Confused about lenses

[zone]

Hi,

After reading this forums for a few days, I got kinda confused on the different types of lenses.

eg, Are macro lens and telephoto lens the same? Are certain lens unable to even zoom at all?

Also, another unrelated question, is that, are larger and heavier cameras less prone to camera shake? I seem to have heard about this somewhere, dunno how true is it...

Pardon me if these questions seem pretty noobish even in the newbie forum, but I would really appreciate any help on clearing up these confusions... Thanks

 

[Canew]

"Are macro lens and telephoto lens the same?" - No. Macro are for (very) close up shots. The opposite goes for telephoto lenses, they are for long distance shots.

"Are certain lens unable to even zoom at all?" - Yes, they are called prime lenses.

 

[zone]

Thanks for helping clear that up Canew technical stuff always gets to me with all those numbers and terminology lol. Thanks again!

 

[Canew]

No problem, Bro.

 

[HeWolf]

"Are macro lens and telephoto lens the same?" - No. Macro are for (very) close up shots. The opposite goes for telephoto lenses, they are for long distance shots.

NO huh? :think:

So "Tamron SP AF 180mm F3.5 Di" can focus at 18.25inch is Telephoto or Macro?

And, "Sigma 70-300mm" can switch to Macro mode only at 200-300mm. So this is tele or macro lens?

 

[hazta]

Nay e "Tamron SP AF 180mm F3.5 Di Macro" is indeed a macro lens. It is specifically designed for macro but can also b used to shoot portrait.

S for "Sigma 70-300mm" diz is neither a macro nor a tele.

Diz kinda lens is called a zoom lens. N since it reaches to 300mm, it hence has a "tele end" of 300mm. Diz is not 2b confused w a "tele lens".

Neither it is a macro lens. Yes it has macro function but again we shud not confused e 2 terms "macro function" n "macro lens" again here.

There's much more if I were to elaborate deeper but juz couldn't care less when ppl start to bring up such trivial issue.

 

[DeSwitch]

70-300mm zoom lens with macro function is good for beginers. With this lens, you will learn to use your camera and explore which area you are more interested in. Some people thing macro is fun buy when they start shooting, they may realise that the bikini models are better. so with this lens you can decide for yourself which area you would like to explore more. After you had decided, you can buy dedicated Macro lens eg 180mm f2.8 to shoot Macro, super Tele for birding/wildlife or wide angle for street or architecture.

That what I did, explore and invest more on the type of photography I like. Some ppl may have different view though.

 

[zone]

Hi I am planning to buy a canon dslr in future, how do I know if third party lens like sigma or tamron can fit onto a canon body? I know for canon its the ef mount, but on third party lens there's no indication

 

[justarius]

Telephoto lenses are basically lenses whose focal lenght are >than normal, which is normally taken to be around 40mm-60mm. Thus, 85mm lens can be called short telephoto. Telephoto is then a description regarding the focal length of the lens.

Macro lens refer to the lens ability to focus closely to magnify the subject. Macro lens can be any focal length of lenses, thus there can be normal macro lens (60mm Macro), or telephoto macro lens (180mm Macro, 200mm Macro). A 200mm Macro lens can be put to whatever use you want, insects, birds, bikini shoots etc.

Lenses with fixed focal length are called prime lens. Prime lenses are usually some of the sharpest and best lens you can find in a manufacturer's lineup of lens; only the highest end pro zooms (70-200mm 2.8, 17-35mm 2.8 etc) can usually match up to the optical quality of a prime lens. This is simply because the construction of a prime lens is optically very simple as compared to a zoom lens, there's less elements, less things to go wrong.

 

[justarius]

Hi I am planning to buy a canon dslr in future, how do I know if third party lens like sigma or tamron can fit onto a canon body? I know for canon its the ef mount, but on third party lens there's no indication

3rd party manufacturers will state what sort of mount their lens is. So you can find Nikon mount, Canon mount for a Sigma 70-200mm lens for example. It's usually stated on the box. Or you can also check which mount it's for by looking at the design of the lens mount.

 

[ExplorerZ]

Hi I am planning to buy a canon dslr in future, how do I know if third party lens like sigma or tamron can fit onto a canon body? I know for canon its the ef mount, but on third party lens there's no indication

all those 3rd party lens exist in a few different mount. just ask the shop for a canon mount and they will know

 

[zone]

Cool! Thanks for the info!