Chapter 1: Focusing on Versatility
In This Chapter
Examining zoom lenses and alternatives
Shooting wide angles
Zooming in for telephoto shots
Having fun with close-ups
If you’re like me, the first digital SLR/SLT lens you’ll shoot with is something called a normal or standard zoom lens. These lenses are so useful that they come with the camera when you buy the kit, which includes everything you need to get started.
What separates standard zoom lenses from other types of lenses (such as prime lenses or specialty lenses like macros) is their versatility. You can shoot anything from wide-angle landscapes up to “near” telephoto shots with most normal zoom lenses by twisting the zoom ring.
This chapter, then, is devoted to showing you what these lenses can do. I take you through a series of photos shot with zoom lenses at different focal lengths. I have everything from a blimp to a field, flowers to a cat, some landscapes and some portraits. There’s not a lot you can’t do with zoom lenses! (I took the shots in this chapter on a variety of cameras, from entry-level models up to and including ...
