A lot of people who start photography think they need a wide angle lens, especially for landscape photography,as part of a new series I want to start, photography tips, so I am going to do this one on using a wide angle lenses. I have to admit I was one of those. I thought it would be great for everything, I would be able to fit in so much. I got it and then I started using it and I was disappointed.
The thing many of us don’t realise when we decide to get a wide angle lens is that while it fits in a lot of the scene, it is also makes everything a lot smaller. It isn’t as easy to use as you may think.
When I first got my full frame camera to use with my 14-24mm, I thought I was in heaven, but after using it a bit I started to realise what the person who told me how tricky it was to use actually meant.
They are easy to use, but it is best to use them in with specific goals, like emphasising something in the landscape.
With this I was trying to show the flowers in a burnt environment. I went up close to the flowers, and it is a good way of using the wide angle. I think if you are using a wide angle, then getting in the face of what you want to take photos of is the best way to go.
You can enlarge what is in the foreground, but still have something in the background. It is great for showing the foregrond and the background. I’ve seen some great images of something in the foreground, and then mountains in the background.
Filling the foreground with the flowers that lead you to lots more flowers and then the burnt trees in the background.
I think before you get a really wide angle lens it is good to consider how often you think you will do this sort of photography. I hardly use my 14-24mm now. I tend to use my 24-70mm a lot more. I do like the wide angle for architecture, I can get a whole skyscrapper in an image with it.
So if you have a wide angle and want to use it for landscape, remember to get up close to things in the environment and fill your frame with it.
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great post, I love the way you have used the yellow flowers in your landscape, they really help to make a point. I have a fish-eye, and while I am happy to have it, it doesn’t see the light of day all that often, as you say, they are not easy to use effectively.
Thank you Janice, I would think a fish eye would be even harder than a wide angle, he distortion, knowing when to use it.