28mm vs 35mm: Comparing the Best Lenses for the Perfect View

When it comes to choosing the right lens for photography, focal length plays a crucial role in determining perspective, the field of view, and overall image appearance. Two popular focal lengths that photographers often consider are 28mm and 35mm. In this article, we will compare the features, merits, and best uses of these two lenses to help you make an informed decision based on your specific needs and shooting style.

When comparing 28mm and 35mm focal lengths, it is important to understand that they are in the wide-angle range of lenses. Both focal lengths provide a wider field of view than standard or telephoto lenses, making them suitable for a variety of photography, including landscapes, architecture, and street photography.

When Is the 28mm a Good Choice?

The 28mm focal length is a popular choice for various kinds of photography due to its wide field of view. Here are some scenarios in which a 28mm lens can be a good choice:

Landscape photography: The 28mm lens allows you to capture vast landscapes, including vast open spaces, mountains, and seascapes. It can showcase the grandeur of landscapes, making it the preferred option for landscape photographers;
Architectural photography: When photographing buildings, the 28mm lens can help you capture the entire structure, especially when space is limited. It allows you to get close to your subject without cutting out essential elements;
Shooting interiors: If you’re shooting the interiors of houses, hotels, or other spaces, the 28mm lens is great for taking wide-angle shots. It can be used to show the layout of a room, including furniture, decor, and general furnishings;
Street Photography: The 28mm lens is often preferred by street photographers because it allows them to capture a broader perspective. It allows you to cover more of your surroundings, telling a more complete story within a single frame. It can be especially effective for capturing busy city streets, and crowded markets, or for conveying the energy of a busy location;
Environmental Portraits: Environmental portraits aim to capture a person in their surroundings, provide context and convey a sense of their personality or profession. The 28mm lens is well suited for environmental portraits because it can include both the subject and their surroundings in the frame, adding depth and visual interest;
Group Photography: The wide-angle perspective of the 28mm lens makes it suitable for capturing groups of people. It lets you fit more people into the frame, whether it’s a family gathering, team photo, or event shoot;
Documentary photography: When documenting events, social issues, or cultural events, the 28mm lens helps you capture a broader perspective, conveying the essence of what’s happening. It allows you to immerse the viewer in the setting and tell a more complete story;
Travel Photography: Travel photography often involves capturing a wide range of subjects, from landscapes to cityscapes, architecture, and people. The 28mm lens provides versatility, allowing you to capture the full variety of travel experiences.

It is important to note that the 28mm lens can introduce some perspective distortion when photographing subjects close to the edge of the frame. This distortion can be used creatively, but some situations may require correction. Also, if you prefer a narrower field of view or need more isolation of the subject, it is better to choose a longer lens.

Do I Need a 35mm Focal Lens?

Deciding whether or not you need a 35mm lens depends on your specific needs, shooting style, and the types of photography you do. Here are some factors to consider when determining if a 35mm lens is a good addition to your equipment:

Versatility: A 35mm focal length is often considered a versatile choice. It offers a slightly narrower field of view compared to wider lenses such as 28mm but offers a wider perspective compared to standard or telephoto lenses. This versatility allows it to be used for various genres of photography, including landscapes, street photography, portraits, and documentaries;
Natural Perspective: The 35mm lens is close to the field of view of the human eye, which provides a natural perspective to your images. This allows you to capture scenes as you see them without significant distortion or exaggeration;
Surround Portraits: The 35mm lens is great for capturing portraits in surroundings, allowing you to capture your subject in their surroundings while providing a nice and balanced perspective. It allows you to include some context and background elements without distorting the proportions of your subject;
Low-light performance: Many 35mm lenses have a wide maximum aperture, such as f/1.4 or f/1.8, making them suitable for low-light photography. A wider aperture allows for faster shutter speeds and better low-light performance, allowing you to capture sharp images with reduced noise;
Background Separation: Although the 35mm lens isn’t as pronounced as the longer focal length lenses, it can still provide decent background separation when shooting with a wider aperture. This allows for some degree of isolation of the subject from the background, creating a nice depth of field;
Portability: 35mm lenses tend to be compact and lightweight, making them a convenient choice for travel and everyday use. They’re often considered “walk-around” lenses, suitable for capturing a wide range of subjects without weighing them down.

It’s worth noting that if you already have a lens with a similar focal length, such as a zoom lens that covers the 35mm range, you don’t necessarily need a special 35mm prime lens. However, simple lenses tend to offer better image quality and a wider maximum aperture, which can be advantageous in certain situations.

Ultimately, the decision to invest in a 35mm lens depends on your specific requirements and preferences as a photographer. Take into consideration the types of photography you do, your desired view and perspective, and your budget to determine if a 35mm lens would be a valuable addition to your equipment.

The Pros and Cons of Each Lens And What They Are Good For

Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of each lens and what they are good for:

28mm Lens

Pros of Using a 28mm Lens:28mm:

Wide Field of View: A 28mm lens provides a wider perspective, allowing you to shoot sweeping landscapes and include more elements in the frame;
Environmental portraits: The lens is suitable for capturing subjects in their surroundings, adding context and depth to your portraits;
Group Photography: The wide-angle 28mm lens allows you to put more people in the frame, making it ideal for group shots;
Street Photography: The wide angle of view allows you to cover a broader scene, telling a more complete story in busy city streets or crowded markets;
Versatility for different genres: The 28mm lens can be used for landscape, architectural, street, and documentary photography, offering a variety of shooting options.

Cons:

Distortion: The 28mm lens’ wider perspective can introduce perspective distortion, especially when subjects are close to the edges of the frame. In some situations, this distortion may require correction;
Limited subject isolation: The wider angle makes it more difficult to achieve strong background separation and subject isolation, especially when shooting with a smaller aperture.

Less suitable for portraiture: Because of possible distortion and a wider field of view, the 28mm lens may not be the best choice for traditional portraiture, especially for close-up portraits or headshots.

35mm Lens

The basic advantages of a 35mm lens:

Versatility: The 35mm lens offers a slightly narrower field of view, making it suitable for various genres of photography, including landscapes, street photography, portraits, and documentaries;
Natural Perspective: It’s close to the field of view of the human eye, resulting in a natural and balanced perspective in your photos;
Environmental Portraits: The 35mm lens is great for capturing subjects in the environment, providing context while maintaining pleasing proportions;
Low-light performance: Many 35mm ones have a wide maximum aperture, such as f/1.4 or f/1.8, which makes them excellent in low-light conditions. With a wider aperture, more light enters the lens, allowing shorter shutter speeds and reducing the need for high ISO settings. This results in sharper images with less noise in low-light conditions;
Portability: 35mm lenses are often compact and lightweight, making them convenient for travel and everyday use.

Cons:

Less Wide Perspective: The 35mm lens has a narrower field of view than the 28mm lens, which means it can’t capture as much of the scene or include as many elements.
Limited background separation: While a 35mm lens can create some background separation, it does not give as much bokeh or object isolation as longer lenses.
Potential distortion: Although less pronounced than with wider lenses, a 35mm lens can still produce some distortion, especially when subjects are very close to the edges of the frame.

In general, the 28mm lens is advantageous for wide-angle perspectives, group shots, and portraits in surroundings, but it can have some distortion and limited subject isolation.

The 35mm lens offers versatility, natural perspective, and better low-light performance, making it suitable for a wide range of photography genres, including portraits and street photography, while maintaining a compact form factor. Ultimately, the choice between these two lenses depends on your shooting style, preferences, and specific photography needs.

Which 35mm and 28mm Lenses Are The Best?

Ultimately, the choice between these two options depends on your shooting style, preferences, and specific photography needs. However, there are some differences between them that can affect the final image.

Field of View: The 28mm lens has a wider field of view than the 35mm one. It captures a wider scene and includes more elements in the frame. This can be useful when you want to emphasize the vastness of a landscape or capture a large group of people in a limited space.
Perspective: The wider field of view of the 28 mm lens results in greater perspective distortion. Objects closer to the camera will appear larger, while objects in the distance may appear smaller. This effect can be used creatively, but it can also introduce some distortion in architectural shots or portraits where objects are close to the edges of the frame. A 35mm one with a slightly narrower field of view gives less distortion and more natural proportions.
Depth of field: Wider lenses, such as 28mm, generally have a greater depth of field than longer ones. This means that most of the scene, from the foreground to the background, is in focus. The 35mm ones, being slightly longer, can have a slightly shallower depth of field, which allows for better highlighting of the subject and separation of the background.

In terms of low-light performance and light gathering, the 35mm lens may have a slight advantage over the 28mm lens. The wider aperture available with 35mm lenses often allows for better low-light shooting and better control over depth of field.

Choosing the Right Lens for You

There are many excellent 35mm and 28mm lenses from a variety of manufacturers. Choosing the “best” lens ultimately depends on your specific needs, preferences, and budget. However, I can mention a few high-end lenses for each focal length:

35mm lenses:

Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L II USM: A high-end lens known for its exceptional image quality, tightness, and wide maximum aperture, making it suitable for low-light shooting and creating beautiful background blur;
Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G ED: A high-quality lens with a fast aperture, sharpness, and excellent optical performance. It’s compact, lightweight, and often seen as excellent value for money;
Sony FE 35mm f/1.4 GM: A professional-grade lens designed for Sony full-frame mirrorless cameras. It offers excellent sharpness, excellent low-light performance, and accurate autofocus;
Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art: A popular third-party lens known for its exceptional optical performance, including sharpness and bokeh quality. It is available for a variety of camera mounts.

28mm Lenses:

Canon EF 28mm f/1.8 USM: A versatile lens known for its wide aperture and excellent image quality. It has a compact design and is suitable for various genres of photography;
Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 28mm f/1.8G: A high-performance lens with a wide maximum aperture and excellent sharpness. It offers excellent image quality and is compatible with Nikon full-frame DSLR cameras;
Sony FE 28mm f/2: A compact and lightweight lens designed for Sony full-frame mirrorless cameras. It offers good image quality, and fast autofocus and is a more affordable option;
Sigma 28mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art: A high-quality lens known for its impressive sharpness, wide aperture, and attractive bokeh. It is compatible with a variety of camera systems and offers excellent image quality.

Before making a decision, it is important to research and consider factors such as the compatibility of the lens with your camera system, autofocus performance, image quality, build quality, and budget. It’s also a good idea to read reviews and user reviews to get a better understanding of how each lens performs in the real world.

Comparing Both Lenses On Different Types of Photography

Let’s compare 28mm and 35mm lenses in different types of photography:

Landscape Photography:

28mm lens: The wide field of view of the 28mm lens is good for capturing large-scale landscapes. It allows you to include more elements in the frame, emphasizing the vastness of the scene and showcasing the breadth of the environment;
35mm lens: Although the 35mm one is slightly narrower, it still provides a good field of view for landscape photography. It is able to capture the beauty of landscapes while providing a slightly tighter composition than the 28mm lens.

Street Photography:

28mm lens: The wider perspective of the 28mm lens is beneficial for street photography. It allows you to capture a wider scene and include more of your surroundings and scene elements in the frame;
35mm lens: The 35mm lens is also popular for street photography because it captures the essence of the streets while maintaining a natural perspective. It’s a good balance between capturing the subject and the context

Architectural photography:

28mm lens: The wider field of view of the 28mm lens is useful for architectural photography, especially when you want to cover the entire structure or capture the grandeur of a building. It handles narrow spaces well and can demonstrate the scale of architecture;
35mm lens: The 35mm lens provides a slightly narrower perspective, which can be useful for architectural photography when you want to reduce distortion and maintain more accurate proportions. It still captures structure well while offering a more natural perspective.

Portrait Photography:

28mm Lens: A 28 mm lens is not usually the first choice for traditional portraits, especially for close-up shots. A wider perspective can introduce distortion and make subjects less attractive. However, it can be suitable for ambient portraits, capturing the subjects in their surroundings and emphasizing the context;
35mm lens: The 35mm lens is a versatile option for portraits. It offers a more natural perspective, allowing you to capture subjects with pleasing proportions. It’s good for capturing portraits in surroundings, group shots, or capturing a subject in an environment.

Low-light photography:

28mm lens: Some 28mm lenses have a wide maximum aperture, which can be useful when shooting in low light. A wider aperture allows for faster shutter speeds and better low-light photography;
35mm lenses: Similarly, many 35mm ones have a wide maximum aperture, making them suitable for low-light photography. They provide good low-light performance and can produce a shallow depth of field if desired.

These comparisons provide a general overview, but it is important to note that individual lenses may have unique characteristics and performance. We recommend researching specific models and reading reviews to better understand how they perform in each type of photography.

Conclusion

When choosing a lens, it is important to consider your specific needs and shooting style. Factors to consider include image quality, autofocus performance, build quality, and price. In addition, it’s always a good idea to read reviews and do research before you buy to make sure you get the lens that best suits your needs.

Ultimately, the choice between a 28mm and a 35mm lens depends on your specific needs and shooting style. If you prefer a wider perspective, capturing more of the scene, and don’t mind some perspective distortion, a 28mm one might be a great choice.

On the other hand, if you want a more versatile lens with a slightly narrower field of view, less distortion, and potentially better low-light performance, the 35mm lens may be more suitable. However, it can also cause image distortion, especially at the edges of the frame. This can be corrected in post-processing, but it’s important to keep this in mind when shooting.

A 35mm lens captures a slightly narrower field of view, making it a better option for low-light photography and better control over depth of field.

The pluses of 35mm lenses include their versatility, natural perspective, ambient portraiture, low-light performance, portability, background separation, and value for money. These qualities make them popular with photographers looking for a versatile lens that can handle a wide range of photographic scenarios.