50 mm 1.8 or 35 mm 1.8

[cbrown222]

Hey guys.

I'm getting a nikon d90 and so I'm looking to get some lenses to go a long with it. I've been looking at the 35 and 50 mm nikon lenses and I've heard good things about them but I really can't decide which one to get. I would use the lens for mostly people photography but also group photography too, which is why I'm leaning towards the 35 mm. Everywhere I've looked has the 35 for $80 more which also not the best thing. Any suggestions would be great!

Thanks

 

[2WheelPhoto]

FYI- My 35mm 1.8G had obvious chromatic aberrations and I sold it on the craigslist

 

[Dao]

Do you have a kit zoom lens that you can adjust the lens to 35mm and 50mm, if the answer is yes, then try and see which focal length work better for you.

It is hard to compare lenses with different focal length.

 

[BJF]

The 35mm lens will fit your needs better. You may compare the lenses before you buy.

Nikon 35mm f1.8G

Nikon 50mm f1.8D

Nikon 50mm f1.8G

 

[KmH]

The best thing about the 35 mm and 50 mm f/1.8 Nikon lenses is they are inexpensive. There are better Nikon lenses but they are at least twice as expensive.

They also have limitations, and none of them perform their best at f/1.8, but they all do pretty good from f/4 to f/16.

Many people go ahead and use them at f/1.8 but then have focus issues, because they don't understand how shallow the depth-of-field gets when shooting at the focus point distances people are usually shot at.

 

[unpopular]

A 35mm lens will perform similar to, but not exactly like, a 50mm lens on full frame - so it's close to being "normal" depending on who you ask.

The FOV of a 35mm lens on this sensor is that if you close one eye, that is something like what you can expect, so composition is very natural. Lately I have been shooting with a 50mm lens on an APS-C just for a change of pace (I used to shoot 50mm exclusively with 35mm film and 80mm with 6x6, both 'normal' FL), and I find this focal length pretty awkward for everyday use. I enjoy the DOF, but the crop is just enough that I can't quite get into the telephoto mode of thinking - if that makes any sense?

With an equivalent of around 75mm, maybe this would be a good choice for portrait photography, though I think, based on my experience with 135mm on 35mm film, an 80mm (120mm eq) lens would be better.

 

[analog.universe]

I agree with unpopular for the most part. Quality issues of theses particular lenses aside, 35mm is a nice focal length for general purpose shooting. My 35 is on the camera most of the time, and it's what I use when I don't know what I'll be shooting. 50mm on APS-C is a nice length as well, it just has fewer uses than 35 I think. If you're going to be shooting a lot of portraits 50 is probably a better choice than 35. I also use my 50 on most of the shots I take for my recipe blog. As mentioned though, it is a little awkward to just walk around with.