# POLL: The new 50mm will be...



## Marsu42 (Feb 3, 2015)

At last, Canon is rumored to release a 50mm lens - could it be true? Cast your vote here and predict what max. open aperture it'll have and/or what legacy lens it will replace (if any)!


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## Maximilian (Feb 3, 2015)

Oh man... let's hope and vote. 
Although this voting will not help a lot in what Canon dev dep already made.

I hope for a more than decent 50 mm with f/1.4 or at least f/1.8 that will continue the lineup of the new non-L primes (24, 28, 35) with or without IS but please
- with fast accurate AF (ring USM)
- and IQ comparable to or better than the new non-L primes


But if I had to choose between F/2 with IS and f/1.4 without I'D go for the aperture.


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## hyles (Feb 3, 2015)

Maybe the 50 2.5 macro... it is quite old, 1:2 without converter and very bad AF. 
But I think it will be one of the others...
Diego


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## zim (Feb 3, 2015)

I voted f2.0 with IS (head) but have been hoping for 1.4 with IS for a loooong time (heart)


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## JMZawodny (Feb 3, 2015)

They'll be flexing their vastly improved DO design and production expertise and release a EF 50mm f/1.0L DO.


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## NancyP (Feb 3, 2015)

I am going for an 50mm f/2.0 IS, to match the other compact primes with IS. If it is good, and light, I could go for buying this.


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## JonAustin (Feb 4, 2015)

NancyP said:


> I am going for an 50mm f/2.0 IS, to match the other compact primes with IS. If it is good, and light, I could go for buying this.



Same here, to round out my little collection of primes (35/2 IS -- 50/2 IS -- 100/2.8L IS macro.

I wouldn't mind too much if it turned out to be a replacement for the 50/2.5 macro (which I own, and would replace), but that would probably be an f/2.8. I'd rather have the wider max aperture and skip the macro function, since I have the 100L (and might keep the 50/2.5 macro).


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## RLPhoto (Feb 4, 2015)

If it's the f/2 IS, I'm buying the sigma 50A.


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## Tinky (Feb 4, 2015)

I reckon the 1.4. If Sigma, zeiss, samyang all see money in it then I'm sure Canon will. Not bothered about IS personally, higher iq would be nice fit for next generation eos cameras, and a ring type usm rather than micromotor usm.


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## Marsu42 (Feb 4, 2015)

Tinky said:


> I reckon the 1.4. If Sigma, zeiss, samyang all see money in it then I'm sure Canon will.



You could argue the exact opposite as the market so crowded by external and internal competition.

Their (non-)solution might be a) to keep delaying a new 50mm as their existing lenses keep selling for one reason or another or b) offer something the others don't have, namely IS. Canon isn't here to have a pleasant lens lineup in a museum gallery, but to make money after all.


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## Tinky (Feb 4, 2015)

i would agree but forthe other player undercutting canon... yongnuo.

Canon need a new 50mm for mortals. Sigma are top end money, zeiss, forget it money, samyang won't suit everybody. canon need a compelling reason for the lower market guys to buy, at the moment it's just about price, but the 1.8 and the 1.4 are tired. And yongnuo is winning the price battle.

Theres still a chunk of folk that everybody is missing.


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## RLPhoto (Feb 4, 2015)

Marsu42 said:


> Tinky said:
> 
> 
> > I reckon the 1.4. If Sigma, zeiss, samyang all see money in it then I'm sure Canon will.
> ...


Or C) just make a 50 mm 1.4 for $400ish with updated Ring USM and updated optics. I'd buy one. Nikon has one. No retrofocus design, just fast light and small.


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## Viggo (Feb 4, 2015)

Why no love for a new f1.0 L? I would gladly pay 3k for that. As long as it's fantastic at 1.4 across the frame and really usable at f1.0.

But, if it's indeed a 1500 usd version of the 1.4 that matches the Sigma Art and with Canon AF , I'm still in!


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## Marsu42 (Feb 4, 2015)

Viggo said:


> Why no love for a new f1.0 L?



I wouldn't. You don't gain that much light on digital and (next to the prohibitive price) carrying around a heavy, bulky lens that has a depth of field of nearly nothing doesn't appeal to me for what I do. You can get a pleasant bokeh with f1.4 or slower alright on this focal length if it's a good design.



RLPhoto said:


> make a 50 mm 1.4 for $400ish with updated Ring USM and updated optics. I'd buy one. Nikon has one. No retrofocus design, just fast light and small.



Actually I'd buy one, too, if the price is very reasonable. But as this lens is so obvious I'm sure Canon has gone into this by detail since 1993 and came to the conclusion that it's not profitable enough for them to release a good f1.4 lens that would threaten their f1.2 premium L.


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## RLPhoto (Feb 4, 2015)

Marsu42 said:


> RLPhoto said:
> 
> 
> > make a 50 mm 1.4 for $400ish with updated Ring USM and updated optics. I'd buy one. Nikon has one. No retrofocus design, just fast light and small.
> ...


The 1.2L was premium back when it was released and in a way, 1.2 still is. With the otus, sigma 50A, and other decent 1.4s it doesn't look so great in pure test chart mode, but still has that look. I paid for the 1.2 and for its very nice bokeh but used it to fund another system.

Hence back to square1, which 50mm to buy? Canon doesn't make a good one sub 1200$, and hence won't get my money until they do. I'll be looking to Third parties for a 50mm, which I'm sure they've noticed others doing the same.


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## Viggo (Feb 4, 2015)

Marsu42 said:


> Viggo said:
> 
> 
> > Why no love for a new f1.0 L?
> ...



It's not about light gathering, it's about dof. And carrying around a heavy bulky thin
Dof lens? I bring the 200 L everywhere, so no issue for
Me


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## Marsu42 (Feb 4, 2015)

RLPhoto said:


> Hence back to square1, which 50mm to buy? Canon doesn't make a good one sub 1200$, and hence won't get my money until they do. I'll be looking to Third parties for a 50mm, which I'm sure they've noticed others doing the same.



Indeed... and this tells you how much of a stellar profit margin their old 50/1.4 or the premium-priced 50/1.2 obviously have. Still, as everybody and their cat seems to be raving about the Canon "system", it's really about time they do something about this or the loss of credibility might outweigh the short-term monetary profits.


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## Viggo (Feb 4, 2015)

Marsu42 said:


> RLPhoto said:
> 
> 
> > Hence back to square1, which 50mm to buy? Canon doesn't make a good one sub 1200$, and hence won't get my money until they do. I'll be looking to Third parties for a 50mm, which I'm sure they've noticed others doing the same.
> ...



Only two 50's are of any interest to me, the Otus and the 50 Art, and neither has AF, but they have the IQ, so that leaves no 50 worth buying. I think a new ef 50 update of the existing 1.4 will be wildly popular. Question is if they will cripple it to still sell the 50 L, or if they are going after the 50 Art with it.


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## Rahul (Feb 4, 2015)

Viggo said:


> Question is if they will cripple it to still sell the 50 L, or if they are going after the 50 Art with it.



If they design a new f/1.4 for sharpness, it won't compete with the 50L, neither in the price, nor in the IQ. 

The 50L is built specifically for superior bokeh and remains a challenging, not to mention a specialist lens to use.


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## Viggo (Feb 4, 2015)

Rahul said:


> Viggo said:
> 
> 
> > Question is if they will cripple it to still sell the 50 L, or if they are going after the 50 Art with it.
> ...



yes, yes, but in real life, people buy it to use it, and find it can't be used off center wide open, and sell it because it's a big disappointment. I have owned 4, and I have regretted every time, even if I know what it's like, lol. I can't count how many "barely tested indoors"- 50 L's I have seen sold used.


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## Phenix205 (Feb 4, 2015)

I don't see why one would want to have both 35 f2 and 50 f2 in their kit. These two focal lengths are too close. The new 50 ought to have different aperture with or without IS.


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## Marsu42 (Feb 4, 2015)

Phenix205 said:


> I don't see why one would want to have both 35 f2 and 50 f2 in their kit. These two focal lengths are too close



So? I imagine a lot of people have a standard zoom in this focal length anyway and just add one fast prime they like the most. And for pros and people shooting a lot, the difference is still enough to get both.


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## Maximilian (Feb 4, 2015)

Phenix205 said:


> I don't see why one would want to have both 35 f2 and 50 f2 in their kit. These two focal lengths are too close. The new 50 ought to have different aperture with or without IS.


The "different aperture with or without IS" argument might be correct.
But to call 35 mm and 50 mm "too close" means calling these classical and typical (FF!) focal lenghs wrong from the beginning of the 135 film (35 mm film). And I can remember a lot of people having exactly these two in their bags.


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## Marsu42 (Feb 4, 2015)

Poll closed because everybody has been wrong according to the newest [CR1] (which means pure guesswork) 



Canon Rumors said:


> Today we’re told the new 50mm will be an f/1.8 with STM and a 49mm filter thread. This seems to be a replacement of the current “Nifty Fifty” and not the 50mm f/1.4.


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## Rahul (Feb 4, 2015)

Viggo said:


> Rahul said:
> 
> 
> > Viggo said:
> ...



Aye. I've traded 2 used lenses at a profit and still have one used that I got for about the equivalent of $600. It was a curse on the FF bodies (non 1 series) prior to the 5D3. It works great on the 5D3 and even better and precise with the 1DX. 

I always shoot the 50L wide open so no focus shift problems for me.


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## Viggo (Feb 4, 2015)

Rahul said:


> Viggo said:
> 
> 
> > Rahul said:
> ...



Oh I absolutely agree, the 50 L AF is great on the 5d3, and I noticed a near perfect hit rate with the 1dx at 1.2. And I also bought it to shoot wide open or at least not slower than f1.8. But go off center with the nice spread of points on the 1dx and the "sharpness" is absolutely useless. And after owning the 50 Art I could never buy another 85 L or 50 L in their current versions. If the Siggy had the same AF as the 50 L or even better, the 35 L, I would hardly be using anything else..


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## Hjalmarg1 (Feb 5, 2015)

zim said:


> I voted f2.0 with IS (head) but have been hoping for 1.4 with IS for a loooong time (heart)


Similar but a f1.4 version with IS will completely kill the sales of 50/1.2L lens unles you need tough construction and weather proof.


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## Tinky (Feb 5, 2015)

is and wide aperture in a compact form might be tricky, the is - for some shooting syles- can permit a slower shutter, perhaps mitigating -for some shooting styles- the loss of half a stop


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## martti (Feb 28, 2015)

Considering how high prices are demanded for the no-good, obsolete, slow-focusing 50mm *L* that is not even as _sharp_ as Sigma ART, Canon hardly feels any pressure to revise it. It is nearly impossible to find this lens second hand. If it is so bad, why do people hang on to it?


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## Finn M (Mar 8, 2015)

Canon needs to replace the EF 50/1,2L with something much sharper, especially for the new 50Mpix sensor. My wish is a mk.II version or a EF 50/1,4L which is as sharp as the Sigma 50/1,4 Art wide open. Make it big, make is expensive, it doesn't matter, as long as it is SHARP! :-X


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## Finn M (Mar 8, 2015)

martti said:


> Considering how high prices are demanded for the no-good, obsolete, slow-focusing 50mm *L* that is not even as _sharp_ as Sigma ART, Canon hardly feels any pressure to revise it. It is nearly impossible to find this lens second hand. If it is so bad, why do people hang on to it?



If you step down to at least f2,8 it works fine, but the 50/1,2L can't match Sigma 50/1,4 Art between f1,4 - f2. And why make a big and expensive f1,2 lens if you have to step down to f2,8 to get sharp pictures also in the corners? Then I rather buy a f1,4 or even a f1,8 lens which is sharp wide open. 
But I know some photographers using this lens for portraits like the creamy bokeh of the 50/1,2L. The case is: the sharpness is only ok in the center of the picture, the corners are soft, but with f1,2 and close up portraits the shallow DOF gives unsharp corners anyway. That's why some photographers like this lens. But with the introduction of the 5Ds camera i think Canon will make an update.

My guess is that Canon will reduce the number of 50mm lenses from 3 to 2:
1. The 50/1,8 an 50/1,4 will be replaced with a 50/1,8 IS USM now in April. 
2. A mk.II version of the 50/1,2L will be introduced later this year or early next year.

Hopefully something sharp will happen before June. If not, I'll have to go for the Sigma Art..... :


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## Haydn1971 (Mar 8, 2015)

I'm now expecting the following;

1st - 50mm f1.8 STM Pancake
2nd - 50mm F1.8 USM IS - like the 35 IS
3rd - An upgraded L lens, suspect that f1.2 would remain as its a real differentiator from Nikon, but wouldn't be surprised with a f1.4 L that's tremendously sharp and the the existing f1.2 retained as a classic L


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## moreorless (Mar 8, 2015)

One option would be to have a 50mm F/2 with IS AND 2:1 macro, at the moment really only Zeiss target that market with the 50mm F/2 Makro but adding in IS and AF would make for an excellent all rounder.

I doubt it will be whats coming but I wouldn't be supprized if Canon re-released a 50mm F/1 lens sometime in the next year or two, the market for ultra fast primes does seem to be growing again and it takes them significantly beyond both Nikon and any third party option what likely won't release anything faster in the future exactly because the F-mount won't deal with it.


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## lintoni (Mar 8, 2015)

Haydn1971 said:


> I'm now expecting the following;
> 
> 1st - 50mm f1.8 STM Pancake
> 2nd - 50mm F1.8 USM IS - like the 35 IS
> 3rd - An upgraded L lens, suspect that f1.2 would remain as its a real differentiator from Nikon, but wouldn't be surprised with a f1.4 L that's tremendously sharp and the the existing f1.2 retained as a classic L


None of the non L primes that they've upgraded with IS have got slower, so I'd expect a 50mm f/1.4 IS - _if_ they decide to keep three (non macro) 50s in their line-up.


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## Haydn1971 (Mar 8, 2015)

lintoni said:


> Haydn1971 said:
> 
> 
> > None of the non L primes that they've upgraded with IS have got slower,
> ...


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## Mt Spokane Photography (Mar 8, 2015)

No matter what it is, there will always be whiners, it matters little to me, since I don't like 50mm.


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## Finn M (Mar 8, 2015)

Mt Spokane Photography said:


> No matter what it is, there will always be whiners, it matters little to me, since I don't like 50mm.



If you do not like 50mm and it matters little to you; Why do you then make a comment? Just to get 10.000 posts....? ;-)


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## Finn M (Mar 8, 2015)

lintoni said:


> Haydn1971 said:
> 
> 
> > I'm now expecting the following;
> ...



They won't. For sure. The 50/1,4 and 50/1,8 will be replaced by one lens. My guess is a 50/1,8 IS USM.


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## martti (Mar 8, 2015)

Finn M: " And why make a big and expensive f1,2 lens if you have to step down to f2,8 to get sharp pictures?"

Because people buy it at a ridiculous price and they just will not let go of it once they managed to get hold of it.
Canon makes lenses to sell them. And this particular lemon seems to have a lot of takers. Go figure!
Probably you can now model the optical characteristics of this lens in PP just like you can model amps and guitars with electronic gadgets at a fraction of the price of the Real Thing.

Or can you? Anybody know of a digital lens simulation software?


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## Ruined (Mar 8, 2015)

If I were Canon, I would position the lenses as follows:

50mm range
1. 50mm f/1.8 II discontinued
2. 50mm f/1.4 discontinued
3. Existing 40mm f/2.8 STM replaces 50mm f/1.8 II in price range due to overlap
4. New 50mm f/1.8 IS USM released replaces 50mm f/1.4 in price range due to overlap
5. 50mm f/1.2L no change - one of Canon's best portrait lenses. For sharpness hounds the 24-70 f/2.8L II satisfies.


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## YuengLinger (Mar 8, 2015)

Mt Spokane Photography said:


> No matter what it is, there will always be whiners, it matters little to me, since I don't like 50mm.



Somebody needs lunch and a nap. :


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## Finn M (Mar 8, 2015)

martti said:


> Finn M: " And why make a big and expensive f1,2 lens if you have to step down to f2,8 to get sharp pictures?"
> 
> Because people buy it at a ridiculous price and they just will not let go of it once they managed to get hold of it.
> Canon makes lenses to sell them. And this particular lemon seems to have a lot of takers. Go figure!
> ...



It is no lemon. As I wrote: many photographers like this lens, but because of two things the 50/1,2L needs an update:

- the new 50 Mpixels 5Ds camera 
- the excellent Zeiss Otus 55/1,4 (and Sigma 50/1,4 Art) have made the competition tougher


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## Tinky (Apr 7, 2015)

Phenix205 said:


> I don't see why one would want to have both 35 f2 and 50 f2 in their kit. These two focal lengths are too close. The new 50 ought to have different aperture with or without IS.



I don't imagine anybody would either.

But I would imagine that a 50mm standard is quite desirable for the 135 format shooters, and that the 35mm is quite desirable for the APS-C format shooters, as a near standard lens.

That said, I do carry a 35mm 1.4, a 50mm f1.4 and an 85mm f1.4 in my kit bag, but that is for multiple camera video interviews.

Just goes to show what a broad church it is, and how different folk with different cameras and different interests use the same gear, well, differently.


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