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Tips for Purchasing a Digital Camera Lens
Your lens is an essential element to good photographs. It's not just your camera. People spend thousands of dollars on a good camera and neglect the lens. Change that around! Make sure you buy a good camera lens when purchasing a camera. Buy a good camera as well, but don't neglect a good camera lens. Why? Your camera is just the 'holder' for the photograph. The lens is what your camera sees all your shots through. A good lens is essential to clear and sharp photos. With most compact digital cameras, you can't change the lens. So in that case, don't just buy a good camera, ensure it also has a good lens. Avoid a plastic digital camera lens because it doesn't have the clarity of a glass lens. What model of lens? Stick with camera lenses from well known manufacturers like Nikon, Canon and Pentax. Ensure you purchase a lens that works with your camera too. A Nikon camera lens usually won't work well with a Canon camera. There are specialty lens manufacturers like Carl Zeiss, Leica and Leupold. If you're a beginner, don't worry about these lenses until you are more advanced as they come with very high prices and it's hard to justify the price for the small increase in quality. Types of Camera Lens The most common lenses are : Wide Angle, Normal and Telephoto. The type of lens is determined by the Focal Length of the lens. See below. A Zoom Lens is simply a lens that can change Focal Length from a Wide Angle to a Telephoto (or somewhere inbetween). There are a number of things to look for when purchasing a camera lens. Lens Focal Length The Focal Length of a lens determines the amount of magnification and angle of vuew the lens can see. The Focal Length is measured in mm. It's the Focal Length that determines if the lens is a: - Wide Angle; small magnification, wide angle of view. 20mm to 35mm - Traditional, or Normal; 50mm - Telephoto; high magnification, narrow angle of view; 105mm to 300mm. - Zoom; A Zoom lens can change it's focal length to zoom in. A Zoom lens might have a Focal Length of between 50mm and 150mm. Some lenses are interchangeable between film cameras and digital cameras, but you need to be aware that the effective focal length CHANGES between film and digital. The focal lengths I describe above are for FILM cameras and need to be multiplied by 1.6 to get the effective focal length on a digital camera. So using a film 35mm lens on a digital camera has an effective focal length of 56mm. What does this mean for you? It means that you won't get as wide angle on a digital camera as you would on a film camera using the same lens. A 35mm lens which gives a medium wide angle on a film camera acts as a traditional lens on a digital camera This is a complex subject, so I can't go into too much detail here. If you need more help, the best person to speak to would be your local camera store's resident expert. Lens Speed The 'speed' of a digital camera lens also defines a lens. The speed is determined in f-stops and is similar to the f-stop aperture setting on your camera. Faster lenses are more expensive and usually heavier. Focusing Distance This is the minimum distance from the camera lens that a subject must be to be in focus. Don't worry about getting a camera with a close focusing distance. Concentrate on a telephoto instead. More Advanced Features More expensive lenses have more advanced features. - Vibration Reduction. A feature called 'vibration reduction' keeps images sharper when shooting in low light. They help to counter any vibration in the camera. Try to find a digital camera lens with this feature. - USM USM stands for Ultrasonic Motor. This feature of Canon lenses gives you a high speed auto focus but the main benefit is the 'motor' is almost silent, so you don't disturb people around you when your camera is focussing. - Filter Thread. When purchasing a half-decent lens, it should have a filter thread. This is a thread that allows you to screw on a filter (such as a polariser) to help when photographing difficult situations. Even if you don't need filters right now. it's handy to purchase a lens with a thread so you can add a filter later. You get what you pay for Generally the more expensive the lens, the better it is. More expensive lenses usually have a higher number of glass elements in the lens, which also makes them heavier. Final Notes While it is important to choose good quality camera lens, for beginners it isn't as important as good composition. Don't fall into the trap of thinking you can only take a great picture with an expensive top-of-the-line lens. A badly composed picture won't look great with a great camera lens. I don't mean to discount the importance of a good quality lens. A good rule is to only add to your lens collection only when you have a specific need for a particular digital camera lens. Do your research and your homework first, and find the lens that suits both you and your camera. David Peterson has a great love of photography and has created a series of free tips at http://www.digital-photo-secrets.com/ to help digital photography users everywhere take better photos.
MORE RESOURCES: France Flips the History of Photography Upside Down Hyperallergic The 2025 Audubon Photography Awards The Atlantic The 2025 Audubon Photography Awards: Honorable Mentions National Audubon Society ‘A sense of self and self-worth’: Deborah Willis on the importance of Black photography The Guardian Winners Of the 2025 Natural Landscape Photography Awards Explorersweb » Brad Everett Young, Celebrity Photographer and Actor, Dies at 46 The Hollywood Reporter How to see the planet from above and below National Geographic Windham horse shelter raises funds with farm photography The Portland Press Herald The 2025 Audubon Photography Awards: Winners National Audubon Society Wilson Library photography exhibit features work from longtime friends - The Daily Tar Heel SMC Gallery Opens Photography Exhibition Exploring Latino Masculinities Santa Monica Daily Press How technology is changing bird photography and birding in Maine Bangor Daily News The 2025 Audubon Photography Awards Emphasize Epic and Endangered Migrations thisiscolossal.com 18 majestic images from the 2025 Audubon Photography Awards Popular Science Ilse Bing photographs at Wellesley College See Great Art Audubon Photography Awards Expands with 2025 Winners National Audubon Society Two California Photographers Win in 2025 International Audubon Photography Awards National Audubon Society How One Determined 14-Year-Old Became an Award-Winning Bird Photographer National Audubon Society Oglethorpe museum announces new exhibit honoring photographer Al Clayton Oglethorpe University Do Photographers Really Need RAW Files Anymore? The Phoblographer For Inez and Vinoodh, Photography Is Personal: ‘Every Picture We Take Is a Self-Portrait’ Artnet News Colorado photographers offer tips and places for fall colors Colorado Springs Gazette Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation : “Harry Gruyaert. A World in colour” - The Eye of Photography Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation : “Harry Gruyaert. A World in colour” The Eye of Photography Underwater Photographer Reveals Surprising Wreckage Lurking at the Bottom of the Sea - My Modern Met Unveiling history at ‘Coming Into Focus: A Snapshot of Photography at the Nasher’ The Duke Chronicle Philly street photographers capture snapshot of the city at one-night-only gallery 6abc Philadelphia Tennessee Top 25 | Rams at Titans Photography Tennessee Titans Photographer Captures Rare Snowbow Near Brooks Lake Lodge Cowboy State Daily The Low Light Photography Trick Every Pro Knows DIY Photography Archives : Kopeikin Gallery : Richard Tuschman : Hopper Meditations The Eye of Photography New photography minor is “more than just taking pictures” The Rider News Photography exhibit shows work of overlooked female architects Yale Daily News RAL Art Center photographers hanging around LCL hallways Rappahannock Record AI camera concept adds innovation in photography Yanko Design A photographer's view of harvest waitsburgtimes.com Photography exhibition documenting the lives of California farmworkers opens at UC Davis Daily Democrat They drink matcha, dabble in photography and love Joan Didion. Meet the ‘performative men' Yahoo Life UK The 2025 Audubon Photography Awards yahoo.com GARNA Nature Photography Class Heart of the Rockies Radio | Professional Photographers Will Love This The Phoblographer Night Photography and AI-Powered ‘Denoise’ Software Railfan & Railroad Magazine Perspective - Prints for Wildlife photography project co-founders on their 'message of hope' France 24 roman bauer arquitectos designs photographers studio in bohemian district of lima, peru - Designboom L’Image Satellite – Contemporary Photography Festival The Eye of Photography BuffaLoveBus ubspectrum.com The Tin Man Follows His Heart Cincinnati Magazine Stop being afraid to crop your photos – it's NOT cheating! Digital Camera World FirstDue Photography Shines Light on First Responders in Action Williamsburg Yorktown Daily Winners of the Natural Landscape Photography Awards Highlight Real Beauty in Our Environment My Modern Met Sony World Photography Awards 2026 announces judges and London exhibition dates Digital Camera World Poem: ‘Love Letter from Photograph 51’ Scientific American Glacier Repeat Photos NPS.gov Audubon Photography Awards 2025 Winners Showcase the Beauty of Birds Across the Americas DIY Photography Reading City Hall to host photography reception & exhibition celebrating the beauty of Reading Berks Weekly Futuristic AI Cameras Trend Hunter ART: Four photographers envision images from four South Arkansas cities Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Rare Photography Collection, Natural History Archive, and First Karaite Pentateuch: The Week in Rare Books finebooksmagazine.com Love Black and White Photography? Try These The Phoblographer Orlando photographer Mauricio Murillo's evocative solo show 'Soy de Aqui' opens at CityArts this week Orlando Weekly Rodney Smith Retrospective Celebrating the Late Iconic Fashion Photographer To Open in Mexico City My Modern Met Berkshire Botanical Garden Presents 'Works by Frances Palmer: Terracotta and Floral Photography' Aug. 15 through Oct. 5 The Berkshire Edge For disabled Middletown photographer, camerawork is therapy Bay to Bay News Powerful images show beauty and brutality of birds like you've never seen them before BBC Wildlife Magazine Photographers and attendees in community at Haiti’s FestiFoto 2025: ‘Life here does not stop’ The Haitian Times Man Ray Was So Much More Than a Photographer Hyperallergic Fearless Photographer Spends His Time Getting Close With Great White Sharks [Interview] My Modern Met Through the Lens of Empathy: How Photography is Rewriting Stories from the Sidewalk The Sunday Guardian International Pet Photography Awards 2025 Winners Will Make You Adopt a Pet Right Now DIY Photography |
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