So I finally pulled the trigger on a Canon R8 after years of using a crop sensor and I am honestly loving how light it is but now I am stuck in this massive rabbit hole about lenses. I have a trip to Chicago coming up in like three weeks and I really want to just bring one prime lens for street photography so I am not constantly fumbling with a bag while walking around the Loop. I have about $500 left in my budget for this which is kind of tight after buying the body.

I have been doing a lot of research online and it seems like the RF 35mm f1.8 is the gold standard for this stuff but then I keep seeing people say that 50mm is the true way to go if you want to actually isolate people from the background. My logic was that the 35mm would be more versatile for like, getting the tall buildings in the shot too but then I read somewhere that the 35mm has some weird distortion on the edges for portraits if you get too close. Then I saw the RF 28mm pancake lens and honestly it looks so tiny and perfect for the R8 since it would basically fit in a jacket pocket but I am worried 28mm is just gonna be too wide and I will have to stand like two feet away from people to get a good shot and I am definitely not that brave yet.

I keep going back and forth because the 35mm has image stabilization which seems great for night shots under streetlights but people on some forums say the autofocus is kind of clunky and loud compared to the 50mm. My main priorities are:

• Compact size to match the R8 body
• Good enough for low light since I love those neon signs at night
• Fast autofocus so I dont miss people walking by

I am just really confused if I should prioritize the wider view of the 35 or the vibe of the 50 as some people call it. Is the 35mm really worth the extra couple hundred bucks over the 50mm for a beginner doing street stuff or am I just overthinking the whole stabilization thing since the R8 doesnt have IBIS? I just want something that wont make the camera feel huge but still gives me that professional look and I keep worrying that if I pick the wrong one I will just end up frustrated with my shots the whole trip...