Lenses to choise

The speach of the photographer is very curious, cause usually professionals use the different words about lenses and other digital equipment. So, I created a simple guide to professional lenses names.

Normal Lens - This lens will give you the angle of view that you normally see with the naked eye. A lens about 50 mm (Pentax 43 or Helios 56) on a 35mm camera is considered a normal lens. Remember the digital cameras have sensor smaller than 35mm (since you haven't got Mark I or EOS 5D, than why you're reading this). For Canon you need to multiply focal length on lens to get a real number by 1.6; Nikon/Minolta/Sony/Pentax and other x1.5; Olympus x2.

Wide Angle Lens - Good for landscapes, as well as big buildings, they also add foreground to your photograph. For a standart film camera, anything smaller than 38mm would be considered a wide angle. Best choice is a 24mm to 28mm. But sometimes you may need a wider angle.

Portrait Lens - Created specially for portraits, can be a good choise shooting naturemort. Anything between 75 and 150 mm focal length are considered for portrait lenses.

Telephoto Lens - These come in a variety of lengths, starting at 150mm and going up to 500mm. They are useful when you need to bring the subject closer, f.e. shooting car race or flying birds. For most purposes a 150mm or 200mm lens is recommended. The longer focal lengths are used for wildlife and sports photography where you must stay a long distance from your subject. Be sure to use a tripod and a fast shutter speed, if you are shooting with an extremely long lens.

Zoom Lens - Because they offer a range of focal lengths, these lenses are perfect for travel photography. They are very useful in isolating specific elements within your photographs. Zoom lenses cover a variety of focal lengths. Most common are a wide angle to a medium, such as a 28mm-80mm lens. Or a medium to a long, such as a 70mm-210mm lens.

Macro Lens - Macros come in a variety of fixed focal lengths or as a zoom lens with macro capability. This is a great lens to use when shooting close-ups of insects, flowers, or other small objects.