Over the last number of years I have managed to build up a little collection of lens. Every so often I feel a little guilty and wonder if I should sell a lens but can never decide which to part with as for me they all do specific jobs.
I have a 50mm at f1.4, 24-70 at f2.8, a 60mm f2.8 macro lens and a 15-85 std lens that I keep for landscape work.
Last week I asked the question on twitter “If you were only allowed one lens which from your collection would you pick ?” The responses were interesting and varied so I thought I would risk a blog discussion on the same topic.
So please comment below on which lens you would select and why and we will try and post a review of the feedback in the next few weeks.
So I will kick this off : Mine would be my 50mm at f1.4 brilliant in low light and very quick with near silent focus.
Hands down its my (Canon) 50mm f/1.4 (If I were wealthy I might be listing the f/1.2 😉 I use it nearly all the time.
I’d probably have to go with the 150mm normal or 90mm wide-angle.
I only have to pick ONE? At the moment I would pick the 85mm! Good for portrait work, good even for landscape since there is no “grand” landscape out here in my neck of the woods I tend to concentrate on the details.
Definitely the 50mm f/1.4
50mm f/1.4 beyond doubt. Versatile, fast and pin sharp.
My number one choice will be my 17-55 2.8 EFS but of course in many other situation the 70-200L 2.8 IS is an excellent choice
Something slightly different to the above:
My Voigtländer 40/1.4 is my favourite lens by a long way, and handy in all kinds of situations. A little wider than a classical normal, but closer to actual normal for 35mm film. Beautiful wide open, too. I have the single-coated version which is fab in black and white.
My regret is that I shoot film less and less these days, and don’t have a digital body that can take it 🙁 (An M9 would be nice, but the bank manager would have something to say about it. So would my wife.)
I’m fascinated to see how many are going for a fixed focal length prime. I don’t own the 1.4 but I do have the 1.8 and although it’s a lovely lens…I tend to like adaptability.
For that reason, despite the love I have for my 100mm 2.8 macro, I would still choose the 17-85mm IS over it. It gives me a greater range of options than either of my primes or any of my other zooms.
Well, I suppose it depends on how much you can get away with spending on a lens. I have a a few in my sights but for now I am enjoying my 28-135 f3.5 is. It stays on my 550d all the time and only changed when needs dictate.
Over the next few months I will move into the L range after I convince my good lady they are inexpensive.
For my D90: 12-24 f4. Panasonic GF1: 20mm f1.7.
Current favourite is my Canon 70-300mm IS USM.
I actually sold most of my lenses last month because I wasn’t using them! Now I just have a 50mm f1.8 AF and a 55mm f2.8 micro nikkor lens. I would definitely stick with the 50mm if I only had one; the micro barely gets a look in these days, and might be on ebay in a matter of weeks if I don’t start using it soon! I do find myself wishing for a telephoto prime every now and then, and a wideangle prime would be nice too…..
Nikon 50mm f/1.4
One single, solitary lens? No question about my answer: A 50mm.
It is definitely my Carl Zeiss Vario Tessar 2.7-4.5 / 5.2-78 mm macro zoom (equaling “leica” zoom range of 31-465 mm on that sensor size !)… on my Sony DSC-H7 digital camera.
As an ex-pro photographer in “analog” times (I’ve been in the pro field of 3D computer graphics for the last 15 years or so and mostly taking photographs for my own creative pleasure now) I know very well to appreciate such a large zoom range, combined with ultra-sharp Zeiss optics, a very comfortable maximum aperture for a zoom of that range, an image stabilizer that allows me to shoot without a tripod in daylight even with longest focal lengths – who could ask for more ?
The only drawback is the lens is not interchangeable – but why would I want to change it ? (if I were still in pro photography, I’d probably get myself a Nikon, Canon or Olympus body with a larger sensor (one thing I miss is very low depth of field that large sensors or film formats offer) – plus a battery of serious lenses – but for an advanced amateur photographer that I’m considering myself today, it is an ideal combination, a rather small and lightweight camera, much more convenient to use and carry around than a heavy pro body and a bag, full of lenses while offering almost everything its bigger pro sisters do.
Be interested to see how many of the 50mm choices are on DX v FX. Real debate on the realtive abilities on each sensor size and a lot of people love it on an FX body but feel it isn’t right on a DX crop.
Personally, I like them both but if I had to choose one, I would probably go with my 35mm 1.8. Lovely in combination with my D300 or D40.
“Be interested to see how many of the 50mm choices are on DX v FX. Real debate on the realtive abilities on each sensor size and a lot of people love it on an FX body but feel it isn’t right on a DX crop.” – Nico
I find the 50mm 1.4 on a DX has virtually no distortion, although it is a medium telephoto on the DX sensor. It is more usable on film, but if I had to pick my one-stop lens – 24mm 2.8 on a film camera. Great for landscape & city shooting.
I would like to try a 28mm 2.0 though!
50mm, for all of the above reasons.
Although I am kinda addicted to my 10-20mm at the moment 🙂
Since I have the Canon 50mm 1.8 lens I would say the 50mm f/1.4 since my only beef with the 1.8 is the slow focusing.
i´m debating between an EF 135 mm. f/2 L or my everyday 24-70 f/2.8 L
Love my 50mm 1.4. Cracking all purpose lens.
Boy, that’s a tough one. My two favorite are Sigma 30mm f1.4 and Nikkor 85mm f1.4. I think I’d go for the 85mm Nikkor.
for me its got to be one of my latest 2 purchases:
either 85mm F1.2 or 45mm TSE – both dreamy.
not the best for all purpose but man do they get me excited…
Tough decision. Really tough decision. I love my 50mm f/1.4, but I think I’d have to go with my 24-70mm f/2.8 L. I love the clarity and contrast that lens produces…plus I can shoot fairly wide or get up close. The flexibility it offers is pretty sweet.
50mm, no contest.
If I had an 18-75, I would say it was that, but I have an 18-55 & a 75-300, in which never use the 300mm. With an 18-75, what are you missing? Really, the perfect carry around lens! Easy enough to pack anywhere, not too heavy, gets close enough, almost far enough, but, yeah, far enough!! IF I had a 18-75, I wouldn’t be able to live without it………….. now, does anyone have one for sale!! Cheap?!
Definitely the Canon EF 50mm f/1.2 L USM
For the Nikon D90 I use, I just bought the Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 and it’s my new standard.
Awesome in low light, less limiting frame-wise than the 50mm, and super easy to pack and carry.
I agree. My Nikkor AF-S DX 35mm f/1.8 had hardly come off my D40 since I put it on. Loving it.
Though I love my 50mm f/1.8 (couldn’t justify the 1.4 with my current budget!) I’m actually enjoying my (again, budget lens choice) 55 – 250 EF-S – getting some lovely close up shots, and managed to get some brilliant candid photos of the family recently, as I could take photos from afar without them knowing – got some very natural shots this way, that I wouldn’t have been able to get with the 50mm prime, as I would have needed to get much closer, and thus would have been too noticeable.
jso-so my fave would currently be the canon 85mm followed by the 50mm (yup, just a 1.8)…
As a big fan of wide angle photography for lots of things, including landscapes, I have to say that my 50mm lens ties with my 70-300mm lens for the position of “least used” in my bag! If I had to choose one lens only, it’d be my 17-55mm for sure.
I did and it ws the 100mm 2.8 it brought me first contract with AGE– so is lead lens for me. use it now mostly with extensions. more intimate is better.
My Nikkor AF-S DX 35mm f/1.8 prime. I’ll use my feet for zooming.
For the people choosing the 50mm lenses. If you are using a 50mm lens on a Nikon DX or Canon 1.6xM camera the small sensor actually makes the 50mm a 85mm lens.
On a 1.6x crop body, a 50mm is still a 50mm, it’s just ‘like’ an 85mm on a full frame.
I’d go with a 50 1.4 or 1.2 (which is sharper?) I have a 50 1.8.
I would go for a 24 mm ,1.4 lens. W
WIDE (but not with overwhelming distortion), Fast (shoot in low light).
If you want to zoom in ? you just get closer.
I almost always use my Canon 18-200 f/3.5 IS
If I had to only choose one lens I would choose the Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED AF-S VR DX. Its low light performance can easily be made up for by having the right flashes 😛
Canon 50mm F1.8
Pretty much everything shot on the blog is from this lens.
Will upgrade to F1.4 one day.
I traveled to south america with one camera body and only my nikon 50mm 1.8. I have better lens (ie faster) for the 50 but it’s a cheap , reliable and versatile lens to carry.
Carey
It would have to depend on the camera I was using: the 28-85 Minolta on my A200 or 505si, the 28mm f2.5 Rokkor on my SRT 303, or the 45mm Rokkor on my X300. Each camera gets used for different reasons, depending on what I want to achieve. ‘Which lens?’ is often posed as a hypothetical question, but often it’s practical to decide before you go on a shoot.
No way! Always 50mm 1.8!!!! The best lens for every kind of shot IMO.
My Canon 70-200L 2.8 stays on my camera, almost exclusively. GREAT portrait lens!
I would probably say my Leica Elmarit-M 28mm f/2.8 since it’s the only Leica lens I have. I love the shadow detail. It’s the closest thing to the feel of film I have ever experienced with digital. I wouldn’t give it up for my entire Canon kit.
If we’re talking about lenses we already have (and not the ones we fantasize about :)), the 28-135 f3.5 is the on that’s on my camera the most, with the 70-200 f4 coming in second.
Hmm, depends on what system really; I use 2.
Midformat I’d choose my Hasselblad Sonnar 150mm CF f4.
Large format with wet plates I’d choose my brass Steinheil 230mm f5.6, mostly because it’s the only lens I yet have for that system 😉
50mm f/1.8
Somewhere between 35mm and 50mm. It should be attached to a camera with enough pixels so that I can crop if I want to – that’s also important because for portraits I don’t want to be too close or I will get the ‘sheep’ effect.
[img]http://www.photographworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/the-sheep-effect.jpg[/img]
Just as an update to my initial reply. I am now the proud owner of the 70-200mm L IS. I still love my 28-135mm for general use but I am constantly look for a reason to switch back to the L.
The IS on this lens is excellent. To be hand-held at 1/30 is a dream.
This is one of my first hand held shots….
[img]http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4044/4541351087_a38e31a557.jpg[/img]
@Paul_NI
Great shot of the moon.
Although I love my wide angle 17-40mm lens this is “just” an f/4 lens, so I would go for my 50mm f/1.4 lens.
My only lens would have to be a 135mm. Love the quality of the images one can produce, when handled correctly. There’s a lovely Carl Zeiss Jenna, f/2.8, currently on ebay. Hey, it maybe an oldie, manual only, but for me, it’s an item of pure lust!
Leica Summicron f/2.0 35 mm asph.
The 50 1.4 nikon is my fave lens… used to be the 17-35 2.8, and then I travelled with the 35 mm,….now I’m waiting to get the 24 mm 1.4 and I hope that becomes my new fave lens!
Although not the fastest of lens I have a 28-300mm canon. I love this lens as the images are sharp and it covers such an extensive range. I use it for everything from sports photography to landscapes.
85mm 1.2
🙂
Right now I would have to say my Canon TS E Tilt-shift lens – 24 mm – F/3.5 only because I have been working a couple of projects with it. I really love it’s ability to distort the image, and the focus control. That only if I can have my Canon Extender EF 1.4x. If not I’ll take my 50mm 1.4. Both are great sharp lens.
My new 35mm 1.8f
If I had the money this baby here: http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/13mm.htm. 13mm undistorted 5.6. Rightly named the Holy Grail…
My favourite lens, that I own is definately y 17-35mm full frame 2.8
Zoom it would have to be 24-70/2.8L
Prime it would be hands down the Canon 35mm/1.4L. Sharper than 50mm 1.4 and classic focal length for street photography.
without doubt Canon 50mm 1.4
For my Olympus OMD, 14mm 2.5.
I used the Nikon 28mm 1.8 and I spent the sigma 35mm 1.4 that I use 90% of my time. I love the framing of 35mm