In photography, the focal length of a lens means the magnification or telephoto power of the lens and is expressed in the millimeters of the lens, like 100mm, 300mm, etc. The higher the number the higher the magnification the lens will provide. At the higher magnifications, it will be harder to hand-hold the camera without getting a blurry picture. Use your digital camera to experiment with the different focal lengths. You will quickly learn what works for your style of photography.
Instructions
1. The photograph shows a focal length of about 36mm. This lens magnification is great for landscapes or large group pictures. This focal length also works great if you are close to your subject and want to include as much as possible in the frame. Any time you wish to include a wide view of what you are photographing, choose a focal length between 20mm and 40mm.
2. Here the focal length is 75mm. This focal length is good for cutting out some of the distracting objects in the background. While this lens setting is not quite long enough for a good portrait, this setting would be good for small groups or if you want to include some background.
3. This photo shows about 125mm of magnification. This length is good for portraits. Move closer to your subject and you can easily fill your frame with a pleasing head shot.
4. Here is a 300mm focal length shot. Use this setting to get right into the action. This setting is great for nature or sports photography. With this setting, you will cut out most of the background and distractions.
5. This photo shows 450mm of magnification. This is an example of an extremely long focal length. This length is excellent for bird photography and sports. Use this length if your subject is far away and you cannot get closer.
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