On a bike with 57 mm reach, you can fit 28 mm tires with fenders or 32 mm (or perhaps more?) without fenders (700c). But you have to be careful with the fork length and bridge placement to maximize the reach. It's a nice compromise of tire size versatility with the ease of use, and looks, of caliper brakes.

With bigger tires cantilevers are a good choice. They work great. Obviously they will work on small tires too, but the extra fork clearance might look weird.