Tag Archives: lens

Lenses for astrophotography – a comparison

I love photography, and I have an interest in astrophysics and astronomy. It only makes sense to combine them, and have fun with astrophotography. But which equipment is best for the beginner without breaking the bank? Let’s explore the options. Some interesting photographs can be captured using a wide-angle lens to view the whole sky,Continue reading “Lenses for astrophotography – a comparison”

Lens test: Canon EF vs FD 50mm f/1.8

In 1987, Canon introduced their new autofocus-capable EF lens mount for their EOS series of cameras – including today’s digital SLRs. It was incompatible with the older manual focus FD lens mount. The flange focal distance of the newer EF lenses is slightly longer meaning that an adapter for mounting FD lenses on an EFContinue reading “Lens test: Canon EF vs FD 50mm f/1.8”

Mamiya RB67: Size & weight comparison

For a while I’ve fancied a Mamiya RB67 medium format SLR. I’d read about the tech specs, the wonderful lenses, the high resolution, and all the other benefits of such a powerful camera, and last week I splashed the cash and bought one. Optically, it was just what I was expecting – but nothing couldContinue reading “Mamiya RB67: Size & weight comparison”

Focal lengths on different formats

Consumer photographic lenses are almost always sold by their focal length when used on a 35mm camera (or full-frame professional DSLR). It’s already confusing enough to work out what their effective focal length is when used on an APS-C sensor (most consumer DSLRs), but since I’ve been getting into medium-format photography it’s even more confusingContinue reading “Focal lengths on different formats”

Long telephoto lenses

If you want to take photos at the so-called “super telephoto” range, then you have a few options. They have relative costs and relative merits. Let’s go through the main ones. Genuine super telephoto lens I’m a Canon shooter, so I will refer to the Canon lenses – but the same applies to Nikon, SonyContinue reading “Long telephoto lenses”

Mirror lenses: worth it?

A few weeks ago I attempted to take some photos of the moon with my 300mm lens. The results were pretty good, but I wanted more, more, more! At 300mm, the moon is still quite small in the frame, and the photo I just linked was cropped a fair bit to “zoom in” some more.Continue reading “Mirror lenses: worth it?”

Review – Samyang 8mm f/3.5 aspherical Fisheye lens

The background For ages I’ve wanted a decent fisheye lens. Back when I was shooting with my Fuji S9600, I bought a filter-thread screw-on fisheye adapter. It was only about £30 and the chromatic aberration was awful, even in the viewfinder. But it opened up a new world of photography to me, and I enjoyedContinue reading “Review – Samyang 8mm f/3.5 aspherical Fisheye lens”

My Tamron 90mm macro lens

I quite enjoy macro photography. When I used to use my Fuji S9600 as my main camera, it had a super macro mode, which allowed me to focus on objects as close as 1cm. That was pretty handy for macro shots and the results were generally good – such as this disgusting pupa. Since swappingContinue reading “My Tamron 90mm macro lens”

Two months of DSLR ownership

Back in September 2009, I was given a 35mm SLR camera – a Canon AE-1 Program. I loved it, it was fantastic to use, and I wrote a blog post about the possibility of upgrading to a DSLR. In March 2010, temptation got the better of me and I bought a Canon EOS 450D. MyContinue reading “Two months of DSLR ownership”