If you could only have ONE lens..35mm or 50mm???

[thuggins]

For landscapes, 35mm is perfect. Those of us fortunate to be Zuikoholics also have the 40f2 pancake to pick from. But even the slight difference between these two is quite apparent in composition and FOV.

[jnanian]

i only have a 50 and have never seen the need for a 35.
if i could i would sell all my lenses but my 50 for my 35mm camera ...

too many lenses, too many cameras is a massive distraction.

[Vanishing Point Ent.]

Got a Nikon 45/2.8 Ai-P as a compromise.

Now with the Introduction by Canon of a 40 mm f2.8 Pancake lens,
this lens should be included in your range of lenses as being a viable possibility.

In My Opinion...

[agphotography]

too many lenses, too many cameras is a massive distraction.

Yes, this is absolutely true! I was up to something like 4 cameras and 10-12 lenses at one point and it drove me nuts. I sold almost everything and I'm down to 4 lenses right now. I feel much better

Ps - we're at a 50/50 split!

[IloveTLRs]

50mm without hesitation.

For me everything fits so nicely in the 50mm frame. Maybe it's where I live, but with 35mm I get some errant gum wrapper or power line in my compositions, which drives me nuts.

[agnosticnikon]

I guess I'm lucky, I don't get distracted by a lot of equipment. I've got lots of old 35mm cameras, and a 50mm lens for every one of them. So my choice would be the 50mm lens, from 1.2 to 3.5, I love them all!

[tkamiya]

It really depends on what I'll be shooting. If I *must* pick one, then it'll be 35mm.

[John_Nikon_F]

Neither. Prefer 85mm as my "normal". However, at the moment, I have both the 35 and the 50, and no 85. I usually go out the door with one of my Nikon bodies and either my 55/2.8 Micro AIS, or one of my 50/2 Nikkor-H's attached.



My F4s, made in 1992 or 1993 with my 1967 vintage 50/2 Nikkor-H (complete with NOS AI conversion ring) on it.

-J

[Jim Jones]

Despite having a wide range of focal lenghts for both SLR and RF cameras, perhaps half of my photos over many decades were taken with 50mm. I often carry only the equivalent prime lens on a DSLR. Sometimes friends shooting the same scene with me will frame differently with other focal lengths.

[David Lyga]

58mm. That was the old 'normal' and was the very best. Like on Minolta 1.4/ 58mm PF or Helios M42 (USSR): both stellar performance. - David Lyga