make a profit. Certainly you will not lose $150. I have done this more than once to try lenses and always come at least close to breaking even. At best, a small profit.

No patience on the buy side? Both B&H and Adorama have used lenses and the prices IIRC are not wildly above the private seller market. They will also buy used lenses but they're going to need a margin, so doing the round trip with one of them will probably be expensive.
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I've never rented a lens, but I use my camera a lot more than most people. I think renting is a cool option for those not wanting to spend thousands on a lens and hope to get most or all of it back. The lens a couple of us have recommended is $2K, on the link SixPapaCharlie posted, it can be rented for $70 for 5 days... not bad!

I do agree though, if you can compromise on what you ultimately want, you can work your way up. I wanted a 70-200 lens years ago. I bought the 70-300 (the cheaper black one), sold it later and got the 70-200 F4 IS, then sold it and got the 70-200 F2.8 IS ii. All three were great lenses, and it bright daylight, the F4 was just as sharp as my F2.8.

And I agree on B&H, my favorite store. I bought a Canon 6D from them, used it for a week and decided it wasn't for me. Sent it back, no questions asked, and bought my new camera from them the next day.
 
I use the Sigma 50-500. Works fine. See my links below. I like this lens because I get a wide range from it- fewer lens changes. The 50 mm end is good for some static shots. I rented this lens, then I bought it.

I disagree about the use of a teleconverter. They do degrade image quality somewhat. You also lose 1-2 stops depending on the teleconverter, bit this isn't an issue usually at an airshow. I have a 1.4x, and I rarely use it except at the 500 mm extreme.

As for the prop blur, my opinion is that it looks nice, but a tack-sharp image is more important to me- The other Jack has good panning skills so he can get good images with a lower shutterspeed. He may also be using a gimbaled tripod (I don't); I tend to use a faster shutter speed than he does so I get some prop blur, but a reasonably sharp image.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/jacksilver/albums/72157667987370354 (Canon 7D2)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jacksilver/albums/72157653748888073 (Canon 7D2)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jacksilver/albums/72157645826526842 (Canon XSi)
 
Cap'n Jack said:
As for the prop blur, my opinion is that it looks nice, but a tack-sharp image is more important to me- The other Jack has good panning skills so he can get good images with a lower shutterspeed. He may also be using a gimbaled tripod (I don't); I tend to use a faster shutter speed than he does so I get some prop blur, but a reasonably sharp image.
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No tripod for me! I admit I get a bit obsessed with the prop blur. It's a challenge for me and I like the look. I do take a lot of photos and tend to throw a lot away.

I've always enjoyed your work!
 
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The 1.4 doesn't make things that much worse. The major thing that it does on my lenses is that it knocks off the Auto Focus which admittedly doesn't do all that well shooting airplanes in flight anyhow. Even when AF is available, I end up manually focusing it.
 
Lowflynjack, Thanks for the compliment!

If they do multiple flybys at an airshow, I'll try to improve the prop-blur with a lower shutter speed but I'm a long way from your shots, which I also enjoy looking at.
 
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flyingron said:
The 1.4 doesn't make things that much worse. The major thing that it does on my lenses is that it knocks off the Auto Focus which admittedly doesn't do all that well shooting airplanes in flight anyhow. Even when AF is available, I end up manually focusing it.
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Yes, the auto focus thing too. The 7D2 can often handle a 1.4x and autofocus using phase detection (auto focus points) in good light, but it does a much better job using live view (contrast detection). My opinion is that one is better off at an airshow renting the longer lens.
 
Bingo - you have a winner

Sorry about the ISO thing, guys. I started into this back in the late 40's when it was B&W photography, ASA film ratings, drawing with light (as opposed to drawing with electrons or selfies and certainly before fishfaces, etc,)
Turning a photograph into a picture required several hours, running water, hypo smell on your hands, and such.
Today is good. I like GPS and I like my digi cameras.
But nothing beats a well done B&W image made from a silver negative (you can take a boy out of the darkroom but .. .. .. .. :)
 
That will work well, it is a very good lens. My opinion is that you may want a bit more reach (longer focal length). If you are at show center, it will be fine. I look forward to seeing your pictures.
 
Never knew you could rent lenses! Thanks for the pirep I'm going to get a rental myself for the show.
 
i have been told lensrentals is the way to go. there was a great thread on lens for aviation shoots over at aafo.com. they were in agreement that the 70-200 2.8 is a great airshow lens.
bob
 
unsafervguy said:
i have been told lensrentals is the way to go. there was a great thread on lens for aviation shoots over at aafo.com. they were in agreement that the 70-200 2.8 is a great airshow lens.
bob
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I like the 70-200... it's about the only lens I use! I use it for air-to-air and walking around at airshows/fly-ins, but I disagree that it's a good airshow lens. I would go with the 70-300 or longer. You'll find the airplanes are way too far away during their routines.
 
LOL
 

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I have the Canon 100-400 L, the Canon 70-200 4:0 L, and the 1.4L Canon teleconverter. The 100-400 goes to Oshkosh for the good pictures, but I always have a decent P&S in my pocket for impromptu shots.
 
Cap'n Jack said:
That will work well, it is a very good lens. My opinion is that you may want a bit more reach (longer focal length). If you are at show center, it will be fine. I look forward to seeing your pictures.
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Lowflynjack said:
I like the 70-200... it's about the only lens I use! I use it for air-to-air and walking around at airshows/fly-ins, but I disagree that it's a good airshow lens. I would go with the 70-300 or longer. You'll find the airplanes are way too far away during their routines.
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kyleb said:
I have the Canon 100-400 L, the Canon 70-200 4:0 L, and the 1.4L Canon teleconverter. The 100-400 goes to Oshkosh for the good pictures, but I always have a decent P&S in my pocket for impromptu shots.
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Looks like we have some consensus that 200 mm will be a little short. All of these images below were on a "crop" sensor; the images would be smaller on a "full frame" at the same focal lengths. You can get good images at 200 mm, but I agree with the other Jack that you'll feel it is a bit short. Only one image below was shot at below 200 mm.

From a recent airshow at KLNK:
203 mm- fairly large plane, closest approach to the line:
JAK_4799 by Jack Silver, on Flickr



138 mm:
JAK_4881 by Jack Silver, on Flickr


244 mm:
JAK_4673 by Jack Silver, on Flickr


450 mm:
JAK_4597 by Jack Silver, on Flickr
 
Sigma or Tamron in a 70-300 zoom works well. If you want a portrait, typically it's 50mm. I have a NIKON. About half are NIKON lenses. The others are either Sigma or Tamron. I have two different teleconverters but they do alter the f-stop. The other thing is if the lenses are auto focus. If the lens isn't auto, it's usually a setting you need to alter.
 
I rented the 200. We will see how it does.
I have the 50mm prime for short depth of field stuff and I think I have like a 15-55 or whatever the default lens that comes w/ every new DSLR is.

If I like this 200, I may buy one. I will probably rent a 300 or 400 first to compare.
This is expensive glass.
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
I rented the 200. We will see how it does.
I have the 50mm prime for short depth of field stuff and I think I have like a 15-55 or whatever the default lens that comes w/ every new DSLR is.

If I like this 200, I may buy one. I will probably rent a 300 or 400 first to compare.
This is expensive glass.
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I'm looking forward to seeing your pictures!
 
Maciej said:
70-200 f/2.8L
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Agreed 100% It's a great lens for shooting a wide variety of subjects at a wide variety of distances.

You may also want to rent an EF-S 10-22mm. It's the best ultra wide for the APS-C Canons, and will allow you to shoot entire airplanes from much, much closer than basically everything else that fits your camera.
 
ettsn said:
Agreed 100% It's a great lens for shooting a wide variety of subjects at a wide variety of distances.

You may also want to rent an EF-S 10-22mm. It's the best ultra wide for the APS-C Canons, and will allow you to shoot entire airplanes from much, much closer than basically everything else that fits your camera.
Click to expand...

It's on my wish list. I borrowed one from a friend once and you could take a picture of your feet while shooting straight out.
 
Alright... Back from Osh and my photos are not great but better than I would have gotten with my cheapo lens.
Right away I realize that ground to air, there is little to frame the subject and so the aerial photos lack context.
This is a skill thing rather than a lens thing but the end result is more detailed photos that I would have gotten w/ a P&S.
They mostly come out somewhat soul-less photos of planes for lack of a better phrase. I am not displeased but I have a lot to learn.

Anyway here are some pics w/ the 200 2.8 lens.
IMG_4758.JPG IMG_4766.JPG IMG_4814.JPG IMG_4845.JPG IMG_4861.JPG IMG_4926.JPG IMG_4954.JPG IMG_4957.JPG IMG_4984.JPG IMG_4989.JPG
 
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