I’ve been mostly shooting small objects recently and 9 times out of 10, I’m using my Sony 90mm 2.8 macro. Incredibly sharp, I can get up close and personal to capture all those fantastic little details in product and food photography. When shooting bigger objects, I have a bit more leeway in my choice in focal lengths. Depending on the style I’m going after, I can opt to shoot super wide for a more editorial or advertising feel or I can shoot with a longer lens for catalogue images. It’s not really a matter of what’s right or wrong, but it is rather interesting to see the effects of different focal lengths in these types of shoots. I shot this super slick chair with 4 different lenses in 4 different focal lengths - Zeiss Batis 18mm, Sony 35mm, Sony/Zeiss 55mm and Zeiss Batis 85mm. All amazing lenses, so optics weren’t much of a variable, and I shot them all at f/16 to make sure the chair was sharp from front to back. 

Lighting

Lit with Godox lights, I had an ad400 in an Octabank up high pointing down, an ad200 in a rectangular softbox feathered off the left side, and an ad200 in a strip bank from the right and behind for a rim light. I also added a bounce card on the right to give a bit of fill on the underside to maintain details.

Zeiss Batis 18mm 2.8

Normally, the 18mm sits in my bag on travel assignments, and I’d usually never think to shoot product photography with such a wide angle. It’s distortion is something I tend to avoid to make sure everything looks true to form. That said, I kind of love how this came out. The larger than life feel of this gives a great editorial or advertising option so I was super stoked to have found another little tool to create new images. I think I’ll have it sitting closer by on shoots where we want to give this over the top hero feel. Such a fun image and gives a playful sense of whimsy to an otherwise straight forward shot.

Sony 35mm F1.8

My 35mm lens is probably my most used lens when I’m on travel assignments and general walk around shooting. I also use this lens within my food work for bigger flat lays where I need to capture a bigger overhead scene. For this shot, it feels like its in this weird no man’s land of not compressed enough but still distorted. What do you guys think? Does it work?

Sony Zeiss 55mm 1.8

The 55mm 1.8 lens is a beast. Incredibly sharp, perfect for both flatlays and bigger scenes in food and product photography. It get’s heavy usage. Wide enough to show context and a surrounding scene, but still a long enough focal length to start compressing things into a pleasing image that is pretty close to what we see with our native eyesight…give or take. This image is starting to look like more of an image you’d see in catalogues. Clean, representative of the product and wide enough to still maintain context. A great all around lens.

Zeiss Batis 85mm 1.8

The Zeiss Batis 85mm 1.8 is my absolute go to for portrait photography. I absolutely love it. Normally, I’d opt for the 90mm macro for for this focal length for food and product photography, but with bigger objects the depth of field with the Batis is better and provides for a more versatile option. The 85 compresses nicely and gives a beautiful shape to the product. There’s a reason this focal length is used so often in these types of shoots. It gives a bit more definition and refinement than the 55.

So, after looking at the 4 focal lengths, what are your thoughts? Do longer focal lengths reign supreme or do the wide angles sit at the table too? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Lee Starnes is a food and product photographer based in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Be sure to head on over to Instagram to check out more of his work.