Quote:
Originally Posted by vandergus
A zoom lens is more versatile with regards to framing. A prime lens is more versatile with regards to lighting. Let's look at two lenses you might be considering.
zoom: 18-55mm f3.5-f5.6
prime: 35mm f1.8
The zoom lens will allow you to frame any where from a wide angle to a short telephoto field of view, giving you more options in how you frame your subject or what perspective you choose. But it is limited to scenes with ample light because of its slow aperture. The prime lens fixes you at 35mm giving you fewer option for framing and perspective but allows you to shoot in situations with less available light because it has a larger maximum aperture (f1.8 vs. f3.5). So the zoom lens may give you more options if you're outdoors where the amount of light isn't an issue, but won't do very well indoors where light is scarce. The prime lens, however, will be able to shoot indoors and outdoors with more limited choices for framing.
A secondary advantage of the prime lens could also be that it gives you greater control over the in-focus and out-of-focus areas of the image, allowing you to choose a very shallow depth of field because of the larger maximum aperture.
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Thank you, this makes sense. What I did, was compare photos taken by 3 lenses (D90 kit, 35mm 1.8, and 50mm 1.8 on pixel-peeper. This is probably a rookie way to explore which lens may be best for me, but I am a very visual person and need to SEE things. What I found was that I loved almost every shot taken with the 50mm and can see myself taking similar photos. The 35mm kind of seemed in the middle of the range where I'd like to be, not quite wide enough and not shallow enough either. After reading Ken Rockwell's glowing review of the 35, it would be hard to pass up but if it's not right with me then it just isn't right.
I may now focus my attention on a wider lens for the landscape shots, maybe in the 18-24 range and go with that and the 50mm?
I completely understand the thought process that I should go with the kit lens and determine from there what I'd need, but with my budget, I see it almost as a few hundred dollar trial period to see what I DON'T need and that is hard to justify quite honestly.