Maximum Beauty: Choosing a Prime Lens

Want to get the maximum beauty out of that camera? Try shooting with prime lenses!

Here’s the thing: modern zoom lenses are nice, but primes are so much nicer. Why? They have less glass and they don’t have to warp the image around the different glass elements anywhere near as much. Less warping and less glass means your image looks better. Even more, primes are usually much faster than zooms, again due to there being less glass elements for light to go through.

Don’t get me wrong, a zoom is good in certain situations, and absolutely necessary in others. I always keep a zoom handy if possible, but I love using primes. So then the question arises: Which prime lens should a beginner look into getting?

Since the average photographer and cinematographer works in and around people (either doing portraits, events, or on set), here’s the basic prime lens choices for portrait and event style shooting: 35mm, 50mm, and 85mm. OK, so 35mm is usually not one I’d consider for portraits - but sometimes it is necessary when in tight spaces.

You really only need 1 of those, but not all three. Note that we’re not looking at wide angle or telephoto lenses here, since the majority of photographers and cinematographers won’t need them for being around people.

First, you need to know what size medium you’re shooting with. Digital sensors come in several sizes, but let’s talk about the 3 most important:

1. Full Frame (like the Canon 5DMII), which is roughly 24mm x 36mm
2. APS-C (like the Canon EOS 7D or the Canon Rebel T2i), which is around 14.8mm x 22.2mm (depending on which brand digital camera you are using). Note that sometimes APS-H (Canon EOS 1D Mark IV), which is 18.6mm x 27.9mm, is clumped in with APS-C.
3. Micro Four Thirds (like the Panasonic Lumix GF1 or the Olympus PEN E-P1), which is 18mm x 13.5mm

For shooting with a Full Frame camera, you’ll probably enjoy using the 85mm lens, like the Canon EF 85mm, the most. It allows you to take a step back from the people and not invade their personal space. The lens should be able to get in tight enough for you. When shooting events or weddings, this is a serious tool (Have you ever been at a function where a photographer was just too close? That’s because he/she was not using a long enough lens and was trying to get a close-up!). It’s not the most perfect all-around lens, but it will probably do about 90% of your work with ease. After a while, you’ll also want to get a 50mm lens for when things get really tight and you’ll be a happy camper.

My personal choice for APS-C cameras is the 50mm, like the Canon EF 50mm. Although I won’t go into boring numbers, on APS-C, the actual area of coverage is close to the above Full Frame 85mm (although the angle is different). Again, it’s not perfect for everything, but it’s such a great lens to use. At 50mm, the angle of view is roughly the same as the human eye. Seriously, take a 50mm lens, put it on your camera and look through the viewfinder. Open the other eye and look around – the images are almost identical. You’ll most likely find that a 85mm lens is a little too long for being amongst people at events with the APS-C sensor.

Along the same lines, if I were shooting with an APS-H sized sensor, then you may still want to choose the 50mm. The 85mm may be a little hard to work with in tighter spaces – and instead of a full face, you may end up missing part of the person because you were leaning up against the wall. Just remember that it’s easier to crop from a large frame than trip over people trying to get back far enough for a decent shot.

The last is the trickiest. You may think that with Micro Four Thirds cameras a 35mm lens would get you the necessary coverage. But, 35mm starts to give a slightly wider angle to the shot, and images can be slightly distorted, depending on the angle. What’s that mean? Well, some people may look ever-so-slightly wider at certain angles, which may not impress the bride on her wedding day. That’s probably why they currently don’t offer a 35mm prime yet in Micro Four Thirds. There is a 45mm lens offered from Panasonic though. It is probably the best choice for the smaller Micro Four Thirds sensors at this time.

You may have noticed that all of the above cameras that I listed will shoot in High Definition video modes. That is 100% correct! At this point in the game, why not own a good stills AND video camera at the same time? Sure beats buying two cameras, doesn’t it? Even more, I hate the need to put down one camera and pick up the other just to shoot a little video. Believe me, I’ve carried around both a still and video camera at the same time – and it’s not an experience I like to remember…

So what about being on a film set (cinematography)? Ahh, well that’s another story. Standard-35 and Super-35 (35mm film for Motion Picture) is a standard sized medium – very similar in size to the APS-C. Even the RED One uses the 35mm Motion Picture frame dimensions for its sensor. On film sets, I’ve used a 35mm and a 50mm for a good bit of my cinematography. Of course, I’m talking about interiors, with large, heavy cameras on big, gangly tripods, along with large lights, tons of electric cords, and other various cine equipment all over the place. Not to mention, an entire crew of people from the director to the production assistant standing, sitting, and laying around the set. It really makes for a tight space! Even more, you need to allow for both talent movement on screen, as well as camera movement (pans & tilts).

That said, I’ve probably used a 35mm lens way more than a 50mm on interior sets, just because of that very issue. So for me, a 35mm would be my first choice – but I’d be getting a 50mm the same day if at all possible. Of course, I’d also be getting a really nice 18mm lens next, but this article isn’t about wide-angle lenses…

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