street with a 50...aarrrrrghhhh!

[Todd.Hanz]

With the RFF contest rules being set in stone, just wondering how many folks are having a hard time using 50mm on the street.

I find a good number of my frames have people with missing feet, tops of heads, half bodies, etc (It'll take three or four frames just to make one person 🙂 ).
With a 50 hip shooting is out of the question for me, I tried that the other day and ended up with a brick, part of a trash can and something that looked like a shoe.

How you doing?



(BTW, this is not an attempt to discuss what is "normal" when it comes to focal length, that's been done to death already)


Todd

 

[RML]

Todd, lift it to your eye and check what's in the VF! 😛

BTW, I don't mind people shots with partial bodies in it. Especially people's lower parts are usually nothing to look at. Might as well leave it out. 🙂

 

[varjag]

I don't hip shoot, and 50 along with 35 is my favorite focal, so am lucky in this regard.

 

[Stephanie Brim]

A 50mm is my lens of choice. It's what I started with and it's what I'm comfortable with. When I bought my SLR I was bound and determined to get a lens that didn't suck, so I could only afford one. I ended up getting a Nikkor 50mm/1.4 AI for $125 and used that to take every photo I actually have up right now.

I think that if you limit yourself to only using the lens for a complete month (or the entire time we're working on this contest) and shooting at least a couple rolls a week with it, you'll see better results. It just takes practice.

I know that I've shown these photos here before, but I figure that it may help put at ease those who are frustrated with the lens. At first you do end up thinking "I can't get *anything* in this frame", but then you realize that you get just enough.

 

[BrianPhotog]

My favorite focal length is 35 so I'm having a HORRIBLE time of it...and it's GREAT! I'm actually developing a distinctly different compositional style being forced to use 50 and I love it. The "adjustment" process is maturing my creativity 🙂

 

[wlewisiii]

I'm one of the lucky ones as well since the 50 has always been my prefered focal length. I have a difficult time composing with wider lenses - even a 35 gives me fits at times - so for me, this is a plus.

OTOH, once April comes around I should spend it with the J-12 only and then maybe May only using the 90/4 Elmar...

William

 

[JoeFriday]

I think the 50mm lens makes you a better photographer because it forces you to exclude things.. it's a whole different ballgame compared to 35mm where framing is more general

but a 50mm perspective makes you consider the effect of different angles and selecting the main focal point.. that's the part about street photography that I find most interesting

 

[Todd.Hanz]

You all are probably right, I just need to suck it up and shoot more frames, even though it feels like I'm looking at the world through a toilet paper tube 😀

Todd

 

[JoeFriday]

You all are probably right, I just need to suck it up and shoot more frames, even though it feels like I'm looking at the world through a toilet paper tube 😀

Todd

that will also help.. take a toilet paper tube and walk around with that stuck to your eye for a few days

 

[taffer]

Haha, at last I finished a roll today on the Bessa-T with the 50 Summitar, only that I discovered too late that I left the 50 finder at home 😀

And on some shots I forgot to fully extend the summitar 😛

Isn't that a complete success !? 😀

 

[kbg32]

I've never liked 50s. They never fit my view of the world. Too narrow. Too flat. For me, they are good choice for portraits. Thank goodness the only "normal" lens I own for rf, is the 45 for the Contax G2. Good but not great.

 

[Flyfisher Tom]

Todd,

Try using the 50 from a nontraditional angle, like shooting from low to the ground and up. It gives you more coverage (or at least the impression of it, similar to a wideangle ). In the end, it is just a matter of using it enough to get a familiarity with it. I've been forcing myself to shoot with a 90mm the last month just to know its characteristics. You'll get it before you know it.

 

[zburch]

Look at your contact sheets again. I bet there are some interesting shots in there. You don't need a full body shot to have an interesting photo. Often times quite the contrary. Even if all you catch is an eye, or the corner of a mouth. lots of things can be interesting that aren't so "literal" . Check out the images under the "Decisivie Moment" for Henri Cartier Bresson on the magnum site:

http://www.magnumphotos.com/c/htm/TreePf_MAG.aspx?Stat=Photographers_Portfolio&E=29YL53IQ1W7

You will notice that a lot of his images have feet cut off and partial bodies.

Another site that I really love that will get you in the mood for shooting on the street is:

http://www.nonphotography.com/


Also check out Robert Franks work. Here is a link: http://m2.aol.com/UvGotMail/frank/frank.html


I primarily shoot with 50mm. It forces me to pay attention and cuts out a lot of extraneous stuff.

Amy
www.amybphoto.com

 

[Buttons]

I can understand the difficulties if youre not use to a certain focal lenght.

I have used standard lenses all my life (95% of the time), 50mm with 35 and 80mm with 6x6. I have a 28mm which I like, but simply cannot use, the results are far from what I expect. I have now bought a 35mm, which is a bit closer to 50 as the 28 hoping that it makes a difference.

On the other hand whilst using the 50mm I sometimes want, think I need something wider .... and when I do use something wider, like the 28 it never comes out the way I think it would of.....

Tja .... each to his own.

 

[zburch]

Todd,

Not to bombard you with links, but I was just looking at HCB's work from "L'Amerique"...might help too. Some beautiful shots (as would be expected from a master🙂

http://www.magnumphotos.com/c/htm/F...tfolio_DocThumb&V=CDocT&E=2TYRYD1DQW9D&DT=ALB

Amy
www.amybphoto.com

 

[JoeFriday]

often the confining nature of the 50mm works to your advantage.. omitting something that people expect to see can draw people in, and leaves something to the imagination

here's a shot that I found on flickr that I think explains what I mean.. it's a favorite of mine because it's not obvious what's going on, but once you look 'into' the image you start to see what's happening

 

[Flyfisher Tom]

I don't know Brett, the subject looks a little wooden ;-)

 

[JoeFriday]

I just think it's cute how the girl is laughing so much she's gotten horse

 

[kaiyen]

Yeah, and being stuck with just a 50? Want some cheese with your equine?

Get it? Equine? Whine? 🙂

I'm totally kidding about the whining part. It's just the best really bad pun I could think of. I certainly think it's very educational and forcefully creative to restrict one to a normal lens. But it's also restrictive, certainly.

allan

 

[RayPA]

We can go round and round 😉 with the puns associated with this image, but the point of this thread is the restrictive nature of the 50mm focal length. I find that the 50 forces me to slow down and consider the composition. I find my self getting into positions similar to Sockeye's avatar, or that guy in Doug's photo.