[Leica] 50mm lenses should be compulsory.

[saganicc at MSKCC.ORG (Saganich, Christopher/Medical Physics)]

Camera to subject distance bears more weight in composition then focal length.  If your camera came with a 90, or 35 your post would read the same more then likely.

Chris Saganich


-----Original Message-----
From: lug-bounces+saganicc=mskcc.org@leica-users.org [mailto:lug-bounces+saganicc=mskcc.org@leica-users.org] On Behalf Of Beddoe, Neil
Sent: Wednesday, May 19, 2004 5:49 AM
To: 'Leica Users Group'
Subject: [Leica] 50mm lenses should be compulsory.

When I bought my M6, it had a 50mm Summicron on it so for six months, any
Leica shots I did were done with a standard lens.  Gear freakery soon took
over and I bought a 35mm and a 90mm. When I went through my negs recently, I
noticed that the shots from this "50mm or nothing" period are better than
the later ones and of the subsequent shots I'd taken with the standard lens
most weren't as good as the ones I took when I didn't have different lenses
to choose from.  I think I used those supreme aids to composition, feet and
knees, a lot more when I couldn't just change lenses to change what was in
the frame.

I wouldn't mind betting that the chap who's off to Honolulu would get miles
better pictures if he just took one 50mm lens with him and spent time
thinking about where he was standing (and whether he should be standing,
kneeling or lying prone) when he pressed the shutter button.  I think this
would apply to almost every picture situation with the exception of
long-range wildlife shots.

As everyone knows, you don't alter the viewpoint when you switch to a wider
or longer lens, you just get more or less in the frame.  In most cases, you
can do this by walking forwards or backwards and at the same time see what
changing perspective does to your shot which is much more interesting than
just optically cropping the photograph.  If you can't get the shot you want
by walking about, just find something else to photograph.  I'm sure Honolulu
will present plenty of subjects.

I like feet but I hate zooms.

Neil


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