Digital Photography 101

Chapter 2: Detachable SLR Lenses and when to use them

2.2: Telephoto

50- 500mm

A telephoto lens is useful for reportage, macro, wildlife and sports photography and 100mm is the desired focal length for portrait photos as a shallow depth of field to blur the background can easily be achieved, even at smaller apertures of say f9. Vibration Reduction (VR) becomes especially useful to aid in minimizing shudder blur in low light. In low light if you are using cheaper glass in a telephoto lens, like many do, then you can increase the sharpness and the ISO.

Remember the focal length = shutter speed rule of thumb. At 100mm you will need at least 100th of a second to minimize shudder blur. At 300mm you should be looking at 300th of a second. This can be hard to achieve with cheaper and slower glass so do what the better photojournalists do and just use your feet and get closer. Watch those wild animals! You can get great photos with many consumer branded lens systems. 

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