So you’ve got your new fangled DSLR camera and most likely you have gotten a kit lens with it, but what is so special about a DSLR lens when compared to a point and shoot? The simple answer is the lens on your new camera can be changed, and on your point and shoot it can’t be, although it can be zoomed, so can certain lens made for DSLR cameras.
As im sure you all know there are hundreds of lenses out there for your DSLR, They can be broken down into three categories: Wide angles, standards and telephoto lenses. These three categories can be broken down onto two sub categories: prime lenses and zoom lenses.
I’ll start by talking about my favourite lens, that is the nifty fifty, This is “the standard lens” so-called because it looks natural and emulates closely what the human eye sees. At the moment this is the only lens I use and own, why because I can do everything with it and its is so limiting it forces me to think about my shots. The 50mm is a prime lens which means it can’t zoom, to zoom you simply have to step closer to your subject.
There are however standard zoom lenses, these are in between wide angels and telephoto lenses, with one of the most common kit lenses being Nikon 18-55mm, giving you a nice range from wide-angle to standard.Canon offer a slightly different lens from 18-135mm giving you from wide-angle to telephoto
- Canon 18-135mm kit lens
In the standard focal length range, prime lenses tend to be cheaper than zoom lenses. They also tend to have larger apertures then zoom lenses letting you shoot in low light without a flash. Saying this though, it will depend on what type of photography you are going to be doing, which will ultimately determine if you buy a zoom or a prime.
The next category of lenses is my second favourite, these are the telephoto lenses. These are great for taking photos of distant objects and subjects. They too come in prime lenses and zooms. A telephoto lens can be just as versatile as a 50mm lens, with many photographers using them to take portraits as they give nice out of focus backgrounds. The most popular telephoto lens on the market is the 70-200mm give a great magnification. The downside to these lenses is generally the price, here primes tend to be more expensive than zooms. This is generally due to the precision needed in making the wider aperture glass. The zoom lenses don’t have as wide apertures but give greater zoom range as the name suggests. Cheaper telephoto lenses such as the Canon 18-135mm will have a variable aperture, meaning as you zoom your aperture gets smaller. Where as the more expensive, popular 70-200mm lenses from both canon and nikon have fixed apertures. Such as the 70-200mm ƒ4 and the 70-200mm ƒ2.8
- From left to right Canon 70-200 ƒ2.8 IS ii, Canon 70-200 ƒ2.8, Nikon Nikkor 70-200 ƒ2.8 VR
The final set of lenses which are a landscape photographers best friend, and these are of course the wide-angle. These lenses can be so exciting to use, giving you wondrous distortion creating funky and out of this world effects. But sadly the can be your worst enemy for the same reasons that makes them great.
I dislike super wide angels due to the distortion and warping the lens gives, although it can be corrected in editing software at a later stage, it is a pain, but saying that I have gladly had one and needed it for a specific corporate shoot I was on and had to fit a stage in frame without stepping back, due to the audience behind me. Here is that Image.
Wide angle lenses are the king of getting everything in the frame and keeping everything in focus. I’m sure you have all seen the wonderful and wacky fish eye lens, this falls under wide-angle, and so do lenses with focal lengths less than 35mm which is border line wide-angle/ standard. Like all the other lens types these too come in prime and zoom lenses. Pricing here is a bit tricky as with all the telephoto the focal length and aperture size will increase the price the wide the focal length and the wider the aperture opens.
As I said I dislike them, but when it come to creating amazing unique pictures, that show a different perspective these lens are absolutely king.
Below is a picture of the Nikon 6.00mm ƒ3 Fish Eye lens. I believe that this is the widest fish eye ever made. Giving a 180° view.
And as always most importantly, get out and shoot! Enjoy your photography!
Want to contribute your tips trick, and show some shots leave a comment and link to your photos. Feel I’ve missed something? Well drop me a comment and I’ll write a blog about it.