Using a super telephoto lens has been a question since I’ve started shooting cycling. On the one hand, having something, that’s longer than the standard 70-200mm lens is only essential for finish photos, on the other hand, something, that’s longer than the standard 70-200mm lens is only essential for finish photos. What I mean by that is that while it’s really great to have a 300mm lens with you at the finish line, it’s exceptionally rare, that I feel the need to have one with me for the rest of the time. It feels silly to lug around 2.5 kgs of dead weight at challenging cyclocross race venues for two minutes of glory.
For the Cyclocross World Championships, I always rent one a Canon EF 300mm f/2.8 lens. It is a wonderful piece of kit, the photos are incredibly sharp, the colours are lovely, the autofocus is fast, etc. But, as the saying goes, if all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. It can be quite tricky to compose shots with that lens that are interesting. Because most of the time, you are too close to the subject and all you can see is the subject and a homogenous, blurred background. While this is exhilarating at first, after a few hours, it gets boring and feels gimmicky. I think this lens is a bit like a very wide-angle lens: you have to be really careful and measured when you use it. It gives a very specific look and overdoing it can result in a lot of similar shots – I’ve ended up with a lot of samey shots.
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2 comments
Great pictures as always! The two paragraphs you wrote made me wonder what lens you used for each of the pictures posted here. Can you give more details about what is in your “kit” for a WC (bodies and lenses) and what you end up using most of the time?
Luc, thanks for your kind words.
In the last few months, for cyclocross at least, I’m ending up using the Canon 50mm f/1.2 L almost exclusively. I’m using the Canon 70-200 f/2.8L less and less, almost exclusively at the finish line. I’ve had a chance to rent a Canon 35mm f/1.4L during the Kerstperiod and this week as well. It’s a lovely focal length and I’m growing more and more fond of it. The only problem is that the MkII version costs £1700, which I cannot justify at the moment. But it’s going to be my next major purchase!
In terms of bodies, I’m using a Canon 1D MkIV with the long lens(es) and a Canon 5D MkIII for the standard and wide-angle lenses. Hope this makes sense, let me know if you have any further questions.
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