Everything You Want to Know About Camera Lenses: Part 3 Our Favorite Lenses

Are you loving this lens series and learning all about the different lenses?? I know, I am!!!

Today each of us are going tell you about our favorite lens and why. This is a common question we all receive. However, as you can see, each of us have a different favorite and for different reasons. Before you buy any lens, you need to ask yourself…What do I want to capture with this lens? Make sure that lens can capture that for you.

My favorite (Courtney) Lens-50mm 1.4D

I LOVE my 50mm f/1.4D. My first lens was the 50mm 1.8 which is also a great lens, but for Christmas this year I treated myself to an upgrade. Wow! I will go into more details in a few weeks about the difference between the two but the 50mm f/1.4D is a dream! I love the bokeh, the sharpness, and the color it presents. It’s fantastic for low light situations. Honestly, that lens lives on my camera about 60% of the time. It is a wonderful prime lens and I love that the aperture can go down to f/1.4.

Here are a few images taken with the 50mm f/1.4D:

Kelly’s Favorite Lens-85mm 1.4G

Although I LOVE all of my lenses, find them irreplaceable & use them all a ton, my absolute favorite is the 85mm f/1.4G. This lens has the ability to capture bokeh like none other (in my opinion) & always makes the background look creamy. I’m not able to use it all the time because I find it best to use on just one or two individuals & when I’m not in terribly tight spaces. I think it focuses best when at least a couple feet from the subject (not right in their face). But still…combine this lens with the right amount of subjects, a good location & dreamy light, & its magic! Love it. Sidenote: I just so happened to buy the 1.4G version but I have heard great reviews about all of the 85mm lenses (1.8, 1.4D & 1.4G).

Here are a few images taken with the 85mm f/1.4G:

Melissa’s Favorite Lens-24-70mm 2.8L

The 24-70mm f/2.8L lens is one of my favorite lens because it is an amazing walk around lens. I took this lens last summer on our trip to San Diego and it was amazing. I took it to the beach, Sea World and the zoo. It has the perfect focal lengths to take on the go when you’re not sure what you’ll be shooting. But it’s also an amazing family portrait lens. When you’ve got quick moving toddlers, sometimes having that extra reach is exactly what you need!

Here are a few images taken with the 24-70mm f/2.8L
:

Laurie’s Favorite-105mm 2.8

I think all of my lenses are my favorite! They each serve a special purpose. However, for fun, my Nikon 105mm f/2.8G macro lens is my favorite to play around with. If ever I’m in a rut, I like to put the macro lens on and take pictures of something, anything, that sparks my interest. I love photographing my kids, and my children are one reason why I fell in love with photography, but to me, it is also about more than just capturing memories. It is a creative outlet just for me. And that is why I love shooting macro. This lens is super sharp and so much fun to play with!

Here are a few images taken with a 105mm f/2.8G:

Jen’s Favorite Lens-50mm 2.5

Following my Canon 24-70mm lens, this is my next favorite the 50mm f/2.5 Compact Macro Lens. It’s a lens not many people know about. I call it “my creative lens”. It gives my images a dreamy feel, capturing pieces of light and texture beautifully. I use it for artistic shots of details ie. food, still life, newborns, flowers, etc. I get amazing clarity in eyes and hair when shooting portraits with this lens. It’s considered a macro lens, but is “compact” because it focuses down to one-half life size vs. 1:1 magnification that most macros have. So I get more magnification than the naked eye, but not too much so that things look un-natural. The f/2.5 creates a nice shallow depth of field, soft bokeh, and a natural blurred vignette around the edges. I love how my images turn out SOOC with this lens!

Here are a few images taken with the 50mm f/2.5:

Read the whole series: Everything you want to know about camera lenses
Part 1: Understanding the writing on the lens
Part 2: What lens should I buy next?
Part 3: Our Favorite Lenses
Part 4: Lens on crop vs. full frame sensor
Part 5: Comparing different lenses
Part 6: 50mm 1.8 vs 1.4

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Courtney

I am a SAHM of two little ones with one more on the way. Married to a fabulous man in the Air Force, we currently call Japan home. I started this blog as a place to share my love of photography and teaching. Please let me know if you have any questions along your journey! Website | Facebook | Twitter | My Camera Bag