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David Busch's Quick Snap Guide To Using Digital SLR Lenses
Are you ready to go beyond the basics with your digital SLR camera but are unsure which interchangeable lens or two to buy and more importantly, how and when to use each lens? "David Busch's Quick Snap Guide to Using Digital SLR Lenses" offers focused, concise information and techniques on how to use different lenses to take great photographs.
You'll begin with a quick overview of how lenses work and the types of lenses available, including normal, telephoto, wide-angle, prime, and zoom. Then you'll explore typical lens controls and features such as focus rings, depth-of-field scales, and image stabilization, and how particular settings can help improve your photography. Once you have the basics down you'll learn how to create cool effects using lens filters and accessories, and how to select the best lens aperture for particular types of photos. Finally, you'll go in-depth with telephoto, wide-angle, and macro lenses. Each topic or concept is explained using a clear, two- or fourpage spread, and beautiful, full-color images illustrate the results of photographing with each setting, technique, or lens. A mini-glossary will help you define unfamiliar terms as you go. Get ready to enhance your photographs using the versatility of interchangeable lenses on your digital SLR!
CONTENTS:
Introduction
Chapter 1: A World of Lenses
How a lens works
What 'normal' lenses do
What telephoto lenses do
What wide-angle lenses do
Zooming with multi-focal-length lenses
Prime lenses
How F/stops work
Variable and Constant f/stops
Sharpness, Resolution and Acutance
The Need for Speed
The Ubiquitous Crop Factor
Chapter 2: Typical Lens Controls and Features
Focus rings
Focus limiters
Depth-of-field scales
Hyperfocal indicators
Zoom controls
Filter threads and why you need them
Do filters 'protect' your lens?
Lens hoods and why you must use them
Vibration Reduction/Image Stabilization controls
Chapter 3: Filters and Lens Attachments
Using Polarizing Filters
Using Neutral Density Filters
Working with Color Correction Filters
Special Effects filters
Split Density Filters
Close-Up Filters
Fish-eye Attachments
Chapter 4: Raising the Bar on Quality
Your lens' best aperture
Depth-of-field tradeoffs
Diffraction
Testing your lens for sharpness
Shutter speed and lens sharpness
Testing for motion blur
Tripods and monopods to optimize lens sharpness
Optimizing your lens' focus
Focus modes
Autofocus assist
Mirror lockup
Backfocus/front focus
Chapter 5: Using Telephoto Lenses
Long lenses vs. true telephotos
What's magnification?
Importance of telephoto aperture range
Autofocus glitches
Using selective focus
Avoiding telephoto distortion
Pincushion distortion
Compressing distances
Zoom or prime?
What's bokeh?
Chapter 6: Using Wide Angle Lenses
Telephotos vs. wide angles
How wide angles work
Choosing a wide angle
Chromatic aberration
Barrel distortion
Perspective distortion
Making size distortion work for you
Emphasizing the foreground
Wide angles and flash
Wide angle depth-of-field
Wide angles and polarizers
Avoid vignetting
Zoom or prime?
Chapter 7: Zoom, Zoom, Zoom
Pros and cons of zooms
Typical zoom ranges
Using wide angle zooms
Using long telephoto zooms
Superzooms
Varifocal vs. true zoom
Chapter 8: Macro Lenses and Prime Lenses
Magnification vs. focal length
Choosing a prime lens
Perspective considerations
Depth-of-field up close
Specialized macro lenses vs. general purpose lenses
Close-Up Attachments
Using extension tubes
Using a bellows
Using a reversing ring
Mini-Glossary
Index
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