Advice on prime lenses

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Ridiculous

So just throwing this question out there.

I currently have a 28-70 and a 70-300 but want to invest in a prime lens for low light situations/sharper quality. I shoot a lot of video and my photography isn't limited to one particular genre.

Judging from my lenses, what focal length would you recommend? I am leaning towards a 35mm because I like to shoot landscapes and I find it to have a more dynamic look than a 50mm. However, i also am thinking of a 16 or 24mm since my current lenses don't go that wide and it would be good for glide cam/landscapes. Open to any suggestions. Thanks

Mar 29 2015 7:06PM

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DorianF

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Loner

Full frame or crop sensor body?

Budget?

Mar 29 2015 7:13PM

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Lou.

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Insane

50mm is a nice all purpose prime, shooting with primes really makes you step back and look at your composition a lot more because you can't just zoom, you have to actually walk. I know you didn't mention portrait work, but if you ever want a relatively cheap portrait prime, the 85mm f1.8 is an excellent budget lense. The 50mm f1.8 is about as toyish/plasticy as they come, and the autofocus is near worthless, but for a hundred bucks it's not too shabby. The Canon 35mm f2 is around $500 and although I don't own it, I've heard good things about it. It's a solid option if you don't want the L series 35mm that will put a serious dent in your pocket. Anyway, primes are fun, they make you think a lot more before you shoot; makes you a better photographer.

Mar 29 2015 9:00PM

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Hodor

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Thanks I should have specified. It would be full frame sensor on sony a7s (haven't got it yet but won a video contest and am waiting to receive reward). Price range is $500 and below.

My main question is what focal length. 24, 35, or 50?

Mar 30 2015 6:53PM

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Hodor

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also I got sony the a mount/minolta adapter

Mar 30 2015 6:54PM

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CameraWiz

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HodorThanks I should have specified. It would be full frame sensor on sony a7s (haven't got it yet but won a video contest and am waiting to receive reward).

You won an a7s? That's so sick. I'd say not put all your money into 1 prime. Get like a 24 and a 50 to get different perspectives.

Mar 30 2015 7:17PM

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DorianF

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personally i wouldnt be putting money into lenses quite yet

drop some cash into a metabones speedboost adapter so that you can actually utilize good used canon glass. the selection of lenses for the sony a mount system is lacking and expensive, whereas canon glass is plentiful and there is a great used market (could even go nikon instead if you want i'm using canon as an example because i know more about it)

if you have already done that: 50 mm f 1.8 (the plastic fantastic for canon) is a great lens for its price (roughly 100$)

Mar 31 2015 1:08PM

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nutz.

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well..... if you have an a7s, there's not too much need to get a 1.2 if you don't need it for depth of field no? it's a beast in low light

Mar 31 2015 1:26PM

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PacificRimJob

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@th1337

For 500 bucks on a mirrorless camera? go with vintage stuff for sure. You can get a ton of things - especially if you shoot video.

Personally I like this lineup: UWA-24-50-85-135, but you can sub a 35mm in there instead of a 50mm easily.

I'll list some of my favourites...

Tokina 17mm f3.5
Olympus Zuiko 24mm f2
Nikon 28mm f2.8 AIS
Pentax M42 S-M-C 28mm f3.5
Konica 40mm f1.8
Pentax 43mm f1.9
Minolta Rokkor-x 50mm f1.4
Nikon 85mm f2 AI
Jupiter 9 (85mm f2)
Minolta Rokkor-X135mm f2
Nikon 180mm f2.8

You could also look into getting some weird stuff, like the Jupiter 3 or the Mir 1B

Otherwise, the only sony full frame prime I know of is the 35mm f2.8 which costs like 800 bucks or something.

Apr 4 2015 9:45AM

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