One of the most important things when it comes to choosing the gear for a certain job is the choice of lens, or better said the choice of focal length. This will greatly influence the end result and it's obvious for anyone that what you get with a 24mm lens looks completely different than what you shoot with a 200mm lens.
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There is the obvious question of depth of field that is directly affected by focal length, but we'll focus on something different this time. Does the background appear farther away in a photo taken at 24mm, or is it the same as when shot with a longer lens?
Surprisingly, if you photograph someone with both lenses, from the same distance, you will find the background distance looks exactly the same. Puzzled? Open both files next to each other. Make a crop in the photo taken with the wide angle lens to resemble the composition of that taken at 200mm. Obviously it will be a lot smaller, but if you take a closer look, you will find the background looks exactly the same in terms of distance from the subject.
So how do you change perspective by putting the background further or closer to the subject? The only real way to "move" it is to move yourself. By coming closer to your subject or shooting from further away, that distance will change and ultimately you will separate the subject from background or integrate it into the shot.
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Here's a video demonstration with Gavin Hoey in a video from Adorama TV.
Learn more about focal length from these recommended books:
- Mastering Camera Aperture: Digital Photography Tips and Tricks for Beginners on How to Control Depth of Field
- Mastering Aperture, Shutter Speed, ISO and Exposure
- Tony Northrup's DSLR Book: How to Create Stunning Digital Photography