Using a Camera with a "Standard" Lens (Page 2): Around 50% of the time I have a 35mm f/2 lens on my crop sensor Canon 7D Mark II which give me a 35mm angle of view similar to 56mm. I...

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

jerryc41 wrote:

Years ago, an SLR came with a 50mm lens, which would give a normal, real world view. For several different cameras, that was my go-to lens. I had a W/A and a tele, but that 50mm was my everyday shooter. Now, I use a 28-300mm lens on my D750. Do any of you rely on the standard-view lens for general photography - a 35mm or 50mm?

Around 50% of the time I have a 35mm f/2 lens on my crop sensor Canon 7D Mark II which give me a 35mm angle of view similar to 56mm. I find it a challenge to overcome the focal length limitation and it forces me to think more creatively.

camerapapi Loc: Miami, Fl.

Jerry, I do not rely on a 50mm lens for my FX camera or a 35mm lens for my DX body. Like you I am using a zoom most of the time and when I use the zoom most often I use it at a set focal length because I do not do much zooming when I am shooting.
I do use a 50mm lens with my FX body pretty often but not as often as when I was shooting film.

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

jerryc41 wrote:

Years ago, an SLR came with a 50mm lens, which would give a normal, real world view. For several different cameras, that was my go-to lens. I had a W/A and a tele, but that 50mm was my everyday shooter. Now, I use a 28-300mm lens on my D750. Do any of you rely on the standard-view lens for general photography - a 35mm or 50mm?

No longer.
A zoom decades ago in this range was demonstrably of lesser IQ than the 50mm lens and zooms were fairly expensive for a starter lens, at least when I was starting out.
I find a "normal" zoom lens is far more versatile as a general purpose lens than one of 50mm.
99% of the world population must agree seeing as the "normal" zoom lenses are now standard and a manufacturer would be put out of business if they tried pawning off a 50mm lens as the kit lens today.

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

jerryc41 wrote:

Years ago, an SLR came with a 50mm lens, which would give a normal, real world view. For several different cameras, that was my go-to lens. I had a W/A and a tele, but that 50mm was my everyday shooter. Now, I use a 28-300mm lens on my D750. Do any of you rely on the standard-view lens for general photography - a 35mm or 50mm?

I personally find NORMAL vision to be wider than what you get with a 50mm lens. When I look at a scene with my eyes, I personally find that when I look through a 50 it is not wide enough to include what I see with my eyes. For me the 35 mm lens shows more closely what I see with my eyes.

uhaas2009

For years I used the 50mm till I got a zoom and used it for years. I put the 50 mm back on camera than I realized I forgotten to use my feed 😉.......now I use more different angle again and my shoes are more dirty.....lol....

srt101fan

jerryc41 wrote:

Years ago, an SLR came with a 50mm lens, which would give a normal, real world view. For several different cameras, that was my go-to lens. I had a W/A and a tele, but that 50mm was my everyday shooter. Now, I use a 28-300mm lens on my D750. Do any of you rely on the standard-view lens for general photography - a 35mm or 50mm?

Most of the time I walk around with my 18-300 zoom on a crop sensor camera. But every once in a while I'll carry only my f/1.8 35 mm. With that lens I lose the zoom but gain in image quality, low light capability and ability to control background focus. It's fun to sometimes forget zoom and just "think" 35 mm!

ELNikkor

I traveled the country in the '80s on my Suzuki 450 with an FM, a 24 f 2.8, 50 f2 "H", and 200 f4 "Q", tent & sleeping bag...those were the days...

repleo Loc: Boston

jerryc41 wrote:

Years ago, an SLR came with a 50mm lens, which would give a normal, real world view. For several different cameras, that was my go-to lens. I had a W/A and a tele, but that 50mm was my everyday shooter. Now, I use a 28-300mm lens on my D750. Do any of you rely on the standard-view lens for general photography - a 35mm or 50mm?

I'm the same. For my first several years (pre-digital), I had a 50mm then added a 35mm and a 300mm. I used all of them, but used the 50mm the most.

Now I have 28mm, 50mm and 90mm primes and 24-105 and 70-300 zooms. The 50mm is the lens I use the least.

David Kay Loc: Arlington Heights IL

jerryc41 wrote:

Years ago, an SLR came with a 50mm lens, which would give a normal, real world view. For several different cameras, that was my go-to lens. I had a W/A and a tele, but that 50mm was my everyday shooter. Now, I use a 28-300mm lens on my D750. Do any of you rely on the standard-view lens for general photography - a 35mm or 50mm?

I use the "nifty fifty" quite often.

NBBPH Loc: Indiana

When traveling light, which is more often than in the past, for general shooting I use a 24 mm pancake lens (eq. to 35mm) on an SL1 Canon body. I find two advantages - number 1 being the low weight and compact size, number 2 is that it often makes me stop and think and move around more before I take the shot. More like I behaved in the film days. I use zooms, and a Lumix G9, when I am "on a photographic mission" but tend to get a little sloppy. With digital it is so easy to adjust, shoot; adjust, shoot; adjust, shoot... and, I have to admit, fun. The post processing becomes more of a chore because of all of the images to evaluate, but, Hey!, I'm retired and I have the time.

ksmmike

I have a number of lenses and use each one for the type of photography I doing for the day (sports, portraits, landscape, wildlife, travel). On occasion, I will walk a local boardwalk designed for wildlife and use a 58mm on one trip around, a 28-300 the next, a 20mm the next and a 300mm on another. It forces me to see different things. Since I enjoy so many types of photography, it would be hard for me to use one lens, but if I was forced to use only one, it would likely be my Voigtlander 58mm 1.4 lens with the Nikon 20mm 1.8 being a close 2nd.

Plieku69 Loc: The Gopher State, south end

My first slr came with a 55mm lens, at the time I didn't know anyone who had more lenses. I knew there was additional lenses to be had but finding a place to get them, specifically ordered and the big bucks they cost then, was a very low priority. Besides the 55 covered about everything I needed.
Years past and I finally found a 250mm lens that I have now. Don't recall ever using it it.

Fast forward to DSLR and I have bag full of lenses, each one promised to do something better because...
And lenses are very available today.
We do live in a golden age of photography.

Tommy II Loc: Northern Illinois

Bill_de wrote:

I do use the 50 mm F/1.4 on a full frame, but not that often. I love the Nikkor 35mm F/1.8 on the D7200. It is small, light, and sharp as can be.

--

Ditto. My Nikkor 50 F/1.4 on my D850 full frame, and my Nikkor 35 mm F/1.8 on my D500 crop sensor. Both of mine are extremely sharp, and bring me back to shooting with my Minolta SRT 102 film camera with the “go to” 50 mm Rokker lens.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

RichardTaylor wrote:

Only as a light compact back up lens when on vacation (a 35mm f/2).

Yes, I understand that. When I bring my small Sony a6000 with me, it has the small 16-50mm lens, and that's fine. Leica has a one-lens camera coming out, priced at $5,000, so buyers will have to be ready to go single.

bobmcculloch Loc: NYC, NY

jerryc41 wrote:

Years ago, an SLR came with a 50mm lens, which would give a normal, real world view. For several different cameras, that was my go-to lens. I had a W/A and a tele, but that 50mm was my everyday shooter. Now, I use a 28-300mm lens on my D750. Do any of you rely on the standard-view lens for general photography - a 35mm or 50mm?

Sometimes a 24mm or a 40mm, even a 50mm at times, depends on where I expect to be and how much I feel like carrying, if I have to pick an all purpose go to lens it's the sigma 17-70 in spite of the weight.