[Ira]

We all know about LBA, but I'm amazed at FLA, a pending Ira trademark:

How God forbid someone has a gap between 135mm and 150mm.

This issue struck me particularly due to some posts from people going on vacation and asking lens-bringing advice, and they were not only bringing an arsenal of lenses with over-lapping FLs, but were buying new lenses to fill in tiny gaps.

Thank God I don't suffer from this. I'm more than happy to go out with ONE prime lens for the whole day, and MAYBE one time out of a hundred, I wish I had a different FL on there.

I offer this thread up as a little reminder to new shooters, to stop thinking you have to have this or that lens on there to get a shot. You have FEET, so instead of wasting time changing lenses, USE those feet.

Hell--I'm almost tempted to take one of those challenges where I only use the 50 or 35 for a month.

But if I do, what excuse can I give my wife when I want to buy new lenses?

[RioRico]

But if I do, what excuse can I give my wife when I want to buy new lenses?

"The voices in my head told me to" always works for me.

Meanwhile, some of those holes are hard to fill, on my budget anyway. I had to sell a couple 52's and a 56mm but at least I still have a couple 51's and a 53mm. I have some at 60-65-70-75-80-85-90-100-105-110-127-135-140 but I'm obviously missing 95-115-120-125-130. Down below 50, I only have 45-40-37-35-28-24-21, with glaring gaps at 48-44-42-33-30-25-20. Life just isn't fair.

Oh yeah, as for inventing FLA -- were you staring at a Florida license plate at the time, by any chance?

[sterretje]

...
I offer this thread up as a little reminder to new shooters, to stop thinking you have to have this or that lens on there to get a shot. You have FEET, so instead of wasting time changing lenses, USE those feet.
...

Cool: walk 2 miles on water to get closer to the subject while on a cruise

...
Hell--I'm almost tempted to take one of those challenges where I only use the 50 or 35 for a month.

Since the beginning of December, I have only used one prime on my main camera.

[BillM]

"The voices in my head told me to" always works for me.

Doesnt work for me Rico(anymore) have resorted to...

"cant ya just see it my way once babe"

[axl]

Doesnt work for me Rico(anymore) have resorted to...

"cant ya just see it my way once babe"

I wish this worked for me right now. There is a beautiful A50/1.2 on sale in my area but my mrs just seems to think I really don't need it... We'll see

@ira:
I do appreciate "zooming" with feet is not doable all the time but like you I can go out with one prime and be happy all day. But I like my options. Hence the 24-31-43-50-77 in my line up! Small gaps? Sure but I like it the way it is... Do I need more? Hell yes, 20 or 18

[Frogfish]

"The voices in my head told me to" always works for me.

Meanwhile, some of those holes are hard to fill, on my budget anyway. I had to sell a couple 52's and a 56mm but at least I still have a couple 51's and a 53mm. I have some at 60-65-70-75-80-85-90-100-105-110-127-135-140 but I'm obviously missing 95-115-120-125-130. Down below 50, I only have 45-40-37-35-28-24-21, with glaring gaps at 48-44-42-33-30-25-20. Life just isn't fair.

Oh yeah, as for inventing FLA -- were you staring at a Florida license plate at the time, by any chance?

ROFL x 100 !!!

[Frogfish]

Whenever I go out I always take 3 or 4 lenses ... just in case. However odds are I'll only use one or maybe two at most. But I'll be looking at the others wondering just how I can squeeze them into the shoot !

Usually use zooms though .... with the 43/1.9 or 50/1.4 as back up for low light or if I want a 'special' look and low DoF.

[magkelly]

Not everybody has the physical capacity to just use the feet. Nor are all objects of photographic desire conveniently within range sans surmounting an insurmountable obstacle. I personally cannot just climb up the nearest tree to take a picture of an eagle on a roof nearby even when I badly want to, but my 75-300MM zoom can breech that gap for me and allow me to get that shot. Even if I could? Would that eagle even be there by the time I got to the spot I'd have to be in to make that shot sans the long lens? Not likely.

I'm actually one of those people who likes to have a full range of lenses. 4 usually will do me if I must go streamlined. 18-28MM, 50-55MM, 105-135MM, 75-300MM. I don't always carry them all with me but that's my kit goal for every camera mount I own, having lenses like these. It's always nice to have more, sure, but that range pretty much does what I want. Those are my basics. I'm definitely not a one super zoom kind of person otherwise my 28-200MM Tamron would be getting a lot more action than it is.

I'd take the Tamron (or another zoom) with me if I was going on a trip though most likely. It just makes sense to take one when you are packing light, but for daily use, no. I definitely prefer my primes more and I usually reserve my use of the big zooms for things like birding. My favorite lens actually is my 105MM Takumar, though my 50MM runs a very close second.

[grainbelt]

I'm with Ira on this, I can do 95% of what I do with the DA 35 Macro. Every now and then I want wider, sometimes a bird flutters by that I want to shoot.

This has a lot to do with traveling on a motorcycle. The DA 35 is mounted on the camera in my tank bag, right at hand. If I really want to I'll grab the tele or ultrawide out of the panniers, but if I think carefully about framing, I can do a lot with that 35.

Next pickup will be the 15 or 21 (can't decide) and then I'll have a sweet kit at my fingertips, all the time.

[dadipentak]

I've observed there's another variant of this malady: addiction to lenses of a specific FL. I'm talking about the folks who have seventeen 50mm or 35mm lenses, for example.

I'm a Type I myself--looking to fill the gap between 21 & 24mm.

[Ron Kruger]

I shoot all primes and approach FL pragmatically. I have a 15, 35, 50, 100, 200 and a TC. Lots of gaps, but I've never seen a shot I couldn't get with one of these.
I am considering adding a fisheye or UWA in 8mm or 10mm for special shots, however.
It's like the difference between a shotgun and a rifle. With primes, you aim directly at a bullseye.

[RioRico]

I've observed there's another variant of this malady: addiction to lenses of a specific FL. I'm talking about the folks who have seventeen 50mm or 35mm lenses, for example.

You mean like my 45 lenses in the 50-60mm range? (26 are 50mm, 12 are 55mm.) Or my 10 zooms in the 70-210 range (including 80-200 etc) ?? Does this mean I have to go to more meetings, one per malady? Hey, I'll sell some of those, I promise!

Let's break this down even more:

FLA Type I: Accumulates all focal lengths, infinitely.
FLA Type II: Accumulates specific focal lengths (primes).
FLA Type IIa: Accumulates specific focal lengths (zooms).
FLA Type III: Same as LBA Type IIb below.

Then we just have the other types of LBA:

LBA Type I: Accumulates lenses, infinitely.
LBA Type II: Accumulates specific lensmakers.
LBA Type IIa: Accumulates specific marques.
LBA Type IIb: Grabs all variants of specific focal lengths per foundry or marque.
LBA Type III: Accumulates specific optical formulae.
LBA Type IV: Accumulates specific countries.
LBA Type V: Buys within certain price ranges.

I'll judge the FLA Type III aka LBA Type IIb to be the most madly (anally?) pernicious. In fact, this species has two sub-species: (1) per maker, and (2) per marque. Sub-type (1) accumulates all Tomioka-made 55/1.4's, no matter the brand. Sub-type (2) accumulates all Vivitar-branded 28/2.8's, no matter the maker. But LBA Type III is comparably bad and can be much more expensive, like 'collecting' all Biotars or Cooke Triplets ever made. I'm more of a LBA Type V guy: I find it hard to skip anything costing under US$5.

[Manel Brand]

I'm more than happy to go out with ONE prime lens for the whole day,

LOL, make it TWO. A fast 50 and double of that and I'm out. Bye...

[Frogfish]

You missed one Rio - there is also FLA Prime : this is where a shooter is addicted to one focal length, grainbelt above comes close to this with his 35. One focal length for virtually everything.

[SpecialK]

What works for one does not work for another. That is why there are so many choices. Though it is true not every single mm has to be covered, I agree with Magkelly - "zoom with your feet" is the most over used phrase (sorry Ira!). I actually may start a thread about overused phrases...