Okuzeka
Photography vocabulary · Lenses & Focus

Focal length

Meaning in photography, with examples

/ˈfoʊkəl leŋθ/nounCore term

In photography, focal length means: A lens measurement in millimeters, such as 24 mm or 200 mm, that tells you how wide or how magnified the view will be.

In Turkish: odak uzaklığı

How it is used

Printed on every lens, e.g. 50 mm or 70–200 mm. Photographers often just say the number: “I shot it at 85.” Short focal lengths give a wide view, long ones a narrow, magnified view. Longer focal lengths also make camera shake more visible.

Example sentences

  1. For headshots, a focal length between 85 and 135 mm is very flattering.

  2. The zoom covers every focal length from 24 to 70 mm, so I rarely change lenses at weddings.

Common collocations

  • short focal length
  • long focal length
  • equivalent focal length
  • at a focal length of
  • lensThe part of a camera that collects light and focuses it onto the sensor or film. It contains several pieces of glass and usually the aperture.
  • zoom lensA lens whose focal length can be changed, such as a 24–70 mm or 70–200 mm, so you can go wider or closer without moving.
  • prime lensA lens with one fixed focal length, such as 35 mm or 50 mm, that cannot zoom. Primes are often sharper and have wider apertures than zooms.
  • crop factorA number that compares a sensor's size with full-frame. Multiplying a lens's focal length by it gives the full-frame equivalent field of view.
  • telephoto lensA lens with a long focal length, usually 70 mm or more, that makes distant subjects look bigger and closer.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Lenses & Focus

Practise with graded reading

Reading at the right level is the fastest way to make new words stick. Pick free English books by level: