Zoom Lens Apertures - Constant vs Variable @RayOrtega
Zoom Lens Apertures - Constant vs Variable  @RayOrtega
Uploaded November 2016 | Updated September 2026, 5 days ago
Zoom lenses have two types of apertures; constant and variable. What's the difference and why does it matter? ► All gear linked below*. ► INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/podcasthelper

One of the decisions to make when choosing a lens for your DSLR camera is what kind of aperture do you want or need. Cheaper zoom lenses, sometimes referred to as kit lenses because they come packaged with a camera body, have a variable aperture. That means that as you zoom in, increasing your focal length, your aperture, the hole in the lens that controls how much light hits your sensor, gets smaller. For example, a 18-100mm zoom lens may have an aperture range of 3.5 to 5.6. Which means you will be able to open your aperture all the way to its maximum range (3.5 in this example) when then lens is at 18mm. When the lens is zoomed all the way to 100mm, the aperture can only open as wide as f5.6. The results are that you will get less natural light into your camera, may have to increase you ISO, potentially causing more noise in your image and your depth of field will not be as shallow—your backgrounds will not be as out of focus as they would be with a wide aperture.

With a constant aperture lens, your aperture will remain the same, going as wide as your lenses maximum constant aperture, throughout the entire zoom range. You'll be able to get wider aperture at longer focal lengths which can produce a shallow depth of field and allow more natural light to reach the sensor.

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Zoom Lens Apertures - Constant vs Variable

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