Best Lens for Street Photography

Hi, I like very much to shoot street photography. I have a 18-55mm kit lens, so what other lens should I buy?
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Comments

  • PBkedPBked
    edited July 2013
    Hi,
    I'm from the Canon side of the fence, but don't let that put you off. Followed your link and wow; what great pictures! You have a real talent and eye there. I've been into photography for over 50 years and your pictures are some of the best I've seen. Well done.
  • ChedyusChedyus
    edited July 2013
    Come on sir...I mean thank you very much, but I know you just saying that to encourage me. :)
  • PBkedPBked
    edited July 2013
    Hi @Chedyus
    I don't say things I don't mean! If my comments have given you some encouragement then that is good, but I will repeat "some of the best street pictures I have ever seen".
    Best regards, PBked
  • MiguelTurnerMiguelTurner
    edited October 2013
    Hi, I am pretty new to photography, and would like to do some street photography. Any tips I should consider when going out?

    I have done a bit of skateboard and nature/landscape photography. :)
    You can see some of my stuff on my Flickr.
  • ChedyusChedyus
    edited August 2013
    Thank you @PBked

    @miguelturner you have some nice photos there. I added you as contact. As for street photography, look for candid moments, be confident, be friendly and keep taking photos to improve.
  • MooseMoose
    edited August 2013
    @Chedyus - You're street photography is looking great and your portraiture is fantastic. Keep it up! :)

  • sbaker63sbaker63
    edited September 2013
    I have had my D3100 for 6 months now. I just got the 50mm f/1.8 prime lens last week. I've only tried it a couple of times and it seems like the pictures are blurry and not just the background.
  • MooseMoose
    Hey @sbaker63 - Most of the time the issue is attributed to the camera locking focus on the wrong subject or your subject moving out of the area in focus.

    When shooting at f/1.8, the depth of field is incredibly small. If your subject even moves an inch towards you or away from you, it can throw them out of focus.

    If you upload some samples to flickr, facebook or google+ I'd be happy to take a look and point you in the right direction. All the best!
  • ChedyusChedyus
    edited July 2014
    Hi @Riddelske :) It has been a long time. What do you think about my progress?
    http://facebook.com/zmarianphotography
    I'm still using my 35mm lens.
  • PBkedPBked
    edited July 2014
    Hi Chedyus,
    As I said a long time ago, you have a special talent in this field. I was particularly drawn to the pictures with the young lady in period costume. For some reason, they just jumped out at me. I don't know what Riddelske will have to say, but I had to stick my tuppence worth in.
    Very best regards,
    PBked
  • ChedyusChedyus
    edited July 2014
    Thank you very much @pbked. I appreciate it!
  • ChedyusChedyus
    edited December 2014
    Hi guys, I have been featured in National Geographic: http://yourshotblog.nationalgeographic.com/post/102834554279/street-scnes-marian-zidaru-ireland-in-our
  • brutobruto
    edited December 2014
    You've certainly been busy, Chedyus. You definitely have a knack for this stuff, and I especially like the combination of the seemingly casual with strong composition.

    Edit to add: posted before I saw the second page and the link to NG. Very nice presentation and a substantial pat on the back for work well done.
  • PBkedPBked
    edited December 2014
    Hi,
    Great stuff! Glad to see your work getting some recognition.
    Best regards,
    PBked
  • ChedyusChedyus
    edited December 2014
    Thank you guys, I appreciate it!
  • ChedyusChedyus
    edited December 2014
    Just some quick personal advice after two years of taking photographs on the street; buy books, travel and take loads of photographs, and don't invest your money in new cameras or lenses. :)
  • urbanframeurbanframe
    edited December 2014
    @chedyus,

    I really enjoyed your flickr photostream. I have a Nikon D3200 with a manual 35mm and 50mm lens (just the cheap series-e). Anyway, I have a couple of questions:

    1) Due to manually handling the lens and being a newbie, I am too slow for the situation or the main subject is out of focus (I am experimenting with f/8-f/16 for focussing).

    2) Are you post processing your photos? If so, could you share any settings you are using?

    3) I am thinking of buying a 50mm f/1.4g (or 35mm f/1.8 as I am planning to use f/8-f/16 ) for my D3200, so I don't have to think about focusing. Any thoughts about this?

    Regards
  • ChedyusChedyus
    edited December 2014
    @urbanframe thank you. To answer your questions: if you are using manual focus lenses you should set first a focus distance which you are comfortable with, 1 2 3 5 m. If you set 2m, that means if your subject is that distance from your camera, it is going to be in focus 100%. You don t need to worry about focusing anymore, so set your aperture to f/8 f/9 to have more depth of field and a high shutter speed ofc to freeze the moment. Using the camera in P mode is also handy because you don't need to worry about settings, just concentrate on the shoot and forget about settings (use a high ISO).

    I'm not post processing my photographs too much, just a bit of cropping sometimes, or applying some effects like b&w. I don't have any pro software or anything like that. Also, I never shoot raw only JPEG.

    Use just one lens (I am very happy with my 35mm f/1.8). Do not invest your money in cameras or lenses. It's better to buy books, go to workshops or travel.

    Take photographs every day!!!
  • lydiabpinkhamlydiabpinkham
    edited April 2015
    So which did you go for, 50mm f/1.8 or 50mm f/1.4?
    Why did you make that choice? I can't make up my mind which I prefer.
    The f/1.4 is 2 times the cost of the f/1.8, but I can wait until I have it saved if it's right for me,
    so I would love your thoughts.
  • ChedyusChedyus
    edited April 2015
    35mm f/ 1.8. I have been using this lens for almost 2 years and I am very happy with it.
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