If I had to name just one, I would take my Zeiss 50P. But whatever lens I have with me become my walkabout, anywhere between 28mm and 85mm. Just a matter of getting used to that FL, and the walk can begin...
In general, I'd follow Jim's advice about the 24-105L (or 15-85 IS in crop format).
For light weight on full frame, 35mm is hard to beat for a single focal length. But as Michael says, there is no single right lens or answer to your question.
Sometimes it is fun to just grab an interesting lens and make the best of it, challenging yourself to make new opportunities.
I would say, get a 28/2 or 35/1.4 ( from Zeiss ). They might not be light weight, but you only take one lens with you, so it should be not such a big problem. At least that was what I had for FF ( the 28 90% of the time I think ). This is where using alt on crop starts to be annoying...
For me it really varies by day. Some times I go out with just a normal (which in my case is a 25mm f/1.4 on my GX1 or GH2), other times I take a longer lens, other times a wider one. The lens I've had the most fun out with recently has been popping my Olympus 12/2 (24mm equiv) on my GX1. Tiny, great image quality and I like that focal length. Quite wide, but not TOO wide.
I'm with Kent - Oly 24 f2.8 or 28 f3.5. I haven't had an opportunity to shoot the 28 on 5DII (just acquired it), but did an interior shoot with the 24. Wow!
mpmendenhall wrote:
For short walkarounds, I don't personally have a "right" lens or focal length. Instead, I grab something off my lens heap that I feel I haven't used recently enough (or just have the urge to try), 16 to 560mm focal length range full frame. I don't fret about missing all the shots that I could have taken with a different lens, because I always end up finding plenty of things to do with what I have. I like the feeling when my brain warms up and I start seeing the world in a different way specific to the lens I'm using. This process also helps me out a lot for when I'm going on a longer or more specific trip and want to assemble a multi-lens kit, because I know better what to expect from each lens....Show more →
After reading the results so far tells me why I can`t always decide what to take because there is so much choice and different moods etc means a different lens.
I`ve been sticking the different lenses on the camera and walking around and to be quite honest my real favourite around the mid focal length is the Leica 50 f2 for sheer IQ and the feel but I think for just that bit of extra width and weight the 40mm f2 Voigtlander Ultron 11 will probably win the day. It` s a bit more quirky to use and I had to fit a cable tie around the aperture ring because it falls so close to the body and that tie gives you something to locate (just like some of the early Leica M series lenses) and it does come complete with a neat screw in close up filter. Being f2 it`s easy to focus and the IQ is more or less on par with the Sumicron with the corners just a tad behind but by f11 they are fairly well the same apart from focal length.
Thanks all for replying it makes for good reading.
If I had to own only one lens it would be Zeiss 50/2 MP. I can stitch it for panoramas, use it for every day documentary photos, macro photography and also do reasonably pleasing close up portraits.
). They might not be light weight, but you only take one lens with you, so it should be not such a big problem. At least that was what I had for FF ( the 28 90% of the time I think ). This is where using alt on crop starts to be annoying...