Hooked on Primes

[Neiby]

Neiby, great photo - so crispy! i'm assuming you used a tripod and let me ask what did you stop the lens down to? can't imagine its wide open with that sharpness. couldn't get the EXIF out...

No tripod! I'm not sure what it was stopped down to, but it was either wide open or pretty close to it. It was early evening light, so I needed to open it up. I was far enough away to still get a good depth of field that wasn't to shallow or too deep. I think I accidentally stripped the EXIF when I created the JPEGs. I think this was probably wide open with a fast shutter. That lens is super sharp!

 

[c.cloudwalker]

I'm a Prime Man myself. I zoom with my feet and also by Schwetty's technique of 2 bodies with different focal lengths. Learned those way back when as a PJ, when zooms were of rather poor quality compared to the average prime. Today's zooms are much better but they're still not up to primes' quality imho and, they are heavier and way more expensive when trying to get close to primes quality and speed (f stop) wise.

 

[Neiby]

I'm a Prime Man myself. I zoom with my feet and also by Schwetty's technique of 2 bodies with different focal lengths. Learned those way back when as a PJ, when zooms were of rather poor quality compared to the average prime. Today's zooms are much better but they're still not up to primes' quality imho and, they are heavier and way more expensive when trying to get close to primes quality and speed (f stop) wise.

I know of one photographer who uses nothing but a 5DmkII and a 50mm f/1.4. That's the only lens he has and his shots are freaking amazing. (EDIT: It looks like he has added a 35L to his set of lenses.) Take a look at his Flickr stream:

Flickr: jordanvoth.com's Photostream

 

[Derrel]

"negative space" "I wanted it there" "different strokes" gotcha...

 

[DiskoJoe]

love my minolta 50mm f1.7. love it, love it, love it!!!! best $100 I ever spent.

 

[Neiby]

"negative space" "I wanted it there" "different strokes" gotcha...

You asked, I answered. Are we having a snarkiness contest? If so, I concede that you're the winner, especially since I acknowledged your earlier points and you still continue to be snarky.

 

[edddial]

Nice shots. I like the first one.

 

[Neiby]

Nice shots. I like the first one.

Thanks! It was only my second shoot ever with a person, so it was a good learning experience. I think I got some decent shots despite lots of rookie mistakes.

 

[Derrel]

"negative space" "I wanted it there" "different strokes" gotcha...

You asked, I answered. Are we having a snarkiness contest? If so, I concede that you're the winner, especially since I acknowledged your earlier points and you still continue to be snarky.

You have been here what? A month? Your retorts are pretty common whenever somebody points out ugly dead space in a photo. "Negative space" and "I like it that way." Gotcha. CLASSIC examples of people who want or ask for evaluation of photographs, and then get defensive and fire back at those who C&C their photos. Your responses, "negative space" and "I like it that way" have been discussed here on many,many,many threads which try to highlight how beginners, in the beginner's forum, respond to C&C, or even to just simple evaluations of their presented photos. If you wish to call dead space "negative space", and think that ugly creosote-covered poles look "good" and "tell a story" when seen as part of a series, okay....whatever...

Maybe you'll take my comments and do something about it the next time you frame up a shot, and think, "is that just dead,empty space?" Or possibly, "Is this really the best thing to include in the shot?" perhaps you will even think to yourself, "Am I including too much dead, uninteresting background in this shot? Should I perhaps use my wrist, and flip the camera to vertical, and then take three steps to the left, to make the background look clean and all-natural."

Or.....you can continue to call it "negative space" (even though other more-experienced shooters are calling it distracting and a buzz kill, etc). And you can continue to say, "I like it that way,". I've seen and heard your responses dozens of times in m y nearly 10,000-post time here...so, yeah...gotcha'...I understand how you feel about your photos. perhaps you can understand where I was coming from if you go back and search, or wait for new, threads on how to accept C&C, and whether it's best to listen and evaluate what your critiques, or to just sit there and smugly defend wort that could benefit from some better compositional skills and better camera-handling and a bit of background evaluation through the viewfinder and on the LCD screen in the field.

As a nearly 40-year prime lens shooter, I will pass along a bit of advice right here: primes force you to LEARN how the lens frames, and how it de-focuses the background, and EXACTLY what a lens's angle of view behind the subject encompasses. When you use a prime focal length, you will LEARN what the background rendering and angle are, and will be able to envision the image width behind the subject. A prime never varies. What you need to do is to start looking behind the subject before pressing the shutter release, and your prime lens will soon become a valuable tool, constant and faithful. So...look at the backgrounds...

 

[2WheelPhoto]

2wheelphoto<---goes against grain and not hooked on primes. My 70-200 SLOW f2.8 is being delivered tomorrow. And My 24-70 SLOW f2.8 has been a lot of fun

 

[Robin Usagani]

Here we go again... Deja Vu

"negative space" "I wanted it there" "different strokes" gotcha...

You asked, I answered. Are we having a snarkiness contest? If so, I concede that you're the winner, especially since I acknowledged your earlier points and you still continue to be snarky.

You have been here what? A month? Your retorts are pretty common whenever somebody points out ugly dead space in a photo. "Negative space" and "I like it that way." Gotcha. CLASSIC examples of people who want or ask for evaluation of photographs, and then get defensive and fire back at those who C&C their photos. Your responses, "negative space" and "I like it that way" have been discussed here on many,many,many threads which try to highlight how beginners, in the beginner's forum, respond to C&C, or even to just simple evaluations of their presented photos. If you wish to call dead space "negative space", and think that ugly creosote-covered poles look "good" and "tell a story" when seen as part of a series, okay....whatever...

Maybe you'll take my comments and do something about it the next time you frame up a shot, and think, "is that just dead,empty space?" Or possibly, "Is this really the best thing to include in the shot?" perhaps you will even think to yourself, "Am I including too much dead, uninteresting background in this shot? Should I perhaps use my wrist, and flip the camera to vertical, and then take three steps to the left, to make the background look clean and all-natural."

Or.....you can continue to call it "negative space" (even though other more-experienced shooters are calling it distracting and a buzz kill, etc). And you can continue to say, "I like it that way,". I've seen and heard your responses dozens of times in m y nearly 10,000-post time here...so, yeah...gotcha'...I understand how you feel about your photos. perhaps you can understand where I was coming from if you go back and search, or wait for new, threads on how to accept C&C, and whether it's best to listen and evaluate what your critiques, or to just sit there and smugly defend wort that could benefit from some better compositional skills and better camera-handling and a bit of background evaluation through the viewfinder and on the LCD screen in the field.

As a nearly 40-year prime lens shooter, I will pass along a bit of advice right here: primes force you to LEARN how the lens frames, and how it de-focuses the background, and EXACTLY what a lens's angle of view behind the subject encompasses. When you use a prime focal length, you will LEARN what the background rendering and angle are, and will be able to envision the image width behind the subject. A prime never varies. What you need to do is to start looking behind the subject before pressing the shutter release, and your prime lens will soon become a valuable tool, constant and faithful. So...look at the backgrounds...

 

[Derrel]

"negative space" "I wanted it there" "different strokes" gotcha...

You asked, I answered. Are we having a snarkiness contest? If so, I concede that you're the winner, especially since I acknowledged your earlier points and you still continue to be snarky.

You have been here what? A month? Your retorts are pretty common whenever somebody points out ugly dead space in a photo. "Negative space" and "I like it that way." Gotcha. CLASSIC examples of people who want or ask for evaluation of photographs, and then get defensive and fire back at those who C&C their photos. Your responses, "negative space" and "I like it that way" have been discussed here on many,many,many threads which try to highlight how beginners, in the beginner's forum, respond to C&C, or even to just simple evaluations of their presented photos. If you wish to call dead space "negative space", and think that ugly creosote-covered poles look "good" and "tell a story" when seen as part of a series, okay....

Maybe you'll take my comments and do something about it the next time you frame up a shot, and think, "Is that just dead,empty space?" Or possibly, "Is this really the best thing to include in the shot?" Perhaps you will even think to yourself, "Am I including too much dead, uninteresting background in this shot? Should I perhaps use my wrist, and flip the camera to vertical, and then take three steps to the left, to make the background look clean and all-natural."

Or.....you can continue to call it "negative space" (even though other more-experienced shooters like Kundalini are calling it distracting and a buzz kill, etc). And you can continue to say, "I like it that way,". I've seen and heard your responses dozens of times in my nearly 10,000-post time here...so, yeah...I gotcha'...I understand how you feel about your photos. Perhaps you can understand where I was coming from if you go back and search for the many threads on how to accept C&C, and whether it's best to listen to and evaluate what your critique presenters have to say, or to just sit there and smugly defend work that could benefit from some more-studied compositional skills and better camera-handling and a bit of background evaluation through the viewfinder, and then some on-the-spot photo evaluation on the LCD screen while still in the field.

As a nearly 40-year prime lens shooter, I will pass along a bit of advice right here: primes force you to LEARN how the lens frames, and how it de-focuses the background, and EXACTLY what a lens's angle of view behind the subject encompasses. When you use a prime focal length, you will LEARN what the background rendering and angle are, and will be able to envision the image width behind the subject. A prime never varies. What you need to do is to start looking behind the subject before pressing the shutter release, and your prime lens will soon become a valuable tool, constant and faithful. So...look at the backgrounds...get a feel for how that specific focal length creates or "cuts" its image. With no zoom, a prime lens means you absolutely must pick the exact, right vantage point. You need to move your feet, and get the camera to the exact right height, and a prime lens will TEACH you how to do these things. I'm not here to merely be snarky: I am here to help people learn more about photography. Maybe I am not Girl Scout Leader sweet...if I did not care, I would not even be responding to you, or anybody else.

 

[Derrel]

Oh, Schwetty, do you have anything to add? Anything of value at all? Any comments or tips for a new shooter, you know, for his next shoot? How about some tips for him to try Schwetylens? Anything?

 

[Robin Usagani]

Lol derrel.. i get your joke this time.

 

[c.cloudwalker]

Oh, Schwetty, do you have anything to add? Anything of value at all?

How about you Derrel? Next we are going to get the story of how you walked 40 miles through 3 feet deep snow to get to school in the middle of summer...

Give us all a break or I'm going to tell you the stories of WW2 I heard all my fooking life!