Zooms Vs Primes

My first ever Zoom Lens was the Nikon 18-105mm 3.5-5.6. It came as part of a kit with my D90. This was back in 2013 and I had no idea how to use it beyond the obvious.

Zooming in and out was the obvious thing to do. It did not teach me anything about seeing, framing, composing or learning how to work a scene, all that came with time and practice.

It's 2025 and my Lens collection has grown. I possess a fair number of Zoom Lens and I am pleased about one thing thing, I know to use my Zoom Lens correctly.

Why is this?

It's very simple, I spent a long time creating images using Prime Lens.

A Prime Lens like a 35mm, 40mm or 50mm forced me to do some serious leg work - I had to Zoom with my feet.

This activity means learning to work the scene - my legs are my zoom and a lot cheaper.

Using a Prime Lens meant when I switched to the flexibility of a zoom like my 16-80mm F4, I would set my lens to the desired focal length and……zoom with my feet.

I treat my Zoom Lens like I would my Prime - the flexibility is that I have a 16mm, 23mm, 35mm, 50m and an 80mm. That's five Prime Lens in one package and at a constant F4 Maximum Aperture.

Setting my focal length for the subject is a sign of great progress in my image creation.

The Zoom vs Prime debate will rage on.

When I Travel, I always take one zoom my 16-80mm F4 and my scene stealer XF18mm F1.4.

I am covered for daytime shooting and low light.

My opinion is learn how to use your tools - use the right Lens for the subject.

That's it, it's very simple.

Thanks for reading