Best All Purpose lens for 70D

[tfarmer]

What is the best lens for the 70D? I mainly do family and seniors photography outdoors. I will be doing two wedding receptions in the spring and need to know what's suggested for that as well.

[Waddizzle]

There is no one lens that can do it all.  There are what are known as "standard zoom" lenses, cheaper varieties of which a frequently packaged with inexpensive DSLR cameras.  There are some better ones, though.

Which is best, would really depend upon your budget.  I can suggest a couple lenses at different price points.

The Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM is a great choice, and is currently sellling for 50% off list price.  The big brother to that lens is the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM.  It is also worth mentioning the EF 24-105mm f4L IS USM, which is a very good all purpose lens that is frequently sold as a kit lens with Canon's semi-professional cameras.

[tfarmer]

Thanks! Mylocal camera store recommended the EF 85mm f/1.8 to add to my collection. Is this a good one? I don't have a large budget.

[Waddizzle]

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@tfarmer wrote:
Thanks! Mylocal camera store recommended the EF 85mm f/1.8 to add to my collection. Is this a good one? I don't have a large budget.

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Before I answer that, what lenses do you have already?

I ask because the 85mm focal length will give an equivalent 136mm focal length on your 70D.  That focal length may work out to be "too long" for many social events.  You will get some great head shots, assuming you can fit the entire head into the frame.  You may likely find yourself needing ot step back, and put some distance between yourself and the subject just to compose the shot with some surrounding context.

If you lack a fast prime, then I would recommend the Canon 50mm f/1.8 STM, which would yield an equivalent 80m focal length on an APS-C sensor, which is virtually identical to the 85mm "portrait length" on a full frame.

However, having a fixed lens with an even wider Field-Of-View has been more flexible for me.  I can always crop a photo in post processing.  You cannot "uncrop" a photo taken with too long of a lens.  If I do not know what I will be shooting ahead of time, then I find myself reaching for a shorter, wider lens over a longer lens.

I have both of the "pancake lenses, the EF-S 24mm f/2.8 STM and the EF 40mm f/2.8 STM.  Both take great shots on my Rebel T5 at outdoor social events.  Their small size makes them less imposing to people when you take their picture.  My favorite [effective] focal lengths for general photography is about 35-50 mm. 

When it comes to buying lenses, buy the best quality lens that you can afford.  You will not regret it.  Buying a lens just because you can afford it will frequently result in disappointment down the road.  The primes that I listed are not expensive, not the best, but they will make for great general purpose primes.

Again, what lenses do you already own?

[ScottyP]

What do you shookt?

The 85mm prime has its uses but not really as a walk around lens on a crop body because it would be a bit long for that.  The field of view is like 136mm on full frame.

That would be good for tight head shot portraits, or for upper body portraits if you have room to stand back.  It is also good for indoor low light sports.  

It it would not be good shooting fellow diners at the table or even your kids opening presents at Christmas unless your house is enormous. 

[TTMartin]

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@tfarmer wrote:
What is the best lens for the 70D? I mainly do family and seniors photography outdoors. I will be doing two wedding receptions in the spring and need to know what's suggested for that as well.

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As someone already asked, what lens or lenses do you already have?

The EF 85mm f/1.8 is a great lens, and for your planned usage is probably a good choice, assuming you already have the EF 18-55 IS STM or the 18-135 IS STM.

The EF 85mm f/1.8 is great for family and senior portraits outdoors. The extra focal length and f/1.8 aperture will translate into nice blurry backgrounds that you just won't get with most of the other lenses mentioned.

However, indoors at a reception in most cases it will be too long for many shots. There something like the 17-55 f/2.8 IS (or 3rd party equivalent) would be a better choice. Or better yet, an external flash for use with your existing lens.

[tfarmer]

Thank you so much! This very helpful!

[TCampbell]

"best" is a four letter word.  You have to be careful using it because the reason your camera is designed with removable lenses and a massive selection from which to choose... is because there is no "best".

It really depends on what you want to shoot.

For outdoor portraiture, usually longer focal length lenses with low focal ratios create very flattering shots.  For example the EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM II is actually quite popular for outdoor portraits (not for indoor because you need a lot of space between camera and subject.)  It's a very expensive (but also extremly versatile) lens.

Most lens choices are a game of trade-offs but the 70-200 f/2.8 II has _very_ few weaknesses (I suppose the trade-off is the high price tag.)  As an alternative, there's an f/4 version but you wont get the background blur that you can achieve with the f/2.8.  

The 85mm for example, has two versions... an EF 85mm f/1.8 USM and the EF 85mm f/1.2L USM II.  The "L" version produces gorgeous background blur BUT it's also much slower to focus as compared to the f/1.8 version.  This means the 85mm "L" series lens is for situations when you are in control of the shooting pace and not trying to capture shots in a hurry.

The 1.6 crop factor on the 70D means long lenses will seem especially long and that means I'd probably stick with an 85mm for portraits and I wouldn't go shorter than the 50mm (do not get the 50mm f/1.8 II... only the "STM" or the f/1.4 USM versions should be considered.)

If you just have "two" wedding receptions in the spring, then I'd rent instead of buy... and I'd probably be looking at the EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM II.

[tfarmer]

Thank you! I was thinking of renting but I keep getting more bookings which is a good thing.