Fixed aperture lens? Anybody ever use fixed aperture lens for portraiture? (Like F3.5)...

wolfiebear Loc: 10,200 elev. in the Rockies

Anybody ever use fixed aperture lens for portraiture? (Like F3.5)

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

wolfiebear wrote:

Anybody ever use fixed aperture lens for portraiture? (Like F3.5)

Wooly, do you mean FIXED or CONSTANT?? ;-)
SS

BigBear Loc: Northern CT

I don't know of any current lenses that has a 'fixed' aperture.

Can you explain more ??

wolfiebear Loc: 10,200 elev. in the Rockies

FIXED, not CONSTANT,
Oh, I already bought it because it was inexpensive, and the shots from it looked pretty nice to me. ... it has 12 blades, so I am going to guess that accounts for the lovely bokeh (????)

But I wanted to know if anybody had any experience with such a thing as a fixed aperture lens. Should oughta work. . . .

I am building my starter set of lenses, and from there, intend to hone in on what I really want. . .but for now, this seemed like a good way to do some portraiture practicing (I might be WRONG, LOL) . . . .it is a customized manual focus, 135mm, fixed at F3.5. . .came from an old photographer's studio they bought out, according to what they said.

BigBear Loc: Northern CT

I don't know much about Nikon lenses, but 3.5 has a very shallow DOF and not much good for a portrait unless all you want in focus is their nose.

BebuLamar

Fixed aperture lens doesn't need any blade.

wolfiebear Loc: 10,200 elev. in the Rockies

Hmmmm. . .. .
Well, the camera originally had the full gamut of apertures. . .
I am not sure how the mod was done.
Hmmmm......
Well, when I get it, I will certainly post PIX. . . . good, bad or otherwise.

wolfiebear Loc: 10,200 elev. in the Rockies

BigBear wrote:

I don't know much about Nikon lenses, but 3.5 has a very shallow DOF and not much good for a portrait unless all you want in focus is their nose.

Well, I never shot real open before. . . . not that I can remember. . .
I am probably the idiot here, but why do I read that fashion shoots are often done with even wider openings that 3.5".

What am I missing?

BigBear Loc: Northern CT

wolfiebear wrote:

Hmmmm. . .. .
Well, the camera originally had the full gamut of apertures. . .
I am not sure how the mod was done.
Hmmmm......
Well, when I get it, I will certainly post PIX. . . . good, bad or otherwise.

The camera does not have apertures.
It only gives you choices of what the lens can do.

BigBear Loc: Northern CT

wolfiebear wrote:

Well, I never shot real open before. . . . not that I can remember. . .
I am probably the idiot here, but why do I read that fashion shoots are often done with even wider openings that 3.5".

What am I missing?

It all depends on what effect you want from the shot.

wolfiebear Loc: 10,200 elev. in the Rockies

BigBear wrote:

The camera does not have apertures.
It only gives you choices of what the lens can do.

I meant >>>LENS<<< (I am not THAT BIG of an idiot)

MtnMan Loc: ID

wolfiebear wrote:

FIXED, not CONSTANT, br Oh, I already bought it b... (show quote)

Some get confused by lenses that give one aperture on the label; e.g. f2.8 or f4. That doesn't mean the aperture is fixed at that. It means that is the widest it can reach. They usually go to f22 or f32.

The fact that it has blades suggests that it is variable.

Are you sure they weren't confused?

wolfiebear Loc: 10,200 elev. in the Rockies

BigBear wrote:

It all depends on what effect you want from the shot.

.

I have other (recommended) lenses coming too, but I was looking for something that I could have really blurry effects with, aside from being in focus on the head, and right at about 135 mm.
It was not expensive. . . maybe something to play with and then sh*t-can. Dunno till I get it. Maybe I even found an old gem. Doubtful. . .but anything is possible.

MtnMan Loc: ID

MtnMan wrote:

Some get confused by lenses that give one aperture on the label; e.g. f2.8 or f4. That doesn't mean the aperture is fixed at that. It means that is the widest it can reach. They usually go to f22 or f32.

The fact that it has blades suggests that it is variable.

Are you sure they weren't confused?

I might add this confusion particularly exists relative to zoom lenses. Most zoom lenses change the max aperture (min f-stop) they can achieve over the range. Some call those that can achieve the same min f-stop as "fixed" or "constant". But they aren't.

wolfiebear Loc: 10,200 elev. in the Rockies

MtnMan wrote:

Some get confused by lenses that give one aperture on the label; e.g. f2.8 or f4. That doesn't mean the aperture is fixed at that. It means that is the widest it can reach. They usually go to f22 or f32.

The fact that it has blades suggests that it is variable.

Are you sure they weren't confused?

I don't have and kind of good answers to this, but will find out soon. :shock: :lol: :shock: :lol: :shock: :lol: