Prime Lenses vs. Zoom Lenses: Which One to Choose?

On this video, by professional photographer Michelle Ford (from slrlounge) share some thoughts about an old but still very relevant question – which is best (for you) prime or zoom lenses?

Most of the discussions which start with this question are not very useful because every photographer has different needs and every lens is different (there are some good primes and bad ones and some good and bad zooms out there), but Ford actually manages to tackle the issue without falling into some of the clichés of the topic (i.e. primes = sharp, zoom = more flexible).

As we always say: with lenses – look at each one individually – no matter who is the manufacturer and what type of lens it is – read reviews and user comments and try and get as much information as you can before you invest in a new lens because this is an investment which you might use for many years to come (unlike cameras for example which people tend to replace every 2-3 years on average).

You can find many more gear guides on our dedicated gear guide section here on LensVid.

Iddo Genuth
Iddo Genuth is the founder and chief editor of LensVid.com. He has been a technology reporter working for international publications since the late 1990's and covering photography since 2009. Iddo is also a co-founder of a production company specializing in commercial food and product visual content.

3 comments

  1. If you are going to use two camera bodies then having a zoom lens on each can cover a full range for a wedding day especially if you pair say a 24-70 2.8 with the 70-200 2.8 but then you miss out on being able to stop lower than 2.8. I prefer a 50 1.4 and 85 1.4 when using two camera bodies for a wedding.

  2. I use two bodies when shooting weddings and if I had a 24-70 2.8 on one and a 70-200 2.8 on the other I would be covering the full range I would need on a wedding day but I prefer to use a 50 1.4 and an 85 1.4 for when I want to stop down more and further blur the background.

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