Prime lens to start with?

I am the proud father of a 2 month old, which has sparked both mine and my wife's passion for photography again. Due to this, I just picked up a t2i body to replace or old xt rebel and a 28-135 canon lens to compliment our 10-22 w/a lens that we adore.
We take a lot of indoor shots right now, simply due to the cold. However, when the weather gets nice again we'll start taking trips around town for mini-shoots of us and just the scenery. ... Getting back to what we used to do before our lives got so hectic.

I'm currently researching primes. Simply put, it's something we'd like to try as the investment isn't daunting for sub L lenses.
Im finding plenty of threads discussing the various lenses. The problem is deciding which focal length makes the most sense for us. Baby photos is primary to us. Obviously I love taking pictures of my wife though.
I see the 50 1.8 is a cheap buy and is used a lot. However, I wonder if something along the lines of 30 mm makes more sense...or even the 80 primes.
I'm looking for sharp pictures, but nothing world class. Fast is important given the subject matter.

I'd like to stay sub $200 and am perfectly happy to buy used. Any input based on your own experiences here is greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
Erin

The 85mm focal length is a little long for indoors, 50mm is ok for indoors (if you have a lot of space), but is pushing it - the 30mm works about right for a crop camera such as yours. For a baby, a 50mm may be okay if you have the available space (since they are smaller), but I personally prefer the 24-35mm FL. Best thing for you is to set your zoom lens to 30mm and 50mm and see what works for YOU.

Many will disagree (mostly the "foot-zoomer" brigade, I suspect), but I'm going to suggest the 35/2.

Why? With just one prime, if it is too long, you will miss the shot, but if it is too short, you can crop.

Thanks for the quick input.
I had emailed the lady who did our baby photographs but forgot about it. I just got her reply and she shoots with the canon 35mm 1.4L. Her suggestion was, given our particular house, the 50 focal length would work and the 1.8 version would be a great learner lens, but the 35mm f/2 might be the better choice for us to start with.

Kind of falls in line with what I was thinking...

Still entertaining ideas, though.

The cheapest Canon prime is the EF 50 f1.8 II, the af isn't great, but the lens is defiantly workable.

If you can spend more, the Sigma 30 1.4 is an excellent lens. Top notch optics and AF performance.

bikinpunk wrote in post #11561460
I'd like to stay sub $200 and am perfectly happy to buy used

Look at a used Canon 35 f2. It's the closest thing you'll get to this price range and decent imaging quality.

If you can move up in price, snag a Sigma 30 f1.4.

I would not recommend the 35 f/2. It's barely faster than a zoom lens in that range and the short focal length means you aren't going to get much background blur if that is your intent

Given your budget there's not much choice other than a 50 f/1.8 II in my opinion. Get one of these bad boys. They are terrible autofocus lenses however with baby photos you can keep photographing and tolerate a lower hit rate.

Personally I would go for a 2nd hand or new 35 f/1.4 and then sell it later to recoup most of your money, but this blows your budget

Thanks for the input.
I can probably swing 300 if the price to performance ratio is indeed warranted by an increase. Otherwise I'll just wait it out and save up a bit to step further than the 300 range.

bikinpunk wrote in post #11561945
Thanks for the input.
I can probably swing 300 if the price to performance ratio is indeed warranted by an increase. Otherwiden I'll just wait it out and save up a bit to step further than the 300 range.

Get 50mm F1.4 it is solidly built and uses USM, though if you want to compromise on built quality and AF speed then 50mm 1.8 II is there and gives almost same optical quality as 1.4.

Stretching your budget just a tad bit more... The sigma 30 would bs a great lens on your t2i... It turns into a "normal 50mm" fl on the cropper.

Not only will it be good for portraits but it will also be good as just a walkaround.

I have an 18 month old and most of the shots I have of him are with a 50 on FF...

I just sold my 35L to get the fifty fl back...

I'd re-sell the 28-135 and use that money plus the $200 to get a used f2.8 standard zoom.

50mm 1.4 For sure!

I have had, in order:

50mm 1.8 MK II (Sold)
50mm 1.8 MK I (own but selling)
50mm 1.4 (own and keeping)

From all three of those I really enjoy the 1.4 the most but used the Mark II the most which really made me appreciate the 1.4 all the more once I bought it.

The USM of the 1.4 makes for quick, accurate and silent AF.
The 8 blade aperture produces smooth, pleasing bokeh.
The 1.4 also has very nice build Quality.

The 1.4 likes to be stopped down a little for a sharper photo and there have been lots of AF problems so an extended warranty might be a good idea.

If you can afford a little more and can go to a camera store to choose from a few of the same lens then you might want to go with the Sigma 50mm 1.4

A lot of people prefer the Siggy over the Canon saying that its sharper and the AF doesnt have issues.


So as far as cheaper primes go in your price range, the 50mm 1.4 is really a great lens.

I have the Canon 35f2 and really like it. It is fine at f2. Many people using the Canon 50f1.4 wind up stopping down to f2 anyway, for the image quality. I use my 35 at f2 - it is a sharp lens, and I have more expensive macro primes to compare it with (Canon 100f2.8, Sigma 50f2.8). I also have the Canon 85f1.8.
The Canon 35f2 is a good lens, and worth what it costs - now about $300 new. I managed to get mine a week before prices went up, and got it for $250.

For the Canon 50f1.4 users out there - how is the lens at wider apertures than f2? Do you get enough depth of field and sharpness at f1.8 or f1.4 from this lens?

^The 35 f2 is indeed a good lens. The focus motor is a little noisy - but it is sharp and gives good colors. Definitely a good bargain lens.

The Canon 50 f/1.4 was sharp enough for me at 1.4, but got considerably sharper at f2 (at least my copy when I had it).

hieu1004 wrote in post #11561495
The 85mm focal length is a little long for indoors, 50mm is ok for indoors (if you have a lot of space), but is pushing it - the 30mm works about right for a crop camera such as yours. For a baby, a 50mm may be okay if you have the available space (since they are smaller), but I personally prefer the 24-35mm FL. Best thing for you is to set your zoom lens to 30mm and 50mm and see what works for YOU.

This. I started out with just the 50mm 1.8 and found it to be a bit weird of a FL for my shooting, being too short for outside and too long for inside. Obviously it's all up to you as a shooter, so set your zoom on either and walk around and take some pictures to see how it "feels".