Lenses Demystified

Finding the right lens is key for any photographer but requires navigating a sea of confusing terms and technologies

By The Editors

Editor’s Note: This piece first appeared in our Summer issue and reflects the products available at the time of publication. To see our coverage of new lenses, visit our Gear/Lenses and News sections. A camera’s lens, arguably, is more important in shaping the final look of an image than is its sensor. Perhaps this wasn’t exactly true in... Read more

Hands-On Review: Sigma 135mm F1.8 DG HSM Art

A superstar portrait lens with exceptional optics and great performance at a reasonable price

Text & Photography By David Schloss

Sigma has been making quite a name for itself, thanks largely to the company’s high-end “Art” lenses, which rival—and often exceed—the quality of the best lenses from the camera manufacturers, at a lower price, to boot. Available for Nikon, Canon and—via the company’s MC-11 adapter—Sony E mount, the Art series gives shooters of the major... Read more

Unique Perspective: Shooting With Specialty Lenses

Having the right specialty lens allows a photographer to capture a shot that would be missed otherwise

David Schloss

Editor’s Note: This piece first appeared in our Summer issue and reflects the products available at the time of publication. To see our coverage of new lenses, visit our Gear/Lenses and News sections. Photographers spend a lot of time and money striving to get the right combination of gear and technique to capture a “perfect” shot, one that... Read more

6 Top Guides To Lenses

Digital Photo reviews a few of the outstanding lenses introduced this year, plus an overview lens guide, how to build a prime lens kit and shooting with cine lenses

By The Editors Of Digital Photo Magazine

Digital Photo reviews a few of the outstanding lenses introduced this year, plus an overview lens guide, how to build a prime lens kit and shooting with cine lenses. 1. Guide To Lenses So you have a new camera—but in order to complete your kit, you’re going to need quality glass. A discussion of the focal lengths essential to the type of photography... Read more

Capture The Action: Lenses For Sports Photography

Shooting the perfect sports image requires training, practice and the right equipment. When it comes to lenses, super-wide-angles, fisheyes and portrait lenses are all part of a sport shooter’s kit.

By David Schloss / Photography By Jeff Flindt

Marlon Lipke, Portugal. A high-end telephoto lens with a wide aperture allowed for this shot with sharp action in the foreground and a soft background of the shoreline. Editor’s Note: This piece first appeared in our Summer issue and reflects the products available at the time of publication. To see our coverage of new lenses, visit our Gear/Lenses and News sections. The... Read more

Hands-On Review: Tamron SP 24-70mm F/2.8 Di VC USD G2

Fast, sharp and affordable, this lens delivers a knockout punch

David Schloss

The new Tamron SP 24-70mm F/2.8 Di VC USD G2 lens is a perfect example of the changes in the photographic market, and how the range of products available today offer photographers choices previously unavailable. The 24-70mm zoom is a must-have piece of gear, found in nearly every camera bag thanks to the versatility of the focal length range and the... Read more

Lenses For Landscapes

Whether you use a super-wide focal length to capture an expansive vista or go tighter to showcase a blossoming fern, your lenses will help you figure out the visual story you’re aiming to tell

Text & Photography By Brian Matiash

Providing a clear anchor at wide focal lengths (18mm, in this case) for viewers is critical. By prominently framing a tree center-frame, you give the eyes a place to start exploring the rest of the busy frame and can return to it as fatigue from browsing sets in. Editor’s Note: This piece first appeared in our Summer issue and reflects the products... Read more

Lenses For Travel

Hit the road with your camera and bring home not just keepsakes, but a vivid documentary using these key lenses

Text & Photography By Mark Edward Harris

Aurora, Chena Hot Springs, Alaska. Travel photography is about conveying a sense of space that’s evocative, rather than precise. Lens choice helps to transport a viewer to a destination. Photo by Mark Edward Harris Editor’s Note: This piece first appeared in our Summer issue and reflects the products available at the time of publication. To... Read more

Picking The Perfect Lens For Portraits

Several factors combine to make a lens perfect for portraiture—focal length, optical design and speed, in particular

Text & Photography By William Sawalich

Every focal length reproduces a subject differently. Picking the right lens is as crucial, if not more crucial, than your choice of lighting and backdrop. Editor’s Note: This piece first appeared in our Summer issue and reflects the products available at the time of publication. To see our coverage of new lenses, visit our News section. What makes... Read more

An Incredibly Big Sigma Lens For Even Bigger Sensors

Photographers now have new class of a cameras that combine speed and resolution

Text & Photography DL Byron

Out shooting street with the 135 attached to an a7R Well, it just so happens I have a max-resolution lens in on demo that performs wonderfully on a first-gen a7R, and can’t wait to see what the Sigma 135mm F/1.8 DG HSM Art will do on the new Sony a7R III. I can only guess Sigma released the lens anticipating the sensors in the latest Sony, the Nikon... Read more

Guide To Lenses

Complete your new camera kit with these essential lenses

William Sawalich

A portrait lens, with good background defocus (often called “bokeh”), is an essential tool for any type of photography. Photo by David Schloss Editor’s Note: This piece first appeared in our Spring issue and reflects the products available at the time of publication. To see our coverage of new lenses, visit our Gear/Lenses and News sections. So... Read more

We Got That Cooke Look

We shoot with the Cooke miniS4/i 32mm T2.8-22 on a Sony a7S II, and the results are amazing

DL Byron

Have you ever wondered what a one-off cinema lens from a legendary manufacturer looks like attached to a Sony a7S II? After visiting the Cooke Optics factory, we did, so we tried one out. The results were lovely and left us at times amazed by the dimensionality, smooth rendering and quality. A Cooke lens of this type, the miniS4/i 32mm T2.8-22, is normally... Read more

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