How well does an 85L work for low light action?

[butterfly2937]

I just started doing some theater shooting.
The 135L was awesome. Would the AF speed on the 85L be a limiting factor for these kind of shots?
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=876785

[AccidentalArt]

I use a 85 1.8 for low light dance and really really like it. Great for portraits too.

[90c4]

The 85L II would be fine for shots like that. People complain about its focus speed, but a lot of these people have never used the lens and are justifying their purchase of the f1.8 version. I use the lens in the real world, and have not felt limited by its focus speed.

[butterfly2937]

The 85L II would be fine for shots like that. People complain about its focus speed, but a lot of these people have never used the lens and are justifying their purchase of the f1.8 version. I use the lens in the real world, and have not felt limited by its focus speed.
Can you post some examples of pics where your subject was in motion preferably in low light where this lens will be the most useful, please?

[90c4]

I'll have to dig around... I typically use it (or any prime) in concert shooting if I have more than three songs and the focal length is appropriate, but I didn't hesitate to use it once when I only had 3 minutes to shoot and my shots came out great. I find that focus speed is only an issue going from one extreme to the other. If the performer is running from one side of the stage to another, it's not the right lens. I wouldn't say I've missed shots due to the focus speed but I also might not have used it on very "dynamic" bands. The low light examples I can think of didn't have tremendous motion. But the rap that it gets for focus speed is ridiculous. This example is bright light but gives an idea of how it does with motion - http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=491657

[airfrogusmc]

The 85L II would be fine for shots like that. People complain about its focus speed, but a lot of these people have never used the lens and are justifying their purchase of the f1.8 version. I use the lens in the real world, and have not felt limited by its focus speed.

Agree...

[ebann]

I used a 85/1.2L MkI on my 1Ds2 for my daughter's ballet dance and it also worked just fine. As long as the AF doesn't hunt you'll get quick AF lock. And the 1D series hunts way less than xxD and 5D bodies.

Here's our good friend rutt doing his mojo with the awesome 85/1.2L:

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=500590

[tfd888]

I've heard many a good thing about the 85L mkII for low light shooting especially for theater work. Personally I use a zoom since I prefer to stay at f/2.8 or above for DOF reasons and to have the versatility especially if I'm not familiar with the choreography but there are times where you have to drop below that and the 85L would fit the bill perfectly. Now if only I could afford one :lol: :p

I used a 85/1.2L MkI on my 1Ds2 for my daughter's ballet dance and it also worked just fine. As long as the AF doesn't hunt you'll get quick AF lock. And the 1D series hunts way less than xxD and 5D bodies.

Here's our good friend rutt doing his mojo with the awesome 85/1.2L:

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=500590

Those were nice to see. Don't see very many ballet shots on the boards these days. I'll have to look into changing that ;)

[ebann]

I've heard many a good thing about the 85L mkII for low light shooting especially for theater work. Personally I use a zoom since I prefer to stay at f/2.8 or above for DOF reasons and to have the versatility especially if I'm not familiar with the choreography but there are times where you have to drop below that and the 85L would fit the bill perfectly. Now if only I could afford one :lol: :p



Those were nice to see. Don't see very many ballet shots on the boards these days. I'll have to look into changing that ;)

From observing rutt's pictures I've found the following info:

85mm on 1.3x body (110mm effective) is pretty wide enough for ballet
135mm on full-frame ditto
he sits on row 10 right side (this somewhat solves the DoF issue at f/1.2)
moving around to get different angle is not worth the trouble, stick to one spot

[tfd888]

From observing rutt's pictures I've found the following info:

85mm on 1.3x body (110mm effective) is pretty wide enough for ballet
135mm on full-frame ditto
he sits on row 10 right side (this somewhat solves the DoF issue at f/1.2)
moving around to get different angle is not worth the trouble, stick to one spot
Sometimes depending on the choreography, it isn't always the best idea to stick to one spot especially if the whole corps blocks your angle of the principle from your angle :lol:

Example of when I changed angles to obtain a better shot.

Show 1: I setup on the right side of the theater to go after this (http://arroshotz.smugmug.com/Dance/Ballet/CityBalletSchool2010-Spring2PM/12510510_MMebT#892585887_dkojN) and other shots from this angle

But since I was at that angle, this moment (http://arroshotz.smugmug.com/Dance/Ballet/CityBalletSchool2010-Spring2PM/12510510_MMebT#892595141_NcbSS) didn't work out as well.


Show 2: I switched sides and got this (http://arroshotz.smugmug.com/Dance/Ballet/City-Ballet-School-2010-Spring/12459428_efQd9#897040994_5XALY) which I thought worked out much better then the previous angle used in show 1.

Now if I had only had one show to shoot, I would have switched angles in between numbers to obtain the better angle but since I had two shows, I stayed in my spot for the next number.

I guess it depends on the theater setup you are in. In this theater, it's easy for me to get from backstage in the wings out into the theater on either side within 30sec or to quickly switch sides without disturbing the audience. Other theaters aren't that easy to move around so you do sometimes get stuck in one spot in which case a zoom can be invaluable. Instead of having to fumble in the dark for multiple bodies with various length primes attached, you have the single body with a zoom (70-200 for me :D ) which offers the versatility needed and offers excellent IQ though I do love and envy the clarity of primes :lol:.

[ebann]

Sometimes depending on the choreography, it isn't always the best idea to stick to one spot especially if the whole corps blocks your angle of the principle from your angle :lol:

Example of when I changed angles to obtain a better shot.

Show 1: I setup on the right side of the theater to go after this (http://arroshotz.smugmug.com/Dance/Ballet/CityBalletSchool2010-Spring2PM/12510510_MMebT#892585887_dkojN) and other shots from this angle

But since I was at that angle, this moment (http://arroshotz.smugmug.com/Dance/Ballet/CityBalletSchool2010-Spring2PM/12510510_MMebT#892595141_NcbSS) didn't work out as well.


Show 2: I switched sides and got this (http://arroshotz.smugmug.com/Dance/Ballet/City-Ballet-School-2010-Spring/12459428_efQd9#897040994_5XALY) which I thought worked out much better then the previous angle used in show 1.

Now if I had only had one show to shoot, I would have switched angles in between numbers to obtain the better angle but since I had two shows, I stayed in my spot for the next number.

I guess it depends on the theater setup you are in. In this theater, it's easy for me to get from backstage in the wings out into the theater on either side within 30sec or to quickly switch sides without disturbing the audience. Other theaters aren't that easy to move around so you do sometimes get stuck in one spot in which case a zoom can be invaluable. Instead of having to fumble in the dark for multiple bodies with various length primes attached, you have the single body with a zoom (70-200 for me :D ) which offers the versatility needed and offers excellent IQ though I do love and envy the clarity of primes :lol:.

Amazing work Alexander with the oldie MarkII !!

In my first two attempts at shooting my daughter's ballet I think I made the mistake of shooting from above (Mezzanine) and getting a bird's eye view. Is shooting from above a big no-no for aesthetic reasons? What row do you shoot from? I noticed that the official ballet photographer was shooting front row right in the middle... I suspect she must use short lens (50/1.4 perhaps or even 35/1.2)?

This year will be the Nutcracker... my personal favorite!

A bummer for me... the rehearsals are not done using their costumes... :-P Rehearsals would allow me to move around much much freely.

[tfd888]

Amazing work Alexander with the oldie MarkII !!

In my first two attempts at shooting my daughter's ballet I think I made the mistake of shooting from above (Mezzanine) and getting a bird's eye view. Is shooting from above a big no-no for aesthetic reasons? What row do you shoot from? I noticed that the official ballet photographer was shooting front row right in the middle... I suspect she must use short lens (50/1.4 perhaps or even 35/1.2)?

This year will be the Nutcracker... my personal favorite!

A bummer for me... the rehearsals are not done using their costumes... :-P Rehearsals would allow me to move around much much freely.
Thanks! I really love it for theater work.


It's not a no-no so to speak but just doesn't always capture the right feeling. It also shortens the lines of the dancers or the height of their jumps. There are times though if there are a large number of people onstage and you want a full stage shot or you want to capture the patterns the dancers are forming that you would shoot from above but personally I wouldn't shoot a whole performance from above.

Depends on the theater. Each theater's rows are going to be setup differently. Say for example the 5th row at one theater is going to be at stage level and the 5th row at another theater is going to be further away and much higher then stage level. You have to eyeball approx. where you want to be for the shots you are after. There's also the little thing known as an orchestra pit that will throw the row count method out the door aswell ;).

Generally I shoot from where I can get a full body shot of a dancer at the front of the stage at 70mm. In the example shots, those were during a live performance and I was a tad further back then I typically would be. Focal length used was in the 180mm-200mm range if I remember right.

As a disclaimer for shooting live shows, I had permission and was using the silent shutter feature of the 1D2 and had a jacket thrown over it. In this theater I've figured out where I can snap from without being heard by the audience but in other theaters due to the arrangement of the theater, there is no way I could shoot during a live show from the front of house without disturbing people which is a big no-no. You have to be really careful about the noise you produce during live shows even if you're backstage.

Rarely do I use anything shorter then 70mm and if I do, it's a wide angle.

Nutcracker performances are usually very colorful and fun shows to shoot. I can't believe that it's almost time for that run again :lol:

I'm sure they will have a dress rehearsal in the theater. If they don't, that's a really risky thing for the performers having to learn of any problems with their costumes right as they go on for a live show.