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Author Topic: Is there a lens that takes in large ht and wdth?  (Read 3417 times)

flowerbells

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Is there a lens that takes in large ht and wdth?
« on: April 30, 2007, 03:41:02 am »

I googled for the attached image of tall fir trees in a Denmark forest.  Isn't it beautiful and wonderful?

I notice that there is a great deal of height, even though I would expect the photographer was standing quite close, in amongst the trees, when s/he took the shot.

When I have taken pics of tall trees, I do not get anywhere near this degree of height!  There are plenty of opportunities in several beautiful Portland Parks, to photograph fir trees.  None of the lenses I have will get this sort of height.  I feel like there should be some kind of lens for my Canon A-1 SLR which would zoom out more than the zoom lens I presently have.  

The one I have now is a 70-210 Canon lens.  

Am I correct, that it's a different kind or degree of Zoom lens that I need to get the kind of shot I see here?  (As well as a snowstorm!  :-) which we seldom have in Portland!)

Another thing I want to do is photograph this wonderful older building in downtown Portland.   It takes up slightly more than 1/2 block, and is somewhere between 6 and 7 stories high.  It's impossible to count them from outside.  

If I shoot it from a slight angle, that is, say, from the end of the opposite block, I'm still very close to it and can get good detail.  (It is not possible to get far away and take in the entire building.)  But here again, I'm faced with not getting the full height in my picture, plus not the full width/breadth, either.  It's only the face of the building I want -- whatever comes out on the sides will work out okay, but I gotta have that beautiful architecture that is on the face/front of the building.  What do I need?  Is there any way I can get this?  I want to get good! really good! detail.  I don't mean "precise" or "clear" -- I mean solid and large. The windows have not got fillagree, not angels, not animal sculpures etc around them, but rounded-off, squarish concrete "decorations" -- the architectural terminology for such a structure is not in my vocabulary.  And the way the light and shadows play on these is really gorgeous.  There are probably 8 windows on each side of the center -- maybe 15-16 or so windows across the front of the building, and 5-6 rows (i.e. stories) high.   Then, there are some more modernized windows lower down, and the roof decor of course.

It frustrates me that I can't take in these shots, so if anyone knows what I need to get them, I'd sure appreciate some feedback.

Thanks.

flo
« Last Edit: April 30, 2007, 03:46:14 am by flowerbells »
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Tim Gray

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Is there a lens that takes in large ht and wdth?
« Reply #1 on: April 30, 2007, 09:10:35 am »

Kind of basic, but you need a wide angle lens, eg: 24-105 or 16-35 or 17-40 or 24-70 etc. etc.  The 70-210 (I didn't know Canon made a 70-210) is a telephoto.
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alainbriot

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Is there a lens that takes in large ht and wdth?
« Reply #2 on: April 30, 2007, 02:12:28 pm »

Flo,

Looking at how vertically straight the tree trunks are, I believe this photograph was taken with a short or medium telephoto lens, most likely in the 70-200 range, which happens to be the lens you have.  Therefore, the zoom you have is the lens you need to use to create this kind of photograph.  

You just need to back up far enough from your subject so that you can include the entire trees, height-wise.  If you use a wide angle the tree trunks will be tilted (meaning they will converge towards the center of the image, also called paralax), an effect caused by tilting the lens up to include both the top & bottom of the trees while being very close to them.  

With a telephoto you can stand back a ways, and therefore you don't need to tilt the lens up to see the top and bottom of the trees.  By shooting the subject with your lens held horizontally, you will keep the tree-trunks vertical and prevent paralax.

A basic book on photography can go a long ways towards helping you answer this as well as many other questions :-)

The book won't help in regards to snowstorms though ;-)
« Last Edit: April 30, 2007, 02:28:45 pm by alainbriot »
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Alain Briot
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flowerbells

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Is there a lens that takes in large ht and wdth?
« Reply #3 on: April 30, 2007, 08:26:21 pm »

Sounds like the 70-210 lens I have would work for the trees, and would need a wide-angle lens for the building.

I actually don't know if I've tried the 70-210 for the trees!  Must do!!!!!  I bought it late fall last year, so   it was getting cold; now I have plenty of time to try it out.

Will check prices on a wide-angle lens.

Got things to do at night for a while; after that I will read the basic photography  book, although I'm working on getting one. I'll try to stop by the library this week sometime.

Thank you both for your good advice!

flo
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