I’ve had the great pleasure of using both prime and zoom lenses for my Canon EOS. Both had their pros and cons. In the end I still prefer to use a zoom lens because of its versatility. Though I have to admit the image quality of a prime lens is so beautiful and can create a surreal photo. If I could afford it, I would use a prime lens for controlled scenes and use my zoom for more run and gun photography.
I own mostly zoom lenses, the only prime being the 50mm f/1.8 (for my Canon EOS). I generally use the 50mm when I’m shooting in low-light situations or I need very shallow depth of field (for portraits). I also find that primes generally are better for flash photography, as they usually have wide apertures that allow me to balance flash and ambient light.
I ditched my last zoom lens a few years ago, and haven’t looked back.
Right now my current compliment for my Canon 5D SLR is: 14mm f/2.8L, 35mm f/1.4L, 85mm f/1.2mm, and 200mm f/2.8L. On my Leica M8 I used to use a Tri-Elmar 28-35-50, but I found it to be mentally exhausting, and am currently loving my Voigtlander 35mm Nocton f/1.2.
And to address what severoon said, I rarely do flash photography – I find my primes are amazing for available light work.
The battle between zoom and prime is a pendulum. Right now everyone zooms because that’s what they expect to do, it’s what they’ve always known. I truly believe that if most people saw how much better the average photo they took would look with a prime on their body, they would start practicing zooming with their legs pronto.
Kit zoom users… fight against zoom fatigue and drop $100 for a 50mm f/1.8 “Plastic Fantastic” and never look back!
