How to shoot with 50mm lens?

reiki_

reiki_

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Hey guys.

Recently I got serious with this film developing business , I have olympus om-2n with a 50mm lens and a minox 35gt.
I do street with both , and the thing I have noticed is that the negatives from my om-2n seem cold and distanced like I'm not at all close to people I photograph even when it looks nice and all , it just doesn't "feel" right.

Maybe I'm just a more of a 35mm person.

Any comments/suggestions?
 
I think everyone has their own 'standard' lens dependant on their style. I can't really get along with 35mm I prefer the cleaner look of the 50mm, but I tend toward candid portraits with a 50mm. For scenes and street I'd the go to the 24mm. More than anything I think its habit of where you stand and what you expect to see through the viewfinder when you bring your camera to your eye, a small change in this can be surprisingly disconcerting.
 
I mostly use a 35mm and a 50mm for stuff I do on the street, though i find I get a better success ratio with the 50mm.

I don't think it matters what lens you use too much. If your 50mm shots feel distanced then get closer if you can. Wider lenses will exagerate any empty spaces in your composition so you'll need to get even closer with the 35mm.

Do you have any examples you can post in this thread or an online gallery here or somewhere?

It may just be that you get along better with another lens, most people have their faves.
 
It may also be that you feel distanced from your subject by the mirror blackout. Just a thought. On focal length, I'd not dream if 24mm on 35mm for street, yet I shoot 38mm on 66x44 (21mm equivalent) for street in MF. Go figure!

Cheers,

R.
 
example from minox (35mm lens):

3932049418_fb828288b4.jpg


I'll try to get some scans from 50mm today.
 
I took some photographs of a friend's teenage son bashing away on his drum kit today and arrived with basically all my OM lenses from 24mm to 85mm not being too sure what would work. I know I can shoot with a 50mm happily all day but suspected some 35mm stuff would be a good compliment to the 50mm shots ... not so!

Soon as I looked through the viewfinder with the 28mm mounted I realised what a great compliment the 28mm focal length was to the 50mm in this situation!

What I'm suggesting is what will seem right on the day can also change on the day ... I really believe that with an SLR you need at least four focal lengths to choose from ... and better still five!
 
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Sparrow said:
I tend to use wider lenses in narrower streets
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Yeah, I was kicking myself the other day, had the 28mm with me, but wanted the 21mm. Doesn't sound like much, but multiplied with 1,5 crop factor (R-D1) it amounts to a 33/34 vs 43mm difference. And in real life the difference seems to be even more. So now I've swapped for the 21mm, and have the 50/2.5 with me in my commuter bag.
 
For some reason 35 works for me on the RF camera and 28 on the SLR..
My plan is to have:

RF: 35 and 75
SLR: 28 and 50 or (even better) 24-40 Zoom

Since I love to travel light, I bring only one camera at time, and I bought a Domke F-5XB to carry my stuff..

Rob.
 
It’s the subjects’ feet I think; I worry about cutting them off, I was out in Manchester recently, and ended up using only 35 and 50 Manchester has nice wide streets and public areas. In Corfu old town’s cramped streets it’s 21 and 35 normally and sometimes even 12 and 21
 
Reiki,

There's nothing wrong with you. I find 35mm works for almost everything I shoot. it just suits my vision. From 10x8, 5x4, 6x7, 645, 35mm I just don't get along with the standard FL as a standard lens. I use them ocassionally and when I do it is the only one that will work, but it is not the FL that my eyes see the world through. The mild wide 35mm on 35mm, 65 on 6x7 (like a deep 35mm) or 110/90 (OK somewhat wider) on 5x4 suits me better. 35mm allows a sense of intimacy and involvement without being in youur face like 21. I often use 28 for street work, but only when I know I want to get into the thick of it!

I tend to use 50mm to frame a scene or to allow the composition I want from a particular vantage point, but I wont ever walk about with it at the ready. For some it is perfect, but for me not wide enough. Maybe I dont see well and get closer before i see a picture, hence needing the 35!
 
I tend to shoot with a 50mm lens most of the time. It allows you to feel as if you are closer (both literally and emotionally) with your subject. Once comfortable with it, you will be completely in love with its results!
 
I have never been able to like a 35mm lens on a 35mm camera. I think it had something to do with the first lenses I got. I got a 28mm first, then I got a 35mm with the 18mm I got. It just didn't seem worth it. With RF, I enjoyed my 65mm on my Super Press. It was the only thing I had to go wider than the 100mm. That is the equivalent of 35mm and 50mm. Many times I wanted wider though. With My Kiev, I like the 35mm as it is indeed wider than the 50mm. But when I look at the 28mm through the turret finder, I sure wish I had one.

I guess you just do with what you have towards what you want. But for a general lens, I prefer the 50mm. I can't say if I really like it, or just got used to it first. But I think it is the former. I am happy to walk around with a 50mm on my camera until I "see" a wide angle photo in my mind. I don't do street, that might be different for me.
 
reiki_ said:
Hey guys.

Recently I got serious with this film developing business , I have olympus om-2n with a 50mm lens and a minox 35gt.
I do street with both , and the thing I have noticed is that the negatives from my om-2n seem cold and distanced like I'm not at all close to people I photograph even when it looks nice and all , it just doesn't "feel" right.

Maybe I'm just a more of a 35mm person.

Any comments/suggestions?
Click to expand...

Yeah - get a 35mm lens. I feel the same way as you. The 50 is more of a short tele for me, getting more reach when I'm farther away from the subject.
 
Sunny Boaz said:
50mm is good for my kind of works. But 35mm is for SLR with 1.5 crop factor.
Click to expand...
I have the same idea with you. Great!
Glad to hear you're using this: I plan to keep it much more aggressively up-to-date than has been the case in the past, but don't hesitate to let me know if you find errors or need clarifications.:bang:
 
50mm is harder to shoot with, but the pictures have more "body". at least, that's the experience i've had from shooting a 50mm in the past, and shooting a 35mm currently.
 
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