35 mm vs 50 mm: which should you choose?
35 mm is wider and suits streets, travel and rooms. 50 mm is tighter and suits portraits and details. On a full-frame camera, 35 mm sees 54.4° across and covers 3.1 × 2.1 m at 3 m. 50 mm sees 39.6° and covers 2.2 × 1.4 m. From the same spot, 50 mm makes everything 1.43x bigger.
How 35 mm and 50 mm frame the same scene
Which one to choose
- Pick 35 mm if you want one lens for most things: a room, a street, and a person with their surroundings.
- Pick 50 mm for portraits and details. For the same framing you stand farther back, so faces look more natural and the background shows less clutter.
- At the same aperture and the same framing of a person, 50 mm blurs the background a little more than 35 mm.
- A 50 mm f/1.8 is usually the cheapest fast lens in any system. Fast 35 mm lenses tend to cost a bit more.
To see 35 mm and 50 mm on your own scene before you buy either, Prospekt (Lens Simulator: Prospekt on the App Store) turns your iPhone into a viewfinder for your camera body: pick the body, switch between the two focal lengths, and the screen frames what each lens would. iPhone app, $3.99 once, no subscription.
35 mm and 50 mm on each sensor size
The same two lenses on different cameras. A smaller sensor frames tighter, so each lens covers less and you stand farther back. Coverage is with the camera held horizontally. The distance fits a 1.8 m person in 90% of the frame height, with the camera held vertically.
| Focal length | Full-frame equivalent | Horizontal angle | Covers at 3 m | Distance to fit 1.8 m |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full frame 1x | ||||
| 35 mm | 35 mm | 54.4° | 3.1 × 2.1 m | 1.9 m (6.4 ft) |
| 50 mm | 50 mm | 39.6° | 2.2 × 1.4 m | 2.8 m (9.1 ft) |
| APS-C 1.5x | ||||
| 35 mm | 52 mm | 37.8° | 2.1 × 1.4 m | 2.9 m (9.6 ft) |
| 50 mm | 75 mm | 27.0° | 1.4 × 1.0 m | 4.2 m (14 ft) |
| Canon APS-C 1.6x | ||||
| 35 mm | 56 mm | 35.6° | 1.9 × 1.3 m | 3.1 m (10 ft) |
| 50 mm | 80 mm | 25.4° | 1.4 × 0.9 m | 4.4 m (15 ft) |
| Micro Four Thirds 2x | ||||
| 35 mm | 70 mm | 27.8° | 1.5 × 1.1 m | 4.0 m (13 ft) |
| 50 mm | 100 mm | 19.6° | 1.0 × 0.8 m | 5.8 m (19 ft) |
Questions
Should I get a 35 mm or a 50 mm lens?
35 mm is wider and suits streets, travel and rooms. 50 mm is tighter and suits portraits and details. On full frame, 35 mm covers 3.1 × 2.1 m at 3 m and 50 mm covers 2.2 × 1.4 m. Compare both over a photo in the free lens comparison tool.
How far do I stand for a full-body portrait with 35 mm or 50 mm?
On full frame, with the camera held vertically, about 1.9 m (6.4 ft) with 35 mm and 2.8 m (9.1 ft) with 50 mm. That fits a 1.8 m person in 90% of the frame height. On 1.5x APS-C, about 2.9 m (9.6 ft) and 4.2 m (14 ft).
What do 35 mm and 50 mm frame like on APS-C?
On a 1.5x APS-C camera, 35 mm frames like 52 mm on full frame and 50 mm like 75 mm. On Canon APS-C (1.6x), like 56 mm and 80 mm. For the full-frame look on 1.5x APS-C, use about 23 mm and 33 mm.