Vintage Digital/This Old Lens: A Canon EOS 5D Prime Addendum Part 2. Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM.

This lens was not a part of the plan.

As I recently wrote about this vintage digital camera and prime experiment was supposed to start with one lens. Then I folded like a cheap tent and purchased my go-to DSLR Zoom. So that was it. Right?…

Nope.

My mistake? I dove into the EF shelf at my local camera shop. But the topic of this post was not the lens I was first drawn to. That would be a pristine looking Tamron 85mm f/1.8 VC. It has stabilization! Took some sample pics that nearly drew me in.

Canon EOS 5D — Canon EOS Analog/Digital crossfire with Dillon.

But in the end that made no sense. The issue? My vintage digital camera gear escapades require an element of comedy. And there is nothing funny about a lens that costs over twice the price of the camera I plan on affixing it to. Especially when I realized that I could pick up a used copy of a similar spec’d Sony lens for my main system for the same money. And I really like that Sony lens. Lucky for me… (Lucky? Sure Let’s say lucky.) there was another option.

And along with price the Canon is smaller and lighter also. This Canon copy came highly recommended by Tommy. As seems fitting I used a back to back comparison pic of Tommy to confirm my choice.

Yeah. I am good.

So what of the VC? I am glad that I imagined you asked. What helped me with that was a review from Dustin Abbott where he stated:

“There are some situations where the advantages of using the VC are tremendous, but I think if I get my own copy I’ll simply switch it off in those situations when I don’t need it.”

So I am good. A definite nice to have, but lack of it is not a deal breaker.

I say this once again and I do not state this lightly.

This setup, much like the zoom and prime addendums before it, has me questioning the state of the escalating spec race.

Reminds me of what has been going on with cars for years. Ever increasing power leading to ever decreasing 0-60 numbers. I was guilty of being a fan for years. But then I made a pivot I worried would lead to regret. I went from a Dadmobile HEMI powered Charger to a vehicle with roughly half as much power. But I found HP plenty enough, especially since it had stellar handling. In fact, it was much better suited to real life driving scenarios. Flex a mess of HP and you run the risk of losing your license. Flex stellar handling and you can have your fun within the realm of legal speeds. As a result, I am good.

Similarly, cameras have steadily increasing specs.

Nice. But do we need this all?

And once again I am guilty of playing along. My top camera has some impressive MP specs. And even with that high MP it also manages an impressive FPS count. This camera?

12.8 MP

3 FPS

Now do not get me wrong these specs come in quite handy when you actually need the pic. There are other advantages too numerous to list here. It would take over the post. But for everyday use, I am finding that 12.8 MP and 3 FPS work just fine. Now that is the camera end of things.

Thi prime lens?

It is great. I put it in between that zoom and the other prime. It is better built than the other prime, but i will always lean towards a 50mm lens. Better build and no operational compromises as far as I am concerned. Especially taking the low price of entry. Sharp, has good colors, and in place of the zoom’s close focus performance, it has bokeh that I rather like. And as one would expect it adds a AF/MF switch…

…and has internal focusing which is a nice touch.

And once again this lens costs a fraction of modern solutions. Not bad for a camera produced in 2005.

But as I think about it… should I be surprised? I regularly use film cameras far older to great results… Anyhoo. I digress. Here are some early sample pics just messing around below followed by more pics of the lens.