What's your favourite lens?

[Bob Ross]

Re: What's your favourite lens?

Good point Bob, maybe your favourite lens should be to one that you've taken your most published photos with, or the one that earned you the most money or won you the most awards. If using those criteria my choices would be very different.

No David, that would be someone elses favorite lens
Probably one place to look for that "personal favorite" would be during the making of a very diliberate and private image, unless ergonaomics is a big factor and then maybe at a party is the place to look...
If, we are trying to show each other "how we see the world", then trying to mimic our inner vision with our camera will become interesting. This probably doesn't apply to stadium sport photography with big white lenses
How our physical vision and the changes it goes through as we age, affects our photography, is another playground. I have found that wearing reading glasses over the years has changed my tatses for focus isolation and that affects the feeling about out of focus areas in a picture.....and that leads to liking short teles for their out of focus gradients.
Bob

[mike_j]

Re: What's your favourite lens?

Favourite lens is largely dictated by favourite photographic style. If you like to take huge wide panoramas you will pick a lens with a short fl, perhaps equivalent to the 15-21mm range. If portraiture with well isolated subjects and shallow DoF then short tele with wide aperture.

One thing is clear, looking at the photos around today, and that is that a great many lenses reach levels of performance beyond anything we would have expected from a modestly priced lens a few years ago, especially for the zooms.

In an earlier reply I nominated the 50mm Leica Summicron as my favourite though the 90mm Elmarit is a close contender. Both these lenses are adequately sharp but what is more noticeable is that they have across all their characteristics a certain balance which gives a satisfying overall image.

[Ian]

Re: What's your favourite lens?

I had a reasonably expensive OM-fit medium zoom in the early 1980s, something like a 35-70, Soligor I think, and it was terrible - built in soft focus mode

Ian

[Bob Ross]

Re: What's your favourite lens?

I had a reasonably expensive OM-fit medium zoom in the early 1980s, something like a 35-70, Soligor I think, and it was terrible - built in soft focus mode

Ian

Hi Ian,
I had 2 zooms for the OM kit, the 75-150 (my first zoom) and the first 35-70 that Oly issued, Both have been passed along.
The worst zoom that I have is a Maxxum 24-85. It was made in Distortionvilles, North Pincushion.
Zooms today are another story.
Bob

[David M]

Re: What's your favourite lens?

In 3+ decades of shooting film I never found a zoom worth keeping. As Bob said, some modern zooms are so good you don't need a bag full of primes anymore.

[Bob Ross]

Re: What's your favourite lens?

I have to apologize to the 24-85 Maxxum zoom, because for the two trips that I made to ireland in the 90s, it was my anchor (and I left my Leica Ms at home) as I packed for versitility, I have two 20"X30" posters on the wall from that lens.
Travel documenting, stopped down for max DOF can be right at home with a zoom.
Bob

[Ian]

Re: What's your favourite lens?

Hehe! "Distortionvilles, North Pincushion" - is that in CA?


Ian

[Graham_of_Rainham]

Re: What's your favourite lens?

I've just sold my old favorite, a Tokina A-TX 80-200 f/2.8 It was a heavy old beast but did turn out some cracking good slides...

For an old zoom it worked reasonably well on the digital body (although had to keep an eye out for internal reflections off the rear element and sensor).

[John Perriment]

Re: What's your favourite lens?

My favourite lens keeps changing. I adored my Olympus OM 24m, 35mm, 50mm and 100mm in equal measures. The 42mm Zuiko on my 35RC compact was a little cracker. It was a toss-up between the 50mm and 75mm on my Bronica ETRSi.

In the digital era the Olympus 14-54mm has been a much loved and respected workhorse for a number of years, although the 14-35mm that I borrowed from Ian for a few hours on an E-Group meet would surely have captured my heart had I been able to afford one. The 40-150mm stunned me with a performance that I had no right to expect for the money.

More recently, with my move to Micro Four Thirds I've had difficulty gelling with the Olympus standard range zooms but the breach has been filled with a Panasonic 14-45mm, which is a very impressive little lens with good build quality, nice handling and great IQ. After trying a 12mm f2 at an Olympus event I'm sure it could quickly challenge for the favourite spot if only I could afford one. At some point in the future, hopefully, I might have my eye on a 45mm f1.8, so my favourite could change yet again!

[Bob Ross]

Re: What's your favourite lens?

Hehe! "Distortionvilles, North Pincushion" - is that in CA?


Ian

Yes, Ian, it is where those Chromatic Abos are born and raised, before the Great Pixel sends them forth to annoy the peepers......
Bob

[David M]

Re: What's your favourite lens?

Yes, but which CA? Canada or California?

And yes, I know what you really meant by CA, Crewe Alexandra.