The first lens I purchased was a very good 50mm prime and the main reason why may surprise you. As a new photographer I consumed much information – my better half would say too much information – and one of the typical reasons for starting with a single prime lens is to teach yourself a particular focal length to, over time, help you “see” the shot before raising the camera to your eye. That was also true for me but I had an additional reason that, I might argue, was more compelling for me at the time and may be of interest to you.

We were planning a trip to Arizona to see Monument Valley and the Grand Canyon. I knew I would be seeing vast landscapes and really thought about how I was going to capture the essence of a particular scene that is quite vast. Typically, the advice would be to get a wide angle zoom lens to capture more of the landscape in a single frame. However, a wide focal length introduces disparities between near objects and distant objects, which is OK and may be a creative decision on the part of a photographer, but I was just starting out, did not have unlimited resources and had to make a decision on a first lens. There was another reason, though.

For the Grand Canyon trip, we were about to view such vast expanses that – I believe – no single lens would accurately capture the scene. Yet, I wanted to take photos that we would be able to look at 10 years later and bring back the memories of what we saw, felt, and experienced. All of my research stated the 50mm prime lens gives a view that is close to what we perceive with the human eye, and is also a great choice for a wide variety of photography. Therefore, a very flexible lens! For landscapes, the 50mm is excellent for capturing what you are seeing and how you are seeing it. But, with vast expanses like the Grand Canyon a 50mm lens would only show a portion of what you see. Enter the use of a nodal slide for taking multiple photos to then stitch together (in software) to create a panorama photograph. A camera with a 50mm lens, on a tripod in portrait orientation, and using the nodal slide to take 5 or more photos allowed me to stitch them together in Lightroom and create stunning panoramas. If you’ve seen the Grand Canyon you know that some views are 150 to 180 degrees or more.

So, that’s the main reason for starting with the 50mm prime lens – a trip to the Grand Canyon and wanting to capture our experience as we saw it at the time. I could go into the many other reasons for starting with and continuing to use a 50mm prime lens, but there are others out there that have already plowed that field.

If you are interested in how to set up and use a nodal slide, I have a blog post coming soon.