- Messages
- 353
- Name
- Ken
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Back when I shot film I never owned a zoom lens. I carried a 24, 85, 180, and 55 macro. Also had a 300 2.8 handy. The word prime hadn't come into the vernacular. There was just lenses and zoom lenses. And you focused them all by hand and eye.
When I put together a digital kit, I got all zoom lenses. I got the full Canon APS-C kit range. 3 lenses totaling 10-250mm. All very slow, but I can make the 18-135 work for pretty much everything. Obviously, they're all autofocus and I use them in that mode almost exclusively.
I just bought a 400 5.6. Ohh, what beautiful lens. Tack sharp. That 18-135 is getting some competition for the most-used lens. I'm trying to teach myself how to shoot birds just so I can use that lens.
It's very much small enough to be hand-holdable, but I don't know how to hold it. I don't know what to do with my fingers. They're in the way.
With my old manual-focus lenses, my fingers were required to work the focus ring. With my zoom lenses, focus is taken care of and my fingers are needed for the zoom ring. Yeah, there's a focus ring too, but it's small and out of the way. Never have to think about it.
My 400 5.6 has a nice, big, easy to use focus ring. But it's absolutely unnecessary and I don't want to touch it. I'll be tracking a bird, trying to keep it framed up, the AF machinery is whizzing full blast when dumbs*** human hits the focus ring. My hand really has no business in its natural place on the barrel.
I tried sliding my hand out near the hood, off the focus ring. Works, but it doesn't feel right. I tried holding the lens by the tripod mount. Better, but that chunk of aluminum wasn't machined to fit a palm. I mounted a knob underneath. That actually works pretty well. Kinda funny looking, but it's a little more comfortable. When I shoot hand held now, I use that.
But recently, I went to a monopod and I think that's probably going to be the answer. It's more gear to carry, and I don't like that, but it seems to be for the best.
But none of these really solve the where-to-put-your-hand dilemma. All my AF lenses all have a switch to turn autofocus off. Prime lenses should have a switch to turn manual focus off.
Anybody have any tips for holding on to prime lenses?
Canon EF400mm f/5.6L; 1/400 f/8 ISO 400; 100% crop
The knob.
When I put together a digital kit, I got all zoom lenses. I got the full Canon APS-C kit range. 3 lenses totaling 10-250mm. All very slow, but I can make the 18-135 work for pretty much everything. Obviously, they're all autofocus and I use them in that mode almost exclusively.
I just bought a 400 5.6. Ohh, what beautiful lens. Tack sharp. That 18-135 is getting some competition for the most-used lens. I'm trying to teach myself how to shoot birds just so I can use that lens.
It's very much small enough to be hand-holdable, but I don't know how to hold it. I don't know what to do with my fingers. They're in the way.
With my old manual-focus lenses, my fingers were required to work the focus ring. With my zoom lenses, focus is taken care of and my fingers are needed for the zoom ring. Yeah, there's a focus ring too, but it's small and out of the way. Never have to think about it.
My 400 5.6 has a nice, big, easy to use focus ring. But it's absolutely unnecessary and I don't want to touch it. I'll be tracking a bird, trying to keep it framed up, the AF machinery is whizzing full blast when dumbs*** human hits the focus ring. My hand really has no business in its natural place on the barrel.
I tried sliding my hand out near the hood, off the focus ring. Works, but it doesn't feel right. I tried holding the lens by the tripod mount. Better, but that chunk of aluminum wasn't machined to fit a palm. I mounted a knob underneath. That actually works pretty well. Kinda funny looking, but it's a little more comfortable. When I shoot hand held now, I use that.
But recently, I went to a monopod and I think that's probably going to be the answer. It's more gear to carry, and I don't like that, but it seems to be for the best.
But none of these really solve the where-to-put-your-hand dilemma. All my AF lenses all have a switch to turn autofocus off. Prime lenses should have a switch to turn manual focus off.
Anybody have any tips for holding on to prime lenses?
Canon EF400mm f/5.6L; 1/400 f/8 ISO 400; 100% crop
The knob.
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