prime lens

C

CLARKO

Messages
46
Name
john clarkson
Edit My Images
Yes
Hi All
Sorry for this complete newbie question.

Iam looking at my lens choice. I read a lot on here you should have a 50mm prime in your bag.

my question is about the principle of prime lens. Am i right to think this is of a fixed focal lengh. if so how do you get your object in focus. walk backwards and forwards till its about right?

cheers

john
 
You don't have to move forward or backwards to get them in focus - they all have focus rings but you will have to move to get the composition you want.

It takes a lot of getting use to, I know because I'm currently trying ;)
 
Press the shutter half way and make sure the lens is set on AF. Walking forwards or backwards is like zooming in or out.
 
and depending on your body and version of the lens you may also have to manual focus it.
 
as they all said!

is there anything in perticular that you would want a prime lens for.
I know alot of people say have a prime in your bag. Its great fro the odd occasion but to be honest if zooms are your thing, stick to them.

Personally i like primes over zooms and slowly building my collection.
 
you can still focus with it like a zoom but there is no zoom, you just walk backwards or forwards to get the composition
 
But the most important bit is the sharpness of the final image from a prime lens.
 
Don't buy one just because other people think you should have one. buy one because it's what you need.
 
If you have a Canon it's worth buying the cheap as chips nifty fifty and see what it does and if primes are the way forward for you!

Personally I don't use primes all that often, but there are some people that swear by them.

Give it a whirl!

Rob
 
avarice08 said:
If you have a Canon it's worth buying the cheap as chips nifty fifty and see what it does and if primes are the way forward for you!
Click to expand...

If you do this make sure you go out a couple of times with just the prime and no zooms, it may seem a bit daft but I only found out how good my 50 was when my trusty zoom died on holiday and its all I had left,

before that I had just used it to get a bit of bokeh as I would always stick the zoom on my camera by default.
 
The point about primes is that they generally have a very low f/number, like f/1.8 which is more than two stops bigger than f/4 for example (lets in 4x more light).

So you can shoot in lower light but perhaps more importantly you get very shallow depth of field at low f/numbers like that, for creative effect.
 
CLARKO said:
Hi All
Iam looking at my lens choice. I read a lot on here you should have a 50mm prime in your bag.
Click to expand...

Why? Only buy one when you can answer.......:)

Personally I think the 50 is next to useless on a crop sensor, 35's useful though.
 
MadMacro said:
Why? Only buy one when you can answer.......:)

Personally I think the 50 is next to useless on a crop sensor, 35's useful though.
Click to expand...

if the 50 is next to useless on a crop then you are basically saying that an 85 is useless on a full frame - i think 100% of full frame owners and 100% of crop owners would disagree with you.
 
joescrivens said:
if the 50 is next to useless on a crop then you are basically saying that an 85 is useless on a full frame - i think 100% of full frame owners and 100% of crop owners would disagree with you.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't.
 
MadMacro said:
Why? Only buy one when you can answer.......:)

Personally I think the 50 is next to useless on a crop sensor, 35's useful though.
Click to expand...

I don't understand what you mean by this. I am not disagreeing, I just have no clue what you mean, could you explain please why a 50mm prime lens is no use on a crop sensor?

(I have a 50mm lens and I presume a crop sensor.)
 
I find the 50mm is too telephoto for me on the crop sensor. Yes I found the same with 85mm on full frame. I used the 50mm all the time on FF.

I guess it's down to what you do, I do absolutely no portrait shooting so have little use for this sort of lens, I prefer the 35mm which I use in many situations.

I did say 'personally', it's just my opinion folks! The point I was trying to make to the OP was that unless you know why you need a lens - don't buy it. It's always being dished out that 'you should have a 50mm prime in your bag'. Only if you have a use for it surely?
 
Last edited:
DaydreamJay said:
I don't understand what you mean by this. I am not disagreeing, I just have no clue what you mean, could you explain please why a 50mm prime lens is no use on a crop sensor?

(I have a 50mm lens and I presume a crop sensor.)
Click to expand...

Some people tend to find the 80-85mm range to be too long for general use as a "walkabout" lens.
 
MadMacro said:
Why? Only buy one when you can answer.......:)

Personally I think the 50 is next to useless on a crop sensor, 35's useful though.
Click to expand...
That's like saying an 85mm is useless on FF.
 
joescrivens said:
if the 50 is next to useless on a crop then you are basically saying that an 85 is useless on a full frame - i think 100% of full frame owners and 100% of crop owners would disagree with you.
Click to expand...
Oops, snap!
 
CLARKO said:
Hi All
Sorry for this complete newbie question.

Iam looking at my lens choice. I read a lot on here you should have a 50mm prime in your bag.

my question is about the principle of prime lens. Am i right to think this is of a fixed focal lengh. if so how do you get your object in focus. walk backwards and forwards till its about right?

cheers

john
Click to expand...


1. Choose what you have in your own bag based on your own criteria, not everyone else's. There isn't a single lens you "must have"
2. Prime lenses have focusing rings, and normally autofocus - so no you dont need to go back and forth to focus
3. You dont have the facility to zoom, so to frame your shot, you may need to move closer or further away
4. You dont say what you shoot, so it inst possible to even begin to discuss FF, crop 35, 50 or 85mm, or if 1.4, 1.8, 2 is the best
 
Last edited:
MadMacro said:
I find the 50mm is too telephoto for me on the crop sensor. Yes I found the same with 85mm on full frame. I used the 50mm all the time on FF.

I guess it's down to what you do, I do absolutely no portrait shooting so have little use for this sort of lens, I prefer the 35mm which I use in many situations.

I did say 'personally', it's just my opinion folks! The point I was trying to make to the OP was that unless you know why you need a lens - don't buy it. It's always being dished out that 'you should have a 50mm prime in your bag'. Only if you have a use for it surely?
Click to expand...

well yeah, if you don't do any portrait then a 50mm prime wouldn't be useful, if you had said that in your post then we wouldn't have found what you said confusing - you just gave a blanket statement that 50mm on a crop is useless without qualifying that what you meant was "If you don't shoot portraits then 50mm on a crop is useless"
 
Looking around the net, the 50mm gets really good write ups. I would like to buy one soon and i would probably use it all the time!!
 
joescrivens said:
and yet you have two zooms that cover the 85mm focal range? what do you do use up to 80mm and then from 90mm onwards?
Click to expand...

The words used were "next to use useless" which is a turn of phrase meaning 'not the most useful'.

If I had to choose primes to replace my three zooms, I would have 24mm, 50mm and 135mm (on full frame - that's pretty much what I used with film for many years).

The question is about crop format though, and in that case it would be 15mm, 30mm and 85mm.

The thing about the nifty-50 is a) it is very cheap, and b) has a low f/number. Both very desirable characteristics. The fact that it is also 50mm makes it generally less useful on a crop camera as it's just one of those inbetween focal lengths that is neither one thing nor the other.
 
HoppyUK said:
The words used were "next to use useless" which is a turn of phrase meaning 'not the most useful'.
Click to expand...

I guess that is up for interpretation, I read next to useless as "pretty much unusable" or "almost pointless"

if this were the case then canon's most highly rated lens wouldn't be the 85mm 1.2
 
joescrivens said:
I guess that is up for interpretation, I read next to useless as "pretty much unusable" or "almost pointless"

if this were the case then canon's most highly rated lens wouldn't be the 85mm 1.2
Click to expand...

"Canon's most highly rated lens" :eek: I bet they sell about three a year.

I haven't got one, and I really don't want one. I just wouldn't use it.
 
HoppyUK said:
"Canon's most highly rated lens" :eek: I bet they sell about three a year.

I haven't got one, and I really don't want one. I just wouldn't use it.
Click to expand...

most highly rated lens is subjective, but I'm prepared to bet ratings don't translate to sales for any lens
 
HoppyUK said:
"Canon's most highly rated lens" :eek: I bet they sell about three a year.

I haven't got one, and I really don't want one. I just wouldn't use it.
Click to expand...

I didn't say it was canons best selling lens. but if you check ratings for the top 10 lenses you'll see this makes the top 3 and usually the top 1.

I think there is a difference here between you not wanting or finding a use for a lens that fit the 85mm focal range, especially if you don't shoot portraits. But you can at least acknowledge that a lens that fits the 85mm focal range is far from "next to useless"

I mean, I have no need for hair straighteners because a) I'm not a girl, b) i have no hair but I wouldn't call the device that is a hair straightener next to useless
 
I think I might get a 50mm when I get a D90. Just got to sell my D60 first
 
joescrivens said:
well yeah, if you don't do any portrait then a 50mm prime wouldn't be useful, if you had said that in your post then we wouldn't have found what you said confusing - you just gave a blanket statement that 50mm on a crop is useless without qualifying that what you meant was "If you don't shoot portraits then 50mm on a crop is useless"
Click to expand...

Is that what I meant? Well thanks.

I said 'Personally I think the 50 is next to useless on a crop sensor' Not a blanket statement, just my opinion and quite clear. My thinking so does not make it a fact.
 
MadMacro said:
Is that what I meant? Well thanks.

I said 'Personally I think the 50 is next to useless on a crop sensor' Not a blanket statement, just my opinion and quite clear. My thinking so does not make it a fact.
Click to expand...

you are still making a blanket statement, sure it's your opinion but it's a statement none the less. You are claiming in your opinion that a lens that reaches effectively 80mm is next to useless.

what I think you mean is "For my use, a lens that reaches effectively 80mm is next to useless"

theres a difference there, in 1 you are claiming something is useless in your opinion, and in two you are saying it's useless for what you do.
 
Last edited:
joescrivens said:
you are still making a blanket statement, sure it's your opinion but it's a statement none the less. You are claiming in your opinion that a lens that reaches effectively 80mm is next to useless.

what I think you mean is "For my use, a lens that reaches effectively 80mm is next to useless"

theres a difference there, in 1 you are claiming something is useless in your opinion, and in two you are saying it's useless for what you do.
Click to expand...

For what it's worth, I understood it perfectly that it's his opinion...
 
If you are interested in the Canon 50 f1.8, your will be hard pushed to get value for your money. These lenses produce really sharp images, which for under £80, is hard to find elsewhere. If you take a lot of Portraits or low light stuff, then it is worth getting. As far as a walk around lens or landscape shots goes, as already stated, it is very limited on a crop body. Although I like my Canon 50, it is the lens I use the least.
 
lol - lets hope when your wives say "im in the mood" you dont spend 2 days arguing about it
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top