a city lens?

[back alley]

if i were to narrow down my main preference of subject i would say that i'm a city kid through and through. i like walking the streets and seeing what i might find to shoot. i like city vignettes, tall buildings and the sun's reflections on big city windows. i like people walking, doing their business and just meandering about.
with this in mind i started to think about which focal length might be considered a 'city' lens? i know the choice would not be universal as we all see things differently but i am curious to hear what others might have to say.
do you think there is a city lens?

 

[Gerry M]

My pattern follows yours very closely. For Fuji X, my choice is the 28/2.8. For film bodies it is 35 or 40mm.

 

[Axel]

Fifty or equivalent on crops.
The 18-55 F2.8-4 R LM OIS is also a great city lens for Fujis.

 

[Glenn2]

For me it tends to be on the wide side, for western cities something around 35mm. On the other hand when I’ve travelled in crowded Asian cities it’s been 21mm. Under those conditions I like getting close to the subject to avoid the intervening extraneous bodies. I seldom do tight crop portraits and want to show the person in their environment.

 

[rfaspen]

Kind of like what Glenn2 said: My city lens varies with the city, day, and mood (and ?). I don't know how some people can use just one lens (focal length) only. Sure, a favorite lens used most often, but one lens exclusively doesn't work with my brain.

That said, my city lenses (35mm film and FF digital) are 35, 50, and 21. Only challenge is changing lenses quickly when situation/mood/whatever prompts it.

On a Leica, I suppose the tri-elmar would fit well enough (28, 35, 50). On other bodies, I guess a zoom covering those focal lengths (or equivalents) is a good option -- provided its a high performing zoom.

 

[oftheherd]

Kind of like what Glenn2 said: My city lens varies with the city, day, and mood (and ?). I don't know how some people can use just one lens (focal length) only. Sure, a favorite lens used most often, but one lens exclusively doesn't work with my brain.

That said, my city lenses (35mm film and FF digital) are 35, 50, and 21. Only challenge is changing lenses quickly when situation/mood/whatever prompts it.

On a Leica, I suppose the tri-elmar would fit well enough (28, 35, 50). On other bodies, I guess a zoom covering those focal lengths (or equivalents) is a good option -- provided its a high performing zoom.

I agree that for me, one lens doesn't do it. For me, in 35mm film, I like wide most of the time, but have a place for 50mm and short tele. I have three zooms in C/Y mount, from 18mm to 150mm. Luckily they are pretty good lenses. Oh, the 50mm f/1.4 Contax is happy in that bag as well.

If I'm going prime with my Fujica ST 901, it would probably be my 200mm with macro, my 50mm f/1.4 Fujinon, and either my 18mm or 24mm lenses.

I began with "normal" lenses in my photography, and haven't forgotten how I got some really nice photos. If I were only allowed one lens, it would probably be 50mm. I used to use my feet to "zoom: and haven't forgotten how.

 

[xayraa33]

That Canon 22mm lens for your Canon EOS M gave you great results in the past, Joe.

Your photo examples taken with that lens still impress me to this day.

 

[Dogman]

I don't think you can designate one focal length to use for every instance and environment and subject.

In a city crowd, a 28mm perspective is about right for people on the street (a type of photography that seems popular these days but it's something I find pretty boring overall). Garry Winogrand seems to epitomize the best of this type of photography to me. He worked close in to his subjects, within a crowd many times, and his choice of a wide lens was a wise one.

But 28mm is not a universal focal length in my opinion. It's great for what it is but it's a smidge too wide for those times when the environment is a little more open and you want to show more detail and avoid perspective distortion. A 35mm or 50mm perspective might suit the situation better here.

Personally, I wouldn't want to be without either a 35mm or 50mm focal length perspective. Or a wider one either, for that matter. But I'm not a big city street shooter. I like small towns and open spaces. And I don't mind using 2-3 camera bodies with different lenses attached.

 

[BillBingham2]

If I had to pick only one it would be 25 (35mmFF EVF).

Perhaps it's a good day and I could add another it would be a moderate telephoto, depending upon the camera it would be either an 85 or a 105. A 50mm would be ok, but I like long jumps between primes.

B2 (;->

 

[back alley]

That Canon 22mm lens for your Canon EOS M gave you great results in the past, Joe.

Your photo examples taken with that lens still impress me to this day.

i did like that combo...need to revisit the album on flickr for another look.
and thanks for the kind words.

 

[narsuitus]

When shooting city subjects, it depends on which camera I am using.

Nikon 35mm SLR film camera
35mm f/1.4 flanked by 24mm f/2 and 85mm f/1.8

Leica 35mm rangefinder film camera
35mm f/1.4 flanked by 21mm f/1.4 and 90mm f/2

Contax 35mm rangefinder film camera
45mm f/2 flanked by 21mm f/2.8 and 90mm f/2.8

Fuji X-Pro APS-C digital mirrorless
23mm f/1.4 flanked by 16mm f/1.4 and 56mm f/1.2

Nikon APS-C digital SLR
50mm f/1.4 auto focus flanked by 85mm f/1.4 auto focus and 14mm f/2.8 auto focus

 

[back alley]

When shooting city subjects, it depends on which camera I am using.

Nikon 35mm SLR film camera
35mm f/1.4 flanked by 24mm f/2 and 85mm f/1.8

Leica 35mm rangefinder film camera
35mm f/1.4 flanked by 21mm f/1.4 and 90mm f/2

Contax 35mm rangefinder film camera
45mm f/2 flanked by 21mm f/2.8 and 90mm f/2.8

Fuji X-Pro APS-C digital mirrorless
23mm f/1.4 flanked by 16mm f/1.4 and 56mm f/1.2

Nikon APS-C digital SLR
50mm f/1.4 auto focus flanked by 85mm f/1.4 auto focus and 14mm f/2.8 auto focus

that fuji set up is a favourite of mine also...now if i could just rid myself of the arthritis in my hips, shoulders and hands i'd be laughing.

 

[Godfrey]

I walk around mostly with the Leica M. Caprice of the moment dictates what lens I put on it, but the 50 and 35 win most of the time.

 

[Yokosuka Mike]

For city life my tendency is to reach for a wide (and I often do) but when I force myself to use a 50mm I get better results.

Voigtlander 50mm f1.1 Nokton VM lens , Sony A7II

All the best,
Mike

 

[Ko.Fe.]

I started with 50mm lens in the city, but once I was able to get decent 35mm, I never looked back.
Now to me 50mm lens is then I'm in uptown or driving and it is empty.

Once I'm close to downtown and walking I just need to switch to 35mm. Because it is getting busy. Often it is my one and only lens for city and else.

I was trying 28mm because I enjoy GW photography... it is kind of not very far from 35, which is easier to get under reasonable price, yet with street build and compact size.
But 28mm is difficult for me to use with build-in frames or with entire VF.

I also used 24mm and it was weird focus length, I have to look in VF and trying to figure out how it actually frames. It was taking too long time. I was only OK with it for landscapes, cityscapes. I remember to carry on tripod and cable release for it!

And I'm more and more looking and recently tried 20mm focal length.
I'm finding it challenging and fascinating. First, VF not always needed, FOV feels just as I see it with both eyes.
Second, 20-21 mm lenses are available in different, but more less affordable variants.
Third, I already have Russar VF 🙂.

I like Lynn work with 21 and I have seen one youtube review of another 21 lens and it was very interesting work as well. Both photographers knows how to deal with distortions.

 

[Mcary]

Being more a landscape person I'd probable go with a 28mm on FF as that would allow me to shoot cityscapes and some street.

 

[Darthfeeble]

I keep trying the 35 on my Fujis but never seem to like what I see. I've tried the 23 with similar results. Over all the images that please me seem to come from the 18. I have a 28 that lives on my M9, a 21 that lives on my Epson and the 18 on the XE3. My only deviation is the 18-55 on the old XPro1.

 

[icebear]

I'd say if your want only one lens go for 35.
If two are an option take 50 for stronger portraits of people in their environment and a 25 for your tall buildings.
But you have how many lenses right now, 12? 😀

 

[Phil_F_NM]

These days it's a 28mm f/2.8 AiS Nikkor. This lens is killer and has a focusing range that almost makes it a macro if I need to get really close to something. On the Nikon FA this is a great combo shooting in program or aperture priority.

Phil Forrest

 

[peterm1]

While I accept that the majority will opt for a wide lens I still tend to err in favor of a longer one for maybe 80% of the time. Wide scenes do little for me in most cases and if I am wanting to capture buildings and skylines I mostly prefer to get in close - believing that an interesting detail tells more about a city than does yet another (predictable) wide scene of a skyline etc. I feel the same about many street photos of people. I prefer a long lens to isolate the background if possible and also to capture people candidly without me having to shove a camera in their faces which is intrusive and almost invariably ensures a different kind of photo than that which I would have really liked- i.e. a photo other than one where the subject is looking in my direction, wondering why someone is shoving a camera in their face. But that's me - I am sure many others would disagree with this analysis. (And I am sure many are better street shooters than I).

So my favoured lens is something like an 80-200mm f2.8 AF D (an intermediate option in cost between say a prime of some sort and the latest Nikkor in the new 70-200mm range which is expensive- MUCH). Alternatively, for MF shooters the older (and slower) 80-200mm F4 AI which is pretty cheap and very good and is a very good option. A cheaper alternative for AF shooters of Nikon gear is a 70-210mm f4-5.6 AF D. A good inexpensive lens that I take with me when on longer trips when there is a good deal of air travel - I used it a lot for Hong Kong for example as it is also smallish hence involves less hassle at airports with carry on baggage.

The only downside really is size / weight though the last two mentioned are not too bad in that respect.

If you were to ask me which prime lens I would carry as a "city lens" I would possibly make do with an 85mm f1.8 although for this purpose it is neither fish nor fowl and is not ideal for my style of shooting.

The truth though is that I can never limit myself to one lens. Even if only out for a day shoot I do like to have a wide prime in the say 24mm range for the few occasions that I do need one plus something like a 50mm f1.4 plus my big zoom on the camera.