Has any one ever rented a lens?

[alfa147x]

2 part question

I plan on taking pictures at my sisters dance performance which is in-doors meaning low light and high shutter speeds...

What Lens would you recommend ?

For a canon XTI

also i will most likely rent this lens, any good bad experience with renting ? any websites that are recommended ?

Thanks!

 

[alfa147x]

should i be looking at this lens?
Canon EF 70-300 f/4.5-5.6 DO IS USM

I see that its only 4.5 but does the DO IS help?

 

[GTaudiophile]

Yep, I rented a EF 35 F1.4L from Penn camera here in DC. I too had to use it for an in-door event. 35mm on a crop camera is pretty close to the "normal" 50mm range.

It was a brilliant lens and only cost me like $30 for the weekend. WELL worth the rental. I bet it would be good for your purposes as well.

If you will be at a significant distance to your sister on like a stage and prefer a longer lens as opposed to wider, consider renting any of the following:

EF 85 F1.8 USM
EF 135 F2.0L
EF 200 F2.8L MkII
EF 70-200 F2.8L IS

 

[GTaudiophile]

In-door + dance/movement = you need speed! I would look for a F2.8 lens or better.

 

[GTaudiophile]

But, here is also a warning: sometimes people say not to rent a lens you cannot afford. Meaning, many people after renting a lens end up wanting to buy it. Something to keep in mind.

 

[montanafan]

Originally posted by: alfa147x
should i be looking at this lens?
Canon EF 70-300 f/4.5-5.6 DO IS USM

I see that its only 4.5 but does the DO IS help?

I would not recommend that lens. You'll need at least an across the range f/2.8 lens. I'd suggest the Canon 85mm f/1.8, but keep in mind that it's a prime lens and so you'll have to position yourself correctly for the shots you want. It's a really sharp excellent lens for low light and movement. It's my favorite lens for shooting indoor basketball and volleyball. I'd also recommend that you do custom white balancing for the lighting at the venue.

 

[corkyg]

If you are going to rent, then go for the 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS. If you lived near me, I'd lend you mine.

 

[alfa147x]

Atlanta, Ga ... wow thanks for the generous offer though...

 

[soydios]

If you're close enough to the stage, get a 50mm f/1.8 lens. Even f/2.8 won't be fast enough unless the lights are really bright. You'll have to trade between subject motion and high-iso noise.
Tip: the most dramatic point of a dancer's movement is at the pause when they are defying gravity. It also tends to be when they are momentarily stationary.

 

[corkyg]

Soydios makes an excellent point. Sometimes you can get some very good shots just sitting in the audience with a fast prime lens and a moderate ISO boost. (It's always a trade off.)

This shot is an example of what Soydios is talking about. This was in November of 2003 in San Jose, CA. I was attending a performance of the ballet, "Swan Lake" because grand daughter was in the chorus. I was using my first DSLR, the Canon EOS D60. The lens was an EF 50mm f/1.4 prime, and I was sitting in the middle of the auditorium. Shutter speed was 1/180th and the aperture was f/2.something. There is a lot of luck in timing a shot like this, and shutter speed is critical with no flash.

Swan1

An f/1.8 prime would have gotten the same result.

 

[herm0016]

i got to play with a 70-200 f2.8 IS L series w/ a 20D. it was amazing. great for shooting a concert here.

 

[alfa147x]

does it matter that its indian dance performance?

 

[chucky2]

Not sure if your dance performance is over or not already, but I'll lend my experience...

I've rented lenses from Calumet Photographic twice now. The first was a Nikon 70-200mm F2.8 VR, the Nikon equivalent to the Canon EF 70-200 F2.8L IS that GTaudiophile had in his first post in this thread. The second was a Nikon 18-70 F2.8 (no VR).

The 70-200 I used at my little cousins church Confirmation ceremony. Flashes were allowed but I was way too far away for my camera flash to be useful, and I didn't want to be abnoxious. I shot handheld with a 400-800 ISO and got many nice shots. Given the lighting (wasn't dark but wasn't that bright either), the distance, and the normal use of my kit 18-70 (I think) F3.5-4.6 DX lens, I can tell you that a minimum of F2.8 is necessary if your going to be in anything other than brightly lit enviroment...unless you want your ISO to be so high as to have your images be grainy. Also, I used to own a Nikon 80-400mm F4.5-5.6 VR lens. While it's a really nice lens, if you don't have the light, it's much more limited than you'd think. The VR helps greatly, but, not really enough - too many missed/bad shots.

The 18-70 was also a really nice lens. You can just tell pro lens from consumer grade..they're larger, heavier, feel more smooth, and the low F numbers on them make for great opportunities.

I'd second the notion of figure out where you're going to be sitting in relation to the stage. if you sit close and bring a 70-200, you're going to have too much zoom. If you sit far back and bring a 50mm prime, no matter the F you're going to be F'd. Try and figure out where you're likely to be sitting, and then judge what lens you'll need from there.

If Canon had like a 18-70 F2.0 or something, I'd say that'd be a great all around lens..a little more ISO than a F1.4 or F1.8 prime won't kill that much, and it'd give you some more flexibility.

Chuck

P.S. My renting experience was top notch at Calumet Photographic...great rental prices, and the equipment was in superb condition.

 

[shortylickens]

I've never rented anything photographic before.
Assuming your objective is to save money or get equipment you simply cannot afford, I would suggest going to a pawn shop instead. The quality would be about the same as rented equipment, you will save lots of money, and you get to keep it if you like it. If you dont like it you should be able to sell it back right away for a decent price.
For anyone who thinks I'm crazy, last time I was in a pawn shop I saw an extensive amount of camera gear, including good lenses.

You have to remember that pawn shops are not Kmart, they dont get cheap new crap and try to manage a profit margin with it. They buy individual items from people down on their luck and generally have nice stuff.
You wouldnt be getting a cheap ass lens from Timbuktu, you would be looking at a good quality lens from another photo enthusiast who probably needed to sell something valuable on short notice. Perhaps for rent money or something else.

EDIT
Crap, I just looked at the dates and realized my advice was probably useless.
How about instead of taking our advice after its all over, you tell us what you did and how it worked out for you?

 

[alfa147x]

Originally posted by: shortylickens
I've never rented anything photographic before.
Assuming your objective is to save money or get equipment you simply cannot afford, I would suggest going to a pawn shop instead. The quality would be about the same as rented equipment, you will save lots of money, and you get to keep it if you like it. If you dont like it you should be able to sell it back right away for a decent price.
For anyone who thinks I'm crazy, last time I was in a pawn shop I saw an extensive amount of camera gear, including good lenses.

You have to remember that pawn shops are not Kmart, they dont get cheap new crap and try to manage a profit margin with it. They buy individual items from people down on their luck and generally have nice stuff.
You wouldnt be getting a cheap ass lens from Timbuktu, you would be looking at a good quality lens from another photo enthusiast who probably needed to sell something valuable on short notice. Perhaps for rent money or something else.

EDIT
Crap, I just looked at the dates and realized my advice was probably useless.
How about instead of taking our advice after its all over, you tell us what you did and how it worked out for you?

I ended up not renting a lens and using my 75 - 300 which was OK nothing great... My dad said he'll pay for renting a lens when her annual dance performance comes up next year May ish....