It is officially December! And that means a change in weather. Hopefully.
I woke up to a very cold and foggy morning today and thought I should seize the opportunity for a photo, since we don’t get too many of those in my neck of the woods…anyway, what I ended up with is the photo above. The shot looks decent, but it really makes me wish I had a wide-angle lens! Like I mentioned before, the 50mm f/1.4 really excels in low light, portraiture, and close-range subjects. But when you want to capture an expansive, tree-lined view from your balcony, you’re much better off with a wide-angle lens if you have one available to you.
Unfortunately, I don’t have $1700 in dispensable income at the moment. If I did, I’d love to buy the Canon 16-35mm f/2.8L. It’s an L-quality lens, which means it’s built really well and doesn’t feel like plastic. Plus, it has an aperture of 2.8, so it also does fairly well when you don’t have a lot of light available. But the price tag is a bit steep, so I’ll have to weigh some more affordable options like buying a used one (from a reputable site, of course), or renting one. And then there’s always the classic borrowing from a friend. That one’s my favorite!
Another feasible option would be saving up a bit and purchasing the Canon 17-40mm f/4L. At $700, it’s a whole grand less than the aforementioned one, but still a very good lens. It retains the L-quality build, but brings the aperture up to 4.0, which means you may need extra lighting if you’re shooting in darker places. But if you won’t be doing much shooting at night, or have other light sources you can use, it’s an awesome alternative!
I like wide-angle lenses because they work well with photography and video. Since I shoot both, it’s important for me to have a multi-use lens. Sorry I don’t have any examples to show you today, but hopefully in the future!
Want to buy/sell a used lens? www.keh.com
Or maybe you want to rent one? www.borrowlenses.com
Happy Friday!