Book description
Which lens should I buy for my camera?
It's such a simple question, but choosing the right lens or lenses is actually one of the most important photographic decisions you can make. Nothing affects the quality of a photo more than the lens. It's no longer just about the megapixels-it's the glass that makes all the difference!
Many first-time buyers of DSLRs don't venture past the basic lens included in the box. While some are reluctant to spend more money, others are confused by all the buzzwords or are overwhelmed by all the choices out there. It's really a shame, because interchangeable lenses give you amazing scope for quality photography.
Take in vast sweeping scenes with a wide angle lens. Capture faraway birds with a telephoto lens. Examine the tiniest detail of a flower with a macro lens. Record the perfect portrait with a prime lens. Anything is possible when you choose the right lens for the job!
This book isn't a simple catalogue of available lenses. New products are coming out all the time, and comparing specific lenses can be difficult. Instead, author N.K. Guy gives you all the information you need to make smart buying decisions. Optical technology is demystified, arcane terminology is decoded, and practical tips are provided.
The Lens will help you build the perfect lens collection to suit your needs-now and in the future.
Table of contents
- Cover Page
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Dedication
- Table of Contents
- Introduction
- 1 A brief history of optics
-
2 Bending light
- 2.1 Putting glass to work
- 2.2 Refraction
- 2.3 What is a lens?
- 2.4 Lens elements
- 2.5 Field of view
- 2.6 Focal length
- 2.7 But what is focal length, really?
- 2.8 Prime or zoom: adjustable focal lengths
- 2.9 The 35mm focal length equivalent
- 2.10 Digital versus film: the cropping factor
- 2.11 APS-C
- 2.12 Medium format
- 2.13 Focal length examples
- 2.14 Image circles
- 2.15 All about apertures
- 2.16 F-stops
- 2.17 Maximum apertures
- 2.18 Fast and slow lenses
- 2.19 Diaphragms
- 2.20 Adjusting the aperture
- 2.21 Wide-open metering
- 2.22 Depth of field
-
3 Lens mechanisms
- 3.1 What’s in a lens?
- 3.2 A lens that fits: lens mounts
- 3.3 Popular lens mounts
- 3.4 Motors and mechanisms
- 3.5 Ultrasonic focus motors
- 3.6 Motion blur
- 3.7 The handheld rule
- 3.8 Stabilizers: a lens not shaken
- 3.9 The user interface
- 3.10 To infinity—and beyond!
- 3.11 Lens electronics
- 3.12 What’s in a name?
- 3.13 Alphabet soup
- 3.14 Decoding a lens name
- 3.15 Serial numbers
- 3.16 Build quality
- 3.17 Lens barrel construction
- 3.18 Lens marketing categories
- 3.19 Notable marketing categories
- 3.20 Colored rings
- 3.21 Kit lenses
- 3.22 White lenses
- 3.23 Safety
- 3.24 Cold weather
- 4 Choosing the right lens for a project
- 5 Choosing a lens by focal length
-
6 Accessorize!
-
6.1 Filters
- Threaded filters
- Step rings
- Filter height
- Stacking
- Other filter types
- Drop-in filters
- Gel filters
- UV filters
- Protective and clear filters.
- Polarizing filters
- Linear versus circular
- Neutral density filters
- Graduated neutral density (GND) filters
- Color filters
- Color-correction filters
- Black-and-white filters
- Filter names
- Special-effects filters
- 6.2 Lens hoods
- 6.3 Teleconverters and extenders
- 6.4 Supplementary lens focal length adapters
- 6.5 Macro accessories
- 6.6 Caps
- 6.7 Bags
- 6.8 Tripod mounts
-
6.1 Filters
- 7 Buying lenses
-
8 Advanced topics
- 8.1 Learning more about optics
- 8.2 What is focal length?
- 8.3 Lens element types
- 8.4 Optical properties
- 8.5 Manufacturing
- 8.6 Seeking the perfect lens
- 8.7 Optical flaws
- 8.8 Chromatic aberration: color fringing
- 8.9 Spherical aberration
- 8.10 Aspheric lens elements
- 8.11 Intentional spherical aberration
- 8.12 Distortion
- 8.13 Other aberrations
- 8.14 Sharpness
- 8.15 Lens flare
- 8.16 Antireflective lens coatings
- 8.17 Multicoatings
- 8.18 Bokeh
- 8.19 Vignetting
- 8.20 Close focus distance
- 8.21 The hyperfocal distance
- 8.22 The diffraction limit
- 8.23 Diffractive optic lenses
- 8.24 Tilt and shift
- 8.25 Lenses for video
- 8.26 Mirror lenses
- 8.27 “Digital” lenses
- 8.28 Dust
- 8.29 Scratches
- 8.30 Cleaning lenses
- 8.31 Keeping out the weather
- 8.32 Fungus
- 8.33 Repairs
- 8.34 Infrared photography
- 8.35 The mystery of MTF charts
- 8.36 A measurable obsession
- 8.37 Sample variation
- 8.38 Micro focus adjustment
- 8.39 Testing for focus errors
-
9 Creative options: beyond the standard lens
- 9.1 Manual-focus lenses
- 9.2 Adapting lenses to other camera systems
- 9.3 Focusing manually
- 9.4 Modern manual-focus lenses
- 9.5 Toy cameras and lo-fi photography
- 9.6 Diana lenses
- 9.7 A flexible approach: the Lensbaby
- 9.8 Creative bokeh
- 9.9 Pinhole cameras
- 9.10 Detaching the lens
- 9.11 Fake anamorphic effects
- 9.12 Homemade lenses
- Conclusion
-
Appendix A: Lens mount systems
- Arri PL
- C-mount and CS-mount
- Canon FL and Canon FD
- Canon EF
- Canon EF-S
- Contax G
- Four Thirds
- Fujifilm X
- Leica screw mount/L39/LTM
- L39 enlarger lenses
- M39
- Leica M
- Leica R
- M42/universal screw mount
- Micro Four Thirds
- Minolta SR, MC, MD
- Minolta AF
- Minolta V or Vectis
- Nikon F
- Nikon 1/CX
- Nikon DX
- Nikon FX
- Nikon IX
- Olympus OM
- Panavision PV
- Pentax K (PK)
- Pentax KAF
- Pentax Q
- Samsung NX
- Sigma SA
- Sony A-mount
- Sony E-mount
- T-mount
- Tamron Adaptall
- Appendix B: Manufacturer-specific lens terms
- Appendix C: Lens mount table
- Appendix D: Chapter Opening Images
- Appendix E: A simple focus test
- Acknowledgements
- Glossary
- Index
- Footnotes
Product information
- Title: The Lens
- Author(s):
- Release date: October 2012
- Publisher(s): Rocky Nook
- ISBN: 9781457179266
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