Comments on: Why I love primes.

By: on limitations as a creative tool - Ed Z Studios

on limitations as a creative tool - Ed Z Studios — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 19:56:25 +0000

[...] And I think that much as Mike is saying – a great way to move past these hurdles, is to actually impose limitations on ones own work. Limitations force us to figure things out. They don’t allow us to rely on crutches. The make us use skill to compensate for limits. And of course, no one is saying you have to limit yourself forever, but it can be a valuable teaching tool. On this very blog, I’ve espoused taping up your zoom to a single focal length to improve your compositional skill…. [...]

By: F/1.0 » Blog Archive » Taking fewer pictures.

F/1.0 » Blog Archive » Taking fewer pictures. — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 17:38:31 +0000

[...] more carefully and considering each shot – making it count. Much like my old post about why I love prime lenses, the principle is the same – imposing a creative restriction on your photography forces you to [...]

By: F/1.0 » Article » I take better pictures with primes.

F/1.0 » Article » I take better pictures with primes. — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 15:55:53 +0000

[...] I mentioned in my previous article I am a devotee of the humble fixed focal length lens, AKA [...]

By: Ed Z

Ed Z — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 18:44:05 +0000

I have always loved the “fast 50″ prime, which is pretty much the main downside of the current crop of APS-C sensor dslrs (to me at least). The 75mm equivalent focal length is just too long for my “general shooting” preferences. Luckily the 35mm f/2 fits the bill perfectly as a ~52mm equivalent. (although not as fast as the 1.4)

I also find a 28-35mm prime incredibly versatile for a wide range of shooting, so you might want to look at something in the 20-24mm range (assuming you are using a crop-sensor camera).

By: Ron C

Ron C — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 00:53:15 +0000

I could not agree more. I have a tiny kit, and my only prime is the 50mm, but using it alone for a day or two really sharpens your composition skills. I actually LIKE having to move my feet instead of turning a zoom, it makes me think much more about what I am doing, like your biking analogy. And, whereas when I first got into photography and I wanted were the super long zooms, my wish list now consist of primes, primes, and more primes.

By: Ed Z

Ed Z — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 17:26:30 +0000

Thanks Jenny, Ryan

and yeah, I guess my love of primes may have had something to do with the blog name. Never really thought about it that way…

personally I do probably 90% of my photography with either a 21mm or 35mm prime (35 and 50mm equiv) the rest is done either with my 50-200 zoom (for when I need reach) or a specialized lens for a specific task (macro etc…)

By: Jenny

Jenny — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 17:09:57 +0000

Thank you for the analogy – it’s helpful. This article makes me want to spend more time “learning” the primes I have.

By: rygood

rygood — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 16:59:04 +0000

Great post, good analogy. I’d have never guessed you were a prime guy with a blog called f/1.0 .

By: photographyVoter.com

photographyVoter.com — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 23:36:41 +0000

Why I love primes….

Yes primes have great image quality, and fast glass but to me the appeal goes beyond that… why I love primes……