You can see the VLOG to the BLOG at the bottom of the page or you can reach it via this button:
Gear:
Sony a7IV
Sony FE 4/24–105 mm G
That’s a good question. Every focal length and every lens has its advantages. And, of course, it depends on the personal preferences of the photographer. But the fact is that by consciously reducing our equipment, we can give ourselves more freedom in terms of creativity. Which lens you should take with you when you go out to take photos depends not only on your personal style and attitude, but also on what you want to photograph. So what I take with me when I want to go out with little luggage depends heavily on what my target photo is. It therefore requires planning and can vary from time to time.
The 16–35 is simply a beast when it comes to landscape photography. It is incredibly good at capturing the vastness of a landscape or bringing more depth into the image than any other focal length range through extreme compositions. But not every landscape is suitable for extreme wide angles. It can also be difficult to remove distracting elements from the image. It takes a lot of practice. My 24–105 is very versatile. It’s one of my favourite focal lengths when travelling, especially when I don’t want to change lenses. The wide angle is sufficient for many situations, and with 105 mm you can zoom in nicely and condense scenes. Even for portraits, the f/4 in full format is fine when travelling. The 100–400 mm is actually my favourite lens. Due to its short minimum focusing distance, you can photograph everything from details, almost macro-like shots, to the moon. The narrow angle of view helps to simplify compositions and take simpler, clearer shots without too much practice. In some landscapes, such as my home region of Kraichgau or Tuscany with its rolling hills, this focal length range is very useful. The 200–600 is, of course, THE lens for wildlife photography.
When it comes to portraits, I wouldn’t want to swap my 85mm f/1.4 for any other lens in the world. Or in a foreign city, as inconspicuously as possible, that’s why I love my 50 mm f/2.5It’s so small and light that I can take snapshot after snapshot with one hand, even when I’m carrying my children around. So you see, every lens has its place in my cabinet. But now to the question: if I had to part with all of them except one, which one would I keep?
Of course, I can only speak for myself, but surprise, surprise. I wouldn’t keep any G Master lenses, only my Sony FE 4/24–105 mm G (*) It has a great focal length range, making it very versatile. The sharpness is excellent, the sun star is beautiful, it has few problems with backlighting, and it’s not too heavy. It was actually the first lens I owned when I switched to Sony full-frame, and so far I haven’t seen any reason why I should ever give this lens away.
The reason why is actually the same reason why I now have such a large collection of lenses: flexibility. In the early years when I was getting into photography and slowly developing a passion for it, I shot with a Nikon D7000 and only a 35 mm f/1.8 and a 50 mm f/1.8 lens. I don’t think being so ‘limited’ did me or my photography any harm. But at some point, I didn’t want to limit myself anymore; I wanted to be more flexible. I wanted to be able to react to the smallest things and have a more subtle effect.
When I started taking photos with Sony, I wanted to have as much flexibility as possible, even though I only had enough money for one lens at first. Even then, I found the 24–105 mm to be perfect.
Why am I harping on about this in this BLOG? Well, in the video you can see me rushing through the dunes. Made difficult by the sandy paths. With me is my trusty Rucksack (*) packed with half of my equipment: 16–35 mm, 100–400 mm and filter set. While I hold my tripod with the a7 and the 24–105 in my hand and take pictures.
I only take photos with this combination that evening, so I don’t change the lens once. I could have left everything else at home and been completely free to walk through the dunes of the Netherlands. But no, I wanted to add some extra weight and turn the photo walk into an outdoor workout.
There was a brief moment when I hesitated. But I decided to go for a slightly wider angle at this point. Then I thought about it for a moment and realised that there was no advantage in getting any closer and then taking a wider angle shot. Distant hills would have become even smaller, the more extreme perspective would not have added any value, and perhaps even more distracting elements would have entered the frame. I left the 24–105 mm lens on. A good decision. Carrying everything with me even though I didn’t need it was a rather silly decision.
Would I have taken everything with me if I had planned better? Probably. FOMO, you know. There could have been a reason why I needed 400 mm or 16 mm…
If I had only had the 24–105 with me, I would have had exactly the same results – only with less effort. 😉
This and all other shots of this post you can request under “Prints” as an art print for your wall at home directly from me.
A camera, a lens, a dune landscape, beautiful evening light. Sometimes the formula for a few beautiful landscape shots can be that simple. It’s not always the case, but in this instance, it was a combination that couldn’t have been more perfect. You can see what can be created with such minimal equipment in this gallery.
In today’s VLOG, hope rests solely on the hour before sunset. The forecast already indicated that there would most likely be no sunset or evening glow, but that the clouds could provide some great photo opportunities during the golden hour. Watch the video to see how I captured some beautiful images in the dunes and which lens was sufficient to take all the shots. Enjoy watching.
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