THIS IS A GUEST POST COURTESY OF SIERRA UHRICH OF SIERRA PEARL PHOTOGRAPHY
Throughout the past 6 years of my professional career I have gone through a variety of lenses. I have owned, rented, or borrowed everything from the basic “Nifty Fifty” to the legendary Canon 200mm f/2L. But as of right now I only have two lenses in my bag that I regularly use. The Sigma Art 135mm 1.8 and the Canon 24-70mm 2.8L, and I shoot with the Canon 6D body. I’ve found the glass I really truly love and honestly I’ve had more fun spending the extra money on props and wardrobe pieces for my amazing clients to use!
Sigma Art 135mm 1.8:
Sigma Art 135 f1.8 ISO : 100 f/1.8 SS 1/500 – Dress: Little Dreamers Tutus
This is my favorite lens! The SOOC colors are just amazing and this lens is tack sharp! This lens is on my camera 90% of the time and I am always happy with the results. I shoot wide open at f1.8 very often and the bokeh is gorgeous! I highly recommend this lens for individual portraits, and I even photograph families with it!
Sigma Art 135 f1.8 ISO : 200 f/1.8 SS 1/500 – Dress: Alora Safari
I mainly photograph children so my bag also contains things like extra hair elastics & bobby pins, a small first aid kit, tissues/wipes, lollipops (bribery…), and of course my sidekick “Benny the Bunny.” He’s my special stuffed bunny friend who fits around my lens and helps me out when I’ve got a super serious or distracted kiddo. I’ve give Benny most of the credit for those sweet smiles I capture!
Canon 135mm f2.0L:
Canon 135mm f2.0L ISO : 250 f/2.5 SS 1/400 – Dress: Miss Madison Photo Props
The 135mm focal length is my favorite. The compression and bokeh this lens offers is so dreamy and magical! I have the Sigma Art version in my camera bag now but the Canon L series is also amazing! One downside is that you do have to be standing a fair distance away from your subject for those full body images, but once you get used to it, it’s second nature. And the results are so worth it!
Canon 24-70mm f2.8L:
Canon 24-70mm f2.8L ISO : 800 f/2.8 SS 1/200
I absolutely love the 24-70mm for my studio newborn sessions. The versatility of this lens makes it ideal for photographing babies by themselves as well as the entire family. I love taking overhead shots like this one during each of my newborn sessions and this lens allows me to zoom out far enough to capture the entire set up without having to stand on a step stool. It’s also beautiful for close-up portraits of babies. When zoomed in to 70mm you avoid the distortion that can happen when shooting with a wider angle lens.
What essentials do you keep in your camera bag?
This article was featured in Summerana Magazine | October 2018 | The Fall Issue. See the full issue here.