So I finally caved and bought a used Canon Rebel T7 off a guy on marketplace because I really want to get into photography before my sisters wedding in July. The kit lens it came with is just not cutting it for me, especially in low light when I try to take pics of my cat or just walking around the city at night, the shutter speed gets so slow and everything turns out blurry as heck.
Im super stressed because my budget is pretty tight, like 200 bucks max, maybe 250 if I really stretch it but I have to save for travel stuff too. I have been googling for days and I see everyone swearing by the nifty fifty, the 50mm f/1.8, but then I read on some reddit thread that because the T7 has a crop sensor it makes the focal length like 80mm and that might be way too tight for indoor stuff? I also saw someone mention the 24mm pancake lens but Im worried it might be too wide or not give me that blurry background look I really want.
Here is what I need:
- Budget: Under 250 dollars
- Use case: Mostly indoor portraits and some casual street photography
- Priority: Needs to be better than the kit lens in low light
- Location: I am in Chicago so if there is a local shop I could hit up that would be cool but online is fine too
I just dont want to waste my limited cash on something that wont actually fix the issues Im having. Is that 50mm actually gonna work inside a cramped apartment or am I gonna be backing into the wall just to get a shot of someone? Im totally overthinking this and just want to get out and shoot...
Honestly, skip the 50mm for cramped indoor shots. You'll definitely be hitting walls. Grab the Canon EF-S 24mm f/2.8 STM pancake lens instead. In my experience, the field of view is way more natural for portraits inside an apartment. It is super sharp and handles low light significantly better than that kit lens. Save your extra cash for a fast memory card like the SanDisk Extreme Pro 128GB SDXC UHS-I.
If you want that blurry background without breaking the bank, try the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM. It is super cheap used and perfect for low light cat pics.
^ This. Also, totally agree that 50mm is tough in tight spaces! Since you really want that blurry background effect, have you thought about your current lighting situation at home? Are you planning to use just natural light, or are you open to picking up a cheap speedlight later on? Knowing that would change which direction you should look next. Basically, are you more into candid shots or do you prefer setting up posed portraits?