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Question about Canon 24 - 70 2.8 Lens
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Mar 19, 2018 21:36:28   #
Mr.Ft Loc: Central New Jersey
 
Hi, My son is graduating college in May, now if it's bad weather it will be held in the auditorium. My question is my fastest lens is my 24 - 105 F4 as of now. I'll be using my Canon 5D M IV and was wondering if I should pick up a 24 - 70 F2.8? My main concern is at F 2.8 the shallow Depth of field since I don't know how far back I'll be from the stage. I'm not sure if I'm looking at this right or not. I'll also list my other lens below.

Canon 70 - 200 F4 IS
Canon 1.4 III etender
Canon 100 mm 2.8 IS
Canon 50mm 1.8

Thanks
Tom

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Mar 19, 2018 21:51:34   #
Anandnra Loc: Tennessee
 
Mr.Ft wrote:
Hi, My son is graduating college in May, now if it's bad weather it will be held in the auditorium. My question is my fastest lens is my 24 - 105 F4 as of now. I'll be using my Canon 5D M IV and was wondering if I should pick up a 24 - 70 F2.8? My main concern is at F 2.8 the shallow Depth of field since I don't know how far back I'll be from the stage. I'm not sure if I'm looking at this right or not. I'll also list my other lens below.

Canon 70 - 200 F4 IS
Canon 1.4 III etender
Canon 100 mm 2.8 IS
Canon 50mm 1.8

Thanks
Tom
Hi, My son is graduating college in May, now if it... (show quote)


I have both the 24-105 4.0 and the 24-70 2.8ii. However for your situation you'd be better off with the 70-200 2.8ii if you can rent one for the occasion. My son also will be graduating this May from college and that's what I intend to use. You'll need the reach.
Few yrs. back I used that lens (70-200) on a 5D3 for my daughter's graduation with great results (outdoors) and prior to that on my other daughter's graduation we had to go indoors and it worked well. Hope this helps.

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Mar 19, 2018 22:07:43   #
davidrb Loc: Half way there on the 45th Parallel
 
Mr.Ft wrote:
Hi, My son is graduating college in May, now if it's bad weather it will be held in the auditorium. My question is my fastest lens is my 24 - 105 F4 as of now. I'll be using my Canon 5D M IV and was wondering if I should pick up a 24 - 70 F2.8? My main concern is at F 2.8 the shallow Depth of field since I don't know how far back I'll be from the stage. I'm not sure if I'm looking at this right or not. I'll also list my other lens below.

Canon 70 - 200 F4 IS
Canon 1.4 III etender
Canon 100 mm 2.8 IS
Canon 50mm 1.8

Thanks
Tom
Hi, My son is graduating college in May, now if it... (show quote)


No, you will not need the f/2.8 len's speed. Look at the situation as this: You lose 1 stop of light going f/2.8 to f/4, Changing from ISO setting of 100 to 200 is also 1 stop. This is not a problem with the Mk IV as it can handle very high ISO settings. I use the same body at high ISO settings to allow for fast shutters when shooting birds. If you haven't already done so make some test shots at very high ISO settings, some in the 5 digit range. The camera does extremely well. Study some of the people that shoot rock concerts, they crank up their ISO and and fire away. The camera was designed for this type of work, enjoy it.

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Mar 19, 2018 22:24:21   #
BB4A
 
I use the 5D Mk iv a lot for indoor low light situations, and it's got fabulous high ISO noise management capabilities (IMHO, and I admit to bias). So good in fact, that if I want to introduce a little relevant noise into my artwork, I change to the 7D Mk ii.

So, I'd have no qualms about pairing the 5D Mk iv and the 70-200 F4, with IS. What I would recommend however is that you initiate and plan for your shoot concept with plenty of practice in similar lighting conditions (and also try going to much lower light and ISO's above 12,800). You will quickly find what works and what doesn't, and that will give you confidence for the upcoming shoot.

Here's a link to Ken Rockwell's Review of this camera; he is as impressed with the high ISO capability as I am: http://www.kenrockwell.com/canon/5d-mk-iv.htm

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Mar 19, 2018 22:26:18   #
BB4A
 
davidrb wrote:
No, you will not need the f/2.8 len's speed. Look at the situation as this: You lose 1 stop of light going f/2.8 to f/4, Changing from ISO setting of 100 to 200 is also 1 stop. This is not a problem with the Mk IV as it can handle very high ISO settings. I use the same body at high ISO settings to allow for fast shutters when shooting birds. If you haven't already done so make some test shots at very high ISO settings, some in the 5 digit range. The camera does extremely well. Study some of the people that shoot rock concerts, they crank up their ISO and and fire away. The camera was designed for this type of work, enjoy it.
No, you will not need the f/2.8 len's speed. Look... (show quote)


Sorry David, we were replying at the same time, with the same reassurance! LOL

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Mar 19, 2018 22:27:35   #
SkyKing Loc: Thompson Ridge, NY
 
...I’d kind of like my chances with the 100 f/2.8 and the 50 f/1.8...for an auditorium that I’m not sure of lighting...for a graduation you would probably be allowed up close when it’s you sons turn to receive his diploma...no one stays in their seats for a once in a lifetime photo-op...

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Mar 19, 2018 22:46:04   #
TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC
 
Depends on how far you are from the stage and how well lighted the stage will be. I shoot a lot of indoor collegiate and HS sports, and I can tell you that you’ll likely need the fastest lens you can afford (and you’ll still be shooting at high ISO) and unless it’s a very small graduation, or you’re willing to walk up to the stage, you’ll need a longer lens than you think. If you can get within 25-50’, i’d opt for either a 70-200 f2.8L IS or a 135 f2L + an EF 1.4x MKII or MKIII extender. If further, then I’d consider using the same extender with the 70-200 or a 100-400L (slow, but you may need the reach). Now if you can use a flash, it’s a different story.

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Mar 19, 2018 22:52:24   #
Joe Blow
 
The further you are from the stage, the larger that DOF gets. It is a ratio not a specified distance. Shooting an f2.8 at 200 ft should keep the stage in focus. Shooting a portrait at 5 ft might have the nose to ear in focus. The EF 70-200 f2.8 should be your go to lens.

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Mar 20, 2018 06:41:39   #
steve49 Loc: massachusetts
 
You will get plenty of opportunities before and after the event to take memorable photos of your child.
Enjoy those.

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Mar 20, 2018 06:51:16   #
steve49 Loc: massachusetts
 
maybe also a perfect use of auto function on the camera.
will bump iso automatically for the picture at the time.

somebody on the stage walked across the stage when my daughter received her Phd.
no shot was had but I got plenty of photos after ( and before ).
have a great time and dont worry about the "hand over the diploma " photo.
its the least important one that day.

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Mar 20, 2018 10:00:45   #
TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC
 
If it’s a decent sized graduation, schools often allow or contract with a pro to shoot each student and provide the photos to parents at a cost. When my son received his masters, there were probably 50 graduates from his particular school and many hundreds of spectators. Although I took shoots before, during and after, the pro that the school allowed right at the stage (with a flash) took much better close-ups, and the cost was very reasonable. You might talk with the school to see if they have a similar arrangement.

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Mar 20, 2018 10:07:24   #
Nanarozzi Loc: Brentwood, TN & East TN
 
Check to see if the college is going to have a photographer on stage to take pictures that you can buy. You can always take photos from your seat, but if you can purchase pictures also, it may reduce the stress of taking photos at ‘that moment’ even though you may take a great one! Even though we had two family photographers for our youngest daughter’s MBA graduation and then again at her JD graduation .... we purchased the pictures taken on stage by the photographer that the University hired.

As far as lenses, I agree with the 70-200mm II IS suggestion. It is an incredible lense, especially with your camera in low light. You probably have someplace you can rent one before the graduation so you could feel comfortable with it (or another lense/extender you wanted to try). If you are close to the school, see if you can get into the areas where graduation may be taking place and do a ‘dry run’.

Last but definitely not least, CONGRATULATIONS!

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Mar 20, 2018 10:13:50   #
williejoha
 
For shooting at graduation get the 100-400 II iif money is no object. By the time you buy a converter at $429 a crack plus another lens you will have made great steps toward the 100-400. I have used this lens at graduations just as is, hard to beat.
WJH

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Mar 20, 2018 11:04:26   #
amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA
 
Mr.Ft wrote:
Hi, My son is graduating college in May, now if it's bad weather it will be held in the auditorium. My question is my fastest lens is my 24 - 105 F4 as of now. I'll be using my Canon 5D M IV and was wondering if I should pick up a 24 - 70 F2.8? My main concern is at F 2.8 the shallow Depth of field since I don't know how far back I'll be from the stage. I'm not sure if I'm looking at this right or not. I'll also list my other lens below.

Canon 70 - 200 F4 IS
Canon 1.4 III etender
Canon 100 mm 2.8 IS
Canon 50mm 1.8

Thanks
Tom
Hi, My son is graduating college in May, now if it... (show quote)


If it's like most graduations, I'd be concerned that a 24-70mm wouldn't be long enough focal length. So I also would suggest 70-200mm.

But I also think you could simply work with what you've already got. 5DIV should be able to make fine images at high ISOs... 6400 or possibly even higher. One additional stop with the lens isn't that big a deal. You can accomplish the same simply by bumping up your ISO a stop.

Besides, you can stick that 50mm lens in your pocket to have if needed for low light conditions.... it's more than two stops faster than your zooms. You'd just be more limited with your working distances.

If it were me, I'd probably simply use a flash. That puts me in more full control of the lighting.

If it's nearby, maybe go in advance to the auditorium where the event will be held and do some tests.

Depending upon the type of lighting being used, you also might want to use your camera's Anti-Flicker mode. Fluorescent and some other types of lighting fluctuate on and off very rapidly (60 cycles per second), which our eyes don't notice, but sure screws up our cameras and causes a lot of underexposed images. In the past, the only solution was to take lots of extra shots because a high percentage would be ruined. But this new feature detects the cycling of the lights and times the shutter release to coincide with the peak output. It works! I've been using a pair of 7DII (the first to get Anti-Flicker) and can tell you it works! I now only occasionally see any problem (so long as I remember to enable Anti-Flicker).

You also may want to set a Custom White Balance. If you don't know how... learn! You'll need a "target" to set a Custom WB. Personally, I use a Lastolite EZ Balance white/gray target and, in some situations, Warm Cards.... But there are a variety of devices used to set a Custom WB. Take your pick. In addition to Auto WB your camera has various WB presets, one or another of which might be close... but a Custom WB done right will be much more precise.

Shooting RAW also gives you more flexibility to tweak images for various factors, after the fact and using your larger computer monitor at home. (If you prefer, shoot RAW + JPEG.)

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Mar 20, 2018 17:07:28   #
pbradin Loc: Florida
 
Since you have a 70-200 f4, I would certainly use that instead of the 24-105 f4, especially on a full frame camera, unless you want to do a bunch of wide angle, close up group shots. But, you said that you don't know how far you might be from the stage, so that makes the 70-200 even more of a better choice. You can always take both. Instead of buying a 24-70 f2.8, think about renting one, unless you just really want that 2.8. The low-light capability of the 5D MKIV is pretty good and both of your f4 lenses have the same light gathering capability, so for the actual ceremony on stage, I think the 70-200 is the lens of choice. Now, if you want to buy a 70-200 f2.8 for that extra stop of light gathering capability............................

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