Yup, another this lens or that lens

I have a crop camera T2i and I was looking at 2 different lenses at around the same price point. The sigma 30 1.4 with the possible focusing issues (I have to buy from Amazon due to how I want to pay) or the Canon 85 1.8. Both are currently around the same price due to the discount on the sigma lenses. The Canon is going to go up on Feb 1st and the Sigma is going to be off special any day now. I think that I could use both of them but obviously for different reasons. Any suggestions? THANKS!!!!

Which focal length do you think you would use more? I have both and they are both excellent.

I suppose you could argue that you have the 30mm range covered with your kit lens albeit at a lesser quality and lesser f stop so therefore an 85mm focal length would be a boost to your range...

Yeah I was thinking the same but I find myself taking portraits more often than I ever have before. The 85 on the crop is pretty long for a portrait. I'm sure it has a great use and I'll get it either now or later but I'm just on the fence about which one I'd get more use out of. Ever since i got my nifty I've shunned the kit lens like a redheaded stepchild so I'm not really factoring it in much. I use it in a pinch when I need something pretty wide, otherwise I do my best to keep the 50 on at all times.

30mm is pretty close in focal length terms. I'd look at a 24 vs 85 instead.

They are about as different as you can get. The 30mm is more of a general purpose lens but could be used for more environmental portraits/full body/half/etc. The 85mm is a little longer on a crop so indoor will be more difficult unless you have space. Outdoors, the 85mm is excellent for portraits. It's really all you, which one will you use more?

Yeah I'm still seriously conflicted. I could use both because I'm not only shooting one or the other. If I had the opportunity to rent both I would but the price of renting both of them would put a serious dent in the funds to buy one or the other. I'm afraid the sigma will cut into my time using the 50 and I already have the filter for the 85 (same size as the kit lens)

When using your 50 do you feel you which you had longer or shorter reach most of the time?

mds2004 wrote in post #11625407
When using your 50 do you feel you which you had longer or shorter reach most of the time?

Now that is a great question, and I'd probably say shorter... probably because I've been doing a lot of inside shooting in the winter. What a real addict would do would be to buy both and damn the credit card debt. LOL.

Mike wrote in post #11624949
Which focal length do you think you would use more? I have both and they are both excellent.

I suppose you could argue that you have the 30mm range covered with your kit lens albeit at a lesser quality and lesser f stop so therefore an 85mm focal length would be a boost to your range...

Do you use one moreso than the other mike?

if you have needs to use the f/1.4 @ 30mm, then go for it. If not, just use your kit lens and get the 85mm. I have both, i use 30mm about 2x as often compare to 85mm, but i shoot indoor a lot, so the light gathering is important to me. But the 85mm get wonderful image with the amount of DOF control. so again, if you have need to use f/1.4, then go for 30mm, if not as much, then 85mm.