Part 1 followed the camera bodies that captured my view of the world. Part 2 turns to the lenses that determined how I framed it. Looking through the changes recorded in my spreadsheet feels like retracing my steps: moving close to study something, then stepping back for a wider view. From photographing the moon at a 1600mm equivalent to exploring 1mm details on my desk, this is the story of how that perspective changed.
A lens affects both the frame and my sense of distance from a subject. Professor Jang Tae-soon’s observation about understanding a subject by looking back at oneself feels relevant here. Changing focal lengths and experimenting with depth of field taught me as much about my own choices as about the objects in front of the camera.
Refining my perspective at the end of “Gear Acquisition Syndrome.” A 20-year memoir of cameras, lenses, and studios.
Part 1. From Point-and-Shoot to Studio: A Camera Body Retrospective
Part 2. From 1600mm to 1mm: A Lens Retrospective
Part 3. From Aspiring to Strobe Lighting to Mastering It: A Studio Retrospective
Sigma 17-70mm F2.8-4 OS (2011)
On my Canon 40D, this standard zoom covered everyday situations without constant lens changes. It combined a wide view with short-telephoto reach, making it comfortable to explore different subjects. Its close-focusing capability was a useful bonus.
Canon EF 50mm F1.8 II ‘The Plastic Fantastic’ (2011)
This was the prime that introduced me to using background blur to direct attention. The lightweight plastic exterior wasn’t impressive, but the sharp results were. It became a dependable way to learn the fundamentals of shooting with a fixed focal length.
Canon EF-S 60mm F2.8 Macro (2012)
I bought it to make 1:1 photographs of model kits and small objects. Until then, much of my attention had gone toward a larger scene. This lens encouraged me to look at something quite different: the finish of a surface, the texture of a material, and the details that disappear when the whole object is small in the frame. Moving from broad views into that miniature world became an important change of direction in my photography. It was an early sign of the close attention to objects that would later shape my gadget reviews.
Canon EF-S 55-250mm F4-5.6 IS (2012)
I added this to bring distant subjects closer on a crop-sensor camera. There was a particular pleasure in drawing in a scene that my unaided eyes couldn’t make out clearly. That experience also made me curious about going further into the specialized world of extreme telephoto photography. Eventually, the lens handed that role over to the Mirror 500, which took the interest in a different direction.
Samyang Optics POLAR MIRROR 500mm F6.3 DX (2012)
My interest in the moon and stars led me to this mirror lens with a Canon T-mount. A 2x converter on my 40D gave a 1600mm-equivalent view. Bringing something so distant into the room felt extraordinary. Unsurprisingly, the full moon became its most frequent subject.
Tamron SP AF 10-24mm F3.5-4.5 Di II LD (2012)
I used this briefly on trips to Vietnam and Cambodia to fit places such as Angkor Wat into a single frame without worrying about distortion. It was an early attempt to capture the scale of a space through an extreme wide view. Eventually, the number of unwanted elements it brought into the frame led me to retire it.
Canon EF 24-105mm F4L IS USM (2012)
When I first moved to the full-frame 6D, this was the lens that stayed mounted longest. Its constant aperture and sturdy construction made travel photography easier in unpredictable outdoor conditions, without frequent swaps. It was probably my longest-serving lens.
Canon EF 40mm F2.8 STM ‘Pancake’ (2013)
I bought this as soon as it launched in Korea to reduce the bulk of my DSLR. Its small size looked less intimidating on the street and helped me get natural candid photos. It stayed on the body almost as a cap until I bought the 35mm f/2.
Canon EF 70-200mm F4L IS USM (2013)
I’d originally borrowed it. After my nephew broke it, paying for the damage effectively made me its owner. Despite that beginning, its handling and sharp, compressed perspective taught me why telephotos are appealing: the background falls away and attention settles on the subject.
Canon EF 85mm F1.8 USM (2014)
The so-called “girlfriend lens” helped me separate a subject from a busy background. It was light and performed well, introducing me to the depth of an 85mm view before I moved to the 85mm f/1.2.
Canon EF 50mm F1.8 STM (2015)
I replaced the older version soon after this one launched, looking to address the limitations I had felt with the previous lens. The shorter minimum focusing distance was particularly useful. It let me bring the camera a little closer to review equipment on the desk, which made the change practical rather than simply a matter of owning the newer model. For a while, it became a very useful lens for those reviews. The improvement that mattered was the extra freedom to approach a small subject, rather than the name on the barrel.
Canon EF 85mm F1.2L II USM (2015)
The heavy group of glass elements made focusing a little slow, but I could forgive that once I saw the depth of field at f/1.2. The subject seemed almost to have been cut out from the surrounding space. That distinctive rendering more than compensated for the inconvenience. It was the kind of result that explains why a lens can remain appealing even when its handling comes with an obvious compromise.
Canon EF 35mm F2 IS USM (2018)
I moved to this dependable lens for a more natural view and greater stability indoors. The 35mm perspective felt close to everyday vision and let me record daily life without distracting distortion. It remains my favorite lens.
Sigma APO 50-500mm F4-6.3 EX DG HSM (2021)
I bought this long zoom to photograph the moon with autofocus. The reach and convenience were useful, but the experience didn’t replace what I’d enjoyed about the mirror lens. Our time together was short before I sold it.
Canon EF 28-70mm F2.8L USM (2024)
Giving up the 24mm wide end bought me sharpness approaching a prime across the range, though I wouldn’t compare it with the newest RF lenses. When it developed the familiar “balsam separation” problem, I paid for a full repair. I believed in its rendering and texture enough to keep it working.
Canon EF 50mm F2.5 Compact Macro (2025)
This lens now gives my desk-gadget photography a clear direction. The finish on a custom keyboard’s metal housing and the tiny lettering on a small device are exactly the kinds of details I want to show honestly. Recording them clearly serves the central purpose of a review: conveying useful information about the object. That makes the lens valuable to me beyond any attraction it might have as another piece of equipment. Unless Canon releases an L-series 50mm macro for EF, I don’t expect to part with it. It already answers the specific photographic need that has become most important in my current work.
Looking Back
My attention has moved from the moon at the end of a long telephoto to a 1mm detail seen through a macro lens. Switching between primes and zooms, and learning how depth of field changes a picture, was more than collecting gear. It helped me develop a way to show the surfaces and fine markings of the technology I review, as faithfully as I can.
The right focal length and depth of field still aren’t enough without control of light. In Part 3, “Studio Evolution,” I’ll describe how my lighting and mounting setup developed to give me more consistent results.
#RetrospectiveForAll
