T6i lens choice help!

[Shean]

This is my first dslr camera I bought and it came with the standard kit lens(18-55 is stm). I am no professional by any means but what I intend to use this camera for is taking pictures and lots of video footage of weddings (mobile DJ). I have used other lower end cameras before for that purpose so my question is which lens would be best for videos + pictures under low light situations or for that purpose? Usually the ceremony is during the day and reception at night. I usually walk around while recording videos or it just sits on a tripod. Is the lens I have now good or should I look into a wide angle lens like the 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 is stm (but I've read it's not so great under low light conditions) or the the 50mm f1.8 stm standard lens. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated or any videographers who do that type of work can give me some advice on lens choices. Thanks in advance!

[Waddizzle]

"Usually the ceremony is during the day and reception at night. I usually walk around while recording videos or it just sits on a tripod." 

Night and Day.  Those are two very different shooting scenarios, and no one lens will be best at shooting both.  Thankfully, though, you can come pretty close, but it won't be cheap. 

For low light, I would recommend using a wide aperture, f/2.8 or wider, which means a smaller number.  Aperture is a ratio, and the smaller the ratio of one fixed dimension to a variable dimension, then the wider the aperture.  The variable dimension is the aperture opening, and the closer the ratio is to 1:1, the wider the opening, which lets in more light.

You can find many inexpensive prime lenses, with fixed focal lengths, that can acheive f/2.8, or better, at relatively reasonable prices.  But, you will pay a premium for a zoom lens that can achieve that wide of an aperture.  Inexpensive primes can be a hit or miss when it comes to image quality, mostly miss.

I frequently use a Rokinon 14mm T3.1 lens for video and astrophotograpy, which is a manually focused, cinema lens with a fixed aperture roughly equivalent to f2.8.  With your crop sensor, I would recommend having a wide lens between 14mm and 20mm.  Look through your kit lens to get an idea of what I mean by having just a wide lens for video is better than just a longer lens .  You can always move closer to a subject, but you cannot always back away with a long lens.  You will quickly run up against walls, furniture, and people.

A wide lens can also be set for hyperfocal distance, or infinity focus, and capture everything from a few feet away to infinity in focus.  A long lens can also do the same thing, but the minimum focusing distance will be considerably longer.  Setting up a lens on a tripod, and letting it run, is probably a good application for a wide lens, even a manually operated one.  Generally,  the shorter the lens, the shorter the hyperfocal distance.

http://www.dofmaster.com/doftable.html

Walking around and capturing video will present a challenge when it comes to focusing.  You will be presented with a variety of subjects, at a variety of distances, and some will be too close to get a proper focus, and others will be to far to capture nearby subjects in focus.  Again a wide angle set at its' hyperfocal distance may work for walking around.  But, you will invariably will want a zoom lens.  For this scenario, I would suggest the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Lens, to replace your kit lens. Keeping the kit lens may increase the resale value of the camera someday.

There are many other lenses to choose from, and not all of them are quiet, sharp, or fast.  The best lenses to use will probably cost more than your original camera kit.  But, there is no substitute for good glass. 

[ebiggs1]

I am not a video photographer at all but why did you buy a T6i if you main most thing is video?  Why not buy a real true video camera?  The T6i is a still camera that does video.  It is not a video camera that does stills.

First off the T6i is going to be limited to rather short takes. About 10 minutes each if my memory serves me correctly. Something a true video camera is not limited to..  They can get quite hot with extended use, also.  Then it won't shoot at all.

[Waddizzle]

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@ebiggs1 wrote:

I am not a video photographer at all but why did you buy a T6i if you main most thing is video?  Why not buy a real true video camera?  The T6i is a still camera that does video.  It is not a video camera that does stills.

First off the T6i is going to be limited to rather short takes. About 10 minutes each if my memory serves me correctly. Something a true video camera is not limited to..  They can get quite hot with extended use, also.  Then it won't shoot at all.

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Ernie raises a good point, one that I omitted because my initial post was getting lengthy.

Those numbers are for an 80D, but they are typical for most all of Canon's digital cameras that can shoot HD video.  For the tripod scenario that you described, you will almost certainly need a camcorder, or an actual video camera. 

Canon makes some relatively inexpensive, professional grade video cameras, such as EOS Cinema C100, which can use the same EOS lenses as DSLRs..  Canon also makes professional grade camcorders, such as the XA and XF series, that sell for prices comparable to DSLRs, which do NOT have interchangeable lenses..

Ernie is also correct about the heating issue.  Every Canon DSLR instruction manual that I have glanced over, or read, contains warnings about heat buildup during extensive use of Live View or shooting video.  The cameras will shut down in the event that they get too hot, and will take some time to cool down.  Too long to be of any more use to you at an event.

[Shean]

You guys are right, I never thought about overheating issues and limited time shots. It does take great pictures though, I'll look into camcorders instead. Thanks for the input on this subject.