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Author Topic: What is your favorite lens?  (Read 11170 times)

scooby70

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #20 on: October 04, 2016, 07:31:46 pm »

If I have to pick one I'll pick my Minolta Rokkor 50mm f1.2 which I use on my A7.

When I first got this lens I compared it to my Rokkor 50mm f1.4 and thought it was utter rubbish but I've since changed my mind and I now think it's just different. What I like about it is that at the widest apertures it's best described as funky but once stopped down it gives good results so the choice is there to be rather funky if the shot suits or to be much more sober and conventional at smaller apertures.
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NancyP

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #21 on: October 04, 2016, 09:53:26 pm »

Currently, my most-used lens is the 125 mm Voigtlander Apo-Lanthar f/2.5 1:1 macro lens. It's light, incredibly sharp, and has over 600 degrees focus throw. Not a lens that you get from 10 ft focus to 6 inch focus fast, but it does a good job as a manual focus general telephoto as well as a manual focus macro (I don't do AF with macro). I am doing a lot of macro currently.

My second most used lens is the humble Canon 40 mm f/2.8 pancake lens. High quality landscape lens at f/4 to f/8 - there are better lenses out there but (other than tilt shift lenses) the differences are minimal at f/8. It weighs less than 6 oz, and that means a lot on a long hike. It's always in my bag. I like the 35 to 40 mm focal length for full frame landscape and "normal lens" use (urban, environmental portrait-like).
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BernardLanguillier

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #22 on: October 04, 2016, 10:05:24 pm »

Currently, my most-used lens is the 125 mm Voigtlander Apo-Lanthar f/2.5 1:1 macro lens. It's light, incredibly sharp, and has over 600 degrees focus throw. Not a lens that you get from 10 ft focus to 6 inch focus fast, but it does a good job as a manual focus general telephoto as well as a manual focus macro (I don't do AF with macro). I am doing a lot of macro currently.

Yes, this is indeed among my favorites also.

Cheers,
Bernard

Jim Pascoe

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #23 on: October 05, 2016, 04:25:10 am »

Over the years I have moved away from zooms and now almost always use prime lenses - including for my professional work (mostly people pictures)

If the question were "if you could only keep one lens what would it be?" - I would go with 35mm (currently a Sigma Art).  I love the 35mm and 50mm fields of view.

And my most useful lens for people pictures, whether family groups or children running around or half length portraits has to be the humble Canon 85mm 1.8.  I can shoot whole jobs with just that one lightweight lens.

In fact I could shoot 99% of all my work with two lenses - the 35mm and 85mm.

My favourite lens though, if I have to pick just one - is the 50mm.  Again currently a Sigma Art 1.4, but I also have the lovely Zeiss f2 macro.  I could be tempted by a beautiful quality slower aperture 50mm if it was smaller than the Sigma - I'm not a fan of heavy lenses anymore.

Jim

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Rado

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #24 on: October 05, 2016, 04:26:44 am »

The ancient Canon 80-200/2.8L zoom. My go-to lens for portraits. It's very heavy and might not be as good optically as the current zooms, but I love the images it gives me. And it's black, as a lens ought to be! :-)
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muntanela

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #25 on: October 05, 2016, 08:07:00 am »

Mine is my Zeiss 100mm F2makro.

Currently, my most-used lens is the 125 mm Voigtlander Apo-Lanthar f/2.5 1:1 macro lens. It's light, incredibly sharp, and has over 600 degrees focus throw. Not a lens that you get from 10 ft focus to 6 inch focus fast, but it does a good job as a manual focus general telephoto as well as a manual focus macro (I don't do AF with macro).

A 100 macro 1:2, 1:1 is the real universal lens. I have just added to my 100 macro the Distagon 25 mm with RR 1:2,3 (480 g), which I hope could be also very useful for landscape as well as close up shots.
« Last Edit: October 05, 2016, 08:10:57 am by muntanela »
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Krug

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #26 on: October 05, 2016, 08:48:26 am »

I rather agree with Rob C's early comment but then thinking about it there is a special pleasure both using and viewing results from the CV 125 2.5 and also from the Minolta 58 1.2.
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John Ashbourne
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graeme

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #27 on: October 05, 2016, 08:58:13 am »

Voigtlander 40mm f2 Ultron. 64mm equivalent on Canon crop frame.

After years of using zoom this manual focus prime made me really slow down. It also makes me miss shots that I would have got with an AF zoom, but I definitely started taking better pictures after I bought it. It's probably not any better optically than the Canon 40mm* Nancy mentioned but the long throw manual focus ring is great for live view tripod work. Bokeh is quite dodgy but I don't use narrow depth of field much.

My most used lens for work & play.


* I have the Canon 40mm's little brother, the crop frame only EFS 24mm: Provides a similar field of view on crop frame as the 40mm on full frame. For the money I can't recommend it highly enough.
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NancyP

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #28 on: October 05, 2016, 11:47:04 am »

Yes, the Canon 24mm f/2.8 STM pancake lens is just as good as its FF mate the 40. Amazingly cheap ($150.00).
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Telecaster

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #29 on: October 05, 2016, 03:39:36 pm »

I don't have a favorite lens now, but in film days my Leitz 50/2 Rigid Summicron was the One. Besides its fine optical quality it's also so precisely made and so lovely to look at. At one point I had a "dual range" (closer focusing via a clip-on accessory eyepiece) version of the same lens, equal in build & optical quality but not quite as elegant looking.

For the past year I've been using mostly one camera, a Panasonic GX8, with a small set of mostly zoom lenses. None of the lenses call any particular attention to themselves but they all do a fine job.

-Dave-
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armand

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #30 on: October 06, 2016, 06:39:28 am »

While they are not the most used lenses I have a special place for the Voigtlander Nokton 58mm F1.4 on Nikon and Fujifilm 35mm F1.4 on Fuji X.

Torbjörn Tapani

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #31 on: October 06, 2016, 07:21:19 am »

Easily the 14-24/2.8. I use it for astroscapes, auroras an such. 2:1 more shots than second lens 70-200/2.8, I use that for kids, pets, birds, sports and so on. Those I like to use. They are with me out in the cold and have worked nicely since I got them.

14-24 took a nose dive into the dirt this week so I may be forced to get it rebuilt. Sticky zoom at 14-16 mm range. Still works tho. Tripod fell over in the dark, user error, should have used the big tripod...
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NancyP

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #32 on: October 06, 2016, 08:05:34 pm »

Tips for Torbjorn: 1. hang weight from the center column (or platform, if no center column) hook. Or, if you have a Manfrotto 055 (no hook) and one of those nylon cloth tripod "aprons" that attach to the three legs below the  platform, throw a water bottle or two into the "apron".
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?atclk=Parts+%26+Accessories_Apron%2fShelves&ci=399&N=4075788753+4289361368+4231055303

2. Reflective tape or tag or (small amount of) luminescent tape or tag on stuff you use for landscape astrophotography with light painting - tripod platform, camera bag, etc - that way you don't trip over the gear when the exposure is done and you return (with headlamp) from your light painting venture or a second tripod-camera setup.
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shadowblade

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #33 on: October 07, 2016, 01:42:29 am »

Easily the 14-24/2.8. I use it for astroscapes, auroras an such. 2:1 more shots than second lens 70-200/2.8, I use that for kids, pets, birds, sports and so on. Those I like to use. They are with me out in the cold and have worked nicely since I got them.

14-24 took a nose dive into the dirt this week so I may be forced to get it rebuilt. Sticky zoom at 14-16 mm range. Still works tho. Tripod fell over in the dark, user error, should have used the big tripod...

Love that lens, and the fact that it's adaptable to any platform. Used it on the 5D2, then on the A7r/A7r2.

I can only hope that, when Nikon eventually replaces it, the replacement (or its adapter) will also allow aperture control, unlike some current Nikon lens/adapter combinations.
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bcooter

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #34 on: October 07, 2016, 11:53:37 am »

Except for a 70-200 for some projects, I've always used primes.  Zeiss, Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Leica, the list is very long as I love glass.

Recently or for the last few years, projects have been so pressured I've rented the 24 to 70 II Canon lens, thinking I'd just use it in a Jam.

Then I find I shoot half the project with it and I've rented 4 different of them and all have been beautifully sharp with great smooth roll off.

I just wish it had stablization, for hand held motion, but I think it's a great lens.

But . . . everytime I go to buy it I think, uh, I've got it covered with primes, then rent it again so now I've realized my rentals have equaled the price, so I just ordered one.

With the 24-70 and the latest Canon 70-200, I can shoot 90% of everything we do. 

Though my favorite lens is the 55mm Zeiss for my Contax I also use it on the Leica S2.  I truly love that lens.



IMO

BC
« Last Edit: October 07, 2016, 12:00:57 pm by bcooter »
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zlatko-b

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #35 on: October 11, 2016, 12:27:17 pm »

+1 for the Canon 24-70/2.8L II.  It is a masterpiece of zoom lens design.  It is smaller and lighter than its predecessor (version I).  And it is more durable, not needing frequent adjustments.  And, best of all, it draws beautifully, sharp and with lovely bokeh.  I have used it since 2012 and still marvel at how good it is.  After reading the initial reviews, I paid the full introductory price for it, feeling that I needed it immediately.  The original (version I) would unexpectedly go out of adjustment.  It was so maddening that it drove me to use only primes in that range.

donbga

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #36 on: October 12, 2016, 09:35:24 am »

It seems like most photography forums are as much about the desire and acquisition of new gear, the next piece of a complete kit, the next part of the collection, etc.  Many of the discussions here bemoan the lack of certain types of lenses, no matter how esoteric, for whatever their chosen camera system is, or the camera system they're dreaming about.  Let's forget about what's next and focus on what's in your bag now...

What is your favorite lens?

Take that question however you want, but let's keep it to lenses you actually own and use.  What piece of glass keeps you in this hobby or profession?  What lens pays the bills and is indispensable to your kit? What's the lens you go to when it's all on the line? The first lens on your camera on any given outing, the go-to, the cornerstone, the "if I had to sell everything but one", the glass that keeps you in your camera system?


For me it's my Pentax SMC DA*50-135 f2.8.  It's on my camera probably 90-95% of the time.  Weddings, landscapes, portraits, chasing the dog, sneaking up on wildlife, portraits of my daughter, doesn't matter this is my go-to lens. It's sharp enough, fast enough, the perfect zoom range for so much, it's images are full of Pentax pixie dust, and it's almost so good that it's cheap for what you get.  I love it's rendering.  It seriously makes me want to just stay in the Pentax aps-c ecosystem.
What a stupid gear head question.

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scooby70

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #37 on: October 12, 2016, 09:42:40 am »

What a stupid gear head question.

What a rude response to what I regard as a perfectly acceptable, fun, interesting (to read what others think...) and possibly even informative post on an internet forum and more than that in a section of an internet forum dedicated to talking about gear.

I respectfully point out the option of not posting in threads that illicit this kind of reaction from you.
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kers

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #38 on: October 12, 2016, 10:07:21 am »

I think it is an interesting question.
For me i have some lenses i like and that are important for my work.
I do primarily Architecture as well as performances on stage.

I like my 24mm 1.8g nikkor a lot.
It is a cheap lens; mechanically cheap, but optically very good.
I works well in all of my work. At 1.8 it has a nice unsharp rolloff and has a flat field of focus.
The coatings are very good. At f8 it is as good at it gets 36MP-D810

I could only consider the Otus 28mm 1.4 to be its contender, that is optically a lot better, but
the nikkor has a fine working autofocus, it is 24mm, it is about 350 gram and small. It is cheap.

I tested the Sigma 24mm but prefer the rendering and the flat field of the Nikkor.
here a photograph made @ f1.8
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Pieter Kers
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donbga

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Re: What is your favorite lens?
« Reply #39 on: October 12, 2016, 10:38:56 am »

What a rude response to what I regard as a perfectly acceptable, fun, interesting (to read what others think...) and possibly even informative post on an internet forum and more than that in a section of an internet forum dedicated to talking about gear.

I respectfully point out the option of not posting in threads that illicit this kind of reaction from you.
If the OP had posed the question with some context then it might appear to have some relevance to something, the topic might not have been so absurd.

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