What Lens do you use for Photography?

About one year ago I got the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM which has proven to be a great (and comparatively affordable) tool for taking doll portraits. However, on an APSC sensor it is very cropped in, so at home I barely have enough space to use it for full body shots - let alone group photos.

Therfore, I just recently picked up the Sigma 30mm f/1.4 DC HSM and I'm looking forward to play around with it over the coming days.

For my photo stories, I still rely on the versatility of my good old Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM. I usually have the aperture at f/7.1 or f/8 anyway (to get the whole scene in focus) so the slower base aperture is not really an issue.

 

2 hours ago, ChrisFhey said:

I've also been considering investing in a macro lens, as I feel my current lenses can't get close enough for close-ups.

I can recommend looking into macro rings (extension tubes). They are usually a much cheaper alternative to a dedicated macro lens and do the job just fine if you don't need magnification much larger than 1:1.

Edited August 19, 2022 by Tierparkzone

3 minutes ago, Tierparkzone said:

Therfore, I just recently picked up the Sigma 30mm f/1.4 DC HSM and I'm looking forward to play around with it over the coming days.

I agree. The 50mm on my crop sensor was too cramped for indoor use. The 35mm I had was just right. 👌

3 minutes ago, Tierparkzone said:

I can recommend looking into macro rings (extension tubes). They are usually a much cheaper alternative to a dedicated macro lens and do the job just fine if you don't need magnification much larger than 1:1.

I did not know this was a thing. I don't care for actual macro shots, but just close-up shots of my dolls so these would probably suit me just fine. Ta!

I love dreamy images with bokeh and lens flare, which I try to get in camera using my Canon Rebel T1I but will create the effect in Photoshop.

This process evolved as I worked on my graphic novel that features my bjds, The Takashima Extraction. The dolls are shot against a neutral background, extracted and layered onto background diaramas composited in Photoshop. My go to indoor lens is the discontinued Canon 50 mm 2.8 or Cacon standard kit lens (18-55 mm) when I need the whole doll in frame. The con to this setup is depth of field when 2 dolls interacting is one doll will be out of focus if they are not on the exact same plane. I figured out a workaround and recently learned the method is called focus stacking.

This image was an early test for Takashima, shot with the standard kit lens - off topic for this forum but I’m a bit obsessed with this project so the other dolls are being photographically neglected. 😂

When I take a doll outside, I experiment with Lensbaby Velvet 56, Composer Pro 2 with Soft Focus 2 and Sweet 50 optics. After reading this thread, I’ll break out my longer lenses for outdoor photography. This thread may have convinced me to get the Lensbaby Velvet 85 😉

I use the Canon EF-S 17-55 f2.8. It's a classic lens but mine has travelled widely (including 3 trips to Japan) and I don't know if it's that great anymore.

It has lovely bokeh (not overly apparent in this shot) but I feel the images are too soft and it doesn't take photos as good as my cameraphone. My camera body is very old now though.

I do also have a 60mm macro lens. It has gorgeous bokeh but the longer focal length means I have to stand further away from my girls, which can be an issue with outdoors shooting.

1 hour ago, Xiongmao said:

I use the Canon EF-S 17-55 f2.8. It's a classic lens but mine has travelled widely (including 3 trips to Japan) and I don't know if it's that great anymore.

It has lovely bokeh (not overly apparent in this shot) but I feel the images are too soft and it doesn't take photos as good as my cameraphone. My camera body is very old now though.

I do also have a 60mm macro lens. It has gorgeous bokeh but the longer focal length means I have to stand further away from my girls, which can be an issue with outdoors shooting.

Bokeh?

2 hours ago, Xiongmao said:

I use the Canon EF-S 17-55 f2.8. It's a classic lens but mine has travelled widely (including 3 trips to Japan) and I don't know if it's that great anymore.

It has lovely bokeh (not overly apparent in this shot) but I feel the images are too soft and it doesn't take photos as good as my cameraphone. My camera body is very old now though.

I used to own both those 2 lenses, and having owned various ILCs over the years, unless the equipment gets damaged or dirty, the performance doesn't change over time, and even a 10-15 year old DSLR should handily be beating a phone for web pics.

I can't tell what's up besides the images (and the other ones you just posted) looking soft, but I'd do some spot checks that the lens is working correctly by shooting newsprint to see if the lens is focusing correctly. Sometimes, the camera is focusing a bit too much in front or back, which can lead to a soft looking image.

Also check that the glass, both the front element and rear element are clean.

My main workhorse lens has been the Nikon DX35mm 1.8G that I got as a hop-up over my D3200's kit lens. When I moved over to a full frame Nikon it works to a degree with it, and has continued its service with the D610.

Since I knew the prime lens would work with the new camera, I decided to get a Tokina 16-28mm ultrawide to ship with it, which is.... amusing to say the least.

recently decided to treat myself with a few more pieces of glass namely a Nikon 50mm 1.8, and as an experiment a Sigma 70-300mm.

As a celebration I decided to do a test photo run of all the lenses I had with a semi-controlled enviroment and model, and using a D610 FX Full frame camera (please note the shooting distance change between the lenses to match the framing):

Nikon DX 35mm 1.8:

The DX35mm has been a real treat to use, the only drawback if you can call it is vignetting around the edges, since its not actually meant for a full frame camera. But for "artistic model photography" its actually a nice feature if you're a stubborn git like me who doesent want to photoshop stuff...

Nikon FX 50mm 1.8:

This is my first photo with the 50mm actually, and this probably will be my new go to lens, since it allows for a bit more movement between me and the dolls. and since it is actually meant for a full frame camera, the vignetting is gone compared to the DX35mm

Tokina SD16-28mm:

For the Tokina I had to take two different photos just to show how funky this lens can be, and I chose it partially by stumbling across a cinematographers experience in how different lenses work, and what kind of vibe you want them to express.

So the tokina in a "mild" setting at 28mm:

And a bit more "Claustrophobic inducing" setting at 16mm:

The Tokina's have a bit of a color feature in the optics, that shows here, and its a bit finicky to get the angle just right so the ultrawide nature of it doesent distort stuff I dont want distorted. Also its a heavy beastie, weighs more than the camera its attached to so my tripod had to be upgraded as an added bonus.

Sigma 70-300mm:

Again a first time experience and right away I need to say that the Sigma was a bit of an experiment purchase, since I had watched a few videos that had featured it and people were showcasing "macro" photography done with it, with a very shallow depth of field (or bokeh if you wish), but im not really experiencing this. oddly enough one video had a guy focusing on a plant from a meters distance, but the lens wouldnt focus in normal mode untill I was about two meters away.

What I am pleasently surprised about is how crisp you can make closeups with it, despite almost being in a different zip-code while taking the picture.

Deviating from the test angle setting, it does produce some soft depth of field effects:

And as a overall lens im not too mad at it either (Although the 2m focus distance needs some adjusting to...):

and finally in macro mode, where the lens oddly enough lets me get a little closer for focusing:

 

So thats my personal shoe-string budget glass collection.

Edited July 26, 2023 by finnleo

2009 NIKON D5000 with 18/55mm. Zoom Kit Lens;

 

On 5/12/2023 at 8:11 PM, Subaru said:

Bokeh?

It's a lovely word that describes the rings of light you see in the background of photos taken with SLR cameras.

I've had a look and I don't have any particularly magnificent examples with dolls in, but this one is quite good.

A couple of other forum members' photos used in the header for the site have amazing bokeh.

Bokeh is heavily dependent on what exact lens you're using (and many other factors) but it's generally easier to get the effect on outdoor photoshoots. The photo below was taken with my Canon EF-S 60mm macro lens. It's a beautiful lens for portraiture work due to the focal length and the stunning bokeh it produces. I don't use it that much for doll work though as you need to stand quite a long way away from them to fit them in the frame (and that's risky due to dogs and humans).

On 5/12/2023 at 12:11 PM, Subaru said:

Bokeh?

It's a loan word from Japan, but the Japanese is boke (ボケ) so you may know it that way.

Photo taken with the Sony ZV-E10's stock lens. It's an amazing camera and I might get some more lenses. The kit lens is pretty good though.

I thought my ancient Canon 550D had died but it still works with the macro lens. I've been using it again lately as it's much better for taking photos of OLED displays for my other YouTube channel.

6 hours ago, Xiongmao said:

I thought my ancient Canon 550D had died but it still works with the macro lens.

Maybe your EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 developed an aperture or IS issue? The lenses from that generation seem a bit prone to do that eventually. (Had to send in my EF-S 17-85 f/4-5.6 for aperture repair a few years ago. - They were designed around the same time.)

On that note, It looks like EOS R might be getting an RF-S 15-60 f/2.8 eventually. I'm somewhat excited for that.

 

7 hours ago, Xiongmao said:

I've been using it again lately as it's much better for taking photos of OLED displays

Sounds like interference between the electronic shutter and the display in the picture. Have you tried it with the ZV-E10 in mechanical shutter mode? You could also try with long shutter speeds 1/8th of a second or longer.

I had my EOS serviced in 2015 but they said they couldn't really do much for my 17-55 lens.

The camera is now my macro camera. The 60mm macro lens is really nice and I've never used it that much. It's now found a use for doing closeups of my electronics stuff.

Maybe I'll keep the other camera for doll work. It's just so convenient setting the focus point by pressing the screen.