Camera Lenses – Which Do You Really Need?
Thursday, May 29, 2008 @ 12:12
Lenses are an expensive component of any SLR camera set-up. Unfortunately, though, a variety of them will often be necessary if you are taking different types of photos. The choices include:
Normal or Standard Lenses: Of course, every photographer will have one of these, as they are normally included with even the simplest camera set-ups, because they are easy and cheap to fabricate. For a camera using 35mm film a 50mm lens will be considered "normal" and will produce photos that appear to have no unusual perspective. These lenses also allow photos to be taken in low light, with no flash or tripod.
Telephoto Lenses: These lenses are very handy for making your subject appear larger in the photo than would be the case if you took the same picture with a standard lens at the same distance. Telephoto lenses are also great when you are taking pictures at a great distance from your subject. This is especially handy when you simply can't get close to your subject, such as at a public event where you are seated far from the action.
Wide-Angle Lenses: They have a shorter focal length and a wider field of view than you would have with a normal lens. Wide-angle lenses are great for nature photography or where you are photographing landscapes. You can get much more of the subject in the frame and for certain photos this can produce stunning results.
Zoom Lenses: A zoom lens will let you focus in on your subject and bring it to the forefront of the photographic landscape. It is also handy when you can't get close to your subject and don't have a telephoto lens available. Unfortunately, however, zoom lenses may distort the images in the photographs they produce, because they will normally be much slower than other types of lenses.
Of course, there are also other types of specialty lenses, such as the "fisheye" lens. You might consider the purchase of these types of lenses if they are applicable to the kind of work you wish to do. Otherwise, the standard lens types noted above will usually work just fine for your needs and it is not necessary to invest the family jewels in acquiring a large variety of them.
