Which Normal to Wide Angle Focal Length Matches Your Vision?

[Mt Spokane Photography]

I've never seen a photo that matches my vision, they all seem like looking down a tunnel to me. I don't have unusual vision, but looking at a print or a monitor screen is the limitation, even IMAX doesn't quite do it, but its close. I'd like to see a captured image using the full width and height of my vision, which is close to 180 degrees horizontally, but much less vertically.

 

[Sony]

The matching focal length of a vision is different from different people because we see thing with 2 eyes or "2 lenses" which give us 3D vision, and because the distance between 2 eyes is different from individual to individual as well.
Camera uses 1 lens or "1 eye" which gives 2D vision.
The focal length which matches human 1 eye is about 50mm (45mm to 55mm). That's why we call them normal focal lengths.
We can do an experiment: set 2 cameras on tripods side by side @ focal length of 50mm and focus to 1 point. Stitch the 2 images, we have a wide angle picture. How wide the angle depends on the distance between 2 cameras.

 

[Skulker]

Our eyes have a cones behind the pupil and rods around the outer parts of the retina. Also our brains do quite a bit of PP on the image.

We see a detailed image of what we are looking at and a not very detailed view of the rest. Our brains make this into an image that is not an accurate interpretation of the real world. For instance how often are you aware of your blind spot?

For me I'm not so aware of the outer edges of my vision, I tend to concentrate on the central area so I use a 300mm as a walk round lens and photograph wild life and details.

On the odd occasion I use a wide lens I wonder why it has not record what I saw. ;D

The top half of this images is an accurate images of the view I was looking at. But the bottom half is what I saw. 8)

 

[Pinchers of Peril]

40mm... my eyes are pancakes

 

[RLPhoto]

24mm for both eyes and 50mm for a single eye. 135mm for a deep squint at something. ;D

 

[BozillaNZ]

Lenses that matches my vision is varying between 16mm and 300mm, depends on where I am and what I am looking at. :

 

[e17paul]

These answers need qualifying with 'full frame' or 'crop sensor'. I'm assuming full frame as the default.

24mm for both eyes and 50mm for a single eye. 135mm for a deep squint at something. ;D

+1

That equates to the set of three primes I have ended up using on my OM-10, other OM lenses stay at home. I'm aiming for a similar set up for my 6D - possibly substituting a 100L macro for a 135 because of the extra versatility.

The 50 (f/1.4 and f/2.5) are the walk around lenses on both cameras (both full frame - one film, one digital), equivalent to looking in front of me without moving the eyeballs. The 24 is equivalent to standing still and taking in a scene around me, whilst the 135 is akin to focussing on a distant object with the mind's eye.

 

[Woody]

50mm on FF format.

 

[zlatko]

24mm for both eyes and 50mm for a single eye. 135mm for a deep squint at something. ;D

I believe that 35 or 40 is about how I see, but if i had to choose just 3 primes to carry, it would likely be 24, 50 & 135. That is a great combination.

 

[mackguyver]

24mm for both eyes and 50mm for a single eye. 135mm for a deep squint at something. ;D

I believe that 35 or 40 is about how I see, but if i had to choose just 3 primes to carry, it would likely be 24, 50 & 135. That is a great combination.

That was my prime kit for many years - great lenses 8)

 

[takesome1]

50mm is about right for FOV, but that is not how the mind perceives
My peripheral is very good and closer to 14mm on a FF, of course at the edges things are OOF.
I remember things in a panoramic view, possibly 50mm stacked.
But in reality I see in video and it is in 3D.

 

[docholliday]

I hate the 40-50 range. My vision was closest to the Hasselblad Zeiss CF50/4...so the Zeiss ZE 35/1.4 is the closest to how I see the world.

 

[David_in_Seattle]

Since I'm a travel photographer I've become accustomed to capturing the same scenes and environments with multiple focal lengths.

To illustrate my vision I usually refer to my 17mm TSE, 16-35mm (mostly at 35mm in conjunction with the 17mm TSE), and the 50mm.

 

[alexturton]

I used to be exclusively 50mm (i.e. 30mm on crop) until I went FF and I discovered 35mm. 35mm is so much more versitile and "normal" in my eyes. I would much rather do both a portrait and a landscape on a 35mm than a 50mm