Camera Lens - Overview

A digital camera is not enough for capturing a great shot. Though most individuals who own a digital camera sees photography as a hobby, the right equipment can greatly enhance how they take pictures.

With that said, lenses are an important equipment in photography. Almost all photographers use several different lens for photo taking. Though there are numerous lenses, the most used are 35-80mm panoramic and telephoto lenses.

35-80mm Lens
These can be found in almost every digital camera including point and shoot models. Often when you purchase a digital camera casing they will sell you the standard lens with it. Lenses can be transferred from one digital camera to the next. Because each digital camera brand has its own specific design, lens swapping can only be done between digital cameras of the same brand.

By keeping the brand of the lens the same with your digital camera, you won't have compatibility issues. A 35-80mm lens can only do so much. While you can take photographs several miles away with a standard lens you will not have the distinction of features in the print that you need. Portrait or regular shots are the forte of kits lenses.

Zoom / Telephoto Lens
A zoom lens is necessary if you are planning to shoot pictures from far distances. There are many telephoto lens to choose from. One is the 75-300 mm lens. While this is not as massive as other telephoto lenses you may see a professional walking around with it is a great step up for mountain and wildlife photography when your quarry is some distance away. Moving from a 35mm lens to a bigger one needs the help of a lens stabilizer. The removal of blurry shots due to camera shake is the main purpose in using a stabilizer. Adding a lens filter or light meter to your arsenal is essential.

Panorama / Wide-Angle Lens
Panorama is a branch of photography where the photographer's subject is the landscape around him. This is achievable through the utilization of a wide angle lens which can take in a wider perspective.

Panoramic lenses can capture wide angle pictures in one go without the need of post editing software. We all have a story about being frustrated that our cameras are not able to take in the complete view of the landscape. SLR cameras also are capable of using wide angle lenses.