One L series Lense recommedation needed..

If we have to buy ONE BEST (high end) canon lense for Indoor portrait, family pictures (mostly used with flash), which one would be that?

We have Canon 7D camera.

Thanks

EFS 17-55/2.8
If budget is an issue then Sigma 17-50/2.8

The fact the lens has L in the name means very little for an indoor family lens.

But if you've fallen for the L marketing, the 24-70 f2.8L EF lens or the 24-105 f4 IS EF lens would be a good choice.

For most real photographers, the decision to choose the optimum portrait lens would involve more than L in the name.

Canon 17-55 f2.8, Sigma or Tamron 17-50s with stabilization, the Tamron 28-75 f2.8...

Or a 35mm f2, 50mm f1.8 and 70mm Sigma f2.8 (or Canon 60 EF-S)

BAK

I use my Sigma 18-50mm f2.8 ex dc macro, but if you are Canon brand loyal and have the cash, hard to beat the 17-55 f2.8. There are no EF-S "L" lenses, but the 17-55 probably should be.

I also use my Sigma 50mm f1.4 prime, my cousin loves his Sigma 30mm f1.4 though, which is more typical for a "standard" lens on 7d, where as the 50mm is more like a portrait lens.

For L, maybe Canon 35mm f1.4 L?

Ditto for the 17-55/2.8IS. I used it all the time when I had 20D/40D.
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What camera do I have? I rather you look at my photos http://www.flickr.com/photos/gavinz

50/85L....

I disagree with all of your suggestion...OP specifically says he wants the BEST INDOOR PORTRAIT and you need a prime for that. No zoom lens will match the low light capability and IQ quality of a decent prime.

my recommendations is 50/85L if you insist of a L lens, or sigma 50/85 1.4 which is decent enough at a reasonable pricetag...

This is not a "L" lens. The closest lens to this is the 24-70/2.8L
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Canon 7D / 40D
CANON
70-200/2.8 - 135/2.0 - 100/2.0 - 85/1.8 - 35/2.0
SIGMA
EX 50-500 - EX 120-300/2.8 - 18-200OS - EX 18-50/2.8 II - EX 50/1.4
TOKINA 12-24/4 - TAMRON 28-75/2.8, 17-50/2.8 - Samyang 8/3.5
KENKO Pro300 2XTC - 1.4XTC

He also said "(mostly used with flash)" which brings the f2.8 zooms into play, it's really up to the OP to decide from there. I happen to agree with you that a prime makes a great choice and love my Sigma 50mm f1.4 for indoor portaits with bounce flash, but the Sigma 30mm or Canon 35mm L might be better choices if you were to have only 1 lens on a 7d, no?

Keith Z Leonard said:

He also said "(mostly used with flash)" which brings the f2.8 zooms into play, it's really up to the OP to decide from there. I happen to agree with you that a prime makes a great choice and love my Sigma 50mm f1.4 for indoor portaits with bounce flash, but the Sigma 30mm or Canon 35mm L might be better choices if you were to have only 1 lens on a 7d, no?

Click to expand...

I have the Canon 50mm 1.4 myself and loving it so far. I am also thinking of getting the sigma 30mm too for indoor portrait but am afraid it's a bit too short even i shoot with a crop camera (60D)....any input from anyone?

I have the 430EXII as well but i rarely use it with the prime unless under extreme low light situation....whereas you'll probably have to rely a lot more with the 17-55mm...and that's another reason why i wouldnt recommend a zoom lense for portrait, at least not as the first choice...

Lots of ways to skin this cat. When I bought my 7D, I knew I'd want to take indoor shots of my grand kids. I narrowed down my lens choices to the EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 and EF 35 f/1.4L. I'm old school and like fast primes, so I opted for the 35L, and I've been quite happy with my choice.

I have the 17-55 and consider it an L . I also have the 28 , 35 and 50 mm lense , but the 17-55 is better .

The L I used before I got the 17-55 was the 35-350 and it was not that good between 35-50 mm .

If L means that much , 16-35 , 17-35 , 24-70 , various primes [ none of these have IS ]

The 24-105 is f-4 but has IS . The new 28-300 - but probably out of price range [ you could get any 2 list for it's price ]
Just get the 17-55 , if you don't like it , send it back .
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1st it's a hobby
7D gripped XTI gripped
Canon - efs 10-22 , 17-55 , ef 18-55 IS
EF 28-90 , 28 @ 2.8 , 50 @1.8 , 28-135 IS
L's 35-350 , 70-200 MK II IS
Quantaray lens 70-300 macro
Sigma 135 - 400
2X III , Life Size converter
KSM filters for all
kenko auto tubes , EF 25

Many are seduced by the "L" band waggon but remember, if money is an issue for you as it is for most of us, what you want are very good lenses capable of taking very good images, whether they are white or not is superfluous. With the amount money you want to spend on one L lens could get you two very good primes that will meet your low light needs.

I definitely wouldn't get the 85mm lens of any brand, white or not, as this lens on a crop camera is really 135mm, too long for indoor work. The 50mm lens is really an 80mm lens on a crop.

As others have said, its better to have fast lenses indoors, whether using flash or not. Once you get used to using a fast lens with a high ISO, you'll be hooked. By the way, I prefer to use "fill flash" rather than bounce flash in doors. With a Canon, shoot in Av mode with the flash pop up and you are automatically in fill mode, learn to use your flash compensation dial.

Shorter lenses and fast also are a good indoor choice. Try shooting the family around the Xmas tree with a 50mm lens and get the whole tree in, it ain't going to happen in the average sized living room.

I own the Sigma 50 and I recently bought the Canon 35mm f2.0 which works well for my needs in landscape and indoors. I won't purchase S lenses, never have as I knew I would eventually go full frame, so that ruled out the Sigma 30 "S" lens;your mileage may vary.
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An excellent lens lasts a lifetime, an excellent DSLR, not so long.

24-70 might be desired if you like shooting further away and want more reach and thus more possible subject isolation. 55 can be a little short & wide but the 7D has a lot of crop-ability.

35L was suggested and a great lens but not a "get it first" or "one lens" imho.

jitteringjr said:

EFS 17-55/2.8
If budget is an issue then Sigma 17-50/2.8

Click to expand...

I suspect that what ever lens you have is perfectly adequate for the job if you are using flash. What kind of flash do you have? I was going to suggest a second flash so that you could trigger it off camera, but as I remember, the 7D has the ability to trigger an off camera flash. So assuming you have something like a 580 EXII, I would invest in a flash bracket, extension cord, something like a Demb flipit diffuser reflector, perhaps a light stand with adaptor, and maybe an unbrella. This would give you a lot of versitility.
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Jim
http://www.pbase.com/jcassatt

Agree with the Canon 17-55F2.8 suggestions ( http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-S-17-55mm-f-2.8-IS-USM-Lens-Review.aspx ). Not an L by name, but looks to be in image quality. You can supplement this with a fast prime (Canon 35L, 50L, 501.4, Sigma 30F1.4, etc. I agree with the points that a prime alone is not going to meet all your needs, and anything over 50mm on a crop is going to have too much reach indoors.

because there bad advice would be slammed.

BAK

I'm sure the 17-55/2.8 is an excellent lens, but it is too short for me to consider as a portrait lens. Besides that, it isn't an L, as specified by the OP.

My feeling is that in a studio situation, the 24-105L will handle the widest range of subjects, from pure face, to head and shoulders, to waist-up, to small groups of people. f/4 should be fine for soft backgrounds with close-up shots using flash. This would be a great lens in case "events" were ever offered.

If more out of focus is desired, I agree with a set of primes like either the 35/1.4L or 50/1.2L, going along with the 85/1.2L. The 100/2.8L Macro could also be considered for the long end. But probably two primes would be needed to cover a range of close-up to groups.

It's true that I pretty much have to use some amount of fill flash with my f2.8 lens, but the Canon has 3 stop IS, so you can use a fairly slow shutter speed in comparison to what I'm using, so long as subject movement isn't an issue. For me, I'm mostly photographing my 3 year old, so subject movement is ALWAYS an issue.

The 30mm seems a good focal length for most shooting on 7d, including some indoor portraits of small groups of people.

http://flickriver.com/search/sigma+30mm+f1.4/

For what the OP requires, I am surprised anyone would even suggest any zoom lens! Going with a Prime is the best way to go!! He asked for the best! The best!! Only an L prime can fit that request. Real photographers know this!
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35mm Film for it's wider DR, smoother graduations; digital for it's higher resolution, economy of time & money.