When we talk about lenses, especially as beginners, there are certain types that get all the attention. “Zoom” is the first thing most people want, they desire extreme close up of far away objects. “Fast” lenses are up there but tends to come after a little experience, mainly because of the frustration of low light, camera shake, etc after using kit lenses for a while. Macro lenses can be fun, when people experiment it tends to be with shutter speed motion blur and “stopping time” effects and extreme macro of insects etc.
I hardly ever hear wide angle lenses mentioned apart from pros or wannabe pros. Camera-news has more to say:
he answer is that extreme wide angle (which IâÂÂd say is less than 24mm in full-frame format) is simply a fun option. Unlike telephoto lenses, which give the illusion of compressing space but do little to change the way a scene is viewed, extreme wide angle lenses offer a view of a scene that is totally foreign to our typical perception. ThatâÂÂs exciting. ItâÂÂs also challenging. Using the 16mm end of a zoom lens on a DSLR body is rough work compositionally. But the separation that one can acheive between foreground and background elements, once accustomed to such compositions, is something that can only be done in photography.And if you can do so wide open and get the background to go soft too⦠well, thatâÂÂs even better. And that isnâÂÂt possible (yet) with current equipment on smaller-sensor bodies.
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2 Comments
I’ll add that with the advent of the APS sized sensors, there was initially a clamour for a full-35mm size sensor due to the ‘lost’ wide angles of pros.
Canon has probably most famously catered to this en-masse, but the smaller sensor brands have helped introduce ultra-wide photography to the semi pros.
Previously you had to cough up around £1k or more for a decent 14mm, or about £750 for a wide-zoom. (something like the 17-35mm f/2.8 Nikon.)
Now with APS only lenses you get the same view angle on a 10.5 nikon (£400+-) or 10-20mm canon (£450+-) brand lens for half the price, bringing the benefits (and experimentation) of wides within the grasp of the amateurs and pro-ams.
With Digital correction for these lenses, it’s also easy to use a cheaper fisheye and edit a bit to get the same effect of a non-fisheye ultrawide.
Thanks WillyPete, not an aspect I had considered.