Learn what is the function of the lens in a wide-angle and telephoto range, the unique functions of these lenses, and how they are used in the industry for different scenarios. We also covered the benefits of adding the SIRUI Saturn anamorphic lens to your kit.
Introduction:
Wide and telephoto lenses are two extreme ends of the focal length spectrum, and both are used in real-life scenarios. A good question here is what the function of the lens is when using them in these two extreme focal lengths and how they can be used to one's advantage in real-life photography and videography. This is our beginner's guide to understanding these basics and enabling new blood to build a solid foundation.
Wide-Angle Lenses
As the name suggests, these lenses provide a wide field of view for their users and can effectively exaggerate perspective by making objects look bigger while their background is stretched out. Lenses are usually characterized as wide-angle lenses starting from 35 mm or less and are commonly used for environmental, landscape, and architectural photography.
With these lenses, you get an expansive field of view with more details in the frame. They are usually compact and convenient to carry around. The final images with such lenses are known to bring distortion on the edges, which can either be undesirable or harnessed by some professionals.
1. Construction
These lenses are built as retrofocus (reverse telephoto) and short-focus wide-angle lenses. The latter uses a design in which its rear element is close to the camera’s sensor and its other optical elements on the front are wrapped around the aperture diaphragm. The retrofocus uses a design approach in which the rear element is far from the sensor due to its asymmetric design. Modern lenses use aspherical elements in this arrangement for sharpness and correction.
2. Using Wide Angle Lenses
Using such lenses will give you a frame with a deep depth of field in which all the elements of the image will be kept in focus. With these lenses, distant objects may seem more minor, and near objects look much larger. Careful composition is required when using it for landscape and architectural photography.
3. Most commonly used variants
Below 35mm, 24mm is the most popular choice for ultra-wide shots in architecture and landscape photography. This range also produces relatively low distortion compared to other focal lengths of 28 mm, 21 mm, and below. Ranges between 6 mm and 16 mm are also suitable for ultra-wide shooting but introduce a circular or hemispherical view, leading to a highly distorted image.
Telephoto lenses:
They are opposite to wide-angle lenses, as they compress in comparison to what they exaggerate in a frame. These lenses are built from 70 mm to 80 mm and provide a narrow field of view, which magnifies distant subjects in the frame. The optics in the lens make the objects in the frame appear closer together than they truly are and capture a much smaller, tighter portion of the scene. In simple words, they effectively crop in and magnify the subject.
Such lenses also produce a pleasing “bokeh” effect with a shallow depth of field. The result is images with flattened scenes that make distant objects appear closer to each other. They are commonly used for portraits, wildlife, and sports photography.
1. Construction
These lenses are built with converging and diverging lens groups inside them (to correct optical aberrations such as chromatic aberration and distortion), which makes them larger and heavier than wide-angle lenses. High-end telephotos often require tripods or image stabilization for sharp images.
2. Using Telephoto Lenses
When physical proximity is limited or undesirable, or when someone wants to shoot from distant places, telephoto lenses are used. They can easily isolate objects from far away and render compositions with backgrounds appearing closer and more prominent while introducing blur to distracting backgrounds, emphasizing the main subject dramatically.
3. Most commonly used variants
These lenses are divided into various focal length ranges. The most common are short telephoto lenses, which range between 85mm and 135mm; medium telephoto lenses, which range from 135mm to 300mm; and super telephoto lenses, which can range even more, from 300mm to 600mm+. These lenses are commonly used for sports photography.
When to choose wide-angle or telephoto?
We explained what is the function of lenses in the wide-angle and telephoto range. The next natural question that comes to mind is which one to use for an ordinary professional routine. You have to make the choice based on the subject you are trying to capture, the shooting environment, and your creative intent.
If you are capturing an interior where capturing a broad view is essential, wide-angle lenses are used. Similarly, use them when shooting for landscapes and architecture. Telephoto lenses are used when you intend to isolate an object with background blur and want to shoot from far away.
Best Wide-Angle Lenses in 2025
The market is flooded with wide-angle options, but most of them don’t balance price to performance. We recommend considering the SIRUI Saturn 35/50/75mm Full-frame Carbon Fiber Anamorphic Lens kit for its cinematic-grade optical quality and high value for its price. The lens kit is made for the wide-angle and lower-telephoto photo range and smoothly combines elements of wide-angle and telephoto capabilities.
The anamorphic optics enable the lens to combine selective focus and compression of telephoto lenses in a single frame, and its T2.9 aperture enables low-light photography with professional-grade sharpness. The final images and videos have signature horizontal lens flares that add a storytelling depth to one’s creative content.
Wrapping Up:
Before we wrap up our take on the question of what is the function of lenses in the wide-angle and telephoto range, it is worth mentioning again that understanding their basics can significantly help one take better shots in one’s routine. For better results, we recommend investing in reliable optics like the one used in the SIRUI Saturn lens, which renders cinema-grade pictures and video with signature horizontal flares.
