Types of lenses and their functional differences

2024 Author: Sierra Becker | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-26 03:45

In the modern world, every profession is important and plays a certain role in the life of society. Anything can become such a profession, but today we will talk about photographers, and to be more precise, about their equipment - a camera and everything that is needed for it. What principles and recommendations do amateurs and professionals use when choosing lenses for their cameras?

Do you always need lenses?

Many beginner photographers are wondering what camera to choose, but the question of choosing the right lens is also a popular question. In the event that the lens is already built into your camera, this article is unlikely to be relevant for you. Then you can get comprehensive information about the types of lenses for SLR cameras.

But what if you own a digital SLR camera? Then it will take a decent amount of time to choose a decent lens. There are a lot of types of lenses for cameras, but first we will analyze their types.

Types and types of lenses

Next, an integer will be providedlisting various lenses, their characteristics, pluses and minuses in use. There are a lot of types of lenses and each has its own advantages and disadvantages. Let's start with the fact that not all lenses have a focal length, some do not even have "zoom in" and "remote". These are called fixed focal points - that is, with a fixed focus on the image. If you're going to buy a camera with this type of lens, be prepared to walk in and out of your own relative to the subject. The main types of lenses are listed below.

Permanent focus

Let's talk about the advantages of those lenses that have a constant focus. The advantage is that the image quality comes out better than in other cases. However, there are also disadvantages: the lack of the ability to zoom in and out, that is, the very zoom, so there is no "flexibility" in use.

Usually used in artistic shooting or where the most accurate picture is needed. Now consider other types of digital lenses.

Variable focus

The advantage of such lenses is, firstly, space saving, because you do not need to carry several pieces with a constant focus. Secondly, it should be noted the high versatility and ease of use.

But the disadvantages to some extent even outweigh the advantages. The output is far from the same quality picture as in the case of fixed focus lenses, the image may be distorted, which happens quite often, andthese lenses are less reliable.

Standard lenses

This type of lens is universal, it is quite popular. And all because the photos are obtained "as if alive", there is practically no distortion, the image quality is excellent and there is a standard focus - 50 mm. It is with this distance that distortion can be avoided and the image improved.

This type of lens is used by both professionals and amateurs - it is equally good in both cases. One of the advantages of standard lenses is also ease of use and comfort in handling and carrying. Often, standard lenses do not perform special functions, but they contain the main ones that are necessary when working with photography.

Kit lenses

A lot of amateur photographers use kit lenses when they start practicing. Different types of lenses usually come with the purchased camera, so they do not incur extra costs (as is usually the case with professionals). This lens is used with a range of 18 to 55 mm. The quality, of course, leaves much to be desired, but this is the most versatile option for those who are just learning to take pictures.

With kit lenses, you can shoot portraits, landscapes, still lifes, events, holidays and so on, regardless of whether they are digital lenses or SLR types. It is very cheap, which allows even an ordinary person to use it with ease. And also it will be the right decision for those who cannot decide whether to be his photographeror give yourself to another profession.

Macro lenses

The macro function is included in absolutely all lenses by default, but it is not as powerful as in specialized devices. This function is necessary for high-quality shooting when approaching a small object. For more convenience, you can use special macro lenses - they allow you to achieve much better results in macro photography.

The advantage of this lens is that it can be used in the same way as a normal lens, that is, for portrait, landscape and other shooting. However, the quality will not be as excellent as with a normal lens.

Long focus lens

Most of the time we shoot everyday life, portraits, nature scenery and so on. But there are also observers of the same nature who can never get close to a predator to capture it in the image. For such people, there are telephoto lenses with a distance of about 300 mm and more. With such lenses, they can shoot what is inaccessible up close, and the longer the focus distance, the better the image at a certain distance will be better.

But with all the advantages, in the case of such close-up shooting, the hands of the photographer, even at rest, will tremble a little. Therefore, it is recommended to use tripods or the minimum shutter speed.

Short throw lenses

In addition to long-focus types of lenses, there are also short-focus ones. them stillcalled wide angle. Wide-angle lenses often have a focus distance of around 35mm, so the range of use is not particularly wide. However, photographers prefer these lenses when it comes to landscape or wedding photography - they have a wide enough angle of view, which allows you to take unusual pictures. The use of wide-angle lenses does not require professional skill, because the image has linear and perspective distortion.

The most common is the wide-angle fisheye lens, which allows you to distort the image to look like a fisheye. Photographs of this type are highly valued by amateur photographers.

What to look for when buying a lens?

When buying cameras and lenses, you need to be guided by the advice of professionals and your own goals for use. But the main important things in any lens can be:

1. Vignetting. This method of shooting means darkening the corners of the photo, and this is because less light enters the edges of the image than the middle. This has to do with the basic laws of optics and (sometimes) the volume and design of the lens. Photographers find that the image is much better and better quality if minimal vignetting is used. Sometimes they also resort to various effects.
2. Aberrations. It happens that you can notice ambiguous colors in the photo. The picture seems to be stratified into several colors, and this is due to the refraction of light in this type of lens. This effect is highly undesirable, lens and camera manufacturers are constantly trying to eliminate this problem. Photographers, on the other hand, resort to Photoshop.
3. Focus speed. It all depends on your budget - cheaper lenses focus a bit slower than more expensive ones.
4. Protection from moisture. How protected your lens is from rain, fog, and other moisture determines how much it costs.
5. Aperture hole. Experts advise using as much as possible for best image quality.
6. Bayonet. At the discretion of the buyer - a tripod. It is much easier to work with it, photos are obtained without blur due to hand tremors.

Additional features

When buying the right lens, it is worth (in addition to the main ones) to be guided by additional features of the choice:

1. Aperture. By adjusting this function, it is possible to shoot dark rooms or events without using an optional flash, which greatly improves the image quality compared to a picture taken with a flash.
2. Image stabilization. If you don’t have a necessary attribute for any camera at hand - a tripod, then this function is almost mandatory in every lens. It stabilizes the image (hence the name) to avoid any effects of camera shake.
3. Full frame or cropped lenses. Cropped lenses are used, as a rule, for amateur cameras, they do not imply a large image, they make itmore concise. Full frame are considered more professional in this case, because they significantly expand the boundaries of the image.

Thus, there are many more factors by which you can choose a decent lens for yourself, even if it's a budget or amateur one.

Lens Manufacturers

There are really many manufacturers, cameras and lenses (and not only) that you can choose from. Here, the manufacturers themselves are divided into two groups: budget and expensive. Now let's take a closer look.

More budgetary ones include: Samayang, Kenko, Tamron. The quality of these manufacturers' data is not at a high level, but this is a great option for those who need to learn how to photograph, or just photography enthusiasts. But for those who want to try something more than just photographing with an amateur camera with a lens (and sometimes without), there are types of lenses "Nikon", "Samsung" and many others.

Manufacturers that differ in their quality and price are, for example, Nikon, Canon, Sony, Panasonic, Samsung, Sigma, Pentax. All of them are of higher quality, many photographers buy from these companies. Nikon lens types, for example, are much better quality than Kenko.

It is worth noting that even the most expensive camera in the world will become nothing if it is used by a non-professional photographer. Still, expensive cameras along with lenses are worth buying for those for whom photography is not only a hobby, but alsoway to earn, develop your professionalism. For example, the types of lenses "Canon" imply their use for high-end photography. In addition, you need to remember that any expensive brand camera will not fit a lens from another manufacturer.

Types of lenses and their functional differences will always affect image quality. But there are also some points that affect photography. Distortion, for example, is the distortion of straight lines that are located along the edges of the frame. Distortion can be divided into such types as “barrel” and “cushion”, that is, the lines in the photo bend, become similar to these objects. The manifestation of distortion directly depends on the lenses themselves, so they should be chosen very carefully. You can get rid of distortions using Photoshop, but equipment manufacturers are also actively fighting this manifestation of distortion.

Using cameras and lenses

For many, a photograph is just an image of some object or person. But there are many people for whom photography is a way of self-expression, a way to reveal beauty where no one sees it, or simply capture those moments that you want to remember forever.

In today's world, the use of professional cameras and lenses is typical for professional photographers for whom photography is just a job. Now amateurs are more soulful to photography, but who knows, maybe this article will help some people realize more substantial dreams than taking pictures with cheap cameras.

Types of lensesfor cameras as much as the cameras themselves, maybe even more. To some extent, the right choice of equipment guarantees not only a high-quality image, but also ease of use, comfort of storage and carrying. This also applies to the types of camera lenses - the better, the better the video will be.

Therefore, any business that you start, any activity that you want to devote your time to, should be based on your skills and desires. And things like help choosing the right lens will always be open source so that all aspiring photographers can find this information useful.