billgrove

I have been shooting low-light for dance recitals in our local community. I'm shooting with a Canon T2i and a Sigma 70-300 USM IS f4/5.6 lens. They aren't high-dollar, but they have served me quite well through the years. I was considering upgrading and was doing two comparisons and wanted to get thoughts from the group.

The Canon 5D Mark II says that it's image sensor is a full 1.2 f-stops better than my T2i. Does that equate equally to a lens f-stop? In other words, would that be equal to me sticking a f2.8/4.4 lens on my current camera body? I was shooting at 6400 ISO so the images were obviously noisy. The show was so dark that was the only option I had without any motion blur. The noise was better than the blur (tried both). Had shutter at 120 most of the time so it was able to stop most things fairly well.

So the question is, should I drop $1000 on a 5D Mark II body and use my current lens or should I drop $2000 on a 2.8 lens with the current body? Those that say "Do both" can wire me the money! ;) Thank you for all of your help.

Bill

Leitz Loc: Solms

The 5D offers better in-camera noise reduction, plus full frame is better in low light. If you do not really need a zoom lens, something like a Rokinon 50 and/or 85mm f/1.4 would allow you to drop the ISO on your T2i down to 1600.

billgrove

Thank you. Unfortunately, zoom is a must. I sit in the audience and do the shots. Even if I could shoot from the front, sometimes I'm wanting individual shots, sometimes I'm wanting group shots, and I'm at a fixed location.

Thank you for the response in regards to the frame. That's what I was thinking. Still weighing my options!

Bill

sloscheider Loc: Minnesota

the 2.8 will give you 2 stops of extra light and help with auto focus in poor lighting conditions. If you have the money I'd go for the lens.

RichardTaylor Loc: Sydney, Australia

+1 on the lens.

Leitz Loc: Solms

F/2.8 to f/4.0 is 1 stop.

Edit: It will be 2 stops at the lens' maximum zoom, of course.

billgrove

Wonderful. Thank you all for the information! I really appreciate it. Now, to go find a spare $2k laying around...

billgrove

So the question is, then, would the 5D Mark II with 1.2 stops better sensor have the exact same photo end quality as a lens 1.2 stops faster (ignoring the pixel count and other specification differences)? Or is there something else in the works here that I need to consider?

Bill

RichardTaylor Loc: Sydney, Australia

Too many variables.
How good is the lens, especially when shooting wide open?
How good is the stage lighting? that can make a huge difference.
Keep in mind a 70-200 can be very heavy so how do you feel about hand holding that weight for long periods?

I shoot classical music concerts etc. And used a Canon 40D and 5D (which top out at ISO 3200) - with fast primes (f2 or faster) one for the wide shots and another for the closer shots. Almost always shooting wide open.

Recently purchased a 70D to replace the ailing 40D and the 70D has much better high ISO performance so I started thinking about a 70-200 f2.8.
However I saw the wight issue as a potential problem.
I ended up purchasing a Olympus 40-150 f2.8 (35mm FOV equivalent of 80-300mm) and an Olympus micro 4/3 body.
Total price was in the same ball park as a Canon 70-200 f2.8 IS L lens, however it is a much smaler and lighter package. Used it, for the first time, at a concert a couple of weeks ago and I think it was a good choice.
My "clients" liked the imagesvery much
The 70D with a 12-24 f4 was ok for the wider shots, but not great.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

Bill - look at LensRentals and consider renting the 70-200 f/2.8L IS II. This will give you an idea of what the change might be. You won't get the zoom of your current 70-300, but you might shoot with a low enough ISO and have cropping options. Tamron has a well regarded f/2.8 lens that may also be a rental option as well as a lower cost. Finally, look at KEH for used pricing where maybe the 'mark I' 70-200 f/2.8L IS if a good choice. All might be in your price range if they meet your performance requirements.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Yes. you can either shoot at your current settings and use a lower ISO for less noise, more dynamic range and better color, or you can combine slightly lower ISO with slightly higher shutter speed / smaller aperture.

Are you using a Sigma lens or a Canon. Your listing is confusing.

If you have the Canon lens, and it is this one:

http://www.photozone.de/canon_eos_ff/558-canon70300f456isff?start=1

Then you have a great lens, so upgrading the camera is a good way to go. But I would go for the 5D MkIII which is a far better piece of equipment - I just found one with low miles (3000 clicks) doing a casual search on ebay with a buy-it-now price of only $1400. You should be able to find a nice one for anywhere from $1400 to $1800 and you will be quite happy. At some point in the future after a successful trip to Las Vegas, you can get the expensive fast glass.

zigipha Loc: north nj

to answer your question
1. Generally, if they say a camera has a sensor "x" stops better than camera y, it refers to the lens stops
2. I would dig into how they came up with 1.2 stops; it might be better. See if it includes both a) 5dmkii is a full frame camera b) 5dmkii probably has better noise reduction
3. downside to the 5d is that you will loose the crop factor. right now your 70-200 is acting like a 105-300 on your t2i; it will go back down to 70-200 on the 5d.

For a little more than 1000 you can get a 6D body, which has another notch better in low light capability (but is also a full frame camera)

ralphc4176 Loc: Conyers, GA

I'm not familiar with the lens you specified. Is it for a full-frame camera, or an APS-C camera? If APS-C, it will not work on an EOS 5D, any "mark." EF lenses work on FF and APS-C; EF-S lenses work only on APS-C cameras.

zigipha Loc: north nj

I believe the Sigma lens referred to is both ff an asp-c

MtnMan Loc: ID

Is refurb camera or used lens an option? I've had great success with both on Nikons.