Lens of the Month


Shooting with Primes


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By Damion Fearron


In a world full of options zoom lenses are a very convenient and helpful photography tool as we all know. They allow us the option of shooting at various focal lengths. Having that flexibility when using a zoom lens may make us feel a lot more comfortable, and safer when we’re out there taking photographs. I’d imagine that most of us started our photography journey with a simple kit lens, and I am sure it was used to take some of the best photos. However, I recommend committing to one focal length and trying a prime or fixed lens for better pictures and to add the extra creative touch to your photographs.

© Damion Fearron
Tamron 45mm VC USD f/5.0 at 1/60th sec ISO 100
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Prime lenses are different from zoom lenses of course. They only have one focal length. You can’t zoom in or out. You have one viewing distance, and that’s it. Because of this they usually have faster apertures, and they are usually lighter than a zoom lens. You’ll also learn how to create new effects using the wider apertures that are readily available. They are usually sharper from corner to corner and can be a versatile lens that works great for portrait, close up and macro photography. Discover the magical world of prime lenses.

Prime lenses are the best lenses to use for practice. Prime lenses are also a great place for any skill level photographer to experiment. These lenses force you into a new and unfamiliar place. They force you to be more creative in situations where you may think that you will not be able to. They force you to evaluate the scene and dissect it. They force your creativity by opening up a different world to perspective. You can do many things with a prime lens that you may not be able to do with a zoom lens.

© Damion Fearron
Tamron 45mm VC USD f/5.0
Click image to view larger

The advantages of being able to shoot at a fast/wide-open aperture also allows the shooter a shallower depth of field. Depth of field (DOF) is the distance between the foreground, subject, and background. Shooting wide-open gives a narrow DOF, isolating the subject from its surroundings in terms of sharpness and clarity. The closer the lens is to the subject, the softer the foreground/background will become.

© Damion Fearron
Tamron 45mm VC USD f/1.8 at 1/60th sec ISO 100
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For environmental and editorial work, a prime lens like the Tamron 35mm or 45mm would be the ideal focal lengths of choice. They are versatile and interpret the scene in a way similar to how your eye perceives it. They are ideal for shooting both street photography and interiors since there is minimal distortion toward the edges of the frame and are wide enough to take in the context of a scene.

© Damion Fearron
Tamron 45mm VC USD f/4.0 at 1/1000 sec
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Tips for shooting with primes.

Dress comfortably- with prime lenses, instead of zooming with your hand, you will zoom with your feet, so wear comfortable shoes!
Learn to step back from your subject to add context- after a while, you’ll be able to pre-visualize the image before you put your camera to your eye.
Learn to compose the scene that is in front of you- without the temptation to zoom, you’ll become more adventurous with your framing.
Shoot at a fast/wide-open aperture- which also allows a shallow depth of field.
Play with Depth of field- (DOF) isolate the subject(s) from its surroundings in terms of sharpness and clarity.
Get close to your subject- to isolate it from a distracting background.
Use a high shutter speed- one of the benefits of being able to use low aperture numbers such as f1.8, is that it enables you to use faster shutter speeds.
Master the light- since prime lenses are so sharp you can create long exposure images with nice blurred movement, but with tack-sharp details of static objects.
Learn about focus- the depth of field is so narrow when using a low aperture, it's better to know exactly where you are focusing. Don’t be afraid to manual focus. This way you will get exactly what you want in focus.

At least one prime lens should be in your bag at all times. I think the lineup of Tamron prime lenses would be the obvious choice.

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