50mm Prime Lens does not make a good walk around lens

I got a Sigma 50mm f1.4 lens from a fellow POTNer and I absolutely love it. I love it so much I would like to keep it on my 5DII at all times.

But you know what...it just doesn't make a good walk around lens. It's not wide enough or provide enough reach. It's simple as that. 28-75mm Tammy provides more versatility and I'm sure 24-105 isn't too bad (used to own it).

For portrait work, sure I'll slap on the 50mm or 85mm. But not while running around outdoors.

like everything, it's a matter of personal preference. I use my 50L nearly exclusively on my 5D II, and find it perfectly acceptable as a general walk-around lens. it's light (compared to the 24-70), and allows more creative options (for me anyway).

some people can do it (Will and Jordan for example) and some people can't. I liked the 50mm FL but found it was too long for what I wanted so I picked up the 35L and since it was too close for my liking to 50 mm, I went with the 85mm instead. to each their own though.

Will and Jordan make it look easy

rxjohn wrote in post #12665411
I got a Sigma 50mm f1.4 lens from a fellow POTNer and I absolutely love it. I love it so much I would like to keep it on my 5DII at all times.

But you know what...it just doesn't make a good walk around lens. It's not wide enough or provide enough reach. It's simple as that. 28-75mm Tammy provides more versatility and I'm sure 24-105 isn't too bad (used to own it).

For portrait work, sure I'll slap on the 50mm or 85mm. But not while running around outdoors.

i absolutly love my 28-75, but there is a place for my 50mm. both lenses are great on FF

50mm is my most used length on the 5D2 for sure!!

I'm the complete opposite. If I go out with friends unsure of my subjects, I usually do just fine with only a 50mm. The focal length is perfect for my general photography and f1.4 helps at night when I don't want to bring a speedlight.

If I could only have one lens, it would be a 50mm. To each, their own.

rxjohn wrote in post #12665411
...it just doesn't make a good walk around lens.

The work of Henri Cartier-Bresson would seem to disprove this theory.

krb wrote in post #12665946
The work of Henri Cartier-Bresson would seem to disprove this theory.

to each their own.

and he did it with out 8 frames a second...

95% of my photos were shot with 50mm f1.4 lens

I've often wondered.. "What would it be like if I had never met a zoom lens." I'm trying than now with my 50, and so far it does just about everything. Well, except what a 100-400L does.

Any focal length lens is a good walk around lens, you just have to work outside the box and look for the photo opportunites..

yogestee wrote in post #12667843
Any focal length lens is a good walk around lens, you just have to work outside the box and look for the photo opportunites..

This!

Using a single prime for a day or two really forces you to find creative ways to make that FL work. Even more so when it's not a FL you're comfortable using for every shot.

50mm is where I'm most comfortable, but I do mount just a 28mm or just a 85mm (like I am today) for general shooting.

Most of my pictures have been shot with my 50 f/1.4. Next my 70-300. But that will change now that I have a 24-105L. Even so, my 50 is the lens that is usually mounted on my 40D.

Jim

I own only primes and my 50/1.4 is on my 5D 95% of the time, if I shot crop it might be a different story.