Scrimshaw Photography

After finally getting a chance to use it for what I originally bought it for (concerts in bigger venues), I figured I should assemble my thoughts on the lens for the 3 people out there who read this. All examples shown were taken with a 30D and the 135L.

The most immediate thing that struck me about this lens was the autofocus speed, which, by itself, makes it a great addition to my bag for live performance photography. To borrow a very tired cliche, it was lightning fast. Low light performance is spot-on as well. Even when it searches around (which is rare, even in terrible light), it's gone to infinity, back to its MFD, then locked on to something faster than a 50L takes to focus on... anything. The 135L really stands head and shoulders above any other lens I've gotten my hands on, in that regard.

The thing that I was very curious to see was how accurate the AF would be... the 30d's LCD leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to checking pictures for focus, so I had to wait until the photos were loaded up on the computer to really know for sure how it did. Once they were up, though, I saw that the keeper rate was phenomenal (which is all the more impressive considering how shallow DOF can get at this focal length). Nearly every photo was as crisp as the sharpest photos I've taken with any other lens. Examples (all taken w/ center AF point, one-shot mode):

Another point worth noting with the photos above, is that they were all taken at f/2. Sharpness with the 135L, even wide open, is absolutely incredible.

One intangible that pleased me to no end (that really only applies to concert photography), was that the reach of the lens allowed me to essentially stay out of the busiest part of the pit up front, and snap away more towards the sides of the stage. No danger of having shots ruined from getting bumped by another shooter. Also, with the layout of the Hard Rock, I was closer to their level than I would have been down in the middle of the barricade, so I didn't end up with any "up the nose" shots of any of the singers.

Now on to the "negatives" of this lens. Since it's a prime lens, a lot of people would probably say that it's less convenient than a zoom for live work. I've never minded zooming with my feet, so that part doesn't matter at all to me, but it's worth mentioning. Also, the length of the lens on my 1.6 crop body limits its usefulness to big venues only.

All things considered, though, this lens is absolutely incredible, and I was completely floored by how good it was at everything I asked it to do. To say that this one has earned a permanent place in my bag is a massive understatement. They'll have to pry this thing from my cold, dead hands... That is, unless, Canon comes out with a 135L II.

The rest of the Hard Rock Live pictures (all taken with my 30D, the 135L, and 24-70L) can be found here: 7 Blue Skies, Munk Tung, Lost In Chaos, Traverser - 10/18/08 Hard Rock Live