Crop factor confusion

[whateber]

Hey guys.So i have a Nikon d60 body and would like to buy the Nikon 35mm f/1.8G afs dx lense.Is this equivalent to a 50mm lense ?

 

[ann]

close it is 52m . Multiply 1.5 for Nikon, 1.6 for Canon

 

[whateber]

So there isnt a nikkor fixed lense that has the focal length that is written on it?

 

[snowbear117 48]

So there isnt a nikkor fixed lense that has the focal length that is written on it?

The focal length is what is written on the lens. Put it on a full frame digital or on a 35mm film body and that is what you have.

On the cropped bodies, the only thing that changes is the view angle of the lens (not the actual focal length), so the 35mm has an apparent or equivalent focal length of 52mm on a Nikon.

 

[Mach0]

The focal length is what is written on the lens. Put it on a full frame digital or on a 35mm film body and that is what you have.

On the cropped bodies, the only thing that changes is the view angle of the lens (not the actual focal length), so the 35mm has an apparent or equivalent focal length of 52mm on a Nikon.

Bingo. The lens will still have the distortion of a 35mm so no close ups lol.

 

[EchoingWhisper]

No, the lens will have the distortion look of 50mm. Although it have the distortion of 35mm, the corners are cropped away, or else those PnS lenses with 3mm focal length would have crazy distortion. In short, there won't be more distortion. 35mm is very sharp, everything is good, except Bokeh. It's equivalent focal length is 53-54mm.

 

[chris]

So there isnt a nikkor fixed lense that has the focal length that is written on it?

I think that you will find that the 35 mm lens has 35 mm written on it - when fitted to your D60 it will give the approximately the same field of view as a 50 mm lens on a full frame (24 mm x 36 mm) camera.

The focal length does not change but the field of view that a particular focal length will give depends upon the camera format. Thus a 50 mm lens would be a short telephoto on your D60, a 'normal' lens on a full frame camera (focal length approximately equal to teh diagonal across the frame), a moderate wide angle on 6x6 or 6x7 cameras and wide angle on 4"x5" format but on all of these it is still a 50 mm lens though the construction will vary to give the coverage required for the various formats.

 

[Mach0]

http://www.digifotografi.com/Digifotografi/Perspective_Distortion.html

 

[2WheelPhoto]

You don't want the 35mm for portraiture no matter what sensor you hit with it because of the distortion mentioned above several times

 

[Garbz]

You don't want the 35mm for portraiture no matter what sensor you hit with it because of the distortion mentioned above several times

This is a horrendous over generalisation. There are many people who use 35mm and far wider lenses for portraiture.

 

[KmH]

But it depends on the lens, because different designs have differing amounts of distortion.

The inexpensive Nikon 35mm f/1.8G AF-S DX Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras is an inexpensive consumer grade lens, because Nikon didn't bother correcting the distortion, purple fringing, and other CA it produces so they could keep it's cost low.

 

[Dao]

Agree with Keith there. In general, distortion is characteristic of a particular lens design.

 

[chris]

You don't want the 35mm for portraiture no matter what sensor you hit with it because of the distortion mentioned above several times

All lenses have some degree of distortion the extent of which depends upon the design. As a very general rule the longer the focal length the easier it is to minimise distortions and for zoom lenses there may be pin cushion distortion at one end of the range and barrel distortion at the other end.

The advice that wide-angle lenses should not be used for portraits is not due to these types of distortion, or CA etc, but due to perspective and that is dependent upon the closeness of the camera to the subject. Using a wide angle lens for a head and shoulders portrait and filling the frame with the subject you may end up with a perspective that produces an unflattering prominence to the sitter’s nose. The distance that you need between camera and subject to fill the frame will depend upon the angle of view that the lens gives and this is dependent upon focal length and format (sensor or frame size). Thus if using a 35 mm lens with a format for which it is a normal or telephoto lens (ie the diagonal measurement across the sensor or frame is equal to or less than 35 mm) then this should produce a perspective that does not emphasise the nose.

Wide-angle lenses are very useful for portraits where the sitter is shown with their surroundings to provide some context, such as an artist in their studio.

 

[STM]

The actual focal length is the same regardless of the format, in this case it is 35mm.. It is a hypotherical distance from the optical center of the lens to the film plane (or sensor). What I THINK you are asking is what is the EFFECTIVE FOCAL LENGTH compared to a full frame or 35mm format and that would be the focal length x 1.5 crop facror - 52.5 tm.