Favourite lens

•


This is a trap question Jamie!

Let's see…
I have 4 bodies and 16 lenses from 14 to 600mm.

I think I prefer the one that gets the job done when
it should be.

… a trap question really.
What do you really want to know?
 
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I don't think I have one fav so I'll make a list :D

Sony 35mm f2.8 - It's a very good lens and it's compact and light and on my A7 it makes for a lovely small package capable of outstanding image quality.
Panasonic 12-35mm f2.8 - It's a very good lens from wide open and it's reasonably compact and light on my RF style MFT camera bodies.
Panasonic 14-42mm mega OIS - It's a perfectly good lens, it's sharp from wide open and it's the size of a prime lens.
Olympus 17mm f1.8 - It's a good lens and it's compact and light, it's well made and unusually for this sort of lens it has end stops and markings for manual use.
Minolta 50mm f1.2 - It's a sort of dual personality lens. At wide apertures it's all dreamy and funky and stopped down a bit it's a perfectly nice old lens.

So there! :D
 
The one on the front of the camera.
 
Most 'favored' lens by how much use it gets is probably the kit nik 18-55 on the EPM....fact t was actually cheaper to buy a camera with one rather than wthout, also gives me glee! Cracking lens for the money it really just DIDN'T cost!
'favorite'... by simple amount of affection I seem to have for it, probably my 12mm fish eye for the conventional cameras! It's not even a particularly good one, but for some-reason just seeing it makes me smile! Ironically inspired the most ''awesome' or possibly 'awful', depending on how you look through it' lens in the bag, which is the Sigma 4.5mm Fish.... revered mostly because its the full monty real deal 180 degree FoV full-round total fish.. and if I am honest, an utter waste of money, for how much I can ever possibly use it!
Other and probably equal 'Favorite' is probably my M42 mount Ziess Jena 50 for the conventional cameras, and oft mounted on adapter on the EPM... Soviet era east-german example, its doesn't deserve the veneration of other lenses wearing the name, it is a good lens, just probably not that good, but it IS just 'soooooo' nice to use.Fantastically tactile operation. Angle of View is a little restrictive, and I decided a long time that the reverence that 'standard' lenses were held it was probably not well deserved; so its not all 'that' useful, but rather like the 12mm fish, twisting its focus ring, and that slightly heavy but smooth operation, just makes me smile. Sometimes its not just about the pictures!
 
35mm focal length.

To be specifically, the Canon 35L, now the mk2.

Why? I take around 50% of all my photos at this focal length, I find this focal length natural to my eyes, I am comfortable with this focal length. I like the 35L's colours, focus, sharpness, bokeh. I have taken some of my favourite images from it more than any other (statistically it will be that way too).
 
Hmm
On the a6000 the 12mm samyang closely followed by the 60mm sigma
On 24x36 (F100 etc) the 25mm zeiss ZF followed by 105mm micro nikor
Mamiya 645 80mm
Mamiya RZ 50mm
4x5" 75mm followed by 150mm
Hmm a trend here?
5x7" 240mm. Thats the only one ive got here :)
 
35mm equivalent on whatever I'm using. Primarily the Sigma 35mm 1.4 Art.

If for some reason I had to live with one lens for the rest of my life that would be it.
 
The one that suits the subject I am photographing.
 
For me, my current favourite lens is between the Fujinon XF 16-55mm f2.8 and XF 56mm f1.2 on the Fuji system.
When I had the Sony it had to be the G Master collection of lenses.
In the past I also liked the Nikkor 17-55mm f2.8

:D
 
Kodiak Qc said:
•


This is a trap question Jamie!

Let's see…
I have 4 bodies and 16 lenses from 14 to 600mm.

I think I prefer the one that gets the job done when
it should be.

… a trap question really.
What do you really want to know?
Click to expand...

Its not a trap question at all. If you don't have a fav lens, and so cant answer the question why bother posting?

The question was not 'the best lens' A fav lens doesn't have to be one that always does the job, if you don't have a lens that you love more than others then fair enough, but some of us do. I personally love my 16-35 f/4 more than any other lens i own. I probably use it less than 2-3 times a month at the most. It doesn't suit most of my shooting habits, and so doesn't get taken out much, but that doesn't stop it being the lens i love the most.

See, no trap, just a straight forward question that some seem to want to make more of it.
 
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Most used: Canon EF-S 15-85mm.

Current favourite: Canon EF 85mm f/1.8.... probably.
 
35mm is rather popular then. All the more baffling that the 'big two' do not offer that equivalent focal length in a fast/small prime for their APS-C bodies.
 
Canon 70-300L. I wouldn't be shooting motorsport without it. Quite weighty, but not as heavy as some, so on a sling strap I'm able to carry it around all day if needed.
 
ukaskew said:
35mm is rather popular then. All the more baffling that the 'big two' do not offer that equivalent focal length in a fast/small prime for their APS-C bodies.
Click to expand...
I've been saying this for a while.

Canon do a 23mm for the M series though :)

I think the resurgence of the 35mm is a direct result of iphoneography, most phone cameras have a lens with a similar field of view. The 35mm prime was out of fashion for about 50 years, with only rangefinder shooters really favouring it. Now all of a sudden, it's everyone's BFF, quite a dramatic change.
 
Phil V said:
Canon do a 23mm for the M series though :)
Click to expand...

Fuji do one too. And for some crop Nikons there's a small 24mm.

I don't have a favourite lens but if I had to use just one focal length it would be 28mm on 35mm sensor/film (or equivalent on other formats).
 
Fuji 35mm f1.4. It has its faults, but it was the first lens on my X-E1 & the first image it took it still in my head today. Compact, super quality, looks nice on the camera, and fits to my vision really nicely. Hoping there'll be a remake at some point.
 
Phil V said:
I've been saying this for a while.

Canon do a 23mm for the M series though :)

I think the resurgence of the 35mm is a direct result of iphoneography, most phone cameras have a lens with a similar field of view. The 35mm prime was out of fashion for about 50 years, with only rangefinder shooters really favouring it. Now all of a sudden, it's everyone's BFF, quite a dramatic change.
Click to expand...
Coming from analog 24x36 using a 50mm quite often getting into aps—c digital I bought a 24mm f1,8 zeiss. Im strugling with that one, really wanting to like it and use it more but Im having a hard time finding my way around its field of view etc. A pity since its a great lens and on paper fit right into my kit.
 
Raymond Lin said:
35mm focal length.

To be specifically, the Canon 35L, now the mk2.

Why? I take around 50% of all my photos at this focal length, I find this focal length natural to my eyes, I am comfortable with this focal length. I like the 35L's colours, focus, sharpness, bokeh. I have taken some of my favourite images from it more than any other (statistically it will be that way too).
Click to expand...

35mm equivalent for me too but of the cheaper variety, I tend to shoot either the 35mm f2 IS on my 5D mkii or the 22mm f2 on my EOS M.

The 35mm f2 IS lens for me is pretty underrated it produces lovely results and it a really nice size for carrying all day and the 22mm on the EOS-M is annoyingly good, annoying because it shows what canon could deliver for the system if they wanted too!
 
Phil V said:
I've been saying this for a while.

Canon do a 23mm for the M series though :)

I think the resurgence of the 35mm is a direct result of iphoneography, most phone cameras have a lens with a similar field of view. The 35mm prime was out of fashion for about 50 years, with only rangefinder shooters really favouring it. Now all of a sudden, it's everyone's BFF, quite a dramatic change.
Click to expand...


Canon do though they sell the 24mm f2.8 STM pancake which is a cracking little lens on a smaller EOS body, the 22mm on the EOS-M is stunning.
 
At the moment I'm loving the Canon 100-400mm L Mk2. Heavy but just love how sharp it is, even at 400mm. Having said that i still have a soft spot for my 50mm f1.8, not great build quality but a great lens for the money.
 
Ed Sutton said:
And for some crop Nikons there's a small 24mm.
Click to expand...

23 years old so more luck than judgement that it's a nice 35mm(ish) fit for DX bodies with AF motors :)
 
Minolta 80-200mm f/2.8 is the favourite of those I own. Sharp wide open, bokeh and colour rendition both great, useful focal length range.
 
At the moment, Nikon 24-70. It's just hitting the spot for me at the moment!
 
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