How To Choose the Right Camera Lens: A Guide

Whether you’re a professional or an aspiring filmmaker or photographer, having the right equipment is as important as knowing how to use it. Many people beginning their photography journey make the same mistakes, and you can avoid them by learning how to choose the right camera lens before you buy. This guide will show you how to make the right decision for you and your project.

Choose Photo Lenses for Filmmaking

Filmmakers typically use cinema lenses in cinematography, but you can use photography lenses as well. While cinema lenses have advanced zoom features, they’re generally more expensive and bulkier than photo lenses. Some documentary filmmakers prefer photo lenses because they are easier to carry around and fit into their budgets.

Use a Zoom Camera Lens

Zoom lenses are most common in filmmaking because they are versatile. Cinematographers who use photo lenses prefer fast lenses because they have a better aperture and maintain the same brightness level as you zoom in and out. Manufacturers also offer a wide range of focal lengths—including macro zoom, which focuses on details the human eye can’t see—with a manual focus option that gives filmmakers more control.

Use a Prime Lens

While prime lenses do not zoom, they produce sharper images. In filmmaking, you can get the actor closer to the screen as it pulls more of the environment into the shot. Prime lenses come in wide-angle, standard, and telephoto.

Focus on Portraits

Every photographer has a different preference when it comes to the type of lens they use for portraits. Some benefit from zoom lenses with a wide range of focal lengths that allow them to be far away from their subject. You might take photos of wildlife or a performance and need to keep your distance. Prime lenses offer that sharper image, but you may have to get closer to your subject or carry several lenses to switch them.

Zoom In on Nature

If your main interest is taking photos of landscapes or anything else in nature, you’ll have all your needs met with a zoom lens. With a zoom lens, you’ll have just one lens to tote around, and it’ll perform all the functions you need to capture the beauty of nature. Many high-end camera lenses come with an infinity focus setting that allows you to focus on objects at any distance. You might also be interested in macro zoom lenses for close-ups of unique sights in nature.

Expose the Night Sky

The most popular way to capture stars has been to change the shutter speed on your camera and adjust the ISO, but you still capture the stars’ tails. The trick to taking photos of the night sky is to use a fast lens with a better aperture. Since you’re working with dim light and the earth’s rotation, you need to maximize your camera’s exposure.

Pick a Lens That Fits

No one enjoys purchasing a new lens only to find out that it doesn’t fit their camera. Manufacturers make different lenses to fit specific mounts. Rokinon carries high-end camera lenses to fit seven different brands and 10 different camera models. Buy Rokinon lenses that will work for any photography or filmmaking project and keep this guide for how to choose the right camera lens nearby.