Super Zoom: Why You Should Consider a One-Lens Wonder for Your Camera
Even if you have all of the sharpest lenses in your kit, that hardly means that you'll want to take them with you everywhere that you go. Walking around with a bag full of lenses that you constantly have to change can lead you to skip carrying a camera altogether.
That's where super zoom lenses come into play. It's a single lens that you can use to cover a wide variety of focal length ranges. A classic example of this might be an 18-135mm lens, or even an 18-200mm lens. That provides a wide angle view at the wide end, but enough reach for faraway subjects.

Using a super zoom lens does require some tradeoffs. They might not have the widest aperture or sharpest optics, but the best camera (and lens) is the one that you're willing to take with you.
Check out the video lesson above to learn more about using super zoom lenses, and why you shouldn't count them out as a valuable part of your lens toolbox.
Watch the Full Course
What other lenses do you need in your kit? Adding that next lens to a kit is all about helping you achieve a certain look or photo style that your current gear can't.
This is what I cover in my course, What Every Photographer Should Know About Lenses. I'll help you learn more about lenses, what to look for when choosing a new lens, and getting the most from the lenses you already have.
Check out these other lessons that will help you learn to build out your lens lineup:
- Setting the Standard: What's a Standard Zoom Lens?David Bode24 Mar 2018
- Decoding Lens Jargon: Image Stabilization, Coatings, and Advanced Focusing MotorsDavid Bode14 Mar 2018
- How to Make Advanced Shots With a Long LensChristopher Kenworthy03 Feb 2017
- When and How to Use Wide Angle Zoom LensesDavid Bode29 Mar 2018
