New Toy

Friday's are my days to decompress before a Saturday wedding. Tomorrow I am shooting a really fun couple at the Ebell Club in Long Beach. In preparation for tomorrow I tested out a new lens that came in the mail today. I had recently gone to the Pasadena photo show and done some research on a new lens that came out last year (2008): Sigma 50mm 1.4 (same basic specs as the Canon 1.4 but more beefy like the Canon 1.2 and weather sealed unlike the Canon 1.4) After looking through hundreds of comments on all three lenses, I decided to toss my Canon 1.4 and try the Sigma. For around $450 it has a better build than the Canon 1.4 more closely matching the 1.2 in the bokeh department. What I mean by this: the Canon 1.4 tends to compress (squish into semi-circles) the circles of confusion (blurry rings in the background from ambient smaller lights). The Canon 1.2 does not do this, nor does the Sigma 1.4. There are not too many "off" brand lenses out there that compare to the build and quality of a Canon or Nikon pro lens, but I though I would give it a try. A BIG thing with this lens in comparison to the Canon 1.4 is that it is weather sealed and the Canon 1.4 is not. In my book this is a big deal. So if you are in the market for a new lens, you might try this one out. I will give you my full opinion on it after I use it for a while. The above is a test shot from today of my little man, Jacob.
Settings: 50mm | ISO 100 | f/1.4 | 1/2000 sec.


CANON USERS:
CANON 50mm 1.4
Canon EF 50mm f1.4 USM Standard & Medium Telephoto Lens for Canon SLR Cameras

SIGMA 50mm 1.4 for Canon Cameras
Sigma 50mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras



NIKON USERS:
NIKON 50mm 1.4
Nikon 50mm f/1.4D AF Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

SIGMA 50mm 1.4 for Nikon Cameras
Sigma 50mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

To see more of Jen's work go to www.jenosullivan.com
To learn more photo tips and tricks click here.