Ultra-wide angle (typically the 10-22mm range) lenses are popular tools among landscape photographers. These lenses can capture impressive, expansive views, but they also come with their own challenges. If you’ve ever attached one to your camera and felt overwhelmed by its wide field of view, you’re not alone. Many photographers, especially those new to these lenses, don’t always use them to their full potential.
In this video, landscape photographer William Patino shows you how to get these lenses working for you rather than against you.
One of the biggest advantages of ultra-wide-angle lenses is their ability to fit a massive amount of information into the frame. This can be both a strength and a weakness. While it allows you to capture broad landscapes, it also presents a challenge: how do you guide the viewer’s eye through such an expansive image?
Emphasize diminishing perspective
Ultra-wide lenses can exaggerate perspective, making objects in the foreground appear much larger than those in the background. When used correctly, this can create a sense of depth and pull the viewer’s eye into the image.
Exaggerating the concept of diminishing perspective can be used to your advantage. This technique gives your images a three-dimensional feel by showcasing large objects in the foreground that progressively become smaller as they move toward the background.
For instance, if you stand in the middle of a road with a wide-angle lens, the lines of the road will seem to stretch out dramatically in the foreground, creating a strong sense of depth. Compare that to shooting with a 35mm lens, where the lines will appear more uniform, making the scene look flatter. By getting very close to the foreground—sometimes within a foot—you’ll enhance this effect.
You can apply the same principle in nature. Get close to rocks, plants, or any other interesting foreground elements and watch how they appear large and detailed. As your eye moves back, you’ll notice how quickly the scene diminishes into the background. This size progression from large to small is the key to pulling viewers deeper into the frame and giving your image a more dynamic, layered effect.
Get closer to your subject
Another common mistake when using ultra-wide lenses is standing too far back from the subject. When you’re far away, the lens loses its ability to create that three-dimensional perspective and ends up with a flat image. The magic happens when you move in close—often within a foot or even six inches of your foreground subject.
While this may require more technical steps, such as focus stacking to keep everything sharp, the payoff is huge. You’ll instantly notice how much more engaging and immersive your images feel when you close that gap between the lens and your foreground.
Put your subject in the centre
When composing with a wide-angle lens, it’s important to guide the viewer’s eye to a specific point. Placing your main subject in the centre of the frame can help keep it balanced, especially if you’re dealing with large foreground elements. Ultra wide-angle lenses naturally draw attention toward the centre, so positioning your focal point there ensures a smooth visual flow through the image.
Avoid placing important elements at the edges of the frame, as the wide-angle distortion can stretch and pull objects unnaturally, distracting from your overall composition. By focusing on the centre and using the edges to enhance the diminishing perspective, you’ll keep the viewer’s eye focused on where you want it to go.
Use leading lines
Use leading lines in your composition or elements that create patterns to draw the viewer’s eye to the main subject in the image. Because of the lens’ natural distortion and perspective, it will emphasize these lines making them even more effective.
This technique is particularly effective in landscape photography because it provides a natural pathway for the eye to follow. The viewer starts by admiring the rich details of the foreground, moves through the mid-ground, and finishes on the subject in the distance. This not only makes the image more engaging but also emphasizes the scale and depth of the scene.
Wide-angle lenses are fun to shoot with, especially when you’re presented with fabulous scenery. However, they can be a little tricky at first. Once you get used to shooting in a slightly different way, you’ll start getting the most out of these lenses and you’ll no longer relegate them to astrophotography.
