lenses for travel photography

8/8/2019 Lenses for Travel Photography

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Lenses for travel photography - Part I (Lens Classes)

This week is the start of my seven part series about lenses for travel

photography. The series is primarily meant forSLRand DSLR

camera users who can attach a variety of lenses to their cameras

to support their creativity and suit the needs of their photographic

opportunities.

The series will include:

y Part I Lens classes; wide angle, telephoto, macro, etc.y Part II Important specifications of lensesy Part III Choosing between zoom and prime lenses for travel photographyy Part IV Lens choices for travel photographic opportunitiesy Part V Lens qualities and characteristics in purchase decisionsy Part VI Special lenses and lens accessoriesy Part VII Lenses I use and recommend for travel and why

There are four basic classes of lenses, defined by their angle of view: wide

angle, standard, telephoto, macro. In addition to these general lens types,

photographers use other terms such as super wide angle, fisheye, super

telephoto, normal, close-up, micro, and others. These are either sub-

categories or synonyms of these four basic types.

To understand these classes of lenses and their purpose, youve got to

understand the term, angle of view. Angle of view, also known as field of

view, is the area of a scene that a lens covers or sees.

I will avoid the difficult to understand geometric definition and use the following example. Ifthe photographer stands in the middle of a circle, the angle of view is the size of the arc of the

circle which the photographer can view through the lens.

The angle of view is mostly determined by the focal length of the lens. A wide-angle lens(short focal length) includes more of the scene than a standard (standard focal length) or

telephoto (long focal length) lens. In the DSLR world, we also must remember that the

effective focal length of a lens depends on the sensor size. This dependency is called the

Multiplier Effect or Crop Effect. For a full explanation of this Effect see my article,

The DSLR Multiplier Myth Exposed.

Wide Angle Lenses:

What do you do when youre inside and you just cant get more than 10-20 from your

subject, when your back is literally against a wall? What do you do when youre in an old

European city, with narrow streets and you want to photograph a large building?

Answer: You put a wide angle (short focal length) lens on your SLR or DSLR camera to get a

wide field of view.

While touring the interior of the Hearst Castle in California, I put on


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a wide angle zoom lens to take photographs of the spectacular rooms in the Castle. Thephotograph on the left used a lens with a focal length of 10mm. You can see it enabled me to

capture almost three fourths of the library. With a longer focal length lens, I could not haveshown the details and breadth of the room.

While touring the Medieval city of Bruges, Belgium at night, I could not

have captured the full front of the City Theater, shown in the photograph onthe right, without using a wide angle lens. The streets are narrow in this old

city. A standard lens would have, at best, only captured the central section of

the front of the building.

I have found wide angle lenses and/or wide angle zoom lenses essential for

many cityscapes.

Standard Lenses:

Standard lenses were the ones normally supplied with SLR cameras in the past, and typicallyhad a focal length of 50mm to 55mm. They have generally been considered good general

purpose lenses having an angle of view close to the human eye. With the advent of DSLRsthe idea of a standard lens initially became almost obsolete as DSLRs different size sensors,

all smaller than the frame size of a 35mm SLR camera, which altered the effective length ofthe lenses used. For example, a 50mm lens on a Nikon DSLR with a DX size sensor has the

field of view of a 75mm lens, which would not be considered a standard lens.

Therefore, we need to define a standard lens as having an angle of view similar to the

human eye, specific to the particular camera to which it is attached.

Telephoto Lenses:

These are the lenses which allow you to capture distant subjects and

enable you to see them up-close, from afar, or closer objects

magnified which enable you to see otherwise hidden details. These

lenses have long focal lengths, usually defined as having a focal

length of 85mm or more.

The photograph of surfers off Hookipa Beach at Maui, above, was

taken with a lens having a focal length of 400mm. Without apowerful telephoto lens, the surfers would have been little more than

specks in the photo.

Telephoto lenses allow you to capture details which you might

otherwise miss. I used a 200mm focal length lens to capture thedetails of the gargoyle on Notre Dame de Paris in the photograph on the right.

While telephoto lenses are a staple of wildlife photographers, they are also invaluable

tools for photography in cities too.

Macro lenses:

Macro lenses permit photographers to get as close as a few inches from the subject of the


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photograph, unlike other types of lenses. Many true macro lenses will produce life-sizedimages (1:1 ratio) on film or sensors, permitting photographers to capture tiny details of small

and tiny subjects which other lenses will not capture.

Note the detail in the macro photograph below of an orchid. You can actually see the small

droplets of water on the flowers petals. Its almost impossible to capture the detail seen in

the photo without a macro lens, with its close-focus, and life-size capture abilities.

Lenses for travel photography - Part II (Important

Specifications)

This week in Part II of my seven part series about lenses for travel

photography, Ill discuss important lens specifications you shouldkeep in mind when purchasing or choosing lenses for your travel.The series is primarily meant forSLRand DSLRcamera users who

can attach a variety of lenses to their cameras to support theircreativity, and suit the needs of their photographic opportunities.

Among the important lens characteristics you should understand are:

y Focusing and sharpnessy Largest aperture and for zoom lenses when applicable, the range of the largest

aperture at the full range of the lens focal lengths

y Magnificationy Focal Lengthy Special Features such as Vibration Reduction, Focus Limit Switches, Extra-low

Dispersion (ED) elements, special lens coatings, and no lens extension

y Potential problems such as focus softness in corners, vignetting (light falloff),chromatic aberration, and distortion

DSLR lenses can auto-focus either via an internal motor in the lens,

or by a motor in the camera. Internal focus lenses are generally faster

focusing lenses than those which utilize the cameras focus motor.


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Moreover, some cameras have no internal motor and only lenses which have their ownmechanism will auto-focus on those cameras.

Most of us realize some lenses have the ability to produce sharper images than others due to

their design and the quality of their optics. Thats one of the reasons similar focal length

lenses, with similar features, may have vastly different purchase prices. Not many

photographers other than advanced amateurs and professionals realize that even the bestlenses will generally have a range of sharpness over the lens range of apertures. Its

important for every photographer to know their lenses focus sweet spot; which aperture

range produces the sharpest image.

Lenses are, in part, specified by their maximum aperture, and zoom lenses may be specified,

in part, by a maximum aperture range. For example, Nikons 18-200mm DX lens is specified

as f/3.5-5.6. That means, when set at 18mm the maximum aperture is f/3.5, and at 200mm its

f/5.6. As the lens is zoomed from wide angle to telephoto, the lens gets slower, meaning its

maximum aperture is smaller. In low light conditions, and/or at high shutter speeds, and/or

low ISO sensitivity this can be a very important specification for your lenses.

When taking close-up shots, lens magnification is important.Macro lenses, used for close-up photography, have a

magnification specification. For example, Nikons 105mmMicro-Nikkor lens has a maximum reproduction ratio

(when you focus very close to the subject) of 1.0, sometimesexpressed as 1:1. A maximum reproduction ratio of 1.0

means that when a photo of a half inch diameter coin is

made, the coin will take up a half inch of camera

sensor space; a life size image. That ratio indicates its a true

macro lens. If youre taking a photo of something very small,

you want that 1:1 ratio capability, so you can capture the

objects details in sharp focus.

The focal length of a lens goes hand in hand with its angle of view. As the focal length

doubles, the angle of view is halved. The angle of view specification, and therefore

focal lengths for lenses attached to DSLR cameras are based on full size sensors, which are

the same size as a 35mm film frame. Many DSLR cameras dont have full size sensors.

Nikons DX sized sensor is smaller, for example.

Nikon DX sensor based cameras have a crop factor of 1.5. As a result, the effective angle

of view of a lens on a Nikon DX camera is reduced by a factor of 1.5, so an 18mm lenswould have an equivalent angle of view as a 27mm on a full size

sensor equipped DSLR.

A 35mm lens, considered a wide angle lens for a full size sensorequipped DSLR, would is a standard lens (52.5mm equivalent) on a

DX size sensor camera.

Telephoto lenses, (long focal lengths, and therefore narrow angles of view) magnify distant

subjects to pull in its details. As a result, any movement of the lens, while the photograph is

being exposed, is magnified and will blur the photograph. To offset that problem, and permit

telephoto lenses to be handheld under well lighted conditions, lens manufacturers developed


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a mechanism to compensate for small camera/lens movement. Its called vibration reductionor image stabilization. I wouldnt purchase a telephoto lens without this feature.

Some lenses dont focus quickly. As a result, manufacturers have installed focus limit

switches. These limit auto-focusing to only a portion of range of the lens to speed auto-

focusing. You set the lens to the range your subject is at. This feature can be a big help for

focusing on subjects quickly.

Sometimes using close-up or macro lenses you are just inches away from your subject.

Having a lens which doesnt extend forward as you focus it helps ensure youll not touch

your subject during focusing.

Extra-low Dispersion (ED) elements, and special lens coatings minimize chromatic

aberration (color fringing) and lens flaring.

There are numerous potential problems you need to consider when choosing lenses for your

purchase and photo making.

Some lenses have a very sharp focus in the center, sometimes throughout the range ofaperture settings, but in the corners of the photographs, may have a softer focus.

The combination of your particular camera and each lens you have may produce vignetting in

your photographs. This is manifest at the edges of your photos, especially at the corners, asthe intensity of the light reaching your sensor is diminished at the edges of the sensor,

producing under-exposed corners.

Chromatic aberration is generally more prevalent in large-

aperture telephoto and super-telephoto lenses, and does not

generally improve by stopping down the lens. It can be corrected

or at least minimized by low or extra low dispersion glass

elements. Pro telephoto, and super-telephoto lenses always use

this type of glass.

According to the optics of a lens, at some focal lengths,

photographic images may be distorted. For example, barrel

distortion is when the image is bowed outward and pin cushion

distortion is when the image is bowed inward. A third type ofdistortion is keystoning. Image distortion is caused by a

combination of the relationship of the axis of the lens relative tothe subject, and the optics of the lens. An image can have a

complex distortion which is a combination of distortion types.

When choosing lenses to purchase or use, you should considerthe above specifications and factors. The choices can be complex

and difficult.

Lenses for Travel Photography - Part III (Choosing

between zoom and prime lenses)


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This week in Part III of my seven part series about lenses for travelphotography, Ill discuss ideas you can use to help you choose

between zoom and prime lenses. The series is primarily meant forSLRand DSLRcamera users, who can attach a variety of lenses to

their cameras to support their creativity, and suit the needs of their

photographic opportunities.

Before you can choose between these two types of lenses, you have to understand the

difference.

Simply put, prime lenses are lenses with a single focal length. Prime lenses come in a large

number focal lengths ranging from wide angle through super telephoto.

Zoom lenses are lenses which have a variety of focal lengths within just one lens. Zoom

lenses can have focal lengths which are all within one class of lens, such as the Sigma 10-

20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC HSM Lens, which stays solely within the wide angle range of focal

lengths. Zoom lenses can also have focal lengths which span lens classes such as the Nikon18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 G ED-IF AF-S VR DX Lens which runs the gamut from wide angle,

through normal, to telephoto focal lengths.

Lets look at why photographers prefer prime lenses.

y Quality While the quality of zoom lens optics hasdramatically improved during recent years, and will continue

to improve as new optics designs for zoom lenses are

implemented, to date, it is generally true that prime lenses

within each class of lens (professional or amateur) have

better quality optics. To focus within a range of focal lengths,

the optics of zoom lenses are far more complex than prime lenses, and therefore more

difficult to design into the lenses, the same exceptionally sharp image quality which

most prime lenses can produce.

y Low Light Speed Generally prime lenses are faster than zoom lenses. That is, theirmaximum aperture is larger than the comparable maximum zoom lens aperture. For

example, the AF VR Zoom-NIKKOR 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6D ED has a maximum

aperture of 5.6 at 400mm, while the AF-S NIKKOR 400mm f/2.8G ED VR prime

lens has a maximum aperture of 2.8, two full f/stops larger. That can be a significant

help for wildlife photography, for example, when youre out in a dark overcast day, ornear sunset. Zoom lens improvements are beginning to lessen the advantage, but

generally the advantage still exists.

y Weight Often, prime lenses are smaller and lighter than zoom lenses which have amaximum focal length equal to the prime lens focal length, but there are exceptions to

this. You need to compare lenses on a lens by lens basis.

Heres why some photographers prefer zoom lenses.

y Flexibility Zoom lenses allow photographers to quicklychange focal lengths within the specific focal length range of

the lens, which allows the photographer to reframe the

subject without having to change lenses. Therefore the

photographer can quickly change the photographs


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perspective and vary the images within seconds. During wildlife shoots, this can beespecially helpful. Often one will see a bird singing in a nearby tree, then another at

distance. Birds dont normally stay in one place for long. In the time it takes to swaplenses you could miss a great shot. You could have each lens on separate bodies, but

when hiking, that can be very heavy.

y Weight and Portability For the travel photographer, this can be a big deal. While Iknow my Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 G ED-IF AF-S VR DX has some opticalweaknesses, it is capable of being used for wide angle, through normal, to telephoto

photographs without swapping lenses. The lens weighs just 1lb 4oz. If I would replace

it with a 16mm, 50mm, 105mm and 200mm lens the total weight of the lenses would

be about 9lbs, plus Id have the bulk of 4 lenses to pack in my camera bag. Clearly,

there is a trade-off between quality and flexibility, but with zoom lens quality

improving year after year, choosing a zoom lens to replace prime lenses is becoming

easier.

Which way should a travel photographer go, prime lenses, zoom lenses, or a combination of

both? The best answer I can give you is to choose what works best for you.

From the above discussion, you can see that there are a whole range of considerations toponder to determine which lenses will work best for you. There are other factors too, of

course, your budget being of major concern. Moreover, even your travel location is animportant consideration, and the types of locations youre visiting while traveling.

Personally, I use a combination of prime and zoom lenses.

Lenses for Travel Photography - Part IV (Lens choices for travel

photographic opportunities)

This week in Part IV of my seven part series about lenses for travel

photography, Ill discuss choosing lenses for your travels. The series

is primarily meant forSLRand DSLRcamera users, who can attach

a variety of lenses to their cameras to support their creativity,and suit the needs of their photographic opportunities.


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There is a large variety of lenses: wide angle, normal or standard, and telephoto lenses, wideangle zoom, standard zoom, and telephoto zoom lenses, and dont forget there are also zoom

lenses which go across the categories as I discussed inPart III of the series. As the greatAmerican jazz and popular music singer, Peggy Lee asked in one of her famous songs, Is

that all there is?, in the world of photographic lenses, the answer is, no.

There are also super telephoto lenses, and super telephoto zoom lenses, as well as specialtylenses such as fisheye, macro (close-up),perspective control lenses, and selective focus

lenses.

Lens development has simultaneously taken two distinct roads;

single focal length lenses and specialty lenses for single purposes,

and zoom lenses designed to handle a range of purposes via

their range of focal lengths.

If one had unlimited funds, an unlimited carry-on bag size, and an

unlimited weight allowance for carry-on, as well as a back andshoulders with the strength of Arnold Schwarzenegger's in his prime, you could carry the

perfect lens for every situation while you travel. The trouble is, there arent many in thisworld who can say each of the above is true, so the rest of us are stuck making compromises

and carefully thought out choices.

So, what kinds of photographic situations can we expect to find while we travel. Here are afew which Ive run into:

y Cityscapes and buildings in cities with narrow streets so that it is difficult to get muchdistance between you and the buildings you wish to photography,

y Landscapes and seascapes with wonderful, wide vistas,y Building interiors with low light and tight spaces,y Animal wildlife in the distance,y Gorgeous flowers in gardens and the wild,y Markets in city squares,y Architectural sites,y Archaeological ruins,y Mechanical marvels,y Landmarks,y Interesting people at work or play,y Great works of art,y Children enjoying amusement parks,y Theme parks,

y Low light and bright light conditions.Yes I know youre adding many more photographic situations and

opportunities to the list.

Heres an important caveat. Lens choices for standard 35mm SLRs

and full size sensor based DSLRs such as the Nikon D700 would be

the same, but lens choices, especially wide angle lens choices forsmaller sensor based DSLRs, such as the DX size sensor Nikon D300, will be different due to

the crop factor of their smaller size sensor.


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For any trip, you want to have wide angle capability. You want it for landscapes, cityscapes

and seascapes. You want it for cities with narrow streets for architectural photographs. Youwant it for market and theme park panorama style shots. You want it for indoor shots where

you just cant get back far enough to include all the details you desire in the image.

Traditionally, a 28mm lens on an SLR camera (FX based DSLR too)is considered a great wide angle lens focal length, having a wide

field of view. Unfortunately, on a DX sensor based camera,

the 28mm lens has the equivalent field of view of a 42mm lens, and

therefore becomes a normal or standard lens.

Its no coincidence that the kit lenses introduced with the early Nikon DSLRs were 18

55mm, 1870mm or 18105mm zoom lenses. On those Nikon DX based cameras, an 18mm

lens is the equivalent of the traditional 28mm lens.

For years, a normal or standard lens (50mm) was considered the typical walking around lens,for good reason. Lenses in the normal range have the same basic field of view we see with

our own eyes. You want a lens in this range. For a DX cameras this would be a lens with afocal length around 35mm.

Its my personal preference to want a telephoto lens, there are many

times in a landscape you want narrower view, magnified to get moredetail. There might be an important archaeological site on a hill in

the distance, or in a wonderful view of a city, you might want to

zero-in on a particular site and capture its details. A lens with a

focal length between 200mm and 300mm will work nicely for most travel telephoto shots.

Remember that a telephoto lens magnification properties are not

increased when attached to a DX based DSLR, even though the field

of view is narrowed.

If Im traveling to the Netherlands in spring, or to a botanical

garden, Im going to bring a macro lens with me to get great flower

close-ups. The most popular focal lengths of macro lenses are 85mm

and 105mm. If youre trying to get insect in garden photographs you

might want a longer macro lens to permit you to keep your distance,

but a telephoto lens could suffice for those shots.

If youre going on an African safari, or perhaps to the Galapagos for wildlife photos, orpossibly into national parks to photograph eagles and hawks, a super telephoto lens might be

a great lens to take along, such as a 400mm to 500mm lens, and possibly a teleconverterto

lengthen the focal length even more.

Its important to mention that in each of the above circumstances

there are a variety of lenses with a variety of qualities and speeds

fitting different budgets. That can make the choice of lenses more

difficult, but when choosing your lenses, these qualities must be

taken into account.

As mentioned above, there are other specialty lenses, but for travel,


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they rarely come into play. For travel, one of the biggest considerations is weight andvolume. Hence zoom lenses are a staple for travel photographers, as they can act as multiple

lenses rolled into one.

After you know to where youre traveling, researching trip details is not only important to

maximize the quality of the trip itself, but also to help you reveal the photographic

opportunities youll encounter before you leave. That, will enable you to intelligently choosethe lenses you should take with you.

Lenses for Travel Photography - Part V (Lens qualities and characteristics in

purchase decisions)

This week in Part V of my seven part series about lenses for travel

photography, I discuss what qualities and characteristics are

important to consider when choosing lenses for travel. The series isprimarily meant forSLRand DSLRcamera users, who can attach a

variety of lenses to their cameras to support their creativity, and suitthe needs of their photographic opportunities.

Unfortunately for anyone purchasing lenses, there are a myriad of lens qualities,

specifications, and characteristics which should be considered. Even if youll be purchasingnothing but the absolute best quality pro lenses, you will be weighing choices and making

compromises.

Youll have to decide the relative importance of specifications and characteristics for you

photography to make your lens choices. This article should help you familiarize yourself with

what you need to consider, and why, when purchasing your lenses.

Sensor Size:

y Before DSLR cameras, all 35mm SLR cameras had thesame size film-frame area on which the image was captured.

When the first DSLRs were introduced they had sensors

which were smaller than 35mm SLR film-frames. Nikon

calls them DX. Canon calls them APS-C.

Some lenses are specifically designed for the smaller sensor

based cameras. If placed on an FX (Nikons designation for a full sized sensor, theequivalent of the 35mm SLR film frame.) the outer portions of the image will be

black as the shaft of light coming out the back end of DX/APS-C lenses will not fullycover an FX sensor.

If you're planning to move to an FX sensor based camera, consider sticking to non-DX/APS-C lenses. Otherwise, dont hesitate to get a DX/APS-C lens. One of myfavorite lenses on my Nikon D200 is a DX lens.

Lens Specifications:

In Lenses for travel photography - Part II (ImportantSpecifications) I discussed the basic specifications of lenses such as:

focal length, maximum aperture, magnification, vibration reduction,


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and auto-focus. You should go back to Part II for a more thorough discussion of thoseattributes. Some of what was discussed will be repeated below.

y Mount Type: For example, Nikon SLR/DSLR cameras have a different lens mountthan Canon models. Make sure that the lens youre purchasing has the right mount for

your camera.

y Focal Length: The focal length or focal length range (zoom lens) of your lens isindicative its type of lens (lenses); wide angle, normal, telephoto, etc.

y Zoom Ratio: This ratio between the largest and smallest focal lengths a zoom lenshas.

y Maximum Aperture: The largest (fastest) aperture opening a lens has (may be arange for zoom lenses).

y Minimum Aperture: The smallest aperture opening a lens has. Using this aperturewill give the longest depth of field of the lens, but to be effective at this setting, the

scene must be very bright.

y Angle of View (for zoom lens minimum and maximum): Will depend on the sensorsize of the lens. For DX/APS-C sensors, this angle will be narrower than for FX, fullsized sensors.

y Compatible Formats: This has to do with which sensor or film sizes with which thelens will be compatible. Lens which work with 35mm film SLRs and FX sensor

DSLRs will work with DSLRs having a smaller sensor, however, compatibilitydoesnt work in reverse.

y Auto-Focus: A lens may be listed as an auto-focus lens,however, that doesnt mean it will auto-focus with all auto-

focus cameras. Not all lenses contain an internal focus motor,

and some cameras dont have their own motors to auto-focus

lenses without an internal motor. AF-S/HSM (Nikon/Sigma)

are examples of lens designations which have internal

motors, which are fast and relatively silent, to provide lens auto-focus. Internal auto-

focus motors are generally faster and superior to having the camera provide auto-

focus.

y Focus Limiters: Some lenses dont focus quickly and if the subject is well out offocus hunt for the correct focus. A focus limiter sets a narrow range of focus to

force quicker focusing, and limit hunting. Typically the full focus capability is divided

into two focus ranges, if this is present.

y Minimum Focus Distance: This is the closest a lens can be to the subject and focus.y Filter Size: Typically SLR/DSLR lenses can have filters screwed into the front of the

lenses. This is the size of such filters for the lens.

y ED/APO: This indicates the lens has special low-dispersion glass designed tominimize color aberration.

y VR/OS (Vibration Reduction/Optical Stabilization): This indicates the lens utilizesa built-in mechanism which compensates for camera shake. It is especially importantfor camera/telephoto lens combinations being handheld.

y IF: This means the lens has internal focusing so that the length of the lens doesntchange as the lens is focused. This is especially important with macro lenses so the

lens doesnt bump into the subject while being focused.

y N: This means the lens has a nano-coating to reduce ghosting and lens flare problems.y Build andQuality: Lenses vary considerably in terms of their quality of

construction. You can often notice the difference in this simply by picking two lenses

up and feel the weight of them. One may contain a lot more plastic than the other.


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Lens Qualities:

y Soft Focus: This is often more of a problem for zoom lenseswhich generally have more complicated optics. This can

occur only in the corners of the image, or more across the

image. The f/setting the lens is at can affect the quality of

focus.y Lens Flare and Ghosting:Flaring is when light is scattered manifesting

itself as starbursts or rings, while ghosting is when you get a second lighter image out

of sync with the actual image.

y Bokeh: This is the blur, or really the aesthetic quality of the blur, in the out-of-focusareas of an image, actually the way the lens renders out-of-focus points of light. This

is especially important for portrait and wildlife photography where you want to ensure

the area surrounding the main subject doesnt detract from the subject.

y Vignetting: This is the underexposure of an image in thecorners.

y Spherical Aberration: This is when there is an increasedrefraction of light it strikes a lens near its edge, in comparison

with the center and results in halos in the image.y Chromatic Aberration: This is caused by light rays of different

wavelengths coming to focus at different distances from thelens, and results in both blurring and color fringing, generally a

high contrast points in an image, and along what should besharp edges.

y Distortion: These are different effects due to the design andconstruction of the lens which result in a distorted appearance.

For an example, an rectangle may appear as a barrel or pin

cushion-shaped object. This is often seen in the two focal length

ends of zoom lenses, which in the middle focal lengths these

effects are absent.

There are certainly other specifications and characteristics one might

look at, but the list above should be enough to look at to help you make an intelligent

decision when choosing a lens.

Lenses for Travel Photography - Part VI (Special lenses

and lens accessories)

This week in Part VI of my seven part series about lenses for travelphotography, I discuss special lenses and lens accessories to consider

when choosing lenses for travel. The series is primarily meant for

SLRand DSLRcamera users, who can attach a variety of lenses totheir cameras to support their creativity, and suit the needs of their

photographic opportunities.

Its important to note there are many more lenses and lens accessories available for your

consideration than I will discuss below, but the ones I have chosen have utility during travel,

and are carried by some travelers, according to their needs.

Three lenses possible lenses for travelers include: fisheye,perspective control, and


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teleconverter.

There are two kinds of fisheye lenses, the older circular style, and the more modern full framefisheye.

Circular fisheye lenses take in a 180 hemisphere and project it as a

circle within the film or sensor frame. Most circular fisheye lensescover a smaller image circle than rectilinear lenses, so the corners of

the frame will be dark.

With fisheye lenses gaining popularity, manufacturers designed

fisheye lenses which enlarged the image circle to cover the entire 35 mm film frame and FX

sensor. The full frame fisheye is the most common type of fisheye

lens today.

The angle of view (AOV) produced by full frame fisheyes measures

180 along the diagonal angle of view. The horizontal and verticalangles of view will be smaller. For a 16 mm full-frame fisheye, for

example, the horizontal AOV will be ~147, and the vertical AOVwill be ~94. DSLRs with DX sensors need a 10.5 mm lens to achieve the same effect as a 16

mm lens on a camera with full-frame sensor.

Fisheye lenses can produce wonderfully interesting wideangle images which standard wide angle lenses are unable to capture.

Weve all taken photographs standing at the base of a building to

capture its image, only to find the top of the building pinched-in

compared to the base. Thats called vertical perspective, when the

parallel lines defining the buildings exterior converge along the

height of the building. Perspective control lenses allow the photographer to control the

appearance of perspective in the image, by an adjustment which moves the optics parallel to

the film or sensor.

I always try to produce the best possible image in the camera I can. While you can correct

images in post processing, sometimes you cant quite post process a photograph to how youd

prefer it to appear. If you take a significant number of cityscapes in close quarters, and many

architectural photographs, this lens might be a great travel lens for you, however, mostperspective issues, even complex ones, can be beautifully corrected in post processing.

Teleconverters permit you to extend the focal length and therefore

the reach and magnification of telephoto lenses. Teleconverters are

secondary lenses, mounted between the camera and a photographiclens. Their purpose is to enlarge the image obtained by the main lens.

With a 1.4x teleconverter you turn a 400mm telephoto lens into a

560mm lens. The focal length extension of a lens via a teleconverter

isnt without a downside. Use of teleconverters cuts back the amount

of light reaching the SLRs film or DSLRs sensor by one or more f/stops. Teleconverter

optics will reduce the sharpness of the lens to which it is attached to some degree. As is true

of lenses, all teleconverter optics are not manufactured equally.


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If your telephoto lens is fast enough, the use of teleconverter with it, can be an economical

alternative to purchasing a longer lens, and is much lighter than an additional long telephotolens.

While some photographers wont agree, the UV filter is my top lens accessory. I have one

installed on every lens I own.

UV filters reduce atmospheric haziness created by ultraviolet light. They dont eliminate

it. UV filters are mostly transparent to visible light, so they can be left on the lens for nearly

all shots. Perhaps more important is the physical protection UV filters provide the lens.

Several years ago in Paris, while walking near the Eiffel Tower, I was accidentally knocked

into a metal railing in front of a home. My UV filter was badly smashed, but my lens was

unharmed, protected by the filter. It's much less expensive to replace the filter than the lens.

There are other filters which provide excellent aids for travel photographers; polarizingfilters, neutral density filters, and graduated neutral density filters.

Polarizing filters can darken blue skies, increase the contrast of partly reflecting subjects, and

reduce reflections from non metallic surfaces like glass and water. If you only have enoughcash to buy one filter (other than a UV filter which is a must), make it a polarizing filter.

Neutral Density filters (right) reduce the amount of light equally of

all wavelengths passing through the filter throughout the entire filter.

These filters are often used so that even in bright light the aperture

can be opened wide to reduce the images depth of field.

For example, on a bright sunny day a Neutral Density filter can be

used to help obtain macro photographs of flowers in a garden with a

blurry background to enhance the main

subject of the image.

Graduated Neutral Density filters (left) are used when the dynamic

range of a scene exceeds the capability of the camera to record detail

in both the brightest and darkest parts of the scene. They are often

used in landscapes to allow the photographer to catch the detail in abright sky while simultaneously catching the detail in the darker

foreground. They are especially useful when the transition betweenlight and dark is a straight line, something you often see in

landscapes and sunrise/sunset photos.

For more detailed information on these filters, read my article, Dofilters for digital cameras make sense?

Dont forget to have something to clean your lenses. Thats an

essential accessory. I use a combination of items.

A very useful device is a LensPen (right). It has a retractable brush to remove dust and a

special non-liquid cleaning element, designed to never dry out.


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In addition, I always carry a non-woven lens cloth and a high quality liquid optical cleaner.

Each of the above lenses and accessories can serve you well for many situations you

encounter while traveling. Its up to you to choose the ones which make sense for your

photography and your travels.

lenses for travel photography

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