lenses and adapters..why the need for more lenses

jambredz

jambredz

Veteran
I was wondering...why have different lens for ur 35mm adapter other than say a 50mm "normal" lens? i've never used an adapter so plz see with me...but if its only the focal length that changes, wudnt it be easier to just physically change the distance of the 50mm ie come closer to the subject or go further? I'm talking under circumstances where an XCU is not needed or if ur in small room but need to have a large FOV. I mean i partially answered my own question...but how often does that come up? Couldnt one get by with a 50mm alone for the most part?
 
Moving in closer or backing away doesn't produce the same effect. A longer focal length actually compresses the background even though the subject size might remain the same, and the opposite is true for wider lenses. Also, there is a minimum focus distance, usually several feet so it's limiting to simply stick to a single lens.
 
You will notice that the first time you try to shoot inside a car with a 200mm lens :laugh:
 
try to get a head to toe shot of someone with blurry background with a 50mm lens. unless your background is 10 miles away, you probably can't. now put on a 300mm lens and get really far from the talent. frame up a full shot and you have your blurry background. longer lenses = less dof.

then there's the fov thing someone already mentioned. longer lenses compress backgrounds. helpful on a narrow set.

there's also a cinematic aspect to it. a 50mm "normal" lens is called that because it is closest to the fov the human eye sees. sometimes you want to step out of that human eye perspective. using a super wide or super tele lens shows your audience something they can't see normally. it takes them out of "reality".

personally i like to have as many lenses as possible but at a minimum i will always have 28,50,85,135 or sizes close to that.
 
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