Understanding the qualities of different types of lenses will improve your photography greatly because, for most shots, there is an ‘ideal’ lens. I’m not talking about expensive lenses versus cheap, I’m talking about different focal lengths, or to put it simply, the difference between say a wide angle lens, like a 24 or 28mm lens, and a ‘long’ / telephoto lens, which would be anything from 85mm – 400mm. A zoom lens encompasses a range of focal lengths, going from ‘wide’ at one end of the zoom, to ‘close up’ at the other end, and this convenience makes it most people’s choice of lens for everyday shots.
So what is the difference between and Prime Lens and a Zoom Lens? Prime lenses have a fixed focal length, so you cant zoom in and out, but they have a few advantages over zoom lenses, primarily in that they produce superior picture quality in terms of detail and colour, unless you are using the very best quality zoom lens.
Another key advantage of the prime lens is that they have much wider aperture settings, so they are far better in low light conditions, plus, a wider aperture also gives you greater ‘bokeh’, meaning the beautiful quality of soft focus in the background (and sometimes foreground) and this effect does add a lot of beauty and style to photographs.
Finally, Prime lenses are smaller and lighter than zoom lenses, and are great value, in that you can get a top-quality prime lens for about half the cost of a top-quality zoom lens.
So there are two types of lenses, fixed Prime Lenses and Zoom Lenses (which have a wide end and a zoomed-in / close-up end.) But whether to use a 24 mm lens (or the wide end of your zoom) or a long lens, such as 85mm or higher, (or the zoomed-in end of your zoom lens) or something in between, like a 50mm, depends entirely on the shot you are taking. So I’ll explain the differences and the properties of each, and that will enable you to always use the best lens (or best part of your zoom lens) for the job.
Wide Angle / 24mm or 28mm Lens
A wide-angle lens actually takes in slightly more of the view than the human eye. Wide lenses are ideal for landscapes because they take in the widest view, so you can take very big and dramatic shots, and have more options in terms of composition. They also give you great depth of field, so everything is sharp from your foreground to your background, which is what you need for great landscape shots. They are also great for architecture. If you are in a small or restricted space, they are also sometimes your only choice, so are ideal for interiors.
Standard 50mm Lens
The 50mm lens sees things the way the human eye sees things. Landscapes, portraits, candid shots, and objects / still lifes. They tend to have wide apertures, so they are good in low light.
85mm – 135mm Lens (short telephoto)
The 85mm – 135mm lens range is great for flattering portraits, and often portrait photographers will say their most used lens for portraits is an 85mm lens, which is what I use for portraits. You also get increased blurring in the background, which is also ideal for portrait shots. Because this lens is more zoomed in, you can achieve perfect candid portrait shots as well, as you can get a close-up without being too close to your subject. This leads us to the last lens.
135 – 300mm Lens
If you want to achieve close-up shots but aren’t able to get close to your subject, for example with wildlife photography, or sports, then you need a longer lens. Basically, the higher the number, the greater the magnification. You get increased ‘wobble’ with long lenses though, so unless you have a fast shutter speed, you need a tripod.
If you apply this understanding of which lens (or which end of your zoom) is best suited to achieve the shot you want, in no time it will become second nature. And if you have only ever used a zoom lens, and are keen to see an improvement in the quality of your images, I urge you to buy at least one prime lens, and I guarantee you will see a real difference.