The images shown here are for photographs taken with different focal
length lenses but at the same distance from the subject. They are also taken
with digital cameras that have the same size image sensor. Toward the end
of this chapter, you’ll see the effect of changing distances and sensors.(^52) PART 2 HOW DIGITAL CAMERAS CAPTURE IMAGES
How Lenses See Far and Wide
The obvious jobs of telephoto and wide-angle lenses are that the telephotolenses make things that are far away look close.
Wide-anglelenses make things that are close look farther away, but they also stretch a photo to cover peripheral areas that would other-
wise escape capture. But it’s not as simple as that. Telephoto lenses don’t exist simply so you won’t have to walk closer to your subject, and
wide-angle lenses aren’t just for taking shots in small rooms where you can’t step back any farther. Both types of lenses have serious effects
on how sharp a scene is at different distances, and they’re important tools to show what’s important in a photograph. They can make
subtle or exaggerated statements about what you’re taking a picture of. Here’s how they work.