Best Lens for Photographing cars

[DAWNVANAUKEN]

I have the Canon Rebel 4ti.

I generally photograph kids.... just for fun.

My favorite lens is the 1.8 - 50 mm   maybe someday I'll get the 1.4 but this works for me right now.

However, I have been asked by my husbands Camaro Club to photograph Camaro's at an event.

Each car will be driving in front of a backdrop - and I will photograph it.

I'm not great with this, because not sure what would be the best lens to photograph a vehicle outside.

Any suggestions would be great.

Again, I'm very new at this....I'm doing it for free....  but like the creativity.

[TCampbell]

A slight wide-angle lens works well on cars because it exagerates the size.  When shooting from the front or back, the car appears longer.  When shooting the interior, the interior seems roomier, etc.  You can use a wide angle not just to be "wide" but because of it's property of extending "depth" it makes long objects seem longer as it stretches the depth of the scene.

You could do this with the kit 18-55mm lens (assuming you have this lens).  You could go really wide by getting something like the EF-S 10-22mm but I'm not sure you'd really need the extra wide angles below 18mm that the kit lens would already provide.  I'm thinking you'll probably like the look at around 24mm range -- but that's a guess on my part.

I probably would _not_ use the 50mm lens for a car (but it's not like there are "rules" for this stuff.)  It's just that a car is large and you'll have to walk back farther to get the whole car in frame when using the 50mm.  

I think moderately wide (but not extremely wide) is a nice look for most car photos.

I probably would not actually "buy" a new lens until you're certain you like the look.  If you're thinking of experiementing with a different focal length then you own, I'd suggest renting the lens for a few days to try out the look before buying.

You might also go browse through car photos on a well known site such as Flickr and then check the EXIF data to look at the focal length of the images you like.

[Temma]

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You could do this with the kit 18-55mm lens (assuming you have this lens).

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I have to agree.  I haven't done a lot of automotive photography, but my one excursion into it came not long after I got my Digital Rebel Xt.  The only lens I had was the kit lens, so that's what I used.  I was surprised by the quality of the results I achieved shooting a local car show that was held on a local city street.

[yopifaklo]

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@TCampbell wrote:

A slight wide-angle lens works well on cars because it exagerates the size.  When shooting from the front or back, the car appears longer.  When shooting the interior, the interior seems roomier, etc.  You can use a wide angle not just to be "wide" but because of it's property of extending "depth" it makes long objects seem longer as it stretches the depth of the scene. [links removed per forum guidelines]

You could do this with the kit 18-55mm lens (assuming you have this lens).  You could go really wide by getting something like the EF-S 10-22mm but I'm not sure you'd really need the extra wide angles below 18mm that the kit lens would already provide.  I'm thinking you'll probably like the look at around 24mm range -- but that's a guess on my part.

I probably would _not_ use the 50mm lens for a car (but it's not like there are "rules" for this stuff.)  It's just that a car is large and you'll have to walk back farther to get the whole car in frame when using the 50mm.  

I think moderately wide (but not extremely wide) is a nice look for most car photos.

I probably would not actually "buy" a new lens until you're certain you like the look.  If you're thinking of experiementing with a different focal length then you own, I'd suggest renting the lens for a few days to try out the look before buying.

You might also go browse through car photos on a well known site such as Flickr and then check the EXIF data to look at the focal length of the images you like.

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If you’re not forced into one spot a fast prime like your 50mm is great for a couple reasons:

They’re sharper than cheap zooms

They’re fast, and the narrow depth of field can help reduce background distractions

They’re fast, and the lighting may not be great so you may need the speed

[Skirball]

I don’t think this is a heavy lens situation.   And as always, it depends: on the setup, lighting, crowds, etc.

With the exception of macros I don’t think ultrafine detail is really crucial for cars.  If anything, the really nice car shots you see are softened and touched up to make the car look like it’s in mint condition.    The focal length you use will depend on the look you want and the setting – are you going to have free reign as a ‘pro photog’ and pick your spot without anyone in front of you, or will you have to squeeze up next to a barrier and fight with every other enthusiast trying to get a shot?  Assuming the later, I’d take a couple zooms for flexibility.  Ultrawide angle can look really good on cars, presuming you get to get up close.   Whereas standard zoom (18 – 70-ish on crop) will cover most situations.  And a telephoto – 100mm+ is great because the perspective can get rid of all the other distractions in the background – but if you can’t get far enough away without people getting in front of you then it’s worthless. 

If you’re not forced into one spot a fast prime like your 50mm is great for a couple reasons:

They’re sharper than cheap zooms

They’re fast, and the narrow depth of field can help reduce background distractions

They’re fast, and the lighting may not be great so you may need the speed

And for the bad news.  The really nice car shots that you see in the magazine, the thing that makes them isn’t the lens, it’s the lighting.  Cars, especially nice ones, are very reflective, so you don’t light the car, you light (or don’t light, see ‘subtractive lighting’) the surrounding which creates the perfect highlights and contrast areas on the cars.  This takes a lot of time, space, huge reflectors, and practice, and is impossible at a car show.

[Italian4215]

I don't think it matters all that much. This picture was taken using my 18-55mm lens at 29mm no flash. In my opinion, photographing cars is more or less about the angle of the photo, good lighting (natural), and an eye for shapness. But that is just my opinion. This photo was compressed to fit on the fourms, so it may not be very shap if blown up.

[cicopo]

There's some information here

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=1315358

and here that might help too

http://www.carphototutorials.com/do_i_need_a_fistful_of_dollars.html

[DAWNVANAUKEN]

Thank you.....this is very helpful

[cicopo]

Your photos have way too much reflected "glare" which is a by product of the time of day, lighting, and angles you used. Although I'm not expecting you to get deep into this whole car photo shoot thing here's a thread about post processing car photos which should at least show you what people in general like to see. I don't think you'll have much control at that club event but it's going to be important that you understand what isn't desirable.

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=1007907

[ebiggs1]

Photography is all about light and angles. From your photos above you are well on your way.

If you have the means, I would get a Canon 24-105mm f4 L. Use the lens hood. The correct lens makes your work easier.

The T4i and that lens will make a outstanding package.