The plethora of choice is overwhelming. With so many camera lenses available for so many unique types of photography, determining which lens is right for you can be a challenging endeavor. Which is why we went ahead and asked a few of our favorite instructors what their go-to lenses are when they are out shooting.
Khara Plicanic
My favorite lens, hands down, is my 50mm/1.2. I love it because of the super shallow depth of field it offers, and truth be told, it rarely leaves my camera. It’s great for portraits, but not so close-up that you can’t also use it for wider shots. And, it keeps me on my feet, with what I like to call, “Active zoom”.
Photos by Khara Plicanic. To check out all of her classes on CreativeLive and put your lenses to use, check them out here >
John Greengo
My favorite lens is the 70-200 f/4. I love this lens because it is pretty much the perfect lens. It’s small sharp very versatile and extremely practical. In the last two years, I’ve taken it to Cuba, walked the streets of Europe and taken it on Safari. It weighs just 1.5lbs, so it’s an easy addition to the traveling photographer’s bag.
Grab the right lens every time. Learn more.
A close second favorite lens is my 24mm tilt-shift lens. It’s a perfect landscape lens for intimate depth of field and for travel photography you can make stunning panoramics very easily.
Daniel Gregory
Selecting a lens is always a fun process for me because I believe the lens is one of the first parts of the storytelling process for a photographer. The focal length and angle of view are foundations of shaping what you see when you put the camera to your eye. One of my favorite lenses is my Nikon 14mm-24mm f/2.8. While this lens is an amazing optical engineering feat of sharpness, speed, contrast, and color, none of those are the real reason I use this lens. I pick this lens because of the way it makes me feel when I press the shutter. When I have this lens on the camera and zoom out to 14mm, there is a rush of oxygen. My world becomes larger. My world is reshaped and bent in new ways. The possibilities seem limitless. I get to see a world bigger and grander than before the camera was put to my eye. It makes me feel like there really is magic.
Grab the right lens every time. Learn more.
