| SLR camera lenses are even more confusing to | | | | VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION |
| buy than the cameras. Here are some tips to help | | | | The wider the aperture = more light |
| you avoid wasting your time and your money | | | | The smaller the aperture # = more light |
| shopping for new SLR camera lenses. | | | | This can be very confusing. Wider aperture |
| 1. Know What You Want to Shoot | | | | smaller aperture number means.... more light, |
| Do you love taking pictures of Johnny on the | | | | faster shutter speed (prevents motion blur), |
| baseball field? Then you might want a telephoto | | | | shallower depth of field (the face in the photo is in |
| lens. | | | | focus, but the background isn't). |
| Do you like taking pictures of the family indoors | | | | So...f/1.4 - indoors without flashf/2.8 - overcastf |
| or the flowers in your garden? Then you'd want a | | | | 3.5 - shade |
| standard lens. (unless you're taking the group | | | | Sunny doesn't matter because you won't use the |
| photo, then a wide angle lens is better) | | | | max aperture anyway. |
| And if you're catching the fall foliage around a | | | | 4. How Much Do You Want To Spend |
| lake, then a wide angle lens is best. | | | | First party lenses - made by the same company |
| 2. Prime Lens Or Zoom Lens | | | | as your camera |
| Prime lenses don't have adjustable focus. You | | | | Third party lenses - made by different company |
| have to move the camera. But they take better | | | | with special mounts for different camera types. |
| pictures, they're lightweight, and cheaper than | | | | Fist party lenses are generally higher in quality and |
| zoom lenses. | | | | most compatible with your camera. |
| But to photograph different distances, you'll need | | | | Third party lenses are lower in prices and have a |
| different lenses. You probably got a 18mm - | | | | greater variety of lens type. |
| 55mm zoom lens when you bought your camera. | | | | 5. Are Any Bonus Features Important? |
| Which is a great first lens. | | | | Here's a list of bonus features you can get with |
| The benefits are that you can stand in one place | | | | your SLR camera lenses |
| and get the exact picture you want.prime lens - | | | | * Silent auto focus - essential for wildlife photogs |
| high quality, light in weight, relatively inexpensive, | | | | * Full-time manual focus - when you don't want to |
| excellent photoszoom lens - stand in one place, | | | | switch back and forth from auto to manual |
| get a variety of shots | | | | * Non-rotating front element - if you like to take |
| A 28mm - 135 mm lens goes from wide angle to | | | | polarized pics |
| telephoto. A zoom is good to get started with, | | | | * Crop reduction - makes sure what you see in |
| but once you find you photo passion, you can't | | | | the viewfinder is the picture you get |
| beat the quality of a prime lens. | | | | * Superior optics - self explanatory |
| 3. Light Conditions Or How Big's Your Aperture | | | | * Image stabilization - not necessary for cameras |
| What sort of light conditions do you shoot in? If | | | | with built in stabilization |
| you shoot in dim lighting, then you're going to | | | | * Internal zoom - lens stays same an zoom |
| need a lens with an extremely wide maximum | | | | occurs internally |
| aperture. | | | | All of them will add to the price of any of the |
| But if you're a broad daylight nature buff, then | | | | SLR camera lenses. |
| the wide maximum aperture isn't as important. | | | | So now you know what you need to decide... |
| All SLR camera lenses list their maximum | | | | before you shop for SLR camera lenses. And you |
| aperture (or maximum aperture range for zoom | | | | won't waste time or money buying the wrong |
| lenses). And they list maximum, because they can | | | | lens. |
| always be narrowed. | | | | |