How to choose the right lens for your fishing sessions?

Choosing a lens
Choosing a lens © Morgan Calu

Whether you own an SLR, a compact camera or a cell phone, you can take a wide range of images to immortalize your shots, as well as the moments and memories of your sessions. Here's how to choose the right lens for the right shot.

What is a photo lens?

It can be a separate part of the camera, or directly integrated into the shooting system, as on cell phones. It defines the angle of view and the focusing distance. It will enlarge or reduce the image you perceive to freeze it on a defined frame.

A lens is characterized by its focal length, i.e. its magnification and angle of view. The longer the focal length, the greater the magnification and the smaller the angle of view. Conversely, the shorter the focal length, the lower the magnification and the wider the angle of view.

Nowadays, most smartphones come with several lenses that allow you to shoot from 20 mm to 100 mm cleanly.

50 mm lens

This is largely standard, as this focal length is considered to be close to the perception of the human eye. Basically, with a 50 mm lens, the captured photo is faithful to what you actually see. In the case of fishing, it's an ideal lens for taking pictures of fish while respecting their proportions.

Le 50mm respecte les proportions et permet de faire des photos sobres et propres de vos captures
The 50 mm respects proportions and allows you to take clean, sober photos of your captures

It's a versatile lens that can also be used for atmospheric shots.

Wide-angle lens

Focal lengths are generally between 15 and 30 mm. As mentioned above, the magnification is low, but the angle is wide. It's an ideal lens for taking pictures of fish that are rather distorted, with an assertive style. It highlights the fish and makes it appear larger.

Le grand angle déforme l'image et met en avant le poisson
The wide angle distorts the image and highlights the fish.

This type of lens is very useful for landscape photography.

Fisheye lens

This is a very wide-angle lens that distorts the image considerably at focal lengths of less than 15 mm. Its purpose is to take rather artistic photos, or to capture a fish by integrating all the surrounding environment. This lens can also be used for "half-air, half-water" photos, in which the fish, its environment and the angler are immortalized in the same image.

Le fisheye est destiné à des images artistiques ou des utilisations bien précises
The fisheye is intended for artistic images or very specific uses.

Long focal length lens

We're talking about lenses between 100 and 600 mm or more. These are heavy, cumbersome lenses. These are focal lengths that aren't found on phones, or at least don't allow for quality rendering on smartphones.

Les objectifs longues focales sont intéressant pour les photos d'ambiances
Long-focal-length lenses are ideal for atmospheric shots.

This type of lens is ideal for atmospheric or wildlife photos of fishing. They provide high magnification.

Macro lens

This is an interesting type of lens for capturing small details. Most of these are 100mm lenses, which can be used to magnify miniature elements.

L'objectif macro permet de saisir des détails minuscules
The macro lens lets you capture minute details.

It is possible to make this type of image using a diopter, which often fits 50 mm lenses. All you need to do is find a diopter with a diameter compatible with your lens.

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