FrankPark

Hey guys, i'm kinda new at the car photography thing, and i got a Sony Alpha A200 with a 18-70mm Lens, and my question is, what type of lens do most of you guys use for car photography? and i mean general stuff, no rolling shots or anything, just still shots, and is my 18-70mm useful in car photography? my shots come out pretty good, im just wondering if a better lens would help, oh any sorry its not a 350Z, i was going to buy one a few months back, but got an Audi instead (true eurofan at heart) , but still you guys all have amazing photography skills, and cars! So i come here to ask for help, thanks alot!

Heres one so far of what i got. is this 18-70mm ok or could i use better?

ROBZ350

iTrader: (3)

I usually try to stay away from the 50mm, too bland. Mostly I would use a zoom around 200mm with a wide apeture for a narrow depth of field. Or a wide angle with a wide apeture. Gotta focus the center of attention on the car and not the surroundins and buildings. Of course there are times to break the rules, but I usually stick with that. Here is a wide angle I took a while ago before my body kit... Oh and especially whatch your reflections in the car. I believe thats what makes a shot!

3FIDDYZED

iTrader: (2)

10 - 20mm sigma or 11-18mm Sony lens would suit your Alpha well for some car photograpy. Amature myself so am learning too but its a great lens to try....

ctwentytwo

iTrader: (9)

Yes, like rob said, a 35-50mm shot is considered "normal" or almost what the human eye would see.

Choosing your focal length affects different things in the shot, and not necessarily just your subject.

A wider FL distorts the subject and shrinks the background, giving you more of the background.
Shot @ 10mm (Canon 1.6 crop factor)


A normal FL gives you of course, a less distorted car... sorta like what your eye would see, and magnifies the background a little more.
Shot @ 17mm (Olympus 2x crop factor)


A tele FL flattens everything and magnifies the background, obviously more.
Shot @ 250mm (Canon 1.6 crop factor)


There are several things to learn here... look at the sizes of the rear tire, the longer focal lengths start to flatten everything. Even objects from far away will look closer. You can minimize background clutter this way. Also, IMO, the longer the focal length, the better the car looks. This is also true for portraits.

An example: shot at 196mm w/Canon 1.6 crop factor:
(I wanted to minimize the background clutter, a bi-product of long FL is that it looks like it gives less DOF, thus blurring the background- although the DOF is the same at other FLs with the same aperture, but the background is just magnified.


If you like the distortion, then go wide. Anything from 18mm and below is effective. Other situations dictate that you only can use short FLs, like at Auto shows, where there is little room.

An example: shot at 10mm w/Canon 1.6 crop factor:
(I wanted something distorted, a unique shot)

FrankPark

guys thanks alot for the fast comments, ok so should i pick up a 55-200mm lens, a 70-300mm or a 10-20 , what would you recommend for right now? i just want good shots for now, until i get a bit better, so maybe just a 70-300mm? thanks

3FIDDYZED

iTrader: (2)

I would say a 10-20mm to start, there should be some used ones on the market now for the sony, you could try and get an older minolta one just to try. I also picked up a used 120 to 400mm sigma just to make sure I had a full range for different situations. 10mm through to 400mm from 4 lenses. Not sure what the 2nd hand market is like in the states but worth while till you really learn the camera... 10-20mm is great for rolling shots too as you can be in the next lane to your subject...

As you can see from this pic, you do get some distorsion


Rear wheel on mine needs the camber sorting but on this pic it really kicks it out!