jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

A sorter lens is less noticeable, but you have to be close to your subject. With a tele, you can shoot from farther away, but the long lens is more noticeable. How comfortable are you getting close to strangers and taking their pictures?

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

Sherry, here is what one person thinks.
http://erickimphotography.com/blog/what-is-the-best-lens-for-street-photography/

cthahn

There is no best lens and never will be. Why do you think lens manufacturers make so many lenses. It used to be a 50mm prime, but most photographers now would not consider using one thinking it is outdated and useless. They all want to play zoom.

mikedidi46 Loc: WINTER SPRINGS, FLORIDA

For my 70D, I am using the 15-85mm from Canon, it works great for me

Kmgw9v Loc: Miami, Florida

There is no "best"--there are certainly preferences.
I prefer a 35 mm 1.4 on the street.

Delderby Loc: Derby UK

Sheree -
A 50mm prime is still a great lens - but that is FF (Full Frame). The equivalent for DX (crop sensor - the serious amateurs camera, and some Pros) would be a 35mm prime, or for MFT (M43, or micro 4/3rds) about 25mm prime.
No zoom can surpass a good prime lens for IQ (image quality). The primes mentioned are roughly the same as eye-view.
Whilst talking primes, for portraits, the tried and tested lens would be 75mm for FF, 50mm for crop sensor and 40mm for MFT.
It follows that a 18-55 kit lens for a crop sensor DSLR will cover your needs until you put your own personal style on your creations.
Zooms really come into their own for landscape, birding and wild life, and architecture.

jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ

Which camera do you have? If you have a Canon consumer body, then I'd suggest an 18-200mm lens by Canon.

rehess Loc: South Bend, Indiana, USA

I will make one more general comment, and then say nothing more unless the OP comes back and answers questions. I believe an OP should take care of her thread if she expects the rest of us to care.

The traditional "street photographers" used wide angle lenses {"Weegee" Fellig used 35mm focal length on his 35mm camera}. Experience has shown that photographs taken "close up and personal" convey intimacy and help us want to care about the subjects, while photographs taken via telephoto lens give the ambiance of voyeurism.

If you look at the images I took nearly a year ago during a smoking break of a transcontinental train ride
http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-424295-1.html
the lens I used was "FF equiv 50mm"; I would have used a shorter lens, but this was the only f/1.9 lens I have for that camera. I would chat with the smokers, then backup or pivot and take a picture. I don't know whether any of them knew what I was doing. I did have a "FF equiv 70-210mm" f/2.8 lens with me that would have enabled me to shoot from the other end of the platform, but the images would have looked like paparazzi work and they would have been suspiciously viewing me the entire time.

Hank Radt

anotherview Loc: California

I Googled your text ("the best lens for street photography"), and these Web-sites appeared:

https://petapixel.com/2016/07/19/best-lens-street-photography/

https://www.dxomark.com/best-lenses-for-street-photography/

https://www.photoworkout.com/best-lenses-for-street-photography/

They present a start to an answer to your question.

All that said, in your shoes, I'd put a 35mm prime lens on the camera, and then go out shooting, to get some practice in the field. Experience over time will inform you which lens works best to suit your purpose.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

She actually joined the forum only yesterday and submitted her one and only post at around 12:30 pm EDT yesterday, just 23 hours ago. Maybe we can cut her a little bit of slack.

Bill Emmett Loc: Bow, New Hampshire

I personally like to shoot full frame for my street photography, so I mostly use my Tamron 24-70mm f2.8 VC USM or I may use my 16-35mm f2.8L ver II lens. I do like to use f2.8 lenses on street for DOF, and low light shots. Also, VC or IS is desirable since you may have to control movement. I've not done much street work since moving to New Hampshire, since there is not a actual town street to shoot on. I may have to journey to Concord to do some street work.

B

MidnightManiac

Don't do a lot of street work but when I do use my Sigma 24-70 f2.8 IF EX DG. For street photography generally use a full frame Canon 5DIII camera. Have used my t5i with a kit 18-55mm and got some pretty great snaps.

lamiaceae Loc: San Luis Obispo County, CA

Traditionally a 35mm on a FF or film camera, a 24mm or 22mm on a APS-C camera. But it is really up to the photographer. As is the choice of Color or Black & White street photography. Personally I like images that people shoot in B&W for that. I'm not big on doing street photography my self.

sherry roberson Loc: Rome, georgia

Thanks for replies and photos. I actually do more wild lufe and am interested in trying some street photography. My camera is a canon 7D and i shoot wildlife with the canon 100-400 butni purchased a canon 50mm that I thought might do well in street or portrait.my favorite to do is wildlufe and trqcking the bald eagles and hawks.