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This photo of “crowded” California beach is not what it seems

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We have already seen that the change of perspective and focal length can drastically change the story. And after the latest controversy over a “crowded” beach in California, we can see exactly how it works in the context of reporting.

After a photo of the beach was published, people started a heated debate over it, claiming that it was “fake.” And in a way, they were right. The photo wasn’t doctored, but it was taken with a telephoto lens, making the beach look overcrowded. Filmed from a helicopter, the situation turned out to be much different.

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“The camera never lies” is a myth and these photographers explain why

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During the coronavirus crisis, the importance of keeping a distance from others keeps popping up. And yet, we keep seeing photos that show people standing way close to one another. The camera never lies. Or does it?

Copenhagen-based photojournalists Ólafur Steinar Rye Gestsson and Philip Davali decided to debunk the myth that the camera always tells the truth. In an experiment for the photo news agency Ritzau Scanpix, they took photos in public using different lenses and perspectives. The photos they made show just how much you can change the story by simply changing the angle of view or the focal length.

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This is how focal length affects your portraits, from 24 to 135 mm

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The focal length of your lens affects your portraits, both in terms of subject distortion and the subject-background relationship. In this video, Julia Trotti demonstrates how this looks. She uses five prime lenses from 24mm to 135mm, so you can see just how much the change in focal length can change the final look of your image.

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This trick will tell you which lens to buy next

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Buying a new lens is always an exciting event. But, with such a huge choice, you may be indecisive about the one in which you should invest your hard-earned money. In this video, Toma Bonciu suggests a simple trick that will help you determine what would be the ideal next lens for you. Additionally, this trick can also help you when you have to pack light: it will help you to decide the ideal lens to bring.

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This video shows how focal length and zooming affect subject-background relationship in your photos

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I believe you already know that “zooming with your feet” and changing the focal length can affect the relationship between your subject and the background. In this short video, you can see the effect of both coming close to the subject and changing the focal length, and how it affects the final look of your image.

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Lenses – An overview on field of view, focal length and crop factors

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Lenses are an integral part of photography or filmmaking. Well, unless you’re using a pinhole camera. But field of view, focal length, and crop factors can be confusing for newer photographers. This video from The Basic Filmmaker goes over the basics of what they all mean and how to convert “focal length equivalency” for non-full frame sensors.

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25 essential terms that every photographer must know

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Getting used to the sheer number of technical terms and numbers in photography can be pretty overwhelming for beginners. There are a lot of them out there. But you don’t really need to know about all of them from day one. But there are some that you’ll want to learn and understand first.

You’ll hear these terms quite often if you hang around other photographers or partake in any of the photography groups on Facebook. They might confuse you at first, but this video from Apalapse goes through 25 of the most important and breaks down exactly what they mean.

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The definitive guide to focal length, perspective, and why “zooming with your feet” is nonsense

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Perspective distortion seems to be one of the most confusing topics in photography. There are all kinds of erroneous “facts” about it. Like focal length being that which distorts your subject, and not the distance to the subject. Well, this video from This Place puts that myth well and truly to rest and also illustrates why “zooming with your feet” is the dumbest phrase in photography.

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Pros and cons of teleconverters: should you really buy them?

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Long lenses are a must for certain types of photography, but they can be a huge investment. This is why people often opt for teleconverters. This may or may not be the best option, and maybe you’re having second thoughts whether you should buy a teleconverter or not.

In his latest video, Jay P. Morgan talks about the advantages and disadvantages of teleconverters. If you can’t make up your mind whether they’re worth the investment, this video might be of great help for you.

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This video explains linear perspective and geometry when shooting portraits

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Remember the animation showing how focal length impacts the portrait? When you shoot with different focal lengths and your subject takes the same space in the frame, you’ll get a certain amount of distortion. As a matter of fact, this is one of the reasons why camera “adds ten pounds”. In this video, Koldunov Brothers demonstrate how geometry of the face and body depends on the distance from the camera. So, what is it that looks so strange when shooting up close with a wide angle lens?

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