Polishing Pigs

I was delighted to come across a man who was polishing the pigs as I took my first camera stroll with the new lens. The rest of this is gear talk, so if you’re not into gear, don’t bother reading further. My GR camera sold, and with the money I got for it, I was able to buy a used 18mm lens for the Fuji. Thanks to the wise blipper who suggested this plan. I’m crazy about the new lens. I think I will keep it mounted on the camera as my default and just use the 35mm for low-light and portraits. I love to be close to people when I shoot, to be engaged in conversation with them or close enough to capture emotion, but the 35mm didn’t allow quite as much context as I like (see this for a comparison--both shots taken from about the same spot). 

The camera store was having a “gear day” and allowed me to borrow both the 18mm and the 10-24mm zoom (which is much more expensive) for two hours. I returned them after 45 minutes because it didn’t take long to know what I wanted. Anything wider than 18mm feels as if it puts distance between me and the subject, and I never want more distance. Rather the reverse. I like to be as close as I can get to people, both to engage them in conversation and to catch genuine emotion. Like this, for example, taken as I stepped on this man’s foot, and which he is now using as his facebook icon. I have been using a fixed lens, either 35mm or 50mm, for about a decade now, and I like not having to bother with a zoom, as I just about never do wildlife or nature photography, and I seldom do stealth photography in the street. What I really want is the rough equivalent of what the human eye sees, and I think I might be a little closer to that with the digital 18 than I was with the 35. If there are others out there who shoot with an 18mm, I’d love to hear any tips you have.