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FilmSkool — a free film school

How to choose the most Cinematic Lens?

Matti Haapoja breaks down focal length psychology in approachable terms — how wide versus long lenses change intimacy and distortion. A friendly entry point for beginners overwhelmed by lens jargon.

Matti Haapoja · 9 min · Beginner · CIN · Cinematography · 2018

What you take away

Wide lenses pull the audience into a space; long lenses hold them at a distance — pick the psychological effect first, then the millimeters.

Watch it

Filed under

Oscar winners for cinematography

Books on cinematography

Kit for this lesson

Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM II — The wide end of the same set
Canon RF 50mm F1.2 L USM — The portrait-adjacent normal
Canon RF 24-70mm F2.8 L IS USM — The RF standard zoom, stabilised
Canon RF 15-35mm F2.8 L IS USM — Canon’s wide zoom for the C70 and R5 C
Panasonic LUMIX S5 IIX — The S5 II with raw out and ProRes internal
Sony a7 IV — The all-round full-frame hybrid

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