Choosing the right lens is very Important because the difference between Choosing the wrong lens and the right Lens is massive so in this video I want To talk about everything you need to Know in choosing the right lens for you And which lenses you should specifically Be using for your shooting style and Subject matter the first thing you'll Have to decide is whether you want a Zoom lens or a prime lens a zoom lens is Pretty simple it lets you zoom in and This way you can actually get closer to Your subject matter without having to Physically get closer a prime lens does Not let zoom in and it's a fixed focal Length meaning you don't have the Capability of zooming in and you really Just have one lens a zoom lens might be More convenient for some people because This way you get several lenses in one Lens and generally it's cheaper than Buying a whole bunch of prime lenses a Zoom lens is generally bigger with a few Exceptions and prime lenses are usually Smaller and lighter but it comes out to More than just cost and size when Choosing between a zoom and a prime Prime lenses also tend to be sharper Because there's less complic ated glass Inside and this way you can just take a Few pieces of glass and make them super High quality and usually zoom lenses Aren't quite as sharp or high quality as
A prime lens unless you get a really Expensive zoom lens then the quality is Pretty on par but the most important Thing when deciding between a zoom lens And a prime lens is actually aperture Now aperture is a metal Iris inside of Your lens that opens and closes and this Controls how much light is coming into Your camera now with a prime lens you Generally have a pretty wide aperture And you can get as wide as f1.2 f1.8 and This is a really good aperture for Letting in a lot of light doing low Light shooting and by having a wider Aperture it also gives you more bouquet Or that blurry background effect with The zoom lens you usually have an Aperture somewhere between F4 to f5.6 as Your minimum aperture and this lets in a Lot less light which is not very good For low light shooting but you also get Less of that blurry background effect or Bouquet however there are some zoom Lenses like this one that actually does Open up to f2.8 but zoom lenses that Have a wide aperture are generally more Expensive to make and thus these are Really only made for pros however you Can still get a blurry background effect With the zoom lens if you use it the Right way which I'll show you later in This video the second most important Thing when it comes to choosing your Lens is the right focal length because
The right lens or the wrong lens will Completely change how your photos and Videos look focal length is generally Shown on your lens as a number with a Millimeter right after it and you can Get lenses between 16 mm to 200 mm for Most cameras and lenses now here's the Thing most people just think of focal Length as how wide or how close up your Shot is and this is actually the wrong Way to think about focal length a wide 16 mm lens is very wide it allows you to See everything from a very wide Perspective and it actually gives your Photos and videos a larger than life and Epic feel a wide focal length is ideal For landscapes group shots or just any Wide subject matter like a boat or a car However it does have some side effects Because the lens is so wide you also get An effect known as Barrel Distortion if You've ever messed around with a GoPro You kind of get this fisheye look where Everything just looks warpy that is Barrel Distortion now Barrel Distortion Isn't a bad thing and you can actually Use it as a creative tool on a very Basic level Barrel Distortion will Pretty much stretch out bodies and Subject matters that are close to the Lens the closer the subject matter is to The lens the more this effect is Apparent now if we go way in the other Direction and use something like an 85
Mm which is known as a telephoto lens or A close-up lens we actually lose the Wide perspective and we no longer have a Wide Larger than Life shot instead You're much closer to your subject Matter at least from the perspective When shooting with a higher focal length Like an 85 mm you no longer get Barrel Distortion instead you get the opposite Effect known as pin cushion Distortion This effect makes everything feel more Flat and more compressed when you look At it on camera and even if you have the Lens super close to your subject matter You don't get any of that weird GoPro or Fisheye warping this makes faces look Much more pleasant on camera and it's Also much better for getting close-up Detail shots but here's the best part About shooting on a high focal length Lens like a 50 mm or an 85 mm is that Because of the way the op in this lens Work even at a high aperture like F4 or F6 you still get a ton of that Background blur or bouquet effect that Everybody wants in their photos you can Still get that blurry background effect Or bouquet effect even with a cheap zoom Lens this however is not a cheap lens This is $4,000 I have to give this back So when choosing the right focal length For you you want to think about this Scale each lens on this scale is going To give you a slightly different look
Based on how much Barrel Distortion how Wide the lens is how narrow the lenses Or how much pin cushion Distortion you Have and based on that you want to Figure out which lens has the right look For you based on these factors so first Up you have your wide lenses like a 16 Mm this is best for landscape Photography cityscape photography Something where you need a really wide Perspective and with this you get a lot Of barrel Distortion but like we talked About earlier it can be used to a Creative effect second we have 24 28 and 35 mm this is known as your normal lens Or everyday shooting lens this is Because these lenses tend to give you a Pretty accurate representation in your Camera of what whatever you're shooting Actually looks like and this is usually The focal length you'll see on really Popular pointing sh cameras like the Fuji x100v which has a 23 mm or the Le a Q2 which is a 28 mm I personally like 35 Because it's pretty wide but you still Get a lot of that blurry background Effect or bouquet because it is a higher Focal length and this is a 50 mm lens Also known as a nifty50 it doesn't give You a super wide perspective but it's Not super narrow either but it's overall Just a good everyday lens it's good for Portraits it's good for detail shots but It's also perfectly fine for cityscape
Photography shooting just casually in Your life if you're on vacation if You're just out and about this is a good Staple lens that everyone should have And finally we have telephoto lenses This is an 855 mm or my personal Favorite the 70 to 200 mm these give you A very narrow perspective or a close-up Shot for whatever you're shooting but What I like about these lenses is that They're really good for portraits and Detail shots and shooting things far Away these are not just casual lenses You can just keep on your camera and Just casually shoot you have to use These lenses for specific types of Subject matter now there's one thing That I haven't seen anyone else on YouTube talk about when it comes to Lenses and this is also the thing that Most beginners get wrong when it comes To shooting photos and videos each lens Is kind of like a unique paintbrush and Your camera sensor is your canvas and The stylistic look of your images Actually comes from your lenses more Than your camera because a 50 mm lens From one manufacturer and a 50 mm lens From another manufacturer actually have Some pretty significant differences Because each of these manufacturers has A different recipe in their lenses a Different sauce to get their specific Look that they want for their lenses for
Example when it comes to photo lenses They tend to have a very sharp and Clinical look everything from these Lenses tend to look very neutral and When it comes to video lenses you Generally have something known as Cinema Lenses these are lenses that are made Completely out of metal there's no Autofocus but they have a very soft and Stylized look on purpose because that's Generally what people want when shooting Video and movies and if you want to save Some money vintage lenses are also a Great option they have a lot of Imperfections in the lens and a lot of Times they actually make your colors a Little funky but they give your images a Lot of character a lot of heart a lot of Soul and a lot of times I only shoot on Vintage lenses unless I'm forced to Shoot on something clinical so when You're picking your lens figure out if You need a prime or a zoom and then Figure out what focal length you want Based on how wide you want your lens to Be how much Barrel Distortion you want How narrow you want your field the view To be or how much pin cushion Distortion You want and then make sure you have the Right type of lens so you get the right Amount of character and style to your Image and if you want to know what Lenses I personally use and the ones That I personally recommend I'll leave
Links down below for both inner lenses And pro lenses and also whether they're For photo or video and I'll see you guys In the next video peace