The Official Photography Thread - Vol. 3

[goste187]

A lot of shooting today. Another shot 

 

[psylas]

Oldie but goodie. Messing with HDR back in the day.

 

[dropten]

Just got a D3100 and 18-55 for the low low. What lens to you guys recommend as a good all around lens?

 

[khankussionz]

Just got a D3100 and 18-55 for the low low. What lens to you guys recommend as a good all around lens?

35mm f/1.8 seems to be the go to for the Nikon crop sensor cameras. You'll see alot of talk about it in the thread. I'm unloading mine in preparation for a full frame body. Let me know if you're interested.

 

[wrightone86]

Ordered the 50mm for my Canon over the weekend and it should be here tomorrow 

Hopefully the weather clears up like it is supposed to and I can grab some nice shots. There is a car show in Richmond on Saturday I am going to. That can be my first run with the lens.

 

[dropten]

35mm f/1.8 seems to be the go to for the Nikon crop sensor cameras. You'll see alot of talk about it in the thread. I'm unloading mine in preparation for a full frame body. Let me know if you're interested.

How much?

 

[airphilippines]

That Leica :x

 

[219elite]

Ordered the 50mm for my Canon over the weekend and it should be here tomorrow 

Hopefully the weather clears up like it is supposed to and I can grab some nice shots. There is a car show in Richmond on Saturday I am going to. That can be my first run with the lens.

I just picked up the f1.8 from my local best buy and i love it. cheap lens without cheap production

 

[wrightone86]

I just picked up the f1.8 from my local best buy and i love it. cheap lens without cheap production

Good to know. That is the one I grabbed. I kept seeing how the 50mm is the 1 must have fixed lens to grab, so I had to try it out.

 

[leggomuheggroll]

Another picture from this morning.

 

[Fong$tarr]

Good to know. That is the one I grabbed. I kept seeing how the 50mm is the 1 must have fixed lens to grab, so I had to try it out.

It is and it isn't. People get it for the price just to find out it's not their cup of tea because of the focal length. It cane be frustrating at times, especially if you do something as simple like taking group photos but on the other hand, it can really open up your composition of taking photos.

Seeing how I just rented a 85 for my full frame (close to a 50mm on a crop), it's just not an all around lens to have with you unless you have a second one. I found myself never using at times just cause I wasn't positioned for it nor was I shooting portraits. Really reminded me when I had my 50mm lens on a crop but thankfully that lens was super small and light to pocket.

 

[khankussionz]

All this lens talk is great. Just got my 28mm f/1.8 today, and so far i love it. Might go out on the limb and say its the sharpest lens I own. Nano crystal coating seems to make a huge difference. Looking forward to trying it out on a full frame

 

[219elite]

so fong,

when doing portrait shots, you'd rather use something around a 35mm? i had to adjust to feeling like i was right on top of subjects with i first put on the 50. for me being a beginner though, it makes me think out shots more.

 

[yung flip image]

 
what kind of cam is that? Full details please

Nikon D600 with a Sigma 35mm f/1.4. My daily walkaround setup.

more of girl

Up on my blog fam. 

 

[Fong$tarr]

so fong,

when doing portrait shots, you'd rather use something around a 35mm? i had to adjust to feeling like i was right on top of subjects with i first put on the 50. for me being a beginner though, it makes me think out shots more.

Naw.......I'd shoot with the 85mm or the 135mm but the thing is I never shoot portraits. So using those lenses as walk around lenses was hard. I don't do much street photography so it was just an odd telephoto if any. I got that one fog shot with it but that was about it.

And speaking of street photography, not sure if people saw this but if you are in the Bay.....

 

[HankHill]

Looking back, I probably wouldn't recommend anyone getting a 35 1.8 or 50 1.8 after they just got their camera. The 18-55 (or 18-105/140/200) kit is great for whatever they would be doing and helps with understanding how to shoot. Knowing that your aperture changes at different focal lengths, you'll need to compensate in other areas for your shot. You can focus on actually learning how to take photos and develop your style. After I would just recommend the kit replacement (17-50/55 2.8 ) since it will be a better version of something you're already familiar with. Then you can grab whatever else you want.

 

[goste187]

^^ Respectfully, I couldn't disagree more. There is almost zero chance I'd choose a standard 18-55 over a 50mm. Optically, the kit zoom isn't even close to the 50. The 50 is close to 4x faster than the kit, giving you much better low light shooting as well as that added flexibility in playing w/ depth of field. Also being a prime, it forces you to compose with your feet, which a lot of people forget how to do. Forces you to be a little more creative w/ your composing.

When I first started out, I started w/ just a body and the 50/1.8. Eventually I bought a cheap 18-55 from someone used on craigslist and I don't think it lasted more than a few weeks before it was replaced. The 50mm however, remains a staple in my collection

 

[bjamez20]

Don't think I could live with just a 50mm on a crop camera. Taking a group photo or landscape shot at 80mm is not my cup of tea. Zooming with your feet doesn't always work as it changes the perspective.

I think of ~80mm lenses as more of a specialty type of lens for portraits then a good all purpose lens for a beginner. Makes a good addition to a kit zoom if you want a cheap lens to play with DoF though.

 

[trynafeelmink]

one of my older ones that i found ive always liked

 

[khankussionz]

Let me chime in. Currently in my bag I have the mentioned kit lens, 35mm, 50mm and 85mm lenses. My biggest gripe with the kit lens wasn't that it wasn't helping me learn to shoot, but that it wasn't helping me get the look that I wanted to achieve. My reason for this was that I love to shoot as wide open as I can. The kit lens isn't as sharp as other lenses in my opinion either. I felt like I was shooting on a high end point and shoot until I upgraded my lens. I love prime lenses but I know that I am going to add the 70-200 because it will be a workhorse for me on my shoots. My only advice is to figure out what you want to shoot, how you want it to look, and how your gear will achieve that.

 

[mjbetch]

so fong,

when doing portrait shots, you'd rather use something around a 35mm? i had to adjust to feeling like i was right on top of subjects with i first put on the 50. for me being a beginner though, it makes me think out shots more.

Depends. It's kind of subjective. For headshot type portraits, you would want to go at least 85mm. The distortion is much more minimal than that of 35mm-50mm. The wider you go, the more compressed an image looks, and it just makes portraits (especially heads/faces) look weird.

But, If you were going for a wider full body portrait, then it would be nice. 35mm isn't too wide.

These two videos explain it better. I wish I new this earlier when I started shooting.

 

[HankHill]

goste187 You're opinion is based on the fact that you didn't have the kit lens until after your experience with the 50mm though.

For someone who just bought the camera with the kit, my advice still holds. Use it until you know your style and needs.

 

[Fong$tarr]

I think it all depends on what you shoot. With the kit and 50m, it's a good pairing to cover a kit if ground. Like say if you wanted to do long exposures, the kit is fine and covers a decent amount of area. But if you are doing low light shooting or DOF, the kit will give you none of that nor will it even give you any insight on how to practice shooting that way.

The best beginner setup I had when I had my Nikon D90 was the kit, a 35mm 1.8 and a 10.5 fisheye. I literally had most focal lengths covered and a lens to do any type of shooting (minus maybe portrait stuff). I would always recommend getting a 50mm along with the kit. Never just the kit alone though.

 

[tokes99]

goste187 You're opinion is based on the fact that you didn't have the kit lens until after your experience with the 50mm though.

For someone who just bought the camera with the kit, my advice still holds. Use it until you know your style and needs.

#this, yes optically prime lenses are typically MUCH better than your average kit lens...this shouldn't be taken to mean that kit lens aren't of value, especially starting out; just trying to figure things out...

 

[Nawzlew]

Just to clarify on crop factor ..

It basically adds more "zoom" if you will?

So if I'm using a 50mm on my T2i (1.6), what I see is more like 70mm?