# Gear upgrade: 2 primes vs new body + 1 prime??



## readycool (Mar 19, 2013)

Hi guys and girls. I plan to upgrade my gear and as it usually goes I have no idea what to do  After this upgrade I think that I won't be buying anything for a very long time so I need some advice.
Currently I have 24-70 f2.8L, 70-200 f2.8L IS II, 5d mark II and 3x Speedlite 600EX RT. I will be doing some weddings this summer as a second photographer and this is main reason for upgrade.
I was thinking of this two options:

- EF 14mm f/2.8L II USM + EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM
I need something wide...24-70 is great but sometimes (not too often) just not wide enough.
85mm F1.2 well you all know what this thing can do. This would be really helpful in dark churches. Some places don't allow flashes and I don't want to be too intrusive during the ceremony. Also this would be great for portraits.
I also considered 50mm 1.2 but after reading some reviews it appears to be too soft for a lot of people.

- EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM + 5d markIII
I am thinking about new camera is mainly because of bad auto-focus on mk2. I had a lot of missed shots with it(mostly in low/bad light). Second reason is group mode support for Speedlite 600EX RT. I still have no clue why canon did not add this in the older camera models. And lastly better high ISO performance.


So what would you suggest? 
PS besides the weddings sometimes I shoot concerts, astrophotography and lots of family pictures (usually kids running around).

PPS great site and forum 

Thanks in advance.


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## hawaiisunsetphoto (Mar 20, 2013)

My interests and gear coincides with yours.... First, I'd highly recommend getting the 5D Mark III. The low light performance is amazing for churches and concerts, etc.... Also it has an amazing silent shutter setting for ceremonies, and dual cards for simultaneous writes/peace of mind. For your needs I think the feature set blows the 5D Mark II away (though it's still an excellent camera). Next, recommend selling the 24-70L, netting somewhere around $1,200 give or take, and getting version II.... it's that good. Then, consider the Sigma 85mm f/1.4, which is $1K less than the 85mm f/1.2L II....


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## RS2021 (Mar 20, 2013)

hmm... bodies come and go...lenses are for ever. 

I understand 5D2 was ok and some owners have stuck to it and haven't upgraded... 5D3 offers significantly better AF performance and some ISO bump.... would this be important for you as a wedding photographer over a fast UWA prime? 

14LII is a completely different proposition, distortion profile is one of the best in the UWA category and is relatively sharp. The Zeiss 15mm is marginally better lens, but is also manual and is more expensive.

A compromise might be to get the 5D3 and 85LII combo, .....and suppliment it with the highly affordable samyang 14mm...I hear good things about it though I am told the moustache distortion doesn't completely get fixed in the post if you are dealing with straightlines at the horizon and you happen to be a purist. This really wouldn't matter that much inside churches with curved naves. 
Cheers!


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## wickidwombat (Mar 20, 2013)

RS2021 said:


> hmm... bodies come and go...lenses are for ever.
> 
> I understand 5D2 was ok and some owners have stuck to it and haven't upgraded... 5D3 offers significantly better AF performance and some ISO bump.... would this be important for you as a wedding photographer over a fast UWA prime?
> 
> ...


this is a good option but also do have a look at the sigma 85 f1.4 side by side with the canon it's 1/3rd of the price has faster AF and is smaller and lighter. and the canon is only ever so slightly better between f1.2 and f2


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## RLPhoto (Mar 20, 2013)

Where is your fast 50mm? I couldn't think of doing a wedding without one. 

As for the 14mm, its a dramatic angle but a 16-35II would be more useful combined with the 85L. In your situation, I'd dump the 5D2 for a MK3 plus a fast prime. Once you get sub-f/2.8 the 5D2 AF is horrid for focusing.


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## Halfrack (Mar 20, 2013)

I take it you'd be selling the 5d mk2 to fund the upgrade? You may want to stick to adding a second body, 5d mk2/mk3/6d depending on what you want to spend. Toss on the 17-40L for now, knowing that at the wide end it's some post processing work. Remember, it's ISO that'll help you more in the darker places, as you have to stop down for DoF.


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## Oupstd (Mar 20, 2013)

If you do paid photography, I think that you should have 2 bodies (in case of body failure). If you already have 2, then hard choice. If you have only one, go for the 5D3....
Regarding lenses I do not do wedding photography, but what I heard is that a wide angle zoom such as 16-35 can be very useful for group pics in small rooms (which happens in some places/ in case of rain). Regarding prime I would rather go for a 85, 100 or 135...


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## Chuck Alaimo (Mar 20, 2013)

readycool said:


> Hi guys and girls. I plan to upgrade my gear and as it usually goes I have no idea what to do  After this upgrade I think that I won't be buying anything for a very long time so I need some advice.
> Currently I have 24-70 f2.8L, 70-200 f2.8L IS II, 5d mark II and 3x Speedlite 600EX RT. I will be doing some weddings this summer as a second photographer and this is main reason for upgrade.
> I was thinking of this two options:
> 
> ...



what body are you currently using?


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## Chuck Alaimo (Mar 20, 2013)

RLPhoto said:


> Where is your fast 50mm? I couldn't think of doing a wedding without one.
> 
> As for the 14mm, its a dramatic angle but a 16-35II would be more useful combined with the 85L. In your situation, I'd dump the 5D2 for a MK3 plus a fast prime. Once you get sub-f/2.8 the 5D2 AF is horrid for focusing.



I would second this ---the 16-35 is quite a versatile lens.

Also, don't totally disregard the canon 85 1.8. Yeah, it does not have the red ring and the build quality isn't as good as the L, but it's $400... For the money I'd go with the 1.8, then snag a 135L (still cheaper than the 1.2)


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## ecka (Mar 20, 2013)

You need at least 2 bodies for the job. 5D3 + 85L'II would be my choice.


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## readycool (Mar 21, 2013)

First..thanks for the reply. As I mentioned in first post I currently work with 5dmk2 as my only body, but when I go to weddings I borrow 50d just in case of failure. Also I don't work as solo photographer. At least for now I am second photographer so if anything happens to me or my gear it would not be total disaster

So far I have decided to sell my 5dmk2 and buy 5dmk3. I don't have enough money too keep them both . For backup body I will still be using borrowed 50D (Lets hope that I will never use it).
For the lens I am going with 85 f1.2. 

If I manage to save some extra money I still don't know what second lens would I get. Probably something wide.
@hawaiisunsetphoto
you mentioned to buy new 24-70...is this one so much better than old version?


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