Is a Wide Angle Lens Best for Landscapes?
Is a Wide Angle Lens Best for Landscapes?
I’ve long been a fan of wide-angle lenses. I love getting so much into a frame. When I got my first one many years ago - a 14–24mm for the full-frame Nikon I used at the time - I was blown away. I got addicted quickly and rarely took that lens off the camera. I shot almost everything at 14mm.
Back then, I was mostly photographing cities, but when I did get the chance to shoot nature, I used the same approach: line it up at 14mm and fire away. I loved it!
But over the years, I’ve heard many landscape photographers talk about how much they enjoy using a long lens - something in the 70–200mm range - for landscapes. I never really understood the attraction. I continued shooting wide: 14mm, 16mm, 20mm - somewhere in that range most of the time.
In fact, I hadn’t owned a lens that reached beyond 70mm in quite a while, and even then, I rarely used that focal length for landscapes. I stuck with my wide-angle approach.
Still, I’m always open to new ideas and ways to grow. So when I found a great deal on the Tamron 70–300mm right before my Fall trip to Colorado, I grabbed it. It was inexpensive, and I figured it might come in handy in a few situations. If nothing else, it would be fun to experiment.
I mounted it on my backup camera, the Sony A7R III, while rotating between my usual wide and midrange lenses - the 16–25mm and 24–50mm - on my main camera, the Sony A7CR.
To my surprise, I absolutely loved it. I ended up using the 70–300mm far more than I expected. Of the roughly 4,000 images I shot that week, nearly 40% were with that lens - a huge number for someone who’s always been addicted to wide angles.
What struck me most was how much flexibility it offered. Being able to zoom in let me find unique compositions I couldn’t have captured otherwise. I could isolate patterns, layers, and light in the landscape - details that often get lost in a wider scene. The results felt fresh, more personal, and in many ways, more intentional.
Below are a few examples from the trip. Click any image to view in a lightbox.
Using a long lens for landscapes changed the way I see. It reminded me that creativity often lives in the details - in the subtle interplay of light, texture, and distance that a wide view can sometimes overlook. There’s beauty in stepping back, zooming in, and noticing what hides in plain sight.
Have you tried it? If not, maybe your next great landscape isn’t found in the sweeping view - but in a small piece of it.
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