Tag Archives: dslr

Commentary, Equipment, Photographic Myths and Platitudes

Photographic Myths and Platitudes: New DSLR? Why You Do NOT Need a 50mm Prime

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(Note: This article has been slightly revised and updated since it was originally posted in 2012.)

From time to time I share here my response to a question that I fielded somewhere else. In this case, the subject concerned whether or not a beginner getting a new DSLR should start out with a “normal” 50mm prime lens. Here is a slightly edited version of what I wrote.

Every so often a beginning photographer buying their first DSLR, typically a cropped sensor model, will be advised to “get a 50mm prime,” either as their only lens or as an adjunct to the “kit zoom” that likely comes with most entry-level DSLRs. Some say you should do this because you must learn to shoot with a prime before you are ready for a zoom. (This is nonsense, in my opinion.) Others suggest that folks should get the prime because good and inexpensive versions are available – which is true, but not a reason to buy one.

I’m here to say that there is little or no good reason for a beginning DSLR photographer to get a 50mm prime—especially a 50mm prime—with their new camera. Get the kit zoom and start making photographs.

The advice to get a 50mm prime comes from a very different set of circumstances and a very different time. When 35mm film SLRs first became available some decades ago, decent zoom lenses were not available at prices that beginners would contemplate paying, if they were even available at all. (Those shooting 35mm rangefinder cameras found even more impediments to the idea of using a zoom.) In fact, photographers generally didn’t use them. “Zoom or prime?” was not the question at all – primes were the only realistic option.

The general feeling was that something in the 50mm focal length range or thereabouts could be the ideal starter “normal” lens on a 35mm film camera. (This was not a universally held viewpoint – some preferred lenses a bit wider and some of the standard primes came in longer focal lengths such as 55mm.) A 50mm +/- prime was the first lens that most folks got with their new film SLR, and there were lots of fine and inexpensive options. You got your camera and you got your 50mm prime. In fact, if you got a SLR “kit,” it was camera plus a 50mm or so prime, probably a f/2 or f/1.8 version. The fact that we still have lenses like Canon’s EF 50mm f/1.8 at such a low price is a result of that history.

In reality, the valid advice back then was to “get a 50mm prime and learn to shoot it before buying more lenses.” The source of this advice had nothing at all to do with a zoom versus prime question. Primes were the only option. The implication actually was don’t get sucked into buying a bunch of lenses before you know what you are doing or what you need. (We are all aware of how tempting it can be to allow gear acquisition syndrome to supplant photography.) In other words, get a first lens, shoot a lot with it, learn a lot from doing so, and only then start to consider what your experience tells you about the need for (maybe) getting other lenses.

That warning still holds true, but keep in mind that it is a actually warning against rushing out and buying lots of stuff. Today, the better, and far more likely, first lens choice is going to be a zoom. There are excellent, inexpensive options available today that have supplanted the old-school inexpensive 50mm prime as the logical first lens. Every manufacturer has at least one fine and inexpensive “kit” zoom lens. The more accurate modern update of the old “buy a 50mm prime, learn to shoot before you buy more lenses” is actually:

Get the kit zoom, and learn to shoot before you invest in more lenses.

(In fact, a logical extension of this advice is to shoot a lot with your kit zoom before getting sucked into buying… a 50mm prime!”)

Among those “other lenses” you can wait to acquire are primes. A person starting out with a cropped sensor DSLR almost certainly does not need to get an additional lens at first, any more than the beginning 35mm film SLR buyer needed to buy a set of three primes “back in the day.” It is true that the new photographer may eventually travel a photographic path on which owning a prime is useful, but before that happens he or she can shoot at this same focal length on the 18-55mm kit zoom and find out.

Secondly, and to repeat the obvious, a 50mm prime on a cropped sensor DSLR does not even provide the same functionality as the 50mm prime on the 35mm film SLR. IF you accept the notion that shooting a prime is important at first—though I emphatically do not—it would not be a 50mm prime, but the angle-of-view equivalent for a cropped sensor camera. This would be a roughly 31mm lens for a 1.6x crop factor body. (If this were not the case, 80mm would have been the “normal” prime FL on those early film cameras. In short, it wasn’t.)

So, start out with kit zoom that is available for your new DSLR. Shoot a lot before you start buying a bunch of other lenses. See what happens. If it turns out that the kit lens really limits your photography, you’ll figure that out based on your experience with this lens – and you’ll also begin to more clearly understand the things that you might need in order to overcome any such limitations. Your interests and needs are likely to evolve in ways that you cannot accurately anticipate until you do a lot of shooting – a task for which the kit lens is perfectly suited.

As you do this, one of several things might happen. A very large percentage of those who start with the kit lens find that it is really all the lens they need, and they do not get anything else. Others discover that the kit lens works well but that perhaps they want more “reach” for some subjects, at which point they look for a suitable longer focal length lens. Others might discover that they need something wider. Yet another photographer might discover that he/she is shooting a lot at one particular focal length, needs a larger maximum aperture, and needs a smaller camera/lens package – in which case a prime at that favored focal length might be useful. And there are many other possibilities that I can’t list here.

There’s always time for that prime later on if you discover you need it. I’m betting that most beginners won’t, but that those who do will figure it out soon enough and make a much smarter decision by waiting.

(Note of clarification for those who may read too quickly: A few people have misconstrued this article as being anti-prime or suggesting that there is something wrong with a 50mm lens. A more careful reading of the article will confirm that this is not the case. The context is entirely about the beginning photographers getting his/her first DSLR. Depending upon what sort of photography one eventually ends up doing, primes including the 50mm focal length may turn out to be very useful. As a matter of fact, I own more primes than zooms… though I do use the zooms more than the primes. That is probably a subject for another article. ;-)

This article is part of my Photographic Myths and Platitudes series.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books and Amazon.
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Commentary, Equipment, Ideas, Technique

Thoughts About ‘Backup Cameras’

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Recently I read a post in a photography forum in which a poster asked for advice concerning selection of a back-up camera body. If you do a lot of photography, eventually you will have gear fail on you. The last time this happened to me, my EOS 5D developed a shutter problem with no prior warning. In the middle of a night photography shoot the camera simply stopped working. I had no backup camera at that point, so my shoot was over – after driving nearly two hours to the location and making two exposures I packed up and drove two hours back home. If you shoot in remote locations, as I often do, or if you find yourself in other situations in which being unable to shoot isn’t an option, you need a backup camera strategy. (You might also want to consider how you would deal with a lens failure, too, though there are more ways to work around that possibility if you usually carry more than one lens.)

Rather than re-writing the whole thing, what follows is the text of my reply to that forum poster – with just a few contextual edits here and there. Note that I refer to Canon products, since that is what I use, but that equivalents from other manufacturers could replace those I mention.
(The original poster’s message/question is not included here, but he was essentially musing about whether to use an existing camera as a “backup” body, buy a second copy of one of his current cameras, or use some other strategy.)

I wrote, more or less…

This gets at what I regard as the primary question here: “What is the role of the back-up camera in the [your] shooting?”

The term “backup camera” can mean different things to different people. Continue reading Thoughts About ‘Backup Cameras’ →

Deals and Sales, Equipment

Canon EOS 5D Mark III 24-105mm Lens Kit Back in Stock at B&H

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I see that the Canon EOS 5D Mark III Digital Camera Kit with Canon 24-105mm f/4L IS USM AF Lens is back in stock at site-sponsor B&H Photo. The camera was recently announced, but initially was very hard to find – and then became virtually impossible to find while Canon was dealing with some inevitable first-batch issues. But it sounds like those issues have now been resolved, and the camera is again becoming available.

The 5D3 is in some ways very similar to the previous model, the 5D2. The MP count is only very slightly higher – and the small increase won’t have any practical effect on still photographs. Whether a full-frame DSLR has 21MP or 22MP, in the hands of a skillful photographer it will be capable of producing photographs that can be printed quite large. The 5D3 does build in the 5D2 and it offers real improvements – to mention two, the new camera has an upgraded auto-focus system and a significantly higher frame rate. Features like these expand the camera’s useful to encompass a wider range of photographic subjects and situations.

I use the 24-105mm f/4 L IS zoom that is include in this bundle. For most people looking for a first lens for this camera, the 24-105 is likely to be the best option. It provides excellent image quality, image-stabilization, and a usefully large focal-length range. For many types of photography it can be sufficient all by itself.

If you have been waiting for this Canon EOS 5D Mark III Digital Camera Kit, you may want to act quickly – B&H reports that the current stock is limited.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
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Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Equipment, News

Canon EOS 5D Mark III Digital Camera – First Thoughts

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As a photographer who uses the previous Canon EOS 5D II, I have been watching the news leading up to this week’s announcement of the Canon EOS 5D Mark III. The 5D series has been notable for providing top-notch image quality by means of a full frame sensor at a price point that, when the 5D was first introduced, was  a major breakthrough. Since that time, the 5D cameras have continued to provide excellent value and, more important, great image quality for Canon photographers doing work that benefits from the full frame sensors.

I won’t recount the whole list of camera specifications here, but I would like to comment on some highlights and their implications:

  • 22.3 megapixel full frame sensor – In light of Nikon’s recent announcement of the 36MP D800 at about $3000, some who are interested in the greatest possibly sensor resolution were hoping for something comparable in the 5D3, so let me deal with the sensor right off the bat. While the 5D3 increases the MP count by roughly 1MP, this difference is essentially negligible when it comes to image resolution, so for all intents and purposes the 5D3 supplies the same resolution as the 5D2. Time will tell whether or not there are other significant differences in the quality of images captured at this resolution, but those who were waiting for a 5D3 primarily because they wanted to upgrade from a 5D2 to a camera with greater resolution may be disappointed. It appears that Canon focused its efforts elsewhere with the 5D3. To be fair, that “elsewhere” includes some pretty compelling improvements in other areas, and the fact is that 22MP produces truly excellent resolution – for example, making making excellent 20″ x 30″ prints.
  • ISO 100-25600 (extended range to ISO 50 and ISO 102400) – The continual improvement in the performance of DSLRs at higher ISO values is, in many ways, revolutionizing SLR photography. It was only a decade or less ago when the idea of shooting with any level of quality at an ISO above 100,000 would have been thought ludicrous – yet, here we are! You are not going to shoot at that ISO for typical photography, but this camera does continue to push the boundaries of high ISO that you can use. This makes it possible do do things that were extremely difficult or even impossible a few years ago: doing nighttime street photography, shooting action subjects like wildlife and sports in very low light, shooting indoors without flash, relying less on expensive large-aperture primes, and so forth.
  • 61-point autofocus system with 41 cross-type points and 5 dual diagonal AF points – As fine as the 5D2 is as a photograph producing system, its AF system was never anything to crow about. It was (and is) functional and effective, but hardly state of the art. However, in the 5D3, Canon seems to have addressed this concern, giving the camera a much improved set of AF features that should please those who want to use it for photographing moving subjects, and make the camera significantly more capable for photographing in low light and for shooting wildlife, sports, and similar.
  • Optimized metering system – The description sounds interesting… but, in my view, the metering system of the 5D2 was not particularly weak. I’ll chalk this one up to useful and interesting increment improvement until I hear otherwise.
  • Up to 6 frames-per-second continuous shooting (“burst mode”) – The improvements here are two-fold. First, the continuous shooting rate has been increase from slightly less than 4 fps on the 5D2 (not much different from the older 5D) to 6 fps. While some may point out that even faster frame rates are available on cameras optimized for such shooting, 6fps is actually pretty darn fast and will be quite good for almost all users. Second, and perhaps at least as important, the buffer depth has been improved. If I read the specifications correctly, the 5D3 can capture up to 18 raw format frames  at 6 fps. That is really, really great news from my perspective. The older versions not only worked more slowly but their buffers filled much more quickly, at which point the continuous mode frame rate dropped to an almost unusable rate. For this reason, we might have chosen to switch to the jpg mode in the past – but with the ability to shoot 18 frames of raw quality in burst mode… I would be a very happy photographer, indeed!
  • High Dynamic Range (HDR) and multiple exposure modes – I’ll put these in the category of “may be interesting or even compelling” to some photographers. The inclusion of features designed for capturing HDR images is not unexpected, since there are many situations in which HDR techniques can be used to either produce the trademark “HDR effect” or for more subtle effects that improve photographs of scenes with extremely large dynamic range. The multiple exposure mode is an interesting thing in a few ways. For one, it returns a capability to SLR cameras that was lost for the most part when we left film behind.
  • Improved HD video – I’m not a “video guy,” so I don’t have a lot to say about this one. However, people I know who are focused on using DSLRs to produce video tell me that the improvements to the video specifications are significant and welcome. A simple bottom line might be that if you are among those who were excited by the ability to use your SLR lenses and the larger sensor of the 5D2 to make video, then you will likely be very pleased by the 5D3.
  • Dual CF/SD card – We have previously seen the inclusion of dual CF and SD memory card slots in high-end DSLR bodies, and it is good to see this feature added to the 5D3. There are several reasons to like this. Many DSLR photographers already own quantities of CF cards and don’t want to give up the ability to use them – who wants to have to use different card formats for different cameras? So a photographer using two bodies – not that uncommon – will be able to move cards between them with less worry about format compatibility. In addition, the smaller SD cards are becoming much more common. For example, a number of laptops now come with built-in SD card slots, eliminating the need for an external card reader. On top of that, if you use both types of cards in the camera you can record different formats on each card, make an in-camera backup copy of your photographs for safekeeping, or have the camera automatically switch from one card to another when the first card is full.

Pre-order Canon EOS 5D Mark III DSLR

I’ll end by considering a few basic questions that various photographers might be asking:
  • “I have a 5D. Should I upgrade?” Unless the cost of the newer camera is an impediment, I think that the 5D3 is a very worthy upgrade from the original 5D. The difference between 12MP and 22MP is significant if you are producing large, high quality prints. Even more than that, the functional improvements are significant. They are not limited to those listed above but include a number of features missing from the older 5D: live view mode, video, better high ISO performance, the improved AF system, and more.
  • “I have a cropped sensor camera. Should I upgrade? The answer here is a bit trickier and it depends a lot on your needs and your circumstances. If you are mostly sharing your photographs electronically, you are getting fine quality images from your current camera, and it is a recent enough model that it includes most of the newer features, there may not be a great reason for you to upgrade. On the other hand, if you are the sort of shooter who will benefit from the full frame sensor, this could be a great time to make your move to a 5D3.
  • “I have a 5D2. Should I upgrade?”  This is a tough one, and I think it depends on why you want to upgrade and what benefits you are looking for in a newer camera. If you mostly shoot from the tripod and are largely happy with the overall performance of your 5D2, then upgrading to the 5D3 may or may not be worth it. There are situations in which it might be a more attractive idea. For example, if you tend to move to the newest model and keep the previous model as your backup/second camera, you might end up with a 5D2 and a 5D3, both with very similar image quality – and that could be a good thing. Or if you have a 5D2 and like it, but really feel that you need the improved burst mode and AF features of the 5D3, the upgrade could be more attractive to you.
  • “I wanted a higher MP count 5D-series camera!” – OK, that’s not a question. But I certainly have heard the concern among photographers who had been anticipating a camera with a 30+MP sensor, especially after Nikon introduced the 36MP D800. This is a bigger topic than I’ll take on in its entirety right here, but I do have a few initial thoughts. First, do you really need more than 22 MP? If you think so mainly because “more is always better,” you may not. As I mentioned earlier, I can reliably produce really excellent 20″ x 30″ prints from the 21MP 5D2. Are your needs greater than mine? Second, while I have no inside information, I’m pretty certain that the 5D3 will not be the last camera that Canon produces nor will 22MP be the highest MP sensor that they produce…

So, final verdict? Well, it may be too soon for a final verdict since we don’t actually have the camera yet! But a few generalizations seem possible. The camera will produce excellent image quality – more than enough for virtually all DSLR photographers. The improvements in ISO, burst mode, AF, video, and more seem to be significant and compelling. I think it is going to be a very successful camera.

Please feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts or questions.

(If you find my reviews useful in making your purchase decisions, please consider purchasing via links on this site from site-sponsor B&H Photo. The following links go to a pre-order page at B&H.)

Preorder the 5D3 from site affiliate B&H:
Canon EOS 5D Mark III Digital Camera (Body Only)
Canon EOS 5D Mark III Digital Camera Kit with Canon 24-105mm f/4L IS USM AF Lens 

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer whose subjects include the Pacific coast, redwood forests, central California oak/grasslands, the Sierra Nevada, California deserts, urban landscapes, night photography, and more.
Blog | About | Flickr | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | 500px.com | LinkedIn | Email

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.