The most CONTROVERSIAL lens in Photography...
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- čas přidán 12. 09. 2024
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Camera lenses are the most important bit of any photography kit, but one of the most popular lens types isn't to everyone's tastes. Standard zooms are super practical, incredibly versatile and they're often the best tool to get the job done, but they are sometimes a bit boring... In this video I talk about why you might want to use a standard zoom, or indeed a collection of prime lenses, and which is likely to suit your photography better.
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I'm off to learn how on/off buttons work...
thank you!
To do you some justice; the button is ridiculous small! 😁 ... "unless there's something seriously wrong with the helicopter" - that's where my shitty day turned into a big laugh. Thanks buddy, a day with a Video from James is a good day.
Any courses you'd recommend? I doubt any of them will be as engaging as your videos, but I think it's nice to branch out a bit. Also I hope you get your free month from just new subscribers, not only after they actually pay.
Signed up, thanks!
You say lenses arnt controversial... You haven't seen my wife's reaction whenever I purchase a new one!
lmaoooo
Brit: Potatoes aren't controversial.
Me, an Irishman: I'm sorry what?
please elaborate on this: I did not get it. cultural difference, you know.
@@komandagleby_GB The Irish potato famine caused by British negligence during their occupation.
@@imjasonennis3624 nah it was the Irish fault for not farming well
Restrictions in gear often increase creativity through increased level of required thought.
Of course, you can't take that to the ultimate logical conclusion. 😃
James: *Starts video holding his mic.... *
Me: oh no, we have a sound issue. Ha!
“About as controversial as potatoes. That is to say, not controversial at all.”
There speaks a man who was never exposed to Irish history 😐
😄
Or lived in Idaho or Maine😁
This is weird... I just spent a weekend in Wales with my 15mm 1.7 and 25mm 1.4 getting frustrated with always having the wrong lens on the body. Thinking I should sell them both and go for the 12-35mm 2.8.
You've made me think I just need to try harder... thanks for that.
James: starts an analogy. Goes too far with analogy. Starts to over explain the analogy. Watches the analogy die 🤣🤣
I watch every video you put out. I just came here to tell you that you're my favorite tuber and to thank you for helping (inadvertently) guide my efforts to create my own channel. Love your work!
I thing that I heard and I realized recently is also that by using a prime lens it can improve a lot your photography: because you need to move and look around for a good photo, most of the time I got compositions that I wouldn't even think of at the beginning and that were way better. With a zoom lens I would have missed those.
completely agree, over the past year I've upgraded my kit piece by piece and unknowingly ended up switching out zooms and only have primes, and I'm happy with it
Interesting take on the subject. When given a choice, my preferred lens would always be my trusty Nikon 50mm f/1.4 D. In my opinion one of the greatest pieces of glass out there that is affordable and packs a real punch. I love the images this can yield. My "bread and butter" lens (or my "workhorse" to stay in your image) for anything where there might not be time to zoom with my feet, is indeed a 28-70 f/2.8. But so far it never struck me as "boring". It is just a tool that allows me to work faster in certain situations which I need to do more often than not.
But when I have time and the weight is not an issue....I would take a prime lens over a zoom any day. I also like to challenge myself sometimea by deliberately only packing one or two lenses.
I only have 2 lens right now anyways, but I've been only taking one at a time with me to challenge myself.
Only a couple primes? Welcome to the world of large format photography.
Terry Thomas I looked into large format photography....and decided to not open that can of worms. (Yet.)
I will say my Zeiss 28mm 2.0, but I hear you! I often just go out with a 28mm. I use zooms for telephoto shots, because at that point the zoom is not making that much difference in my composition. (Or I can't get to my shot to begin with ...)
Two primes, a wide and a standard, plus a zoom telephoto is my kit 99% of the time.
If something goes seriously wrong with your helicopter, bumps are the least of your problems. (Just saying)
Well, the first bump would be a problem.
I have shot from helicopter to helicopter before. To get the rotor blur plus a clean shot is pure luck and numbers. (1/160th is my setting for rotor/prop motion blur, I bump it to 1/200th while on a helio, it is still not quick enough from the vibration.)
As with every discussion on this. It's all about purpose:
A lot of commercial shoots I do are down at f5.6 to f8. I'm shooting from various angles and compositions. Once I stop down that far, the difference in IQ and sharpness is so minimal that it doesn't make sense to have a prime for that purpose.
However, if I was doing head shots, portaits I would definitely use my 85mm or my 135mm just for the perspective. It just looks better shooting people at that focal length. But I could also use my 70-200mm for that to achieve the same perspective.
If you do much more creative work, or want things like distortion to be best corrected in camera, it's probably best to use a prime.
Daily driver is a 24-70 but when I want to do some fun stuff I'll slap something else on my camera.
I recently got my first prime -- well, my first lens, really, after picking up a camera with a kit lens a few months back -- and I am really enjoying shooting with it so far. Having the one focal length and being forced to search for compositions with that restriction is a great challenge for a beginner like myself and I'm getting shots, I think, that I might have otherwise missed. That being said, after watching your video, I think I'll return to the kit lens in time. As much as I really do enjoy the prime and I'll stick with it a while more as I slowly get the hang of using a camera again, there are still obviously some great benefits to be had with standard zooms and I really quite like the points you made in this video (as I do in all your videos: I've been on a bit of a binge recently after finding your channel.)
I am a prime advocate. Well, wide to standard primes. I use telephoto zooms. Zooms have there place, but primes always give me better shots, they make you "think" more. They are like equivalent of a stick shift in a car vs. an automatic.
Wonderfully convoluted and clear-cut as always. You vacillations drawing to conclusions never sound confused...just delayed. Thanks for this. Now I want to buy back all the Panasonic and Olympus primes I sold over the last few years. If only I could find a zoom for my Mavic 2 Pro!
Basically when I shoot in "reaction" mode (family gathering, photojournalism etc.) I prefer zoom because of its versatility. When shooting in "action" mode (portraits, product, landscape etc.) I use primes, and vintage ones as well, since I know what I want to get.
And for travel - depends where I'm going, but usually it's standard zoom, 35 and 55 primes... plus optional wide zoom, ultrawide fisheye, telephoto zoom, macro etc.
Exactly : I also think it depends on the shooting you are doing.
I work only with primes... and it's starting to make me really tired about photography. I shoot weddings, and I more and more feel that I miss a lot of things having to change lens all the time, and it's really getting more and more frustrating. And not saying anything about one fantastic shot I missed this summer because of that during a holidays shooting.
I love primes, I learned a lot with them and improved even more... but I really wish I could go back to zooms now, to feel more at ease while shooting.
What I do is I carry a standard zoom _and_ just one prime, a 35mm prime. When I'm traveling and on the go I use the prime since it's smaller. But when I am able to take my time, I use the zoom. I'm not a professional, it's just my hobby. But this is the workflow I have built for myself.
For some of us, there is another reason for using zooms. When changing lenses often you will have more dust spots to remove from the images in post. 😛 I used to be mainly a primes person but now I like having both.
I do love watching these videos. It's one part low key but great humor and one part .... oh, yes, photography....
I've been working o for a getting better with my primes. I'm taking out my primes for what I call "Fixed Focal Friday". I leave all the other lenses at home so I'm not tempted, and I go out somewhere and shoot. I've had a lot of fun doing it.
Fixed Focal Friday - great idea :-)
I really enjoy my 24-105 f/4, however when I go out only with my 35 f/1.8 I enjoy the challenge of being limited to a focal length.
Highly entertaining! Keeps people interested, great video James
Cool! I just bought my first prime yesterday - 30mm 2.8 macro.
Last time I was this early James didn't forget to record his audio!😂
I quite like going on holiday with just a smoll prime lens. It can be super fustrating to miss shots you would have otherwise got, but then again holiday snaps are rarely going to be AMAZING in the first place...
My experience is that I *always* "miss" shots, no matter what I have with me. I just learned to see only motives and opportunities that fit my gear … ;-)
Ok so "THIS IS SPARTA" comes to mind Gerard Butler doing a CZcams channel wow. LOL great vid James 😜👍👍👍
I recently bought a Full Frame DSLR and it made me get out all those lovely primes that I had from 35mm days, loads of fun! I also have an Olympus OMD EM10 and a friend gave me some 35mm primes. I bought an adaptor and tried them out, there are no connections so everything is manual but the screen shows you the actual exposure and that works well. The focus was tricky but with a small magnifier on the back screen I can get it right. I have been blown away by the sharpness of the old Zuiko lenses and it really does make me work for the picture - definitely not a helicopter experience!
I have just started to embrace what I call 'The Zen of Primes', that being no matter which prime lens you have on, it's always the wrong one.
I've found that my happiest gear outfit for photojournalism/reportage is my Canon with a 24-70mm and my Fuji with a 35mm or 56mm fast primes. If you're restricted to one body try to go for 2 lenses that span the greatest focal length to quality ratio for what you're shooting. For Canon I have the 24-70mm and then the 85mm 1.8. The 85mm extends mt focal length while adding a fast prime for fantastic portraits. No overlap in focal length means I've maximized the versatility value in dollars to weight and bag space.
When I'm going somewhere and will be taking photos as part of the trip, I use a zoom.
If I'm going somewhere for the purpose of photography, I prefer primes, they make you think a bit more, zooms can make you a bit complacent.
I wouldn't make that a hard and fast rule though.
yeah, during trips there tight places and cant bring more lenses.... but i prefer 50mm prime when i feel like photgraphing... i just like the feel of 50mm...
Senpai Akagi HG
As someone who spent the first 29 years of his photography experience shooting almost exclusively with prime lenses (and film), I can certainly agree with you. Yes, we have a wonderful range of effective zoom lenses available for our cameras today but there is something rewarding about getting that perfect shot with a prime lens; A sense that you had to work harder to get the image you were after that makes it that much sweeter a success story in the end.
Good timing with this video. Just bought my first prime for the G9. A ‘vintage’ Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 35mm f2.4 🙂 Definitely hoping it isn’t “a little bit boring” 😜
People should buy both. Have some zooms for flexibility, and then primes for your your favorite focal lengths. This means that on each trip you can decide what compromises you want to make based on what is important.
Well done with the whole not pressing the button thing. Never had that happen to me. Much.
I have that Tamron 24-70 f/2.8 (Canon mount) and it is phenomenal. It falls into the category of "if your going on vacation for two weeks and can only bring one lens. . . " territory. Also on the subject of primes, my very first one was Canon's 50mm f/1.4 and put it on my (then) Canon Rebel XT as we hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon. At first it felt like I was looking at the canyon through a toilet paper tube but to this day 12 years later I still took my very best shots of it that day.
Thank you James for a very confusing video which has helped me to make up my mind, not to make up my mind about what decision to take.... maybe !
I'm trying to go the lightweight route, that's why I have one prime, one ultra wide angle zoom, one large standard to zoom and one larger telefoto zoom. Yeah, that's not lightweight and I don't know what to do =(
It's good that you have all those because you can now go back through your favorite images and see which focal lengths you used the most. You might find that you take all those lenses out with you but actually mostly use one or two and the others just go for a ride in your bag. I have one longer lens that rides around a lot in my bag at the moment and I'm trying to decide whether I should sell it and upgrade one of my other lenses or hang on to it just in case. Which means it will probably just sit somewhere gathering dust. The 'what ifs' make it hard to decide lol
@@CarolyneMacMillan I feel your pain! I shoot Nikon, and when I go hiking I like to take my 200-500 *just in case* I see some wildlife, i.e. pretty birds. But god damn it's so big and heavy! Considering how often it actually gets used, I'm seriously considering offloading it and getting a 2x tele for my 70-200. Maybe you could consider a similar thing?
@@hoodie3810 I should just give up on the birds, I never have any luck taking photos of them myself. I just seem to line them up for others to take photos of. One example was an early morning trip to a local lake to shoot shags/cormorants sunning themselves on tree stumps out in the water. I found my spot sat down with one leg out in front of me by some rocks and the bird I started to shoot decided that a rock by my foot was a better spot lol. Too close for me to shoot with my big lens on and I didn't want to move and scare it off as a friend was getting good shots. This happens to me a lot to the point that I'm starting to think that 50mm is a birding lens lol. I attract other animals too but thankfully I don't live anywhere that has big critters that could eat me.
@@CarolyneMacMillan attracting animals sounds like a great skill! Maybe you should try birding with a 105mm macro, then you can be as close as you want 😆
@@hoodie3810 Hahaha macro bird photography as my new speciality 😂
Great analogy about the off-road and helicopter. I'm fairly new to photography and this is such a big question i have about prime vs zoom. Thanks for a great answer!
All my favorite pictures are either wider than 24 or longer than 70. I had the Olympus version, 12-40. My least used lens.
Your right. I've use my 12-35 quite a lot especially for run and gun or parties, but I do love my 25 and 15 primes. Better bokeh with the primes I find. The other zoom I love a lot is the 35-100.
Thanks James, the only thing I got out of this is video is “I’m getting a gym membership” 🤣🤣
😀
Couldnt agree more about prime lenses. I just got my first nifty 50mm 1.4 and it's making me more involved with my photography....
I'd like to have heard what you said when you realised you hadn't turned the mic on!
So funny. I just realized, that I pretty much never use my 24-70. I shoot 90% of my pictures on a 45mm F/1.4. I pretty much never miss shots, because I am so rarely in fast paced envionnements. Also I love the click of the lense locking in when I change it and when using primes, I get to change lenses more often.
I don't even own a standard zoom lens. Does that make me controversial or the opposite?
I'm definitely on the primes bus. In fact, I'll often choose a single prime before I go out shooting and leave all my other lenses at home. One less choice to get in the way.
That's a bold thing to do, but might be a really good one too :)
Exactly same here! It’s great fun isn’t it?
The ‘primes are best’ argument is an old one but I think it’s out of date. I now shoot with a Fuji XT4. The Iso performance of the xtrans sensor is incredible. I can use an 18-55 all day long at higher Iso with no perceptible loss in quality, I simply don’t need a very fast lens any more when light is in short supply. I have several primes but seldom use them. The IQ on small zooms has vastly improved in recent years and it would take a serious degree of pixel peeping to see any difference between a prime and a good small zoom, especially with a little post processing. I generally print to 16”x12 and the results are flawless. And what’s to stop you waking up one morning and deciding that you’d like to go out and shoot at one focal length only, with your trusty little zoom. A good exercise in self discipline too.
Yes finally someone was able to put it in words. Zooms are great but primes just feel so intentional. I have a couple of zooms and quite a few more primes. My rokinon 35 mm t1.5 lives on my camera and I’ve missed shots because of it. However, I’ve gotten shots I would’ve never thought of because I was forced to push things a bit
This is why I decided for the Sigma Trio over the 16-55 Sony. Because as a beginner I felt it to be the best way to learn more about photography.
Can’t beat drone shots over Bamford Edge 😍
I'm a prime girl. I started with primes on my film camera a bit of time ago ahem. When I switched to digital I had a couple of 'L' zooms but I found photography using them used to really bug me. I thought for ages it was just the size and weight compared to my old film lenses. It wasn't until I bought my Olympus camera and a couple of the small primes that I realized what I'd been missing and what had really been bugging me. I don't know if it's just me but when I use zooms I tend to rush things. I don't move around as much and I don't really like the images I produce. When I use primes I slow down and wander around more. I see more and from different angles and the images reflect that. I do carry 2 tiny kit zooms with me on longer trips though. The Panasonic 12-32, because I don't have a 12mm prime and occasionally I need that length, just not often enough to go and buy one yet and a 35-100mm for the few times I need longer than my primes currently take me. Together they are smaller than a soda can and weigh just over 200gms so I'm not bothered if I take them out and don't end up using them. It's a shame really cos I get GAS like everyone else and those Pro 12-40 and 40-150mm lenses seem to make everyone else really happy but I know I'd only be buying them to 'have' them not because they would change my photography for the better. It doesn't matter how great something is, if it doesn't suit the way you like to work it's just another ornament/dust collector.
My (so far) favourite Lumix lens is the 25mm Leica Summilux f1.4. I bought it 5 years ago and it competes with my Lumix 12-60mm lens. Saving my pennies for the Leica 12-60 !
I love shooting with primes, but it's more bulk and less flexibility so I tend to use zooms. If I'm out and about somewhere familiar where I've photographed multiple times I might take along a camera with a single prime to force myself to be creative.
I've learned to select my lenses. Unknown territory forces me to carry all lenses. Going to known territory I can select: Do I need a tele lens? Do I need maximum flexibility? Am I in the mood for primes only? And then I take my primes with me (17, 25, 45mm) and I'm perfectly fine with it.
PL10-25 f/1.7, Oly 12-100 f/4, PL 50-200 f2.8-4, PL 100-400. I can mix up those lens depending on what I will be shooting for very little weight. If I was to go prime route I would invest in the f/1.2 Oly Primes
You could easily be a comedian! Love your style
As a wheelchair user, for obvious reasons I find it a lot easier to use zooms. I can't always get into the right position to take the shot when using primes.
I usually either take the 14-140mm for shooting outdoors in sunlight, or a couple of primes for evening or indoors work. Recently picked up the Olympus 75mm 1.8, which is quickly becoming one of my favourite lenses. The 2.8 zoom don't really do much for me, honestly, being expensive and fairly bulky while still being unable to match the light gathering ability of the primes, or the long end of the superzoom. Maybe I'll consider a standard zoom again if I ever get a full frame camera.
I agree that a prime offers that "4x4 experience", but I often don't have much time, and shoot wildly different things, so a zoomlens makes more sense most of the time. I do have some (cheap) fast primes, but once I noticed I was usually stopping down aperture to get a wider depth of field, I realized I would probably come a long way with kitzooms. So I carry an m43 body and 3 zoom lenses, covering 9mm to 300mm and with wide overlaps. And lunch, and diapers, and my wife's bag, and... And when I feel like it, a pinhole, a fish eye, a 35mm f/1.2 lens etc.
Also a point worth noting against changing lenses might be discouraging environmental conditions (storm, sand/ beach, dirt....)
So I usually walk into the situation with the standard zoom on the camera and thus know I got my focal length covered, and later MAY change to the appropiate fixed length for a better shot; instead of walking onto the spot with the wrong focal length. Then, the option to change lenses becomes a necessity, which can really suck during a gale of wind at the beach. (although gales don't suck, they blow).
I have a rough criteria for choosing zooms over primes: the closer I am from "normal" (i.e. roughly 50mm full frame equivalent FoV), the wider the zoom range has to be for me to consider using it. I'm not a huge fan of 24-70s because most of the time I can just recompose with a 50mm prime. But a 24-120 or 24-200 catches my attention because they cover enough of a zoom range that I can't just recompose between different ends of the zoom range and they will save me swapping lenses.
In my professional experience , it 100% depends on the shoot and how the images will be used. Group events or big public events where a high volume of final images is required, I’ll use zooms and post processing.
I use my primes when I have at least a small amount of set up time and when individual images are the final intended product.
For zoom benefits, you missed the fact that while constraints are really good when you're experienced, freedom is as important when you start out to understand better what fancies your eye and which prime to use later on.
As a relative beginner to the field, I still wouldn't trade my 18-55mm Fuji kit lens yet, as I finally start to get a better grasp of which focal length I want to work with for my own photography. They make composition easier in a way yes, but they also tend to show you which focal lengths you'll end up gravitating towards. In my case I've realized that with time, I've barely only used wide focal lengths for very sparse and specific situations while I feel like 35-55mm is what I like the most for street photography
I agree and for what I do the Tameron 28-75mm f2.8 for the Sony E Mount fullframe is perfect for me. Only got to carry one lebs instead of about 3 or 4.
Good analogy. I think zooms really come into their own for the long focal lengths (70-200 ff equiv). When I shot sports, it's obvious why this lens is so versatile because you cannot move often to the ideal spot, so you have to zoom in and out. Plus you probably want some compression, isolation, etc. In the 24-70 ff equiv length, more than likely the subject is within "walking distance" to move around with a prime. It is useful (like at a wedding) where things are happening fast, but I've never been overly enamoured with the images I've produced from that focal length. f2.8 if fast, but primes in this range go down to f1.4 typically and that additional bokeh and light gain is very helpful. When I'm shooting portraits, I usually find two primes (35 ff equiv) and (~85 ff equiv) do the trick. I almost always only buy the 24-70 equiv. if it's on sale. Useful to have, but not my first choice to shoot with.
How funny! I just bought an Olympus 12-40 and traded my sigma 30mm 1.4... i do miss the signa but i need to adjust to using a zoom lens tbh. James thanks mate for being relatable, would love to go on a shoot session with you (even though im scared of heights hahaha!) Have a great weekend mate 😁👏🏿
The primary issues of zooms vs primes for me are cost and weight of set of primes vs a couple of zooms. If you can afford a couple primes I would base the choice on what you shot and your gear not some generic recommendation such as get the 'nifty fifty'.
As a beginner, i'm still enjoying my zooms at the moment, it allows me to experiment with composition a lot easier and get a lot more shots while learning. I had a 18-135mm with my new Canon 90D, it's quite bulky/heavy, but it's an absolute weapon. The only prime i've got so far is a 50mm f/1.8
Oh analogy bliss. Potatoes. Hahahahaha. Yep. I get it.
Off road helicopter potato photography. I’m in.
Overcome dust problems by buying two bodies and using a zoom on one, plus 18-55 or near on the other - The Sony a6000 bodies are good starting point.
The 14-140 must be the least controversial, because nobody ever talks about it.
Yea when I got the g7 it came with the 14-42 and the 45-150 and I thought it would make sense if I had just gotten the 14-150 but then I saw the price
I've had that lens for 6 years. Absolutely love it! Being able to get some nice wide shots and tele, with solid results. Normally stop it down a tad to sharpen up corners for landscapes but been sp handy.
@@Subfrequenz Six years_ You have the first generation then, without weather sealing? I heard the second one is quite an improvement in IQ as well.
@@AoyagiAichou hi, it is actually the second generation. So maybe 5 years, I got it with a pansonic g6 camera. I've got some primes and a 9-18 oly but I've always found the results to be pretty reliable when used thoughtfully. I think the travel zoom range is brilliant for experimenting with different crops and zooming with your feet often changes the perspective. Besides if I want a compressed landscape style shot you cant beat the versatility of 280mm equiv on the long end. But hey it's a personal choice!
@@Subfrequenz Are you sure? The second generation was released in 2019 as far as I can tell na.panasonic.com/us/news/lumix-g-14-140mm-telephoto-zoom-lens-micro-four-thirds-system-undergoes-update . I agree that the versatility of it is amazing, of course. Can't comment on its sharpness etc., as I have very limited experience and untrained eyes. Or was your original response to Codexan and some of the lenses he mentioned?
During the time that I have been photographing events, I used both primes and zoom lenses, when I was in a position to control the shots, i would use a prime lens, ie bridal preparations, portraits and group photos, during the time that the wedding ceremony was taking place I found myself using a 24-70 as often times I could not afford to move much as the ceremony was taking place, now I was able to use the 24-70 because most of the ceremonies took place outside and lighting was never a problem and to me having the ability to adjust my focal length at this point of the wedding to frame the shots with out changing cameras or lenses, as a single photographer I could make the most out of every position I was in by moving slightly and using the wide range of focal lengths that the lens gave me, also because of the constant 2.8 aperture the exposure was constant so I could concentrate on getting the most of each and every photo during the ceremony. When I photographed family photos with young children I used the 24-70 because children were constantly in motion and the lens allowed me to capture all the insanity that unfolded at times, if the children settled down and became more comfortable in having photos taken I could go back to using prime lenses. And that is pretty much how I approach how I decide when to use a prime lens or zoom when photographing a subject.
I have done weddings using only Sigma primes, all f/1.4. They are so absurdly good that I have much 'room' for cropping without losing quality. So apart from "zooming with your feet" you can also "zoom in post", if you're using the right lenses. And since primes tend to not only be faster than zoom lenses, they also excel in sharpness since they only need to be "great" at one focal length.
I've used the Canon 24-105 L before a lot, and I sold it once I started using the Sigma ART-lenses. The Canon could never really "keep up" with the quality of the primes, reason why I left it in the bag most of the time. Or didn't even bother to take it with me.
I have a 50mm prime and a 24-70mm f/2.8. The latter has been seeing a lot more time on the camera since I bought it. I really need to get back to using my prime again, though.
Had some fun today with my 16mm-55mm F2.8 Fujinon lens today. The only time I felt like I needed more was when I wanted to do some long shots. Then my 55mm-200mm lens would have been a better choice.
When you said controversial lens, I was expecting (hoping?) for stories of debauchery such as alcohol abuse, ingestion of illicit substances off of "working women" body parts, currency use as sanitary paper and so on. What I got was a defence of the standard zoom...
Still not disappointed :P
😂
Clear as mud that.! Love it haha
I've been using my 16-50mm aps-c a lot in 35mm (52mm ff) as it gives me a good balance between optical magnification and very short minimal focus distance (high effective magnification) and i realized i actually quite like the perspective it gives, so much so that im considering buying a prime lens around that focal length even though the standard zoom has serving me really well.
I have come to loathe my Nikkor 24-70VR on my D850. It feels like I’m walking around with a 12lb free weight.😫 I love the photos, but I can’t stand the pain. I’ve resorted to using my 35mm 1.8 on my D850 and have come to love my images.🤩
You are so entertaining! I use a zoom (kit) lens that has been very fun to learn. It's always been my opinion to get what you can, when you can, and learn to use it (even in ways that it isn't designed to be used). Thanks for your humor and point of view!
The only boring part of a standard zoom lens is using the ‘wrong’ focal lengths for taking photos. A portrait on 24mm is probably look very bad. A nice, open landscape scene will probably not live to its full potential at 70mm. As a beginner, I’m tackling these issues, while also getting in control of the camera. I do have a cheap 50mm and it is a joy to use, but for now I use it only sparingly.
Primes are really capable of wide apertures, but those tend to be very heavy and very expensive. For people that knows what they need, like you James, it is all a balancing act - features, weight, cost. For the rest of us, a standard zoom holds lots a secrets to be found, including when to break the general wisdom of focal lengths, while primes are some difficult beasts to use in most scenarios.
This is really a decision that one can only make with time and experience. I personally used to love shooting primes, but the more pressure I have on my professional shoots, the less variables I want to have to consider in order to deliver for my clients. When it comes to my own personal photography, I enjoy primes more. I enjoy the process. And the type of photography I do in my spare time (landscape, astro and street) all lend themselves to prime lenses. But for my professional work (product, corporate and real estate), I keep my zoom on the camera 99% of the time.
I thought this was going to be about the kit lens you get and never use
I use the Tamron 28-75 2.8 99% of the time. A zoom is pretty necessary for concert photography. The terrible light, the constant movement, the 3 song limit - that's enough of a challenge for me, thanks!
The issue for smaller formats is full frame manufacturer's like Canon discovering compact lenses with modest apertures. Full frame mirrorless bodies compete on size. Compact FF kit lenses and primes could see m43 off - and I say that as a micro four thirds user.
I just got an Olympus 12-40 F/2.8 Pro this week to add to my 17mm F/1.8. Looking forward to seeing how it performs.
Having both prime and zoom lenses is the best of both worlds!
If you tend to shoot mostly at one focal length, that would be the prime lens to buy.
I also feel like using a prime lens will make you a better photographer by zooming with your feet will help you find better compositions vs staying in one spot and zooming in with a zoom lens.
*I love your vids, James.* Also, primes are fun indeed!
Totally agree with that. I’ve just bought a 24-70 sigma and I’m a little bored the images I produce with it.
Of course if you want a perspective change and not just cropping you need to walk in closer. Thus making a zoom or a telephoto useless. I enjoy a faster, lighter lens in primes that also encourages me to think about the subject matter and my relation to it. As our eyes don't zoom it feels more connected. For me anyway
It's decided... YOU ARE MY FAVORITE CZcamsR🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Still laughing
Owning 5 primes and on 14-140 (mft) I always find myself bringing 2 different primes with me.
I just got a digital medium format camera after working with Canon for a long time. And before that I was shooting with Mamiya 6x7 film cameras. Speed is in fact something that I feel has impacted my photography in a negative way. I love the slower process of medium format and using prime lenses really works for me for the exact reason you mentioned in your video. But as you said, it all comes down to what you do. I shoot portraits and fashion. Slow shooting makes me be way more careful with every shot I take. Instead of editing 78594 shots at the end of the day I only have 50 to go through. :)
I rarely use my standard zoom anymore. Usually a wideangle zoom, a medium tele-zoom, 105 macro, & 300 f4. To be honest I could loose the wideangle & go to a 12mm prime
Another CZcams video that no one needed.The notions presented range from silly to incomprehensible. Your feelings are of course your own and best wishes to you.
Best first 50 seconds of a video ever!
I found myself a lot more comfortable using my standard zoom ("properly") after using almost exclusively prime lenses in the same range of focal lengths for a quite long time. Instead of zooming for composition, I position myself and adjust the focal length based on desired perspective. When using wider or longer zooms, there is often more merit to zooming in/out for composition, as in many use cases with these lenses there can be more constraints of shooting position for the intended composition.
I normally use primes. I use the 16mm f 2.8, 23mm f2, 35 f2 and 50 f2 fuji primes. Together they do not weight a lot in combination with a APSC camera of Fuji. I do landscape /woodland photography during hikes with an average distance of 8k. No problems with the weight inclusing a tripod :)). Also all the primes are small and are easy to handle with a XT2 XT3 etc..
I do have a zoomlens for the longer focal shots (APSC 50mm plus range) it is the 55-200mm zoomlens of Fuji. This lens feels like a heavy brick. I'll only use that lens when I have some specific shots planned. Using small light primes is the way to go. I do not miss shots I could have missed. Strange to write it down like that :)). I only take shots I like. And I do not want to make to much because it also takes a lot of time to process all those shots. Working with primes is much more fun and rewarding to my experience. When I only could have and use 1 lens it would be a prime like the 35mm f2 of Fuji. That is +/- 50mm focal equivalent full frame. Most of the time during my hikes I only use 2 lenses namely the 35mm f2 and the 50 mm f2 lens. So honestly I only need to carry 2 lenses :))
2 cameras - one with a 12-35 and the other with a 35-100 can be worn all th time. Also changing lens when doing street photography is very much a nono - the 8-18 is perfect for that. Using a G90 rather than a g9 is another way to save weigh without losing quality ( also gets you unlimited video)
When I bought my first real camera (Panny G7) a few years ago I took the advice of a more experienced photographer and have always bought good glass. I got the G7 kit that came with the 14-140, then I bought the 12-35f2.8 and 35-100f2.8. I've got other lenses for sure(more than I need) but the good glass has served me well from my G7 to G85 to G9 and GH5. I'm sure all of my lenses can produce amazing images when paired with a camera with great auto focus, which sadly, none of mine have.