Tips for How and When To Use Wide-Angle Camera Lenses

Do you want to get into more landscape photography? Wide-angle camera lenses are perfect for this composition, but understanding how and when to use them can be difficult. Boost your skill set and start using this lens within your craft to create unique and exquisite images.

What Are Wide Angle Lenses?

A typical focal length for full frame cameras is 50mm, and 35 mm for crop sensor cameras—anything shorter than 35 is a wide-angle lens. This component will capture more of an image than the natural eye can see. Generally, the subject of these shots is to capture landscapes or interesting images with beautiful foreground elements.

When Should You Use This Lens?

You should use wide-angle camera lenses when you want to accentuate a subject closer to you or deemphasize something that may be in the distance. To note, objects and people in the background of your shot will appear smaller, while objects in the foreground will appear larger. Usually, photographers will apply a Samyang EF lens to their camera to capture as much of a landscape or composition as possible. This will not be useful if the main subject of your photo is further away from you.

Tips for How To Use Wide-Angle Lenses

Now that you can identify when to use a wide-angle camera lens, let’s dive into how you can use them. While this isn’t a complete list of tips, they will help give you context for your work.

Leading Lines

Sometimes, once you finalize an image, viewers may not know where to look in the photo. When you’re out with your camera, look for natural leading lines within the landscape that will help point toward the image’s subject. This will dramatize the photo while pulling the viewer’s attention to the correct place.

Avoid Placing Subjects or People in Corners of the Frame

When you’re capturing an image with this type of lens, the corners of the photo will become distorted. Therefore, you must avoid placing your subject in those areas. If you do this, these individuals will appear shorter and wider, which could be unflattering to the photo. Place these subjects near the center of the frame for the best composition.

Emphasize Foreground Elements

When you find a landscape that has a beautiful foreground, take out your wide-angle lens and see what you can capture. However, if there’s no exciting object or element in the foreground, the photo will be distasteful because of the empty space. For example, a meadow of flowers with the sunset in the background would be the perfect time to use this camera lens.

Don’t be shy about experimenting with different lenses on your camera; you can’t better your skills until you practice something new. Consider Samyang for all your equipment needs—our high-quality lenses will enable you to tell a story through your eyes. Try a wide-angle lens today and see what kind of incredible imagery you can create with it.