DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

I'm sure there are lots of uses for fast lenses. When I was a kid, I had a 50mm f/3.5. It was what I could afford. Later, when I got a job and started to define some of my cash as disposable, I got an f/2 lens. Shortly after I got a DSLR, I sprung for a 50mm f/1.4. I thought I was all set for low light.

After a couple years of taking photos, I could probably count the photos that utilized the fast lenses on the fingers of one hand. To be sure, using binary notation you can count up to 31 on the fingers of one hand, but still, the fast lenses were getting little use at the wide open end. DOF was too valuable for most of my images to get discarded in the interest of low noise. Still, in my quest for a good lens collection, most of my lenses go to f/2.8, beyond a couple telephotos. I wind up shooting mostly in the f/5.6-f/11 range with occasional forays into f/4 or f/22. When I got a D3, f/2.8 use became very rare. And with my increasing abilities with postprocessing, the aperture takes a back burner in the quest for DOF. I aim for large DOF and if the composition demands it I can reduce it in post. I have not let that fact push me to replace my f/2.8 lenses with f/4 lenses or smaller.

Of course there is a difference between bokeh and DOF, but I am not artistic enough to let that direct my lens purchases. Particularly since most of my photos go into newsletters and websites, where artistry is not the primary concern. And now that most cameras deal well with low light, I consider fast lenses to be something nice to have, but not essential. I should note that I am talking about normal photography, practiced by most of the people who consider themselves photographers. I have also been involved in very low luminance subjects, down to something like 10 photons/pixel/minute, but those are special cases requiring cooled detectors and I retired from that work a couple decades ago.

Most of my photos involve some level of dynamic subject, so 1/10 second exposures are fairly rare and normal subjects use shutter speeds above 1/100 sec to try to avoid motion blur. With current camera capabilities, I find the image processing available to reduce noise works well enough so I can raise the ISO rather than opening the aperture. (Some of the photos I got of the hummingbird moth in flight [ my avatar ] were taken at 1/8000 second and ISO of 12K in full sun.

f/8 is probably my most-used aperture.

Mac Loc: Pittsburgh, Philadelphia now Hernando Co. Fl.

I wasn’t talking about equipment, I was talking about attitude.

joecichjr Loc: Chicago S. Suburbs, Illinois, USA

All quite spectacular photography, but that last one clinched it for me 💛💛🌞💛💛

joecichjr Loc: Chicago S. Suburbs, Illinois, USA

Beautiful results

RodeoMan Loc: St Joseph, Missouri

Now Chief, you know as well as I, that when an image is printed out, if it were from a camera with a prime lense, on the back of the picture, word photograph will be clearly printed out, but if it is from a camera with a zoom lense, it will read "snapshot". Maybe the poster that you replied "nonsense" to could help me out by providing some examples.

joecichjr Loc: Chicago S. Suburbs, Illinois, USA

Bill, I suspect it is his anniversary, and he's hurrying home with a last minute gift
Excellent capture 🔟🔟🔟

joecichjr Loc: Chicago S. Suburbs, Illinois, USA

A superlative, magnificent duo, Bill - and I love the backlit colors you have captured in Two 🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈

tgreenhaw

It definitely matters depending on the situation. When you are traveling lugging a ton of primes can be at best counterproductive. If you are shooting portraits or challenging available light shots, a fast prime is essential.

Smartphone photography has its place, but for things like birds inflight, low light or when a shallow depth of field is needed, they simply are not the right tool and never will be. Technology gets better but can never defy the laws of physics.

Mac Loc: Pittsburgh, Philadelphia now Hernando Co. Fl.

Why would you think anyone would lug “a ton of primes”? Having lenses that cover every focal length known to science on every outing is not necessary. Knowing what and where the photographer wants to photograph enables the photographer to choose a limited number of primes (one or two) to take.

btbg

Its mot a ludicrous comparison. There is no zoom equicvlent to the 400 f2.8
Of course they arent in the same price range. I would use only zoo.s if they were rougjly equivalent. As to different uses no they are not they are both intended for sports and wildlife.

btbg

It would have been possible that was true of his first post. It is not true of his second post which said, "The bigger the gear the duller the pix. Its a rather definitive quotient, clearly observable throughout photography. Your denial of that hints that you lean toward the bigger gear."

That's why the lens hoods on big lenses are so big. They are designed to stop reflected light. And, with the controls both in the camera and in post processing there is no reason that an image is dull like you are using the word just because the equipment is large.

I could care less if he wants to miniaturize, but I don't appreciate being insulted just because I work in a field where miniature just doesn't cut it.

Canisdirus

There are very few zooms that are optically a match for a prime.

I really don't look past that barometer...it's the only one that shows up in the actual image.

Artcameraman Loc: Springfield NH

Zoom has their advantages, inherently, but so do Prime. All my Macro and Micro lenses are prime along with All my Studio Portrait lenses. In the field a good Zoom will be a lot lighter and more convenient than several prime. But that's me. Cheers.

Delderby Loc: Derby UK

Yes - I used to think a quality (up to) 3x could be a match, but I took a look at a Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 8x on a Sony RX10 ii fixed lens camera and bought in - great for my landscapes! There are versions iii and iv of the camera which have gone to 20x, which I still wouldn't yet consider.
I believe that fixed zoom lens DSLRs represent the future at amateur level - and will progress to professional level.

agillot

The zoom lens makes you more creative , you can adjust the picture to show what you need , that force you to look at what you are doing before taking the shot , and adjust .