Your Lenses?

[Overread]

Yay I get to look all advanced and experienced and click the last option! (been at this 2 years nowish! )

Anyway I currently have two AF zooms, two AF primes and one MF prime/zoom thingy.
My primes are macro lenses, where they could (for the purposes of macro work) be full manual focus and I would not notice a difference in using them (since I do my macro work manually). However for everything else I find that AF is far faster and superior to me most of the time unless in very bad lighting or shooting through reeds where there is a lot to confuse the AF lock.

My zooms are AF and that is how I use them almost all the time. My cheapy kit lens is not thing specail and its focusing ring is very small so AF is far easier to use - my 70-200mm f2.8 IS L has a far better MF ring, but its AF is so fast that most of the time I am in AF mode.

That said I do use backbutton AF and take advantage of the USM *all the time manual focus* feature of my zoom and one of my prime (the 150mm macro) lenses. Its a great way to focus with AF, recompose the shot and then tweak thefocus (if needed) with MF and take the shot.

My manual focus zoomy/prime thing is my MPE65mm macro which has no AF at all and is a very specailaist macro lens. So again the lack of AF I never notice. It also lacks infinity focus so further off subjects are no concern as they are not possible. PS its a prime/zoomy thing because it technically does change its focal length as it moves through its magnification frange from 1:1 through to 5:1.

 

[wescobts]

My oldest is probably my 1.8 50mm, but how old I don't know, bought it used 10 years ago.

My favorite 200mm or below would be my 35 F2.

My favorite 200mm or above would be my 70-200 VR.

Although I carry a combo of prime and zooms, by far I use the primes much more, I would safely say 90% of the time my primes are on the camera, and my zooms are just hurting my shoulders

 

[JimmyO]

Im always changing around my quiver. Not becuase i dont like the lenses but ive been trying to work out the best kit for me via trial and error.

What i have now:
Nikon 10.5mm 2.8
Nikon 35mm 1.8
Nikon 85mm 1.8
Tokina 50-135mm 2.8

I prefer to shoot with primes due to low distortion and speed. Although I usually shoot them at 2.8 there alot sharper then my zoom at 2.8, and that gives me alot more range out of my flashes when shooting at night. Im thinking about getting rid of the 50-135mm and getting a 105mm f/2 or f/2.8 VR macro. I do want a wide zoom like the tokina 16-50mm for applications where i need to go wide and be adjustable like shooting group portraits.

 

[lexdiamond20]

Now that i have my new 24-70, I don't really use my primes as much as i could.

Really? Even though the 24-70 is a few stops down?

 

[thebeatles]

I only have 2 primes. My favorite would have to be my 85mm. Better build and faster. :thumbup:

 

[Battou]

I opted to go with the only MF primes option. Yes I do have a few MF zooms but I very rarely use them.


Oldest lens - Leitz Elmar (LTM) 50mm f/3.5 I do believe. I don't use it often but still I own it and have used it.
Overall favorite lens - Bushnell (M-42) 200mm f/3.5
Favorite lens - shorter than 200mm - Canon (FD) 135 f/2.8
Favorite lens - longer than 200mm - Vivitar 400mm f/5.6

Most frequently equiped lenses:
Canon - Vivitar (CFD) 400mm f/5.6, Apporx 85% of time camera is carried
Chinon - Bushnell (M-42) 200mm f/3.5, always
Olympus - Vivitar (OOM) 400mm f/5.6, Always

 

[Vinny]

I voted but I"m in a unique situation. I lived in the film world, stopped "real" photography for a long time (point and shooting for that time) and am just breaking into the digital world.

I have a Nikon FE with 2 manual focus Vivitar zoom lenses low to medium and medium to high zoom levels along with a Nikon 50mm "standard" lens. They are 25+ years old and if I remember correctly the zooms are macro as well. The zooms are the push/pull type and IMO took great pictures! They also came with 2x multipliers which I used occasionally.

I now have a Nikon D90 and have a 18-105mm and 70-300mm Nikon lenses. I was hoping to use the Vivitar lenses on this Nikon (I think I can except none of the metering will work) but the autofocus is something I wanted to have for convience sake. I am a little disappointed that the zooms are not macro but that seems to be the state of photography today for inexpensive lenses. I haven't used these too much as of yet.

I've always liked zoom lenses vs prime and don't really have a favorite focal length as it all depends on what type of photos I am planning to take.

 

[Santa Gertrudis]

My most used lens is my 35mm f/1.8. I don't have a high quality zoom yet, so I mostly stick to the primes. Primes are just down right fun anyway.

 

[maris]

What is your oldest lens that you use?

Voigtlander Anastigmat Skopar 1:4.5 F= 13.5cm in a Compur dial-set shutter. The serial number dates it to 1928.

Which is your favorite lens - shorter or equal to 200mm? (that you use/have used).

Schneider Super angulon 121mm f8. Outrageously, wonderfully wide!

Which is your favorite lens - longer than 200mm? (that you use/have used)

Fujinon-W 300mm f5.6 in a Copal #3 shutter. A classic normal lens that always delivers finer detail than the eye can see.

 

[Dallmeyer]

Thanks everyone for your interesting replies and adding to the user survey. Appologies for not responding over the last week or so, a hectic work schedule has prevented me from viewing the forum. I will have a read over.

 

[usayit]

Combination.

* 1dMII with 24-105L and 100-400L with 50mm f/1.4
* Samsung GX-1L (Pentax *istD) with a bunch of Kmount primes
* Leica M bodies with a bunch of Leica M mount primes
* Panasonic G1 adapted to be used with either Takumar Screwmounts or Leica M lenses.

use it all but not all at once. Pretty much have 4 bags (one of each the above) packed in a cabinet near the door.