Why so many choose 50mm prime lens??


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NeeKon

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Dec 24, 2008
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I have been obeserving photographers during one of my attempt at paid photoshoot that most of them uses 50mm prime lens f1.8

Is there any particular reason to use?? Since the DSLR now adays have high ISO with low noise.. is there any other compelling reason for big aperture??

I'm :confused:
 

you get shallower DoF compared to a zoom with a similar focal length.. of cos 50 1.8s are one of the cheaper offerings from the manufacturers..
 

I have been obeserving photographers during one of my attempt at paid photoshoot that most of them uses 50mm prime lens f1.8

Is there any particular reason to use?? Since the DSLR now adays have high ISO with low noise.. is there any other compelling reason for big aperture??

I'm :confused:

for the wide aperture which gives backgrd blur.
 

you get shallower DoF compared to a zoom with a similar focal length.. of cos 50 1.8s are one of the cheaper offerings from the manufacturers..

for the wide aperture which gives backgrd blur.

Thanks to the 2 Seniors.... :think: So what is important?? The flexibility of zoom with F2.8 is better or a better Bokeh offered by F1.8 is better, assuming that the environment is not conducive for changing of lenes..
 

Zooms with F2.8 will never beat the bokeh of prime lenses, especially with apertures up to F1.4.

Unless you are talking about telezoom of 100mm and above, then it will match or better those primes of 50mm and below.

In fact the usage depends on your preference actually, whether to zoom with hand or with legs...
 

Zooms with F2.8 will never beat the bokeh of prime lenses, especially with apertures up to F1.4.

Unless you are talking about telezoom of 100mm and above, then it will match or better those primes of 50mm and below.

In fact the usage depends on your preference actually, whether to zoom with hand or with legs...

thanks..
 

Prime can have larger aperture compare to zoom, thus provide low light ability + bokeh effect

50 mm focal length on full frame is a good focal length. You may google about the 50 mm focal length thingy.

Also, it is one of the cheapest lens available in the market.
 

50mm is considered a standard lens which give the same FOV as the human eye. This applies to FF and in cropped sensors gives the portrait focal length.
 

Why so many choose 50mm prime lens??
Because it is cheap and it doesn't hurt to add it to your lens arsenal. :bsmilie:

Here's a shot done using a 50mm f/1.8 lens:

797b943c.jpg


Go get one! :D
 

Just some thoughts...

Some Bokeh are awful. Too many of us think that a pic with Bokeh is a good pic.

Regards
 

50mm is considered a standard lens which give the same FOV as the human eye. This applies to FF and in cropped sensors gives the portrait focal length.
Actually FOV is not really the correct term to use. Human vision is near 180deg, akin to fish eye FOV. It's more correct to say the magnification rather than FOV.
 

Is there any particular reason to use?? Since the DSLR now adays have high ISO with low noise.. is there any other compelling reason for big aperture??

I'm :confused:

because it is the cheapest large aperture prime lens

try shooting cats at night, you will realise that you need to shoot at apertures like f/1.4 or f/1.7 or f/2.0 (depending on lighting situation) even with iso1600.

unless you have very high end camera like nikon d3 or mark d III, i think most more affordably priced dslrs do not perform that well at iso3200.
 

Wow.. so many replies... thanks all for your valuable advice..

I am a Nikon user... What is above average in the market and what is the price norm?
 

Hey Snoweagle,
If you surf the forums, you must have caught a few of them...

Nevertheless,
heres a website.

http://www.rickdenney.com/bokeh_test.htm
Ultimately, its subjective.. and to the uninitiated, it most prob wouldnt make a diff.

Regards

Even though the 50 f/1.8 II has only a 5-blade diaphragm, its bokeh is still quite ok. Used to own this lens, unless u're talking about shooting highlights of lightings.
 

Because it's cheap cheap cheap, and it will likely be the sharpest and fastest lens in your bag (if your other lenses are all zooms). And, as others have mentioned, you get beautiful depth of field control.

Go by one - it's a no brainer. You'll spend as much on a decent dinner. Eat ramen for a night, and go buy the lens instead.

:)
 

The 50mm lenses are just nice for paid photoshoots.

Reasons:
1. You can do close-ups shots of the models.
2. You can do a half-body shot by stepping backwards.
3. You can also do a full-body shot by stepping backwards even more.
4. For 50mm, the F-stop can be from F2 to F1.2, depends on your liking of bokeh in the photos.
5. For the lenses such as 100mm, you can't get a nice bokeh with the DoF or the full body (unless you stand quite far away from the model)

To me, these are simple reasons why the 50mm is frequently used. ;)
 

because it is the cheapest large aperture prime lens

try shooting cats at night, you will realise that you need to shoot at apertures like f/1.4 or f/1.7 or f/2.0 (depending on lighting situation) even with iso1600.

unless you have very high end camera like nikon d3 or mark d III, i think most more affordably priced dslrs do not perform that well at iso3200.
bingo!
 

zeckson how close was that to the object?? i cant seem really to get too close to the object, it wont focus
can we use manual focus for this lens? (Nikon 50mm f/1.8d) btw im using nikon d90
thx
 

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