Opions on best lens for pet photography?

Desertraptor wrote:
Taken with 50 f1.8
It took a while to get her to sit still and not dive into the camera. So I would agree with a stand off lens
But it would depend on the pet and the ability of the dog to do what it's told

Oh man that is a fine Staff! Me & the wife are big SBT fans. The 'puppy shoot' with the 50 f/1.8 I mentioned earlier in this thread was with my cousins new little girl Staff 'Noodle', here she is....

Paul, that first pic's great!

As for lens, it depends on what your pets are. If they're spiders get a macro lens. If they're dogs get something 50-100mm so you can get a bit of "don't lick the lens" distance. If it's an elephant it depends how friendly it is, you might want a 50mm or a 400mm. If it's a lion... 600mm would be best. If it's a pet rock it doesn't matter much

I would say that your 24-105 f4L IS should be a pretty good candidate for the job. Here are a couple of photos I took of pets (10D w/Tamron 28-75 attached)... the first is of my friend's minature schnauzer (200iso, f4, 75mm). And the second is my own cat (400iso, f4, 75mm). In both photos, I used my 420EX speedlite with it pointed towards the ceiling (before I got my 580EX).

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paulhillion wrote:
What did I say about budget & temptation

You really need two new lenses - the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM and the EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM. These two will do all you need for household pets.

I use the 24-70 f2.8 L.

I use the 24-70 or the 50 1.4 indoors. The 50 1.4 should work great. In the backyard the 85 1.8 works a lot better. Good luck, I think you're 24-105 L should suit most of your needs.

There's no question that a prime, like the 50mm f/1.4 would be great for this. I would consider your working distance. If you prefer to get in a little closer to capture the animals attention, maybe a 28 f/1.8. If the attention is negative, i.e growling at you with that camera on your face, then maybe something like the 85 would be better. I like the idea of the fast zoom, like the 24-70, as that may be a good compromise. Just don't get too close:

I'm going to join in with the crowd that says you don't need another lens ("want" is always ok, though ). I've had satisfactory results with my new 24-105/4 L IS. Here are some "candid" pet pics I took testing the lens at 1600 ISO during a chaotic kennel party ...

https://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthre​ad.php?t=119694

What about a slobber ... ahem .... weather-proof lens ?

Best regards,
Andy

you can get a lot closer to your own pet that to somebody else's.

I've seen adorable pets that I wouldn't want to photograph with anything less than 200mm.

and, pardon my taking the opportunity to make this pun, but the best lens for photographing a fish is a fish-eye lens.

Sod the expense Paul, Get the Canon 300mm f/2.8 prime for pets...

Look at this beauty..

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Hell, I've only just (as of this morning) taken delivery of the 300 f/4L IS, here's a shot of my 'pet' seagull 'Eric', taken about 1 hour after opening the box