To capture stunning landscape shots it is necessary to as
much in the frame as you can, and this requires a lens with a wide field of view
and a short focal length. Okay, there are times when a slightly longer focal
length will result in a pleasing landscape but more often than not you need a
wide angle lens.
Focal lengths 35mm (full frame equivalent) or 22mm (on a
crop sensor camera) and shorter are considered ‘wide’ however many landscape
photographers will use lenses of much shorter focal lengths. Landscape
photographers using full frame cameras often use 16mm – 35mm zoom lenses,
whereas landscape photographers using crop sensor cameras will often use 10mm –
22mm zoom lenses (which are effective 16mm – 35mm full frame equivalent).
There are lenses with shorter focal lengths than 16mm but
when using these lenses distortion starts to rear its head, and this can ruin a
landscape photo. Distortion doesn’t affect lenses with focal lengths of 16mm
and above, so the 16mm – 35mm zoom lens (for full frame cameras) or 10mm – 22mm
zoom lens (for crop sensor cameras) are perfect.
The 16mm – 35mm lens I use for my full frame camera (a Canon
6d) is the 16mm – 35mm f4L IS lens (full review here):-
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Focal Length – Full frame/APS-C:- 16mm - 35mm/
25.6mm - 42mm/ Aperture:-
4 - 22/ Min focus:-
11"/ Dimensions:-
3.25" x 4.44"/
Weight:- 21.7 oz/ Image stabilization:-
Yes/ Price (approx.) $USD/£
GBP:- $1,000.00/£820.00
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Being an L series lens just like the
flagship 16mm – 35mm f2.8L lens, means this lens is made using the best quality
materials, components and optics.
This lens is tough, durable and very
robust. Being weather sealed not only keeps the elements out but also the dust,
dirt and debris which makes it a perfect outdoor photography lens. This lens is
one tough cookie, and whilst it is expensive it is an investment that will
provide years of trouble free service, and awesome landscape photos to boot.
The image quality of this lens is
simply stunning, and many photographers argue it is sharper than its bigger
brother, the 16mm – 35mm f2.8L lens. I struggle to see how this lens is sharper
than the f2.8L lens at f4 as the f2.8L is stopped down (and sharpness instantly
increases) and this lens is wide open (no lens is at its sharpest used at its
maximum widest aperture). That said, the difference in image quality between
this lens and the f2.8L lens does seem negligible and I think the only way you are
going to see it is to go pixel peeping on the computer.
The Canon 16mm – 35mm f4L IS lens is a
great lens for landscape photography, and if you shoot a full frame camera it
is the wide angle lens I would recommend.
The 10mm – 22mm lens I use on my crop sensor camera (a Canon
7d) is the Canon 10mm – 22mm f3.5-4.5 (full review here):-
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Focal Length – Full frame/APS-C:- N/A/16mm – 35.2mm/
Aperture:- 3.5 22/4.5 - 29/ Min focus:- 9.4”/ Dimensions:- 3.31” x 3.54”/
Weight:- 13.6oz/ Image stabilization:- No/ Price (approx.) $USD/£ GBP:-
$600.00/£420.00
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This Canon lens gives the effective 16mm – 35mm focal length
popular with landscape photographers.
This is a mid-priced lens so it is not made using the same
high grade materials as the L series lenses, so it is not weather sealed or
dust proof. This lens is well put together and strong, it’s just not as well
put together and strong as the L series lenses.
Similarly, this lens is not made using the same grade of
glass and optics found in Canon’s L series lenses. The image quality of this
lens is very good, but it is not in the same league as the image quality of
Canon’s L series lenses.
I have read reviews and posts by many Canon 10mm – 22mm
owners stating this lens is an L series lens without the red ring. As much as I
would love this to be the case this simply isn’t true and the L series lens is
in a totally different league to this lens. Whenever I read posts stating this
lens is just an L series lens I do question whether the author has actually
used an L series lens, because if they had they would not be making these
claims.
This lens is very good and more than capable of capturing
some stunning landscape photos and, all things considered, it is awesome value
for money. If you shoot a crop sensor Canon and want a true ultra-wide angle
zoom lens (remember the 16mm – 35mm is an effective 25.6mm – 42mm on a crop
sensor camera) this is the Canon lens I would recommend.
Related reading
Below are some links to other landscape photography posts,
articles and tutorials that may be of interest. Please feel free to head on
over and check them out:-
- Landscape photography tips
- Tele lenses for landscape photography
- Travelling light - landscapephotography
- When to use a big stopper
- Review of the Zomei 10 stop filter
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