In past years, I have issued a challenge for the month of September to take and post images using only a 50mm (or FF equivalent) lens and to post the JPEG as captured in camera. A large number of you decided to join me for all or part of the month so although Sam @gigiflower and Hazel @quietpurplehaze have made August Nifty-Fifty month I have decided to issue the same challenge for the month of September this year. If you didn't join Sam & Hazel in August, now's your chance to get to grips with the nifty-fifty... and if you did join in August, well just carry on but post only the Jpeg straight from camera.
Here's how I introduced the challenge in previous years:
I got to thinking about how photography has changed in recent years: it used to be that 20, 30 or 40 years ago if you wanted an 'enthusiasts camera' you bought either a 35mm range-finder camera or a 35mm SLR, and chances are that in either case it would have come equipped with a 'standard' 50mm lens. So you loaded your choice of 35mm film, took 24 or 36 exposures and then sent your film off to a processing house for the next stage in the process... at some considerable cost. Ten days to a fortnight later, you got your 'snaps' back and, if you were anything like me, you were disappointed with the results. Some didn't 'come out' and the rest didn't seem to exactly tally with your memories of the scenes that you captured.
These days this second and vital part of the process is also handled by the photographer him or herself and this has led, I think, to some blurring of the roles of camera and processing engine. Often, and I plead guilty to this, decisions that should have been made in camera - composition, colour balance, exposure, etc. - get made in processing... such is the power of a raw image file. But I can't help thinking that this is rather sloppy technique - often we'll get away with it and get the final image we wanted... but sometimes we won't. So on balance I think it must be better to do what should be done in camera, in camera.
So I have again decided that the month of September will be for me NF-SOOC-2017. Every image I post in my main 365 album will be taken with a 50mm (or equivalent) lens and will be posted exactly as it came out of the camera. Yes I know that it will have been processed by the camera's internal processing engine but I need to get used to this standard result exactly the same as in the film days we had to get used to a standard mass-produced 6 x 4 print. I will do no external processing and no cropping and if I want to zoom in on an image, I'll have to do it with my feet!
So who's brave or mad enough (probably a bit of both) to join me in this adventure? You can play for the whole month - I hope some of you will do that - or just post the occasional image. Remember, JPEG as produced in camera and a 50mm lens. Remember also that a Nifty Fifty is only 50mm on a full frame camera: if you have a crop sensor camera like most of use, then the lens you need will be marked 30mm or 35mm for an APS-C camera and 25mm for a micro 4/3 sensor (Olympus and Panasonic). If you don't have a standard prime lens but you would still like to join in, then set your zoom to 50, 35 or 25 as appropriate for your camera and shoot away. (For those who do have a prime lens, there is the added advantage of being able to exploit the wider maximum aperture of those lenses - normally f/1.8 or f/1.4 - and compose with reduced depth of field and/or shoot hand-held in low light.)
Tag your post nf-sooc-2017 and feel free to share your images on here to encourage us all.
Good Luck everyone - I look forward to your joining me in the this little adventure and I promise you that all who participate will become better photographers as a result.
Richard, thanks for issuing this challenge. I've been using nifty fifty on my Sony a6000 (!) which is APS-C so I guess it's going to actually be the 30mm lens? I'll start the 2nd week in Sept when back from holiday. I enjoyed this challenge last year!
@quietpurplehaze Thanks Hazel... I confess that when I started this in 2014, we were on holiday for most of September so it was easier to post straight from camera than finding the time to process! Like you, I don't have a 35mm lens for my Sonys, but I do plan on taking some photos with my 30mm - 45mm FF equivalent is close enough fo government work... as they say 👍🏼
I'm in!
I love the idea - always had a soft spot for SOOC so now is my opportunity to put my money where my mouth is! May not do the whole month - always have good intentions but the realities of life get in the way. But will definitely do some.
A quick question - I have a good quality 50 mm lens but a crop sensor camera (Nikon 7200).
I also have my OLD small zoom (35 to 70) kit lens that came with the camera that no longer turns out good quality pictures. It was my teaching lens and has been knocked about a bit. And as a kit lens, was never top of the line to start with.
I have been thinking about replacing the old lens but can't do that for a month or two. May I use the prime 50 mm lens?
I'm trying not to take too much photographic equipment and have a new 18 - 105mm 'all-purpose' lens but perhaps I'll find room for the 30mm. Temptation!!! I'll also only have my hated (by me) iPad so SOOC is a further temptation.
@farmreporter Hi Wendy - thanks for your support. Of course you may use your 50mm lens even though the effective focal length on your camera is 75mm. The real benefit of this challenge is learning how to get the best from one fixed focal length whilst doing all the heavy lifting in camera instead of in post-processing - you'll still get all of this learning with your 50mm.
Richard- my ignorance is now about to be demonstrated!!
My lens has numbers 18-55 written on it. If I set it to between 45 and 55 would that be the niftty-fifty setting?? Also on my little point and shoot I have no idea what the settings are, but with zoom totally in its 0.05m.
I'll give it a go, will learn more about composition I would think!
Oh, awesome. I think I'll try it! My camera is a bridge camera, no lenses to change. I'll have to figure out where the 50 mm is because my lens says 4.3-258 mm.
@30pics4jackiesdiamond Hi Jackie - learning is what this challenge is all about! Your camera has an APS-C sensor, called a crop sensor because it's smaller than 35mm film format. With a crop sensor of this size you need to multiply the focal length by 1.5 to get the same effective focal length as on a Full Frame camera so your lens has an effective focal range of 27mm - 82mm. For a 50mm equivalent view you need to set the lens to 35mm.
I can't help with the P&S as it all depends on what size sensor it has.
@vignouse no idea how you did those sums, but can put it to 35 OK and for P&S I'll keep it at shortest length and pretend!!
Changing aperture allowed??
@30pics4jackiesdiamond The only setting which is fixed is the focal length. The P&S 50mm equivalent will be at least twice the shortest length I would think.
@vignouse I think I'll join Wendy's focal length, as I have a prime lens that is labeled 50 mm ( but a Nikon D3200 camera though-- so I imagine I'd be at about 75 mm also?). I had actually been thinking that I might try a challenge of only taking one picture while I'm out rather than the spray and pray style I usually adopt, though perhaps just insisting on SOOC is enough...
@vignouse The inner voices in my head are bickering over this, but have decided to give it a go. I plan to shoot and post a SOOC image taken on that day every day for the month of September. I still have some airshow shots, and street shots that I want to share in my main album so will post my nf-sooc-2017 in my challenges album.
i aways found this a good challenge for finding out what options for sooc are actually buried in the menu of my camera, various settings for colour, contrast, black and white, filters and toning are all available, I will use the nifty fifty, even though i am on a crop sensor, but i guess i could put my 35mm lens on occasionally as well for variety!.
left a message on my post for you - I am going to do sooc Sunday because sooc is a challenge for me - if I can I will throw in some NF sooc too - although on the D7000 it's that 75mm of which you speak
I have a Canon 600d. I'm assuming it's a crop sensor? I'm not very camera savvy I'm afraid just enjoy taking photos :) I do have a 50mm lens so ok if I use that? I need some inspiration and would be great to try a whole month
@kali66 Thanks for joining in Kali - remember, your 35mm IS a 'nifty-fifty' for your crop sensor camera... it's what I shall be using on my crop-sensor Fuji.
@psychographer Hi Lisa, thanks for joining in. Yes, of course you can use your 50mm lens - you'll get the same learning as everyone else, just not quite the same image as if you had used a 35mm lens (50mm equivalent on a crop sensor camera).
@vignouse don't know if this counts? Took a photo with Pentax at 35mm setting, then recreated with P&S to work out how far to extend lens until photo pretty much similar! It wasn't very far!!! I think will only do the challenge with big camera!!! 1st photo done!
@psychographer — Thank you Richard and Lisa! I need something to re-inspire me and this may help. Thanks to Lisa's early post … and I'm glad she's several time zones ahead of me! If I take 50mm ÷ 1.6, I get 31.25mm. Yikes; that's wide, Richard! I had a 28mm lens on my last film camera and I loved that lens. Alas, it sits in a box in a closet.
Richard - I would like to join in although my equipment isn't exactly what you want. I have a Nikon 3200 with a nifty fifty lens. I would like to use this challenge to practice with this particular lens as I rarely use it and also to shoot SOOC - which I never do. I am guessing you will approve?
Hi Richard - would it be permissible to have a go at a month of just SOOC? without the other requirements? I just use a Canon Powershot and play around for fun - but nearly always edit something afterwards. It would be good practice to just have a month of non-editing. (Good for the soul but difficult for the IT nerd inside....) Cheers Rob Z
@photobird Hello - Sooc? Straight Out Of Camera - the challenge is take an image each day using an equivalent focal length to 50mm on a full-frame camera and to post the resulting Jpeg as captured witout any processing including cropping . Good Luck if you decide to join us.
@robz Hello Rob - thanks for your interest and you're right, a month of no processing can be a great discipline so please join in. I hope you won't think I'm being grouchy though if I say that you should just tag your photos 'sooc' rather than 'nf-sooc-2017' in fairness to others taking the full challenge.
@365karly1 Hi Karly, if you read through the thread you'll say that others have asked the same question and I've replied in some detail. Thanks for joining us, I hope you have fun.
Good challenge, Richard. Reading the above comments and your thoughtful replies (which must have taken a while) I'm thinking how complicated the manufacturers make it by stating a focal length which we have to convert to 50mm on 135 format. We should have one (albeit massively painful) change to angle of view. We'd soon get used to it. I'm tempted to join with you for this challenge - late and it may be incomplete - sit down before you read on - using the K5 digital with a 35mm lens attached. Maybe I can do some retrospective uploading as we are up to 4th of the month already?
The additional factor that we don't discuss is that although the effective focal length (the angle of view) might be the same, for any given aperture the DoF on a crop sensor camera will be deeper than it would be on a FF camera... I thought it wiser not to include that point in my summary!
I've already noticed that your digital cameras have had the dust blown off them recently. Yes, do come and join us - I leave it up to you to decide if you want to load retrospectively to complete the month.
Richard, I am so grateful for this challenge. I have been lacking photomojo for ages and you have gotten me inspired to take my camera out every day again. Thank you, thank you
@vignouse Hi Richard I too are not well versed in this area I do have to say the majority of my pics are Sooc
Sometimes with a little cropping.
The main lens is multi use Tele/ wide and macro
Range showing 12 mm - 50
Is this ok ?
Thanks for help
@Dawn Hello Dawn, I'm assuming this is on your Olympus which has a micro 4/3 sensor with a crop factor of 2:1 so you need to set your lens to 25. Have fun...
@merrelyn Thanks for joining in - certainly an effective focal length of 75mm is a little long for general use but is a great lens for portraits. What you lose on the swings, you gain on the roundabouts... and you do get a lot of lens for your money!
Can I join in too please? I have a Nikon D40 which Google says is a crop sensor so if I do the same as Jackie above (set 18-55mm lens to 35) that should work?
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Richard, thanks for issuing this challenge. I've been using nifty fifty on my Sony a6000 (!) which is APS-C so I guess it's going to actually be the 30mm lens? I'll start the 2nd week in Sept when back from holiday. I enjoyed this challenge last year!
I love the idea - always had a soft spot for SOOC so now is my opportunity to put my money where my mouth is! May not do the whole month - always have good intentions but the realities of life get in the way. But will definitely do some.
A quick question - I have a good quality 50 mm lens but a crop sensor camera (Nikon 7200).
I also have my OLD small zoom (35 to 70) kit lens that came with the camera that no longer turns out good quality pictures. It was my teaching lens and has been knocked about a bit. And as a kit lens, was never top of the line to start with.
I have been thinking about replacing the old lens but can't do that for a month or two. May I use the prime 50 mm lens?
I'm trying not to take too much photographic equipment and have a new 18 - 105mm 'all-purpose' lens but perhaps I'll find room for the 30mm. Temptation!!! I'll also only have my hated (by me) iPad so SOOC is a further temptation.
My lens has numbers 18-55 written on it. If I set it to between 45 and 55 would that be the niftty-fifty setting?? Also on my little point and shoot I have no idea what the settings are, but with zoom totally in its 0.05m.
I'll give it a go, will learn more about composition I would think!
Jackie
I can't help with the P&S as it all depends on what size sensor it has.
Changing aperture allowed??
Thank you for not laughing at my ignorance!!!
I've already noticed that your digital cameras have had the dust blown off them recently. Yes, do come and join us - I leave it up to you to decide if you want to load retrospectively to complete the month.
Sometimes with a little cropping.
The main lens is multi use Tele/ wide and macro
Range showing 12 mm - 50
Is this ok ?
Thanks for help