[kh1234567890]

But what I'm gonna do, is that I will take my 18-55 and go out shooting

Actually, the DA18-55 WR is a good street lens, especially if it is raining.

[DSims]

You could always just get an FA20-35!

[Just1MoreDave]

Well thank you guys. Thank you very much. Your comments were really helpful to me. BUT! I wrote here because I hoped that you will help me to make up my mind cause I was picking between 2 lenses. Now, I have to consider like 4 at least. But what I'm gonna do, is that I will take my 18-55 and go out shooting with the fixed focal lenght (not gonna use zoom) a few times and see what suits me the best.
Thank you once more.

That's pretty typical for the first few hours. We'll add more by tomorrow.

The last time I did that kind of shooting, I used my 24mm the most, but I also used a 35, a 50, and the 18-55 kit lens at 18, 28 and 40. So I think many focal lengths could work. That allows you to choose based on size, maximum aperture, your comfort level shooting strangers, or other factors. For example, I thought the kit lens was fine in daylight and f8, but at dusk/dark, I wanted a wider aperture.

[HenrikDK]

Well thank you guys. Thank you very much. Your comments were really helpful to me. BUT! I wrote here because I hoped that you will help me to make up my mind cause I was picking between 2 lenses. Now, I have to consider like 4 at least. But what I'm gonna do, is that I will take my 18-55 and go out shooting with the fixed focal lenght (not gonna use zoom) a few times and see what suits me the best.
Thank you once more.

Yep - not so easy a couple of thoughts: you can still use your 18-55, and it will cover the other end - whatever it may be - nicely. It is small and compact. The great thing is you can buy a used lens here, and if you don't like it, sell it again. You will seldom loose much more than shipping fees etc.

The one recommendation I might question (and please correct me if I am wrong) is the 35mm Ltd Macro. I know my 100mm D FA WR macro can be frustrating with auto focus - if it misses, it starts hunting and gets noisy. I would think the 35mm might do the same, though probably to a lesser degree. For street photography that quickly could get bothersome, I'm guessing.

[derelict]

Actually, the DA18-55 WR is a good street lens, especially if it is raining.

Which in my Manchester experience is almost all of the time...

[kh1234567890]

The one recommendation I might question (and please correct me if I am wrong) is the 35mm Ltd Macro. I know my 100mm D FA WR macro can be frustrating with auto focus - if it misses, it starts hunting and gets noisy. I would think the 35mm might do the same, though probably to a lesser degree. For street photography that quickly could get bothersome, I'm guessing.

Yes, it can do and you'll miss the shot when it does. Prefocusing is not always the answer. For street photos you want to be quick - it is all about noticing and capturing the 'decisive moment'. Even the time the SR takes to lock in can be annoying - with wide lenses such as the DA21 you don't really need SR unless the light is really bad and even then you are better off turning up the ISO instead. A bit of grainy noise does not matter, street photography is not about sharpness and IQ perfection.

[kh1234567890]

Which in my Manchester experience is almost all of the time...

That is a myth

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[derelict]

That is a myth

Haha, perhaps not all the time but it seemed to rain a lot. Maybe it was just the year I spent there for school.


For walking around, I brought my 28mm and 17 fisheye.

[dms]

As a follow up on my comment about the desirability of a lens w/ aperture and distance scales, and (consistent w/) kh1234567890 and deadjohn comments:
1. street shooting ideally means you decide what range you want in good focus and set it in advance of the shots--i.e., anticipate the shot. And that means you want to also learn what a reasonable f/stop and distance (range)--and thus iso and shutter speed that will be OK.
2. this means you want to see the information in a clear and repetitive manner as you do it. That's how you learn/improve!
3. Thus a lens with fstop and distance scales, and showing distance range in focus for a particular fstop is very desirable.
4. It's is unfortunate that the lens (if as described in 3.) is set up for FF--but simply using the distance in focus for 1 stop more open--fixes this (e.g, taking at f/11 but use lens distance markings for f/8).
5. Initially, and perhaps always with a shorter FL lens, the hyperfocal distance will be the distance you will set (focus on if you use deadjohn's method).
6. BTW item 5. is one reason to use a wider FL lens. e.g., a 28mm FL lens at f/11 will have a hyperfocal distance of about 11 feet [easy to remember] and thus about 5 feet to infinity will likely be in acceptable focus.
7. Once you decide on a favorite FL (and f stop) for street shooting it makes sense to memorize the associated hyperfocal distance.

[kh1234567890]

1. street shooting ideally means you decide what range you want in good focus and set it in advance of the shots--i.e., anticipate the shot...

Most of the time I just point the camera roughly in the right direction, press the shutter and let the electronics do its thing. Often I don't even bother looking through the viewfinder. That's the beauty of wide angle lenses such as the DA21 or the DA18-55 WR at the wide end. It usually works

[jwc77]

Another vote for the 21 limited. It's about the perfect focal length for me in that situation (wide but not too wide) and the great limited build quality and image rendering.

[Erd§]

But what I'm gonna do, is that I will take my 18-55 and go out shooting with the fixed focal lenght (not gonna use zoom) a few times and see what suits me the best.

Great idea...but use the zoom. Take as many images as you can. Then, using software such as ExposurePlot (ExposurePlot jpg exif lens length analyzer for photographers), you can graphically determine your most commonly used focal length...or thereabouts (keeping in mind ExposurePlot only works with jpgs). If you use Lightroom, it can also show this info fairly easily.
This should give you the best basis in knowing which focal length prime would be most suitable for your type of shooting.

[John Elger]

Ok guys, You've been really helpful and I appreciate all you answers thank you very much. But let me rephrase my original question. I wanna just ask this: What focal lenght is ideal as the 1st prime lens? Will 40mm do the job? Cause 40mm ltd is must have for me but I'm a bit worried about it being to short.

Thank you.

[HenrikDK]

Well - that seems like a very "it depends" question - and a personal preference question we can't answer for you... I am sure you know the equivalent of the old "normal" 50mm on film is about 35mm. Of course many liked the 35mm on film which is closer to a 24mm on cropped. For these reason the 40mm is actually a slightly "tight" normal lens.

Going back to your original post - In my opinion there is not difference between the 35 and the 40 in focal length, and in terms of image quality the DA 35 f2.4, the 40 XS, and the 40 ltd are very similar. The 40 ltd is much better in build quality.

Sound like you want the 40 Ltd. Go for it and don't worry.. No single prime will be perfect for all situations. Start with the 40 and go from there. Especially if you buy one used you can sell it again at about the same price if it doesn't work for you. I personally like my 43 (close to the 40) as it provide tighter cropping of people...

[DSims]

The DA35/2.4 is pretty ideal as a first prime because of its characteristics. Otherwise something in the 70-135mm range is pretty ideal. The DA70 and F/FA135 are good examples.