At 23:12 2/3/02, Henrik Dahl wrote:
Wideangels do show distorsion, but one learns to handle it, and frame
pictures so it's not too obvious. The angle of view is not that much more
than a 28mm, but you will find yourself needing that little extra. I just
mean, if you can get a 24mm fairly cheap it might be worth it in the long
run.
Not to pick on Henrik; English is not his primary languange . . .
Many others have also used the term "distortion" to describe an unnatural
looking perspective. Examples of true distortion are "pincushion" or
"barrel" which are deficiencies in lens design and construction. It would
be better to describe wide and super-wides as easily producing "unnatural
perspectives."
Unnatural perspectives occur in photographs because we humans don't see the
world around us in the same manner as a short rectilinear lens. The lens
is (hopefully) performing exactly as it should in mapping flat planes in
space to the flat film plane. Perhaps I'm being picky about word usage,
but space mapped to a film plane exactly as it should be when compared to a
theoretical rectilinear mapping is not a "distortion."
The "break point" in difficulty composing to avoid unnatural looking
perspectives is about 28mm focal length (for 35mm film format). Shorter
than that requires much greater care. It's one of the reasons
photojournalists favored the 28mm lens before high quality, fast zoom
lenses became universally accepted for photojournalism. The 35mm lens ran
a close second in popularity.
If you're thinking of building a system over time, have a plan for your
system, including the prime lenses. Then set priorities on the order in
which you want to acquire the system. Not something I did initially, but
quickly did after buying the first couple of lenses. I haven't stuck
completely to "The Plan" as good buys on certain pieces arise, but most of
it has been followed.
The two most popular sequences for the shorter primes within the OM system:
(a) 18mm, 24mm, 35mm, 50mm
(b) 21mm, 28mm, 50mm
I have the first sequence although at one time I also owned a 28mm. When I
sold the 28mm and bought the 24mm I discovered the "break point" with
perspectives very quickly. The 24mm perspective is definitely less
forgiving and required becoming accustomed to working with it more
carefully. After using it for a while, it became much easier to work
with. Some swear by the first sequence, others by the second sequence, and
yet a few others have all of them (Tom Scales comes to mind).
-- John
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