Fast & Slow

Besides being available in different

lengths, lenses also differ in terms of
the apertures they can accommodate.
You might hear a lens referred to as,
for example, a 50mm f/2.8 ("fifty
millimeter, f two eight"). The first
number refers to the focal length of
the lens and the second number refers
to its largest aperture.
As you know, larger apertures let
in more light. If an image is correctly
exposed in 1/60 of a second with an
aperture of f/4, it will take only
1/125 of a second to be correctly
exposed at f/2.8. With a larger
aperture, the film is exposed more
quickly.
So, a lens with a very large maximum aperture (f/2 or f/1.4, for example) is called a fast lens. One w i t h
a relatively small maximum aperture
(say, f/4) is called slow. Fast lenses
allow you to shoot at faster speeds or
in lower light than slow lenses do.
Unfortunately, increasing the speed
of a lens also increases its price. This

is particularly true for telephoto

lenses.
The aperture number is calculated
by dividing the focal length of the
lens by the diameter of the lens opening. The actual lens opening of a
200mm lens would therefore have to
be four times as wide as that of a
50mm lens to achieve the same maximum aperture:
200mm
450mm
^

focal length
71.4mm diameter = f/2.8
focal length
17.8mm diameter = f/2.8

a depth of field as possible, since it

is difficult to hold telephotos steady
and focus them accurately. Therefore, you can get by just fine with a
fairly small maximum aperture (f/4
and f/3.5 are common and affordable). With normal and wide angle
lenses, large apertures become far
more useful and, fortunately, less expensive. It's a good idea (though by
no means necessary) to have at least
one short lens with a maximum aperture of f/2 or f/1.4.

17.8mm x 4.01 = 71.4mm

As you might guess, increasing the

amount of optical-quality glass and
other materials also increases the cost
of producing a lens. However, a telephoto lens even a fast one i s rarely
useful in low light. To get the best
results, a telephoto needs a fairly fast
shutter speed. It also needs as wide
Perspective 139

feet, making distant objects appear

larger and, therefore, closer. They
range from 55mm to 500mm and
beyond. Moderate telephotos (ranging from about 70mm to 150mm) are
often referred to as "portrait" lenses,
since they are most flattering for
faces. The most common portrait
lens length is probably 135mm. Other
popular telephotos include 150mm,
175mm and 200mm. Longer telephotos are generally used only for
such specialized work as sports
photography.
(Note: Many photographers use a
"doubler" o r , more properly, an
"extender" t o increase the focal
length of a telephoto lens when necessary. A doubler is a short tube or
lens which, as its name suggests,
doubles the focal length of any lens.
A 150mm lens with a doubler, for example, can produce the same results
as a 300mm lens, at far less expense.)
True telephotos (anything over
150mm) present some challenges that
you should know about at this point.
We discussed one of these challenges
earlier: decreased depth of field. If
you like the effect it produces, some
reduction in depth of field can be
perfectly all right. You must focus
more carefully with a long lens than
with a short one, however. If you
don't, you may not have anything in
focus at all.
Another consequence of a long
lens that we've already discussed is
reduced angle of view. Because a long
lens has a narrow angle of view, any
motion will be more conspicuous
with a long lens than with a short
one. Once again this can be good or
bad, depending upon what you want.
If you want some blurred motion, a
telephoto lens can achieve it.
One of the great drawbacks of long
lenses is that they magnify camera
140 The Photographic Eye

A wide-angle lens has a wide field of view, producing an apparent

distortion of objects close to it. This can be very effective, if that's the
effect you want. Used to photograph distant objects, however, most wideangle lenses produce an entirely "normal-looking" image. (Student
photograph by Daniel Watson.)