Lens combination on a7D


those are seriously nice pictures of you panning :)
Well I will hold onto a 15-85 , 24 - 105, and a 17 - 55mm before selling off to confirm. Think I need to test run a bit for all to know my preference.
 

First you need to know what's your common used range in your school events/outings

Each have their own plus point.

15-85 is an all purpose lens but not so good in low light... but can be fix by bumping ISO or using flash unit. The 15mm will be good for group shots with tight situation.

17-55 is good in both indoors and outdoors... but if you need a further range you need to change lens.
 

please do not start the same threads across multiple sub-forums. Threads merged.
 

Thank you Daredevil. I was advised to start it in Canon thread by the moderator.
Meanwhile, I forgot to mention that I also have a flash unit 580EXII. If a flash plus 15-85 cuts it for most pictures, I will most likely stick to that and sell off either a 24-105 or the 17-55mm. Meanwhile, do people actually do indoor event shoots with 15-85mm with a flash? Does not seem to be the case. I do not like to take pictures while being too close to a subject but it seems as though most do recommend 17-55 for low light (indoor photography).

Other than that. I will take both 15-85mm and 17-55mm out for a test shot at the zoo next week and see how the pictures fare. Both are bought 2nd hand but in good condition. If the picture quality are similar, I will of course prefer the 15-85 due to it versatility with wide angle and zoom.

The 24 - 105mm I might keep to lower light situations with a flash unit then. Although I am not so keen on upgrading to full frame... who knows right..
 

forgot to mention also, classrooms are considered low-light also so at times when shooting an event or lesson in a class, it seems that i might need the 17-55 if i do not want to disturb the lesson. With a flash, 15-85 is the best because it allows wide angle coverage of the whole class...

Like most have agreed... it seems that there's no perfect lens...
 

Actually... you can bring your 15-85mm to a classroom, and have a shoot with it (experiment only) without flash and stuff like that. Then see, which is the most used focal length. After that, get a prime lens within that range. Normally prime lens would have bigger aperture, so in poor lighting and without flash, you can still achieve pretty good result at not so high an ISO...
 

TS, you have to understand that a flash unit can only do so much.

if the scene is a small indoor setting, you can bounce the flash to light up the area, no issues here.

if the ceilings are too high or the walls are too far away, you really need the fast aperture and or fast aperture + high ISO, in order to capture more (ambient) light.

the 15-85 has great focal length but the variable aperture may be a problem if you want to have a constant setting when you are shooting on site. as you zoom in and out, the changing aperture will affect the overall exposure.

also, the 15-85 will be at f5.0 from 38 to 60mm. this is almost 2 stops slower than a 17-55 at the same range. it will mean bumping another 2 stops of ISO with the 15-85, in order to attain the equivalent exposure as the 17-55.

this are little points which you should consider.
 

Thanks for the advice. I have just recently purchased a 2nd hand 24-105mm. The built is seriously so much different from the other 2 nonL lenses. The pictures I have taken so far are a little sharper than the 15-85 and dare I say even the 17-55mm for now. But that is because there is light in my room. Will take both out for a test shot next week and update this thread.
An L lens is really really different.