View Single Post
  #40  
Old September 29th 05, 02:00 PM
no_name
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

John A. Stovall wrote:

On 28 Sep 2005 07:33:55 -0700, "Siddhartha Jain"
wrote:


Hi,

Given two lenses, one a prime (say 28mm) and the other a zoom (say
28-75mm) and both with an aperture of f2.8 -
- Will the prime be brighter than the zoom because it has fewer lens
elements?
- Will the prime be sharper wide open than the zoom at 28mm?

Ofcourse, a lot will depend on the particular makes and models being
compared but is there a rule of thumb?



Rule of Thumb: A prime at any focal length and wide open is better
than a zoom at any focal length wide open.


Except when it's not ... like a really well made fast zoom lens being
compared to a really poorly made slow prime lens.