Lens Love!

So, I rented this little beauty and took her out for a test run yesterday.

She's very lovely.
All of these pictures are SOOC (straight out of camera).
No editing. 

1/2000, f/2.8, 200mm

I was probably 25 feet from Maddie when I took this photo.
I love the compression.
See how the pole she's leaning against appears to be the same scale as the tree behind her?
In reality it's more like a scale of 2:1 or more.
I love how this lens seems to pull in the background to make things "tighter".

The main reason I love this lens though is how it changes the relationship with the subject.
The physical distance creates this mood that I'm just LOVING!

1/1250, f/2.8, 190mm

1/1250, f/2.8, 135mm

1/1250, f/2.8, 95mm

 It feels more natural to me.
I just love it.  

It also performed really well with motion and keeping the focus.

1/1600, f/2.8, 70mm

I was panning to get this shot as she was running on the bridge.

I did discover this lens is all about distance.
I tried a familiar shot I get of Maddie all the time because it's one of her favorite things to do.

1/1250, f/2.8, 70mm

Peek-a-boo around the tree.  I was right there, maybe 1 foot from her.

1/500, f/2.8, 70mm

The lens couldn't find focus this close, so when there's action going on with little ones in close proximity, this is NOT the lens for the job.

Here are some of my favorite shots at 70mm.
I was probably 5-7 feet from her in most of these.

1/2000, f/2.8, 70mm

1/3200, f/2.8, 70mm

And here are my favorite shots at a longer focal length.

1/2500, f/2.8, 200mm

1/3200, f/2.8, 135mm

Another amazing find I discovered with this lens is the lack of chromatic aberration.

1/500, f/2.8, 70mm

Normally, with this much contrast between the chains and the sky there would be some green lines that appear between the transitions (aka chromatic aberration)
Look at this!  It's amazing!

Well, now that I have proven what a nerd I am, I have just ONE more observation/conclusion with this lens.

This is NOT your lens for macro photography.

On the left, 70-200.

On the right, my 100mm Macro.

No comparison!








Choosing the right tool for the task at hand is an artist's first decision to make when creating art.

I love this lens for the mood it can create with the distance between me and the subject.

If I want to capture the essence of who a person is, I'll reach for my 24-70 f/2.8 L II.

If I want the details, details, details, I'll pull out my 100mm Macro.

Bottom line:  I would absolutely love to have this lens in my toolkit!

Thank you for reading and allowing me to get all nerdy on you.
I know I really need a blog my photography can call all it's own, but who has time to create another blog ;)