Focal Length Challenge — Week One
One of the challenges every photographer faces is learning to “see” like the camera does. Lenses see the world differently than your eyes, with focal lengths that give us wide or magnified views, aspect ratios that crop the view down to a rectangle, and sensors that record light differently than your eye.
This month’s challenge is about learning how your lens sees the world, in regards to focal lengths. Learning to see in focal lengths will help unlock more photographic possibilities.
Different focal lengths see the world differently because of the angle of view. A wide angle lens takes in a wide angle of view that can take in a wide scene, and telephotos have a small angle of view that magnifies the subject as if you were closer to it.
You probably already know this, but have you trained your mind to see in focal lengths? When you compose a picture, are you deciding what focal length to use based on how it will render the scene, or are you zooming in and out to make the photo work?
I often know what focal length I want to use before I even pull my camera out of the bag. I’ve pre-visualized the picture, what I want to include and exclude, where I will stand and position the camera, and have considered how different focal lengths will affect that—all before I even look through the viewfinder.
In fact, most of my favorite (best?) photos appear in my mind, fully conceptualized, before I take out the camera. It is that pre-visualization that drives me to make the photo in the first place. Knowing how to see in different focal lengths is a key skill that unlocks these photos.
Through much practice, I have learned to see in several focal lengths. In fact, for about fifteen years of using a 4x5 film camera, I only had two lenses, and those two focal lengths are still my favorites today. They are part of how I see the world.
So, how do you learn to see like a particular lens? Repetition. Using the same focal length, over and over, will train your mind to see like that lens. So, this month’s challenge is to build some of that repetition.
Your challenge is to pick one focal length, and try to use that as a starting point as you photograph throughout the month.
If you have a single focal length lens, make sure that is the lens you have on your camera when you take it out of the bag, and when you put your camera away.
If you only have zooms, pick one focal length to use, and set the lens to that focal length every time you pull your camera out or put it away. Make sure your first look through the camera is at that focal length, and take time to look at the scene with that focal length.
What focal length should you choose? That is up to you. If you are using a zoom, like a 24-70mm, choose either the 24mm or the 70mm setting, as that will make it easier to reset to the focal length. If you have a prime lens, that is an easy way to take this challenge.
I’ll have more assignments each week, along with tips that will help you further. This may seem like a simple challenge, but I know it is going to grow your vision in unexpected ways.
If you don’t know what focal length to pick, my Friday tip will give you some more ideas. Let me know in the comments below, or on the Facebook page, what focal length you have chosen.