What are wide-angle lenses and telephoto lenses? What characteristics do they have (what occasions are they suitable for)?

Many photographers like to use wide-angle lenses. Some people use wide-angle lenses to express some special artistic effects, while some people prefer to use wide-angle lenses to shoot various types of photography, such as landscapes, portraits, streets, environments, activities, etc.

Learning wide-angle lenses is actually very simple, but it also requires some technical knowledge, some habits, and an understanding of the perspective effects of wide-angle lenses.

What is a wide-angle lens?

Before we start using wide-angle lenses, what do we need to know about wide-angle lenses? What's the use? How is it different from other lenses?

Simply put, a wide-angle lens can provide the photographer with a wider perspective. If you use a full-frame camera, the focal length of a wide-angle lens is usually less than or equal to 35mm. If you use a half-frame camera, its focal length is usually less than or equal to 20mm.

Using a wide-angle lens can usually help you achieve the following small goals: First, because you need to shoot portraits or products at close range, it can produce a good perspective effect and make your shooting more creative. . Secondly, wide-angle lenses usually have good depth of field, separating the subject from the background. Finally, great for taking landscape photos. Although telephoto lenses are also suitable for shooting landscapes, they have their own advantages.

Why use a wide-angle lens?

You already know what a wide-angle lens is. Now you should know when to use it and what to use it for, right?

1. A wide-angle lens is used to emphasize one or more elements in the foreground.

As mentioned before, using a wide-angle lens allows you to get closer to the subject or element in the foreground. You can easily highlight your subject because wide-angle lenses create a perspective effect that makes it appear larger or closer than it actually is. As a result, objects in the background will appear smaller, and the viewer's eyes will focus on foreground objects.

2. Wide-angle lenses are great for shooting dramatic effects.

Because the wide-angle lens will produce a perspective effect, the photos will be distorted when taking close-up shots. If used well, it will produce good effects. The wide-angle lens has a wide viewing angle and can accommodate more scenes.

3. A wide-angle lens can provide you with a good depth of field.

When you're photographing a huge landscape, skyscraper, or portrait, a wide-angle lens can give you great results with greater or less depth of field.

Tips for using wide-angle lenses

Now that you know about wide-angle lenses and what they can do for us, you can start to learn some tips for using them.

1. Avoid distortion: When shooting at close range with a wide-angle lens, the picture will be distorted. Tilt up or down will create a curve, so we need to keep the lens horizontal or vertical to capture the subject, don't tilt it. Even wide-angle lenses with "zero distortion" have been used.

2. Don’t use polarizing filters: When shooting landscapes with a sky, using polarizing filters can emphasize clouds, enhance color saturation, and darken the sky. However, when you use a wide-angle lens, the effect of these filters will be different and uneven shadows will appear in the sky.

3. In landscape photography, use graduated neutral density filters: Since you need to shoot a very wide landscape, you need to face light of different brightnesses to enter the frame. Many times, your foreground will be darkened by the brightness of the sky. To avoid this, use a graduated neutral density filter to correct the exposure and make the sky look darker.

4. Try low-angle photography, especially architectural or landscape photography: Low-angle photography can create many interesting scenes. You can even lie on the ground and take pictures of the horizon.

5. Place the character in the center of the picture: why? Because of distortion. In most cases, the edges of the image will be distorted, so placing a person on the edge of the image will cause distortion. It is better and more attractive to put the person in the center of the picture or close to the center.

When people are placed at the edge of an image, they appear fatter and shorter than they actually are. The arms, face, and legs will appear larger.

6. Try shooting vertically: Be creative. This is great for taking portraits, taking photos of buildings or people jumping from high places.

Practice!

There are many other fun ways to use a wide-angle lens. All you have to do is practice and keep trying.

Click to try Heart of the King 2