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Archive 2011 · Street photography, which lens?

Gregory.Rotter
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p.2 #1 · p.2 #1 · Street photography, which lens?

Those of you who keep mentioning 35mm, lets see some shots pls. Oh, and no shots from the hip btw, or where you've got the subjects back to you.

Feb 20, 2011 at 05:53 PM

mshi
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p.2 #2 · p.2 #2 · Street photography, which lens?

here is one by Henri Cartier-Bresson,


	http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_HJW1mwBVzOU/TMpnBaSyJYI/AAAAAAAAESo/7Nj_L8QmKZM/s1600/1.+SFMOMA_Cartier+Bresson_Juvisy_1938.jpg

Feb 20, 2011 at 05:58 PM

h00ligan
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p.2 #3 · p.2 #3 · Street photography, which lens?

I'm working on getting better.. but I do use 35mm and get in close.. and I have had to deal with people who didn't care for it. I think it creates a more interesting shot. That said, I'm a 6'5", mid 30's male (viewed with suspicion when out alone in phoenix).. and honestly I have a much harder time getting shots without my gf with me. That said - there are plenty of ways to be discreet up close.. sometimes I take a shot and act like they ruined it (a 'doh' expression and a move to reframe') usually they apologise. I love capturing awkward triangles.. which is well suited to wider angle imo

I've recently been moving from flickr, so I have more that just aren't up.. and I'm moving right now.. I'll add more later if the thread is still going

This was cropped slightly, it was taken from about 8 ft away.

36mm - Leica x1
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4149/4836607952_a586070ab2_b.jpg

40mm - out a window about 6 ft from a light - panasonic gf1
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4060/4307407399_c09e6b50a9_b.jpg

~50mm - he 'caught me' clearly - at the chocolate festival - 7d and sigma 30 - I definitely do feel that the dslr is much more noticable.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5259/5423972225_b9e995c544_b.jpg

Street photography is difficult in Phoenix, compared to NYC imo (having lived in both) I was mostly joking with my previous comment. That said, I'd have a MUCH bigger problem as a subject feeling like I was being sniped by a big white lens or similar from a ways off.. that would make me very suspicious.

Feb 20, 2011 at 06:12 PM

jimmy462
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p.2 #4 · p.2 #4 · Street photography, which lens?

Zebrabot wrote:
If I was a creeper, I'd go for the 35mm AF-D f/2. It's small and wide.

h00ligan wrote:
28 or 35..

street photography sniping is weak

get close or go home!

So I guess it all really boils down to, "Do you want to be a creeper or do you want to be a sniper?"!

Feb 20, 2011 at 07:00 PM

h00ligan
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p.2 #5 · p.2 #5 · Street photography, which lens?

creeper ftw!

Honestly my first post was mostly in jest.. I realize it's all preference. When I first started, I started close.. and learned that way. I personally feel more creepy a distance off, but that's also particular to this environment. In Phoenix people are more likely to think a photog rude up close and a 'vert far away

That said, clearly I have a long way to go, so maybe I should try backing up - maybe I'll get better results. I'll experiment with that!

Feb 20, 2011 at 07:08 PM

brett maxwell
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p.2 #6 · p.2 #6 · Street photography, which lens?

street photography has traditionally been done with a moderate wide angle and medium apertures. if you can't do it with a 17-55, keep practicing, don't blame the gear. the only lens change I would consider would be to one smaller and more discreet, like a 20mm or 24mm f2.8 prime.

Feb 20, 2011 at 07:13 PM

trenchmonkey
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p.2 #7 · p.2 #7 · Street photography, which lens?

I'm a sniper and a candid purist. If eye contact is made the index is off the shutter. My drug of choice the 70-200 f2.8 VR
Since the advent of DSLR's I've only been approached once for taking a shot after the fact. Sold them a print.

http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg31/rvrsbnd/DSC_0809.jpg

http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg31/rvrsbnd/DSC_0866.jpg

http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg31/rvrsbnd/DSC_0899.jpg

http://i244.photobucket.com/albums/gg31/rvrsbnd/DSC_0918.jpg

Feb 20, 2011 at 07:26 PM

jimmy462
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p.2 #8 · p.2 #8 · Street photography, which lens?

...google>"slang define creeper"..."sniper"..."'vert"...

...well, that's what I do...

Feb 20, 2011 at 09:02 PM

Smiert Spionam
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p.2 #9 · p.2 #9 · Street photography, which lens?

The use of long lenses for street photography usually yields sniper shots that look like they were taken by someone terrified of their subject, or at best unwilling to engage with them. Shots of homeless people in doorways figure prominently in this kind of work.

It's often boring at best, and insecure and insulting at worst.

Blech.

Feb 20, 2011 at 09:17 PM

h00ligan
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p.2 #10 · p.2 #10 · Street photography, which lens?

well, I'm sure that has to do with the 'tog.. i mean, my close samples on the previous page are nothing exciting to most I'm sure.. but they give me points to remember in my life

@jimmy - lmao

Feb 20, 2011 at 09:36 PM

peter_n
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p.2 #11 · p.2 #11 · Street photography, which lens?

Zooms are useless for street. I shoot with a film rangefinder and a 50mm lens. Get the great little 35/1.8 DX lens that's a 52mm in crop - perfect. Set the camera & lens to manual mode. Set your focus ring to a distance of 3M or 10ft - you'll have to do it through the VF as there's no distance scale on the lens. Set your aperture to f8.0 and your shutter speed to whatever the VF display says is right for your ISO. Then go out and get practice at judging your focus distance, move constantly, learn to anticipate what is going to happen in a scene, look for the moment and capture it.

Feb 20, 2011 at 09:47 PM

h00ligan
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p.2 #12 · p.2 #12 · Street photography, which lens?

Peter, 2 and 3 are both very nice, thanks for sharing. I tend to prefer the shots that tell me, or allow me to learn or create a story more than the random closer shots. It can however be intimidating to get close!

Feb 20, 2011 at 10:26 PM

zippy_monster
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p.2 #13 · p.2 #13 · Street photography, which lens?

I think my kit would probably have three lenses:

- an ultrawide to wide zoom (likely a 12-24)
- a normal prime (I have, and would be hard pressed to recommend with a straight face, a Sigma 30)
- a short tele prime (for me a CV 58/1.4)

For me, I wouldn't want to lug around a 17-55 for street shooting. I'm sure it CAN take good street shots, it's the right range and it's got a big aperture. But it's too big, too noticeable, and far too heavy for me. Plus I'm a sucker for an even wide aperture. If I had to lug a big ol' zoom around all day I'd be more inclined to sit than shoot.

85 on crop camera seems far too long for me, and even with the 58 I find myself wanting more room. There are some very nice AF 60mm lenses that'll work just fine on your D90 if you're not into the manual focus thing. In the brief time I spent in London I don't think I really wanted anything longer than my 58 (altho I had an 18-135 with me… vignettes terribly), but really did want something wider than my 28.

As for a normal prime you've got a bunch to choose from. I've got a Mir 24N (35/2), Nikon 28/2.8 Ai-S, and the Sigma 30/1.4. Optically the Sigma is the best for street shooting, hands down. But otherwise it's a total let down. I've just not really warmed up to the 28 Ai-S. Depending upon your budget you've also got the AF Nikon 35 triplets (1.4, 1.8, and 2.0) and the Tokina 35/2.8 to choose from. On the MF front the Zeiss 35s, the Voigtlander 40, the Samyang 35, and the Nikon 35s. This is a great range (28-40) to just leave on your camera all the time until you need something wider. You /could/ go with a zoom like the Nikon 20-35 but it's legitimately huge and heavy.

For the ultrawide zooms you've got a bunch to choose from. I rather like the Nikon 12-24, but geez you've got the Nikon 10-24 and 14-24, the Sigma 8-16, 12-24, Tokina 11-16, and so-on. At the longer lengths I don't think I'd miss a zoom much, but on the wide end I would.

OTOH you've not really hinted at whether or not you want to declutter your images with focal length or aperture or both. If you're really set on the one do-it-all lens, what about the 16-85? It's slow, but it's got VR and a decent wide end.

I got this with my CV 58. I absolutely love the lens, and have gotten some great shots at protests with it… but manually focusing is definitely tricky. Even with something "as big" as a D200 I really value how small and unobtrusive the CV 58 is. Unfortunately it looks like the BB code parser won't let me post a larger copy of the image. Bummer.

?zz=1">
(this was with the 58)

(this was with the 18-135 @ 24mm… sometimes even the posed stuff works)

Edited on Feb 20, 2011 at 10:48 PM · View previous versions

Feb 20, 2011 at 10:31 PM

CGrindahl
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p.2 #14 · p.2 #14 · Street photography, which lens?

Lovely shots and great advice Peter. I did a fair amount of street photography during my Canon years but have not done much of late. Unobtrusive gear is much better than something big and gaudy like a huge zoom lens, especially so when shooting Canon and having a large white lens waiving about. Granted, Americans are much more camera shy than in some cultures, which adds to the challenge. I've had folks come up to me and ask what I'm doing. One mother even demanded that I remove any photos I may have taken of her daughter and this was in a shopping district with people all over the place. I accommodated her both because I didn't know if I had a photo of her daughter and when we found I had it was certainly nothing I needed to keep. A friendly demeanor and unobtrusive gear is the key, unless one wants to hide in corners with a long lens and take snap shots... as I did today, actually.


	http://lh3.ggpht.com/_YajwMTB6j0w/TWHFHhXqE0I/AAAAAAAAF0E/iXLwc6M5kd0/300.SeriousCanonPhotographer.jpg

Shot with the 300 f/4.5 AI-s Ed-IF at the water's edge north of the Golden Gate bridge.

Feb 20, 2011 at 10:36 PM

mshi
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p.2 #15 · p.2 #15 · Street photography, which lens?

I normally love to use both 35 amd 85 on FX for street photography.

at 35mm

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5300/5416882814_e18ccbb4f0_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3371/3546585964_63ab965259_z.jpg

at 85mm

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4118/4902709257_6a3c342b4d_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3362/3539485340_dac2cef7fe_z.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4137/4904272055_a6878745da_z.jpg

Feb 20, 2011 at 11:02 PM

madboyv1
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p.2 #16 · p.2 #16 · Street photography, which lens?

@peter_n: I think it's more of a matter of opinion and style. I for one love primes, but have spoiled myself on zooms; 18-70mm on a DX camera was a very loyal partner in everything I did when I wanted to be lazy: street, speaker/portrait, even sports. Of course, the 18-70 is not a big lens, so that might have been part of its appeal. It wasn't fast either, but that is a discussion for another time.

Fast and small primes will always have a place in my heart though.

Feb 20, 2011 at 11:08 PM

peter_n
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p.2 #17 · p.2 #17 · Street photography, which lens?

Thanks for the comments. I just don't like equipment to get in the way, so I'm very familiar with the focal length and everything on the camera is preset, so it's almost like a P&S situation. Moments are so fleeting especially if you're up close, I'd hate to have to think about changing the focal length. Keeping it really simple allows you to focus on the scene and what might happen next...

Feb 20, 2011 at 11:27 PM

digitalbug30d
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p.2 #18 · p.2 #18 · Street photography, which lens?

well I think a 35mm...prime is better,why if you use a zoom like I do(waiting to get funds for a 35L myself) I tend to fiddle with zoom and miss a possible street shot...
also the prime will yeild better IQ..less obtrusive than any zoom.

Feb 20, 2011 at 11:37 PM

Tobin28
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p.2 #19 · p.2 #19 · Street photography, which lens?

Robert Frank used 35mm and 50mm. Check out the Americans. He is the master.

Feb 21, 2011 at 12:36 AM

h00ligan
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p.2 #20 · p.2 #20 · Street photography, which lens?

Peter, excellent stuff.

Feb 21, 2011 at 01:33 AM

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