Setting Up a Prime Lens Kit with Pentax

by Miserere


Ever noticed how many things in life come in threes? The 3 Stooges, the 3 Musketeers, the 3 Tenors, the 3 Wise Men...and your friends will always give you 3 cheers. So too do primes come in threes.

Last week I wrote about my love of primes, and hopefully I got some of you to put away your zoom lens for an afternoon and go shooting with a prime instead. Did you have fun? Did you enjoy shooting at lower ISOs? Did you show off to your friends because their primes weren't image-stabilised while yours were thanks to Pentax's in-body IS? I hope you replied "yes" to all of the above.

Let's make it clear that I am not advocating that you throw away your zooms, only that you broaden your horizons...and your tools. There is a time for zooms, and a time for primes. When you've spent enough hours shooting both you will know exactly when you need, or want, either of them.

But how do you go about setting up a 3 prime lens kit? With zooms, you just choose a wide angle zoom (18-55mm, 16-45mm, 16-50mm...) and a telephoto zoom (50-200mm, 55-300mm, 50-135mm...), with the depth of your pocket being the determining factor as to which ones you pick. How could that be easier!? Primes are another story, because there are many focal lengths and apertures to choose from.

Superman says 28mm is normal.

Back in the day it wasn't so difficult. Most photographers had a wide, a normal and a telephoto lens. Wides were usually 24mm or 28mm; normals were somewhere between 35mm and 55mm (depending on what "normal" meant to each photographer) and telephotos were between 100mm and 135mm. The rule of thumb was to pick focal lengths that were about 1 stop apart in length, such that each lens had half the field of view of the preceding one (which is double the focal length). Possible combinations following this rule could be 28mm, 55mm and 105mm; or 24mm, 50mm and 100mm. Then, as now, which particular flavour you chose of each lens depended on your pocket. If you could afford it, you would have picked a 28mm f/2 and a 50mm f/1.4. More thrifty photographers would have gone for the more affordable 24/28mm f/2.8 and a 50mm f/2.

In 2001 Pentax made the choice of a prime trio easy for those who could afford it by issuing the 31mm f/1.8 Ltd., last of the three FA series Limited primes. Those who wanted the very best in construction and image quality could buy a 31mm f/1.8, a 43mm f/1.9 and a 77mm f/1.8. While these numbers might seem like they were pulled out of a bingo ball after too much sake was drunk at a Pentax New Year's party, they actually do make sense. 43mm is the length of the diagonal of 35mm film, which makes this limited the epitome of "normal" lenses. 31mm offers a FoV that is about 1-1/3 times wider than 43mm, while 77mm is a little over 1-2/3 narrower than 43mm.

50mm is the king of primes.

The problem is that all these focal lengths I'm quoting are for 35mm film. What about those shooting digital Pentax? Fret not, there is still hope. Pentax thought of us APS-C guys and introduced a line of DA Limiteds: 15mm, 21mm, 40mm and 70mm; and all but the 15mm are pancake lenses! While the 40mm and 70mm lenses are longer than their FA Ltd brothers (61mm and 107mm 35mm equivalents), the 21mm is a 32mm-equiv. However, the DA Ltds. are actually closer to the classic 28/55/105mm trio (in FoV, when mounted on APS-C) than their FA counterparts and are more versatile for it. The upcoming 15mm f/4 Ltd will provide a 23mm-equiv. FoV in a small package, for those that want something wider than the 21mm f/3.2 Ltd.

OK, but how about those who are on a budget? Again, Pentax is here to help you, because you can use Pentax's backwards compatibility to your advantage. There are literally tens of thousands of K, M, and A prime lenses out there in the used market looking for a new home, and unlike with other brands, they will work on your Pentax DSLR (although some functionality might be lost, you will never lose the ability to meter, even if it means pressing an extra button). Claim a 28mm f/2.8 for well under $100 and use it as your normal lens. Get a 50mm or 55mm as your short tele lens, ideal for portraits on APS-C. If you don't want to jump for a new FA 50mm f/1.4, get an M series version. If you want the versatility of being able to use Av or Tv, why not try the crowd favourite SMC-A 50mm f/1.7? (Just be sure to enquire as to the health of the aperture ring, because they tend to break easily for this particular lens.) If you want wider angles than 28mm or 24mm, Pentax can offer you the K or M series 20mm f/4. And don't be shy, there are also plenty of 3rd party options available. And remember, while these older Pentax primes might be old, they are made of metal and glass, have long focus throws, and are a joy to use. Once you get one, you might find yourself sitting in front of the television turning the focus ring this way and that, just because it feels good.

135 is not just an abstract number.

And what's my prime trio of choice? 24/28mm, 50mm, 135mm. Yup, I might be shooting APS-C, but I still like the old classics. I guess I'm not really a wide guy when it comes to photography. I can't sing much either.

To finish off, I want to remind you all that Pentax has always been known for its marvellous primes. You will find many photographers who will tell you the only reason they chose the Pentax system was because of their prime line-up. Even today, Pentax are continuing to release primes while other brands are busy churning out only zooms.

So be true to tradition and start doing your math: figure out which is your normal focal length, then divide and multiply by 2. Now get on the internet or visit your local pawn shop and get yourself a nice trio. They may not sing like The 3 Tenors, but they might make you sing when you see what you can do with them.

When you're done with your photography session, don't forget to give yourself 3 cheers.


Thanks for reading.

Miserere

Prime Love

by Miserere

Back in the old days all lenses were primes; zooms weren’t introduced to 35mm photography until Kilfitt released the 36-82mm f/2.8 Zoomar in 1959, although zoom lenses had been used in movie cameras since the 1930s.

Just about every point-and-shoot camera on the market today uses a zoom lens, and every brand of DSLRs boasts a wide selection of them. Prime lenses seem to have gone the way of the tie-dye T-shirt, and many amateur photographers still wonder what they’re for.

Low-light candid portraits.

Despite the clear advantages of a lens offering multiple focal lengths, it can also create a clear disadvantage in the long run, and it’s that it makes us lazy and comfortable. When you can just plonk yourself in one spot and zoom in or out to compose a shot, your creativity suffers (a special case is wildlife photography, but that’s not what I’m talking about here). Creativity comes from challenge, instability, ignorance, dissatisfaction…not from remaining immovable in one spot with one eye closed watching Life pass you by.

Live music concerts with bad light.

I’ve had photographers give me puzzled looks when I show them one of my prime lenses; they’ll often ask what it does, as if taking photos might not be its purpose. After I’ve explained the advantages of the prime in question they’ll usually want to confirm what I said with “so it really doesn’t zoom?” It’s a shame the concept of a fixed focal length has become so alien to photography newcomers.

Night photography without a tripod.

For those that just joined us, a prime lens is one that has single focal length. Instead of the lens going from 18 to 55mm, it will be only 50mm, or 35mm, or 24mm. So, you might ask, if you want to replace your 18-55mm zoom with primes, you have to use 4 lenses? (18mm, 24mm, 35mm and 55mm.) “I’d rather just carry one lens, thank-you-very-much. And it will be cheaper, too.” And this is the strong point of zooms, their selling point: They are convenient on many levels. Just to show some practical examples I've peppered the article with photos taken using primes, so you can see the range of subjects they're useful for.

Cute animals.

I am not against zooms; my most used lens is a 28-75mm f/2.8. It’s versatile, relatively fast and with good IQ. It does a lot of what I need. But when it can’t, I know a prime will. I like taking candid portraits, and my opportunities for doing so are when I’m out with friends and family. Funnily enough, they don’t walk around with bright lights to one side and gold reflectors to the other. In fact, they tend to stay in dark pubs or indoors, away from windows. I also like shooting live music, which again, usually takes place in pubs under bad lighting. An f/2.8 lens just won’t cut it, and I’d rather not use ISO102400.

Walk-around.

Primes are easier to design and build than zooms are, so it’s easier to make them fast. For a zoom, f/2.8 is fast, but that’s just normal for a prime. There are primes going all the way down to f/0.7, like the Zeiss which Stanley Kubrick famously used to film candle-lit scenes in Barry Lyndon, but most are somewhere between f/1.4 and f/2. Best of all, they don’t need to be large; the Pentax FA 50mm f/1.4 fits easily in a coat pocket, and at $200 will not break the bank. This is the first fast prime recommend to beginners because, despite its low price, it is a stunning performer. On a digital APS-C camera it is not as versatile as on full-frame, but I use it often at family gatherings as a short tele.

Not only are primes are fast and compact, but because they are simpler to build and incorporate less lens elements, they also offer better image quality. Many photographers who are obsessed with obtaining the sharpest, cleanest, most contrasty pictures will shoot only primes. I can’t blame them! Faster apertures also mean shallower depth of field, which is an effect you might want to exploit when isolating a subject from their surroundings.

Safari.

OK, so apart from making coffee, primes have many advantages that are tangible and measurable, but let me go back to the beginning of this article and address the creativity issue. I talked about it in my article last week, where I exhorted you to take a prime and go walk around looking for opportunities. When you think you might be lost, off balance and slightly uncomfortable with your camera, when you’re not quite sure what you’re doing…chances are you are going to be more creative. That’s how a prime makes me feel. I know what it looks like through the viewfinder, but it doesn’t always reflect what I want, so I’ll move forward, or backward, or sideways, and often I end up in a completely different place to where I had imagined I’d bee. My photography benefits from this, because although I take many photos that exist in my head, often it is the unplanned shots that are the best, and you have to be slightly unstable and moving to find the magic angles.

But if you’re standing in one spot with one eye closed watching Life pass you by…

Thank you for reading.

Miserere

PS: If you're wondering what different primes I used for all these photos, I'll tell you: They were all taken with the Pentax FA 50mm f/1.4 mounted on a K10D. :-)

Got the Photo Blues? Bust-a-Prime!

by Miserere

It happens to every photographer: One day you find yourself just going through the motions, pointing the camera in random directions, clicking, and not knowing what it was you were really taking a picture of. Then you pick up the prints from the store or look at your digital files on your computer and wonder why it is that your pictures are so uninspiring. In many case you don’t even care that they’re bad.

If this is an accurate description of how you’re feeling right now, let me diagnose your ailment: you have the Photo Blues.

Anyone can be affected, and it can happen anytime, too. Sometimes the stress of work and life get to us and start to encroach on our favourite hobby. Where we once found peace, calm and inner tranquillity, we now face boredom and lack of motivation. Other times, our life is going so well and is full of so many other pleasurable activities that we forget or neglect our photography. Whatever the reasons, the outcome is the same: you’re stuck in a photographic rut and you don’t know how to get out of it.

If stress is your main problem, then my recommendation is going to be to stop working 80-hour weeks, or studying for three degrees at the same time, or maybe send your four kids to a private school in Switzerland. Find out what’s stressing you and cut it out from your life! OK, maybe you can keep your kids at home, but let them know that it’s important for mummy/daddy to have some time to indulge in their favourite hobby once or twice a week.

Once you’ve established that your apathy is merely the manifestation of photographic boredom, it’s time for you to do as the title suggests and Bust-a-Prime.

For those of you not familiar with the term, “prime” refers to a lens that has a fixed focal length, and therefore doesn’t “zoom”. Back in the old days all lenses were primes, and zooms didn’t become popular until the 80s or so. I will reserve my opinions on primes for a future article; for now I will simply explain how a prime can be used to reinvigorate your photography.

First, let me state the obvious: A prime lens offers a single field of view. This has many implications, the most important being that the magnification will always be the same, as too the possible distortions (if it’s a very wide angle lens or a fisheye). But it’s precisely these limitations that are going to help your creative juices start flowing again. You see, when you lift your camera to your eye and your FoV is not what you would like it to be, you will have to move. Yes, you will actually have to walk, or run, from A to B in order to frame the shot the way you want it. In some cases you’ll want to move closer, in others further away, but move you will. And it’s this process of moving around that will get you thinking, even without realising, about other possible points of view for your subject. After all, you’re already moving back and forth, you might as well try going from side to side, no?

After a while of using a given prime you also start to learn what subjects work best for that particular focal length, and you’ll find yourself looking for them while walking about. This is another important benefit and side effect: looking. Like Yogi Berra said “you can observe a lot just by watching”, and when I’m in a slump it’s usually because I’m not looking out for scenes to photograph.

Sometimes we’re just like a car that’s been left in the cold too long: we try to start it up, it chugs a few times, and then stalls. But if you get somebody to push you and get it rolling fast enough, you can get it started and driving like nothing was ever wrong with it. A prime lens can be that friend that pushes us when we’re stalling.

You can choose any focal length for this exercise, but I have some recommendations. If you’re new to shooting with primes, then a normal length lens is probably the best option; something around 50mm on film (or around 35mm on DSLR) would be best. If you’re used to shooting with primes, then I would choose an extreme focal length, either wide or long. The objective here is to make yourself feel slightly uncomfortable and disorientated.

Once the lens is on the camera, sling it over your shoulder and head out for a walk. If at all possible, don’t set yourself a time to be home, and try to go somewhere you know well and have photographed often. Going somewhere familiar will force you to look at old subjects with new eyes. Furthermore, having only one lens on your camera will make you think harder, try harder, and in the end, make you be more creative. If you feel like you’re not quite sure what you’re doing, good! That means my plan is working.

Chances are that by the end of your walk you’ll be shooting that prime like you had been born with it. I would also be willing to bet that when you look at the pictures you took, you’ll find quite a few winners.

Some weeks ago I was feeling very uninspired and down about my photography. My mood in general wasn’t good either. When Friday came around I realised I had not shot a single photo that week, which hadn’t happened since I bought my DSLR. Resolved to get myself out of the funk, I decided to Bust-a-Prime and mounted my Sigma CAT 400mm f/5.6 on the camera at the end of my work day and headed off for a long walk home to make the most of the Sun’s last rays.

400mm is not exactly an urban walk around lens, but using an unfamiliar focal length was exactly what I needed. And thanks to Pentax's sensor-based image stabilisation I was able to easily take hand-held shots at 1/100s. Given the fading light, I would not have been able to use this lens without a tripod or monopod had it not been for Pentax's IS.

Here are some of the pictures that came out of my Bust-a-Prime therapy session. They may not be worthy of hanging in the MFA, but I had much fun taking them; the first fun I’d had with photography in quite a while. Let’s remember that that’s what this hobby is all about: fun.

Some withered flowers, abandoned on a window sill.

Pipes chatting about the state of tubes.

An old car in its retirement home.

Pale Life.

Barbed wire gleaming in the Sun can be beautiful.

A baby mocking bird impatiently calls for its mum to bring dinner.

Thank you for reading.

Miserere