Anyone using the Canon 135mm L on a crop sensor?

[glen]

I wonder if it would be useable indoors or too long.

 

[iGas]

Dimensional Field of View Calculator

1.6X APS-C @ 135mm @ 10' = Field of View 1'8" Horizontal, 1'1.3" Vertical, 2' Diagonal

 

[CptObvious]

I would not personally use the 135L (handheld) on crop indoors due to the lack of IS. Even on FF I found I had to shoot around 1/160 or higher to get consistent non-shake, which meant shooting wide open at ISO 3200 and higher. On crop Id have bump the shutter speed another 2/3 stop and a higher ISO, which looks worse on crop.

 

[NAC]

I think it would be quite useful when photographing at a school performance. Looking back through my pics - one time I was sitting back a bit more than half way back in a small auditorium, and was shooting at up to 300mm equivalent. That was to get about 4 of the performers in the shot at once. The 135 would of course be 216 equivalent. In my case it wasn't very well lit - I shot at 1/40th, f/5.6 and ISO 3200. So with the 135L, you could shoot at f/2 AND use a tripod/monopod - and drop the ISO to 400. Without a tripod/monopod - you'd want about 1/200 and therefore still be at about ISO 2000. Therefore without stabilization and without a mono/tripod - you will get less than a stop of performance better than shooting with a stabilized, regular 70-300 zoom. But - the 135 lens is very good so the pictures should be quite superior.

For general indoors use however, I think 216mm equivalent is way too much zoom. Unless you want to capture shots of just body parts - I wouldn't be able to use it in my house.

 

[finbarqs]

Use what you need. Photography is a very subjective art/industry, as it is, it's hard enough to oh a price on your work.

If anything get a zoom and it'll solve everything.

 

[Berliner]

Usable indoors for what?

For portraits in a living room, even a 50mm can be quite long on a crop.

If you refer to indoors concert photography, then it will be a very usable lens

 

[Paladin3]

I loved my Canon FD 135/2 handheld on a film body indoors for tight shots. Sometimes it would even be too short, so on a crop body it would rock, IMHO. I could shoot my 135 down to about 1/30th depending on my subject. I would also shoot a 300/4 indoors down to around 1/60th a lot.

It's definitely a skill to hold that still, but I find it's even easier with the heavier glass. Don't expect every single frame to be sharp, but if you work at it a bit you can get your shot.