Compression distortion

Longer focal lengths make features in the foreground, middle ground and background of a photo appear closer together. You can exploit this trait while shooting a whole range of scenes

Portraits 1

There are a couple of benefits to shooting portraits from a distance. Facial features are kept in proportion, leading to more flattening results.

It’s also easier to isolate a person from their surroundings. Try a focal length of 50mm (full-frame equivalent) for full-length shots and in the region of 85‑135mm for tighter portraits. You can go even longer for candid pictures.

’Abstracts’ 3

Because longer lenses make subjects at different distances appear close together in the final image, they allow you to remove the sense of depth you get with a wide-angle lens and combine and contrast layers of patterns, shapes and textures into more abstract compositions. In this low-angle shot of a reflection in a lake, the context is removed, and the image is now all about the layers of textures.

Landscapes 2

Scenic photography isn’t the preserve of ultrawide lenses. A telephoto allows you to pick out interesting details in the wider landscape. For instance, by zooming in to fill the frame with trees in a forest, you can make it look densely packed and impenetrable. You can achieve a similar effect when shooting hills and mountains, making the peaks appear imposing.

Cityscapes 4

Longer focal lengths make town and city streets appear more crowded and buildings appear packed as tightly as a deck of cards, which can help to get across how built up and claustrophobic the urban environment can be (if that is your aim, of course).

You don’t want to be lugging a huge lens around a city all day, but a 70200mm (or equivalent for crop-sensor cameras) will give plenty of reach.