SUPER WIDE ANGLES CAN BETRAY YOU FAST

Some readers have asked me to elaborate on the use of a super-wide angle lens for photography.

To master anything wider than a 24mm lens on a full frame camera (like the 20mm photo seen here), it requires a lot of practice, especially in automotive and architectural photography. The real risk is to unwittingly insert distortion where you don’t want it, in the corners and edges of the frame.

With a 16-21mm lens, careful placement of the subject and thoughtful composition become critical. Sometimes, just paying attention to the edges and leveling the camera (or use of a tilt-shift lens) is all that is necessary to avoid known objects from looking unreal. Otherwise, you may need to become vey good at post-production using selections, layers, and various transform tools to look like a professional. Unless, of course, you are intentionally going for a distorted effect, which is usually not recommended for cars or buildings.