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A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO THE WIDE-ANGLE LENS

Quick Guide
Written by Leanne Cleaveley

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 A new lens has entered my meagre kit
and rather than get to know it slowly, I
decided it would be fun to jump in with
both feet.

What was my great idea to facilitate this?

I would shoot only with my new 17-35mm

wide-angle Nikon lens for two weeks.

That way I would learn all the ins and outs

of my new lens and really get to know it
well.

Upon further thought, I decided that

two weeks was kind of wimpy. Summer
was coming, and I felt a two-month
commitment to the new lens would be
much more challenging.

This idea didn’t just fall from the sky.

I belong to a group of photographers that

have online discussions.

When featuring a photographer from our

Photograph by Leanne Cleaveley group, one of the questions asked is,
Leanne Cleaveley’s new17-35mm Nikkor Wide-Angle Zoom Lens “If you could only use one lens for year,
which one would it be?”

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 This question terrifies me as I love macro photography, but I stuck to the challenge precisely, except for two events
I couldn’t shoot with a macro lens exclusively. How would that required the use of other lenses – one was a family
I get great shots of my kids? Plus, I love my longer focal portrait session that I had agreed to before I committed
length telephoto zoom lens for photographing birds and to the challenge, and the other was a boat ride which
other critters, but I would miss so many great shots by only included my children tubing on the water from quite
having a telephoto lens (not to mention I’d probably back some distance away (I just had to zoom in on the looks of
off of a cliff trying to get things into the frame). surprise, fear, and anguish on those little faces).

I was afraid that I just couldn’t pick one lens for an Otherwise, I stuck to the program. And it wasn’t always
entire year. pretty!

Yet, here I was committing to just one lens for two months! After two months of exclusively using my wide-angle lens,
I was scared that I wouldn’t be able to stick to my goal. I feel like I have learned enough to share some tips and
ideas with others who are just getting to know this lens.
I sadly emptied my camera bag of all but the one lens and
my external flash and started on my way. In this guide you will:

I was a little nervous and noticeably lighter. Maybe this one • learn what defines a lens as a “wide-angle”;
lens thing wasn’t such a bad idea after all!
• learn how using a wide-angle lens affects the
This personal challenge meant that I would shoot perception of relative size, and the appearance of
exclusively with my wide-angle lens for the next two depth, in photographs;
months.
• learn some of the quirks of wide-angle lenses, and
All my shots of family and friends, backyard flora, sunsets, how they can be avoided or used to enhance your
mountains, cityscapes, action shots, and night photos photos; and
would all be taken with the wide-angle lens.
• understand why wide-angle lenses are better suited
to some photography genres more than others.

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 WHAT IS A WIDE-ANGLE LENS?

The first thing that strikes you when you peer through Wide-angle lenses are commonly defined as lenses
a wide-angle lens attached to your camera is how with a focal length of less than 35mm. They can delve
much of the scene in front of you is apparent in your into the realm of ultra-wide angle lenses (shorter than
viewfinder. 15mm), which includes fish-eye lenses.

It takes my breath away still when I put the camera to All of these lenses aim to get more of the scene into
my eye and see all of that foreground, scenery, and the frame. You need to be aware of some of the
sky in my field of view. quirks and perks of these lenses to appreciate their
full potential.
Simply put, you have a wider view of things in your
frame. Note: Interested in taking beautiful
landscape photographs? Grab a copy of
But for those of you that like a more precise Photzy’s guide, Complete Guide to Landscape
definition of what a wide-angle lens is… It is a lens Photography.
with a short focal length. What is focal length? It is
the distance from the converging focused image on a
lens set to infinity, to the image sensor (or film) inside
your camera. The distance is stated in millimeters.
The shorter that distance is, the wider the viewing
angle will be.

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 THINGS ARE NOT ALWAYS
WHAT THEY APPEAR

The first time I used my new wide-angle

lens was to get a shot of the sunset from
the view off of our deck in the backyard.

My heart skipped a beat as I looked at the

scene through the viewfinder. There was
so much sky!

Upon further examination, and after

taking several more shots, I realized that
the photos had a feeling of depth that
was missing from my photos taken with
my other lenses.

What creates this perception of depth?

It has to do with the comparative size of

objects that are close to you and those
that are farther away.

Even if all the clouds in the sky are exactly

the same size, those that are closer
Photograph by Leanne Cleaveley appear much larger than those that are
In this image, an evening farther away when viewed through a
shadow looks even wide-angle lens.
longer when shot with
a wide-angle lens!

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 Having multiple objects, at different
distances from the camera, presented
within the photograph can enhance
the perception of depth when using a
wide-angle lens.

It is often a good idea to try and get

something in the foreground, the middle
ground, and in the background if you
want to accentuate the feeling of depth.

This fun aspect of wide-angle lenses

– making closer objects appear larger
relative to objects that are farther away
– can be used to create an exaggerated
appearance of size or length.

Key Lesson: Wide-angle lenses

make objects that are close appear
larger, and those further away much
smaller. This can be helpful for
adding a sense of depth to your
photographs and even
Photograph by Leanne Cleaveley exaggerating an object’s size
This photo is an example of how wide-angle lenses affect the relative size of objects relative to its surroundings.
in a photograph. The girl closest to the camera appears much larger than the second
girl who is further away. This is because the girl in the foreground is much closer to
the camera and lens (but in reality, the two girls are relatively close in size).

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 The very thing that can create depth, and
interesting lines, in your shots can also
work against you (depending on the type
of photograph that you are taking).

Lines that get much smaller and curve

away (due to the distorting effect of the
lens) can make buildings appear crooked.

Key Lesson: Being aware of

the type of distortion that wide-
angle lenses can create can help
you make these quirks work for and
not against you when taking
photos.

Photograph by Leanne Cleaveley

The exaggerated sense of scale can make leading lines appear

more dramatic as well, as seen in this image.

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 Photograph by Leanne Cleaveley

In this image, the far left of the building and the pole on the right curve inwards at the top of the photograph. This type of
wide-angle lens distortion might be desirable. However, if it isn’t, it can sometimes be fixed within an editing program. A
tool such as the ‘Transform tool’ in Lightroom can be used to fix the converging lines created by the wide-angle lens.

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 CLOSE-UPS

The thing that made me really fall in love with my new wide-
angle lens was how close I could get to my subjects.

Macro photography is a favorite photographic genre of mine,

and I was sure that I would miss the macro shots that could only
be taken with a macro lens while completing this challenge.

So when I realized that I could get really close to my subjects

with my new wide-angle lens and catch some great close-up
shots, I was elated.

How close can you get? Typically, you can get very close
(depending on the particular lens).

In the case of my 17-35mm lens, I can focus down to within a

few inches of my subject.

Not only can you get close, you should get close, because you
have so much more of the scene included in the frame.

It’s necessary for you to include objects in the foreground,

especially with a landscape photograph created with a wide-
angle lens. You need that foreground object to help accentuate
that sense of depth and provide balance to your photographs.

This is something that I struggle with personally, and owning a

wide-angle lens is now helping me to develop this skill.

Photograph by Leanne Cleaveley

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 WIDE-ANGLE LANDSCAPE
PHOTOGRAPHY

Naturally, I should mention landscape

photography when talking about a wide-
angle lens.

This is a very common lens to use for this

type of photography, and it is clear why
this is so.

As I mentioned earlier, the wide-angle

lens allows you to get more of the scene
into the frame. This is a clear advantage
for those attempting to shoot sweeping
vistas of landscape.

Photograph by Leanne Cleaveley

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 Also, as previously mentioned, the lens can create I personally avoided landscape photography before
the perception of depth, which helps the viewer to acquiring my new wide-angle lens (unless I was
feel as if they are right there in the landscape. snapping vacation scenes).

Now, the lens alone doesn’t do this. The However, I found myself compelled to venture out
photographer must consider leading lines, with this new lens and give landscape photography a
foreground objects, and the placement of subject whirl.
within the frame.
I must say that I find myself drawn to this type of
But the use of the wide-angle lens is the lens to help photography now, and I am happy to add another
you in these respects. genre to my personal repertoire.

Recommended Reading: Interested in

taking beautiful landscape photographs? Grab a
copy of Photzy’s guide, Complete Guide to
Landscape Photography.

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 I should add that another challenge that
I have faced when using my wide-angle
lens is known as “lens flare.”

For the very reason that a wide-angle lens

is wonderful, it can also be challenging.
The wide-angle lens typically has a
large area of exposed glass on the front
element. This makes lens flair more of an
issue than with other lenses.

A lens hood helps, but I still find that I

have to play with my camera angles, and
even provide extra shade such as holding
up a piece of cardboard, to avoid getting
those annoying lens flare spots across my
photo.

Key Lesson: Lens flare shows

as overexposed hazy spots across
your photograph. They are caused
by the sun, or bright light, hitting
the front glass element on a lens.
They can be avoided by using a
lens hood, and also by checking
the angle of the light so that it
doesn’t hit the front glass element
on your camera lens.

Photograph by Leanne Cleaveley

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 WIDE-ANGLE LENSES AND THE NIGHT SKY

The night that I decided to aim my camera skyward To give this a try with your wide-angle lens, set your
in an effort to capture the Milky Way was the night I lens-focusing ring to infinity. Use a remote trigger (or
realized that I loved this new lens even more. alternatively, set the camera to a two-second delay)
and set your shutter speed to 15 seconds or more.
I had been doing some reading about
photographing the Milky Way, and I realized that I You are ready to get some great shots of the night
now had everything that I needed to pull this off. sky.

The tools needed for beginning astrophotography

Key Lesson: Wide-angle lenses are well
(or photos of the night sky) are really simple.
suited for night photography because of their
You need a sturdy tripod, a camera that allows you to larger maximum aperture, and their ability to
take photos at slow shutter speeds, and a lens that capture more of the night sky than a standard
has a large aperture. lens.

A wide-angle lens is perfect for this task, as most of

them have a large maximum aperture, which allows
the most light to enter the camera.

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 Photograph by Leanne Cleaveley

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 WIDE-ANGLE LENSES AND
PHOTOGRAPHING PEOPLE

If you have done any reading about wide-angle lenses before this
guide, then you will know that photographing people while using a
wide-angle lens doesn’t generally mix well.

But what does that really mean?

Well, because of all the properties of the wide-angle lens (as we

previously discussed), portraits and close-up shots of people can
appear distorted and odd looking.

Wide-angle lenses exaggerate the appearance of objects, so

things closer to the lens appear larger. When the thing closest to
the lens is a person’s nose… You can see where I am going with
this, right?

You may not want to use this lens for portraiture, but that doesn’t
mean you should always avoid taking shots of people with a wide-
angle lens. It just means that you should be thoughtful about how
you include them in your photos.

The image on the left, which includes a child in the foreground,

works well with the use of a wide-angle lens, and may even be
enhanced because of it.

Photograph by Leanne Cleaveley

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 With the wide-angle lens, I could get very close to the child and
still include a lot of the environment around her, which was so
important to tell the story of what was going on.

Also, the exaggerated perspective of the long rope out to the boat
(the boat appears smaller and farther away as a result) makes the
photo even more interesting.

In the end, your objective should be your guide as to whether you

want to photograph people with a wide-angle lens.

I have seen many very interesting photos of people taken with a

wide-angle lens.

Key Lesson: Wide-angle lenses can create problems

when shooting serious portraits of people. They can make
things that are closer to the camera seem larger and don’t
always accentuate facial features in a flattering way.

The ice cream is as big as her head! This image is a great example
of how the exaggerated perspective from a wide-angle lens can
add a creative element to a photograph.

Recommended Reading: If you’d like to learn how to

create amazing portraits, grab a copy of Photzy’s premium
guide, Art of Portrait Photography.

Photograph by Leanne Cleaveley

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 MY REVELATION

Remember at the beginning of this guide, when I But once you know this, and can appreciate the
asked you about the crazy question of what lens you positive aspects such as a larger portion of the scene
would use if you could only use one for a year? in the frame, larger maximum aperture, and a short
minimum focusing distance, you can really make this
Well, here is my new revelation. If I could only use lens work for you.
one lens, it would be the wide-angle lens! I know this
now because it is the lens I leave on my camera. I encourage you to give a wide-angle lens a try if
you haven’t already. And don’t be afraid to try out
Once in a while I switch out to my telephoto zoom a new field of photography, such as night photos or
lens, and I know that I will always have a love for landscapes, if you haven’t already.
macro shots.
Another take-away from my experiment is that
But this new wide-angle lens has become my “go-to” shooting with only one lens for a set period of time
lens for most situations. really ‘forces you’ to get to know that particular lens –
This is not to say that the lens doesn’t have its its quirks and tendencies. You become a bit more of
challenges: like distortion and a proclivity for lens an expert with it.
flare. Above all, get out there, play, and have fun!

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 Self Check Quiz

1. True or False: Wide-angle lenses make faraway objects look bigger than
they are.

2. Wide-angle lenses have a focal length less than ______________.

3. When using a wide-angle lens, be aware of its tendency to cause

________________, which can make straight lines appear curved.

4. To accentuate a sense of depth when shooting with a wide-angle lens, try

and place objects in the __________________, _____________________, and
___________________.

5. What two features make wide-angle lenses a good choice for night
photography?

6. What feature makes a wide-angle lens a poor choice for portrait

photography?

7. How can photographers avoid lens flare when using a wide-angle lens?

8. True or False: Wide-angle lenses can be useful if you want to exaggerate

the height or length of a subject.

9. Typically, you can get to within ___________ inches of a subject with a

wide-angle lens.

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 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

IF YOU’D LIKE TO CONTINUE

LEARNING AND IMPROVING
YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY PLEASE
VISIT PHOTZY.COM

Leanne Cleaveley is a hobby photographer, part-time

elementary school teacher, and full-time mother and wife.
She loves reading, gardening, crafting, and music – and
contemplates ways to find more time in the day to pursue her
hobbies. Her photographs can be found on Flickr.

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