Which lense pleases your wife or GF?

alex ph · Joined: 16 Mar 2013 Posts: 1662

Photography still remains mainly a male hobby or profession. As this forum does (correct me if I am wrong). But my question touches both sides.

Reading various threads I regularily meet your evidences concerning your partners' disapproval of wasting time and money for those beautiful (in your eyes) lenses and cameras. I also see that some of your partners let you quite easily make of them your photo models. I wonder if those of them who are present in your shots criticise you less often for buying too much of photo equipment? But it's an auxiliary question.

Like some of you I sometimes experience a certain indifference or critical attitude of my partner to my will to acquire photo equipment. Not specially for the reason of money but for the reason that it takes too much space in the house. Or because dealing with parcels when I buy at distance is such a mess.

Saying that I wish to mention that she likes my photos and loves to be photographed finding photo practice quite rich and facsinating as for results. What I observe is that everything was just a way as simple when I owned only one advanced digital P&S camera which gave a generally pleasing even if slightly blurry rendering of skin and face. It was one from Canon Powershot A series. When I got a Sony NEX, my partner became more critical. The NEX's kit lens renders more visible skin details as compared to my Canon P&S and at close distance that may cut the pleasure from watching your portraits. So, advancing in technical side of photography, I got more resistance when shooting my partner. I imagine that this precise point may contribute to a global criticism towards your photo passion.

But... I regained many points getting some of MF lenses which render back a pleasing skin and face texture, still giving high detail and overall sharpness.

I speak precisely about two lenses which give such an effect. Those are Rollei Planar 1.8/50 and Yashica ML 1.9/50.

Whe she saw her shots made with these lenses, especially with the Planar, even not wide open, she attested those shots as wonderul and special, and outlined that they give a much better impression of those taken with the kit lens. In some way I got a larger credit to continue my pursuite for the old photo equipment.

I cannot say that it's a universal recipy to change the attitude of your partner towards your photo passion. But there is a point in it.

What I would like to ask you is the question I put in the thread title: could you observe or conclude from discussions of your shots with your partner which lens pleases her most?

And if you are a female photographer and you have a male partner, do some of portrait parameters matter more for him than the skin rendering? The main question remains the same: which lens lets you please him most?

David · Expire: 2013-01-25

The only lenses that please my girlfriend are the ones I don't buy.

Gardener · Joined: 22 Sep 2013 Posts: 950 Location: USA

Lloydy · Expire: 2022-01-01

woodrim · Joined: 14 Jan 2010 Posts: 4060 Location: Charleston

I'm afraid, Alex, that you are engaged in a losing battle. Best not to engage in discussion or debate. This is genetic in origin, with only an occasional few females who for whatever reason are absent the troublesome gene. Those who find and marry the ones with absent gene are most fortunate and should have many children (girls) to enhance the chances of cleansing the human gene pool for the better of mankind. My wife once complained that my owning four Austin-Healeys was excessive; can you imagine such nonsense?

You have probably observed that while one lens is enough, one toy of any kind is enough, and especially ONE girlfriend/wife is enough (for your own safety), the lady in question probably has a need for more clothes and shoes than she could possibly ever wear before going out of style.

So after three years of dating, followed by 37 years of marriage, I have learned to avoid such subjects and just do as I please. Should she initiate the subject, just say "yes dear" or "no dear", being very careful to not mix those two responses, then do as you please.

Another little hint I can offer is that the problem gene apparently also causes an inability to tell one lens from another. This makes it quite possible to hide the new lenses in plain sight as long as they're surrounded by others. If she ever asks if that is a new lens, simply tell the truth: No, that's an old one.

I hope this has been useful to you, but in the event that none of this works, DO NOT substitute any of these tactics with logic; that will most certainly exacerbate matters. Good luck.

vanylapep · Joined: 03 Jan 2014 Posts: 312

^^ LOL.

So true.

invisible · Joined: 06 Jun 2013 Posts: 344

Attila · Expire: 2025-11-18

Langstrum · Joined: 16 Feb 2014 Posts: 351

I think the answer lies in the combination of how she/he figures out what is a good photo, her/his self-awareness, and budget plan.

I met my girl from a group of artists and she is just like me, getting crazy easily with photographic equipment and actually she was the one who lead me to this field. Most of the time I asked her about my plan for buying new lenses to get easy approvals, and sometimes she's even more excited than me to wait for the delivery Laughing

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If your girl is also a photographer, that's idea, everything becomes so easy, but if not, the situation is more complicated.

With the girls, how they look in the photo is the most important one. But the good thing is if she has a good sense of photography, she would likely to support your decision regardless of her will to be or not to be your regular model. Just choose the one taking good portraits by your parameters.

If she knows she's either pretty or unique, but she doesn't know much about photography, she would support you as long as her images look nice and impressive. You'll have more choice and less chance of getting criticism. Maybe, she will prefer photos with good 3D effect and not so high resolution to hide away some of her imperfection. However, this kind of girl may easily get bored with your increasing gear collection, and if she's strict with the budget, you'll have problems soon.

Unfortunately, as far as I observed, many hobbyist photographers, somehow, have gf or wives that don't care much or don't have any sense of photography, don't like seeing themselves with "ugly details". And the worst is they having many other plans for spending money. You need to choose the one that takes good photos which are praised by her friends and double think before showing them off. Otherwise, the best situation is dating your gears as a secret affair Twisted Evil

I'm sorry that I can't give you any lens name, because my gf loves them all Embarassed

. If anyone here doesn't have gf yet, my advice is finding a female photographer, that's heaven Laughing

norland · Joined: 10 Aug 2013 Posts: 165

Other half especially likes the colour and sharpness of pictures taken with the Tair 300A.
I'm inclined to agree with her, it's an excellent lens with weight its only real drawback.

IAZA · Joined: 16 Apr 2010 Posts: 2587 Location: Indonesia

kansalliskala · Expire: 2016-12-30

My wife said I shouldn't sell my Distagon 35/2.8. It does produce very beautiful pictures.

cyrano · Expire: 2016-12-30

If anyone has any reasonable and partner acceptable excuses for when another lens arrives in the mail please feel free to share as I have run out of excuses. I am currently telling my gf that the latest arrival is an old one I sent off to get serviced but I think that's not going to work much longer, I'm getting strange looks from her now.... Shocked

IAZA · Joined: 16 Apr 2010 Posts: 2587 Location: Indonesia

qtmonster · Joined: 15 Jun 2011 Posts: 37 Location: Singapore

The various posts from this topic cracked me up....in a tickling and dry way cos it's so true Very Happy

Whenever I tell my wife I'm planning to buy a new (old) lens, she'd always give me a look and make me promise to sell off one or some or all of my current collection. So at the very least, the herd remains the same in numbers. I've gotten off with a few excuses like 'I've sold off this one lens for $$$ but gotten 2 newer ones cheaper than the one I sold".

I do agree that fast lenses benefit the most as the bokeh wide open give dreamy images that tend to flatter the females in our lives. They tend to hate sharp, portrait images...unless they're for landscape scenes.

It's part of our relationship, so have fun in the midst of those sweat-producing, permission-asking situations Very Happy

CuriousOne · Joined: 31 Dec 2013 Posts: 669 Location: Home

Safe ones? Very Happy

hoanpham · Expire: 2015-01-18

tromboads · Expire: 2015-10-01

ahh uv filter. Good idea.

drjs · Joined: 25 Feb 2013 Posts: 484 Location: USA

alex ph · Joined: 16 Mar 2013 Posts: 1662

Thank you guys for your contributions. I admired many of your observations!

Ha-ha, woodrim, that makes lough:

alex ph · Joined: 16 Mar 2013 Posts: 1662

Ha-ha, drjs, a fatal error!

drjs · Joined: 25 Feb 2013 Posts: 484 Location: USA

woodrim · Joined: 14 Jan 2010 Posts: 4060 Location: Charleston

cyrano · Expire: 2016-12-30

Billou · Expire: 2015-05-19

My wife always thinks she broke my X-E1 when she touches another button than the shutter, but for sure she knows that the Leica R 50/2 and the 90/2 give the best results for portraits in my collection. And I love her for that, she is so right ! Laughing