focal lengths in a house?

[hoboahoy]

What do you think is the most convenient focal lengths for a zoom lens for indoor use at the house? I prefer a zoom lens, but a prime is ok too if a fixed focal length somehow works good (which I doubt it in a room). I'm using it with Nikon D300 or D90 to shoot a human/dogs. Thanks.

 

[Dubious Drewski]

Depending on the spaciousness of your house, I'd say 50mm and below. The standard 18-55 covers the range nicely, but a nifty 50 prime, with its huge aperture is great for the low light of indoors.

 

[Josh66]

I agree with the above.

You might find a 50 too long, but you might find the typical 18-55 kit lens too slow.

 

[hoboahoy]

Dubious Drewski, thank you. So if I get a zoom lens of 50mm & below, can I zoom in to get the facial expression? Or if I want to zoom into the face, should I get a lens to cover a little higher than 50mm to zoom in (for example, Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8)?

 

[hoboahoy]

O||||||O, Is f/2.8 fast enough? I'm thinking either Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8, or Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8.

 

[Ls3D]

I'm setting up a house shoot and find myself wishing I had an 10 - 22mm or some prime near that range...

I first shot the nifty fifty to sell the sharpness and a few 'artistic' exposures with beautiful bokeh.. low light exposures etc.. Then I acquired a quality 24-70mm, but even the 24mm end feels tight in the house in some areas.

But shooting people & pets IN the house, and not trying to fit the house itself into frame should have you a bit less constrained and the 18 - 55 range should work well as suggested.

-Shea

 

[Josh66]

How bright is your house?

We have north facing windows (mostly), sometimes 1.4 is too slow at ISO 1600. (The north side gets the least amount of light, just in case you didn't know... (assuming you're in the northern hemisphere))

2.8 should be a lot better than 3.5, but you'll probably still find yourself having to bump the ISO, or use flash.

 

[Josh66]

For me to get hand-holdable shutter speeds inside (mid-day, at around f/2-2.8) I would have to open all of the windows and bump the ISO to around 400.

 

[kundalini]

I do pretty good with the 35mm f/2.

If you want wider + a zoom and have the budget, do your D300 a favor and pair it with the 17-35mm f/2.8

 

[hoboahoy]

Ls3D & O||||||O, so I didn't know I need a lens that short. It's very poorly lit inside the house generally. Wow f1.4 too slow sometimes? I'll try 1600 & higher if that happens. I prefer not to use a flash on animals. They react weird. I'm gonna also get an either a prime F1.8 or 1.4 in addition to the zoom of my choice.

 

[hoboahoy]

Kundalini, do you know any particular fast zoom lens with VR (or whatever the shake reduction they call if it's sigma or tamron) for my use? I really like the VR.

 

[kundalini]

I'm not convinced yet that VR on shorter focal lengths is that important..... not yet anyway. More of a marketing tool IMO, but probably in the not to distant future, it will be standard fair. That's likely when the price of the feature will drop.

BTW, the 35mm f/2 is only $320USD. Damn sight cheaper than $1500USD for the 17-35mm. I get quite a bit of use from mine. Small, light weight and flies under the radar from people ogling/being paranoid about big, fat lenses.

 

[mudthirsty]

O||||||O, Is f/2.8 fast enough? I'm thinking either Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8, or Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8.

Is that a jeep?

 

[Josh66]

yup

 

[hoboahoy]

Yeah that does look like a Jeep. Maybe I'll consider 35mm F2 instead of 50mm F1.8 or 1.4 if not a fast zoom less than 50mm. Thank you much folks. I'm gonna mess with a few lenses at a store, and I'll decide now. I appreciate your input.