Lessons
Class Introduction
05:06 2Lens Basics
10:55 3Focal Length
04:43 4Normal Lenses
10:14 5Wide Angle Lenses
09:24 6Telephoto Lenses
11:43 7Lens Comparisons
08:33 8Aperture
11:26Equivalent Aperture
04:07 10Depth of Field
05:25 11Maximum Sharpness
02:58 12Hyperfocal Distance
09:33 13Mount System & Lens Grade
04:03 14Lens Design
11:36 15Compatibility
17:29 16Lens Technology
05:21 17Focusing & Stabilization
06:39 18Image Quality
04:46 19Standard & Super Zoom
04:52 20Wide & Telephoto & Super Telephoto Zoom
07:48 21Prime Lenses
06:06 22Short, Medium & Super Telephoto Lenses
05:35 23The Macro Lens
07:14 24The Fisheye Lens
10:24 25The Tilt & Shift Lens
10:59 26Filters
06:34 27Lens Hoods
04:02 28Tripod Mount
02:42 29Extension Tubes
03:26 30Teleconverters
03:11 31Making a Lens Choice
04:15 32The Portrait Lens
08:44 33The Action Lens
11:23 34The Landscape Lens
06:51 35Lens Maintenance
09:40Lesson Info
Mount System & Lens Grade
All right, so in this section, folks, we're going to getting into the technology and the lens review, the actual lenses themselves. And so, this is gonna be a good time to have the class PDF, it comes with the purchase of the class, and there was a lot of lenses, and we work really hard trying to get the lenses listed properly, and so what we've done is we've actually changed the order of the lens in the PDF. And what we did here, is we were thinking, you know what, most people don't own all six brands. Let's list all the Nikon lenses together. We thought that made a logical sense. And so all the brands are listed together, but we have the different categories, and all the different specifics, and we've tried very hard to get all the numbers and letters exactly right so that when we talk about something you can refer to it in the handout PDF that comes with the class. And so in this section, we're gonna be talking about the technology, what goes into the lenses. Talk about some of the ...
different features on those lenses, and then we'll get in and talk about what lenses are best for doing different things. And so we're gonna be talking a little bit about things beyond just focal length and aperture in this case. So when we talk about lenses, we want to talk about the mounting system on the camera. What are the characteristics of a lens mount? What's important? Why doesn't one lens fit on all the cameras? Why are they specific? Well, there's a number of things that are very important. First up is the connection system that has been made by that camera company. And a big part of that is how big is that opening cuz that's gonna determine what sort of lenses you can put on it. The flange distance is the distance from the mount to the sensor, and this needed to be fairly big with SLRs, but has gotten much smaller with the mirrorless cameras, so some lenses can go on all cameras, some lenses are very specific about which ones can be adapted to different lenses. There is the image circle. How big of image circle does that lens create? We talked about that at the very beginning of this class when we were talking about full-frame cameras and crop-frame cameras, but it's very true here cuz some lenses are for medium format, large format cameras, different, smaller size sensors, and so you ideally want to get something that is really, truly matched for the system that you are using. There are different lens grades, and these are not always clearly illustrated or named on the lenses, but there are a lot of lenses that fit into the Entry Line level of lenses, which means they often have plastic mounts, a lot of plastic in the lens itself, not the glass, but the construction of the lens around it. They tend to have slower apertures, they are very lightweight, and they're not too much money. Then we have our Mid-Range lenses, and these tend to have a little bit bigger focusing rings on them, they have metal lens mounts, and they have features that either make them more durable ... We're talking about things almost beyond just the glass, it's the construction of the lens, the ease at which it can be used. They start having distance scales on them, and they start being very practical for somebody who is into photography a little bit more seriously. And then we have our Professional lenses, and sometimes they have special designations, like Canon calls them L lenses. Nikon, not quite as officially, but they'll often refer to them as gold ring lenses, and there's different names through different companies in here. And here we have really top quality everything. Top quality construction, top quality glass, sometimes they're using very exotic glass, and when I say exotic glass, I mean it's difficult to manufacture glass. And they often have some of the best features or features that you may not find on other lenses out there, and so this is kind of a soft category that I created, and there are some lenses that fit right in between these lines, but you can kinda think of these in three different levels of lenses through all the different manufacturers.
Class Materials
Bonus Materials with Purchase
Ratings and Reviews
E.L. Bl/Du
John is one of the best instructors Ive watched. he's clear, concise, and gets right to the point. His display's and diagrams are so great, he makes very complicated subjects easy to understand, and fun. He holds your attention and interest b/c everything he says is valuable. This really helped me understand the vast complicated world of lenses. I would highly recommend this class to anyone who doesnt know what hyperfocal distance is.
Boris Dimitrov
Excellent class packed with incredibly useful knowledge. John is an amazing lecturer. He has also developed really great materials to help explain all the concepts and technologies that are explored in the class. Looking forward to my next class with him!
Lettie Turner
Another great JG class, my 4th. He gives a lot of individual attention to several popular lens brands. I really think after seeing this video series you could pick out three lenses that would fit your needs and your pocketbook. The class handout is spot on for what is covered in the video. Great job!! Thank you
Student Work
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Fundamentals