Why I Switched From 35mm to 40mm

For years, 35mm was my favorite focal length for Street Photography.

Today, I prefer 40mm.And the reason is simple.

Over time my photography approach has changed a little and I realized I wanted something slightly closer to the way I naturally see the world.

The so-called normal lens on a full-frame camera is around 43mm, making 40mm closer to natural human vision than either 35mm or 50mm.

When I swithced to Canon the 24mm focal lenght on crop sensor gives me the equivalent of 38.4mm so I was not photographing anymore that much with the pure 35mm.

I understood that the 40mm allows me to remain inside the scene while keeping a comfortable distance from the people I photograph. I feel present without becoming intrusive, something I never quite experienced with wider focal lengths. Perfectly aware that most of contemporary street photographers prefer the 28mm lens, so I am happy to make a choice that is different. At the same time I know many street photographers that share my same idea and they enjoy the 40mm, in particular Leica, Fujifilm and Ricoh shooters discovered how good is the experience with this focal lenght.

The 40mm still gives me enough context. Unlike 50mm, I don't feel disconnected from the environment surrounding my subjects and that i prefer for some editorial assignment and for portraits.

Five millimeters may not sound like much.

In practice, they changed the way I see.