Back in the old days — when I was a mere whippersnapper — I followed the same path as most new photographers, gradually building up a small collection of lenses.

Most cameras came with standard lenses, about 50m. These gave pretty good results with 35 mil film. This ’standard’ lens did not distort the picture at all and gave a reasonably fair coverage of the scene that you wanted to shoot. The problem with these standard lenses was, well, that all photos looked kind of standard. The creative spark lit, most new photographers went in search of different lens lengths.

Most folks quickly added a longer lens, or telephoto, somewhere between 100 and 200. These allowed you to get closer to the subject. The lower depth of field of these lenses was particularly useful for portraits. The next lens added was a wide angle, maybe a 35 — or if you were very brave — a 28.

These days these lengths, certainly 28 to 100, are more or less covered by the standard kit, zoom, lens. Life is much cheaper and easier. Many landscape photographers quickly find themselves shooting, mainly, in wide angle lengths. The 18 length of DSL 1:5 cameras is roughly equivalent to 28 on a 35 mil frame.

Wide angles are great because they allow you to get in more of the view you are looking at. Yes? Well, kid of. But there’s a lot more to them that that.

Simply using a wide angle to shoot a distant scene can provide you with very disappointing photographs. What wide angles can do is to add real drama. You have enough ’space’ to frame something in the foreground while keeping the background in the photo at the same time. This adds real depth. Let’s look at some simple examples.

On this year’s Pyrenees trip I was trying to document the actual route that I was walking. A lot of the photos were pretty boring, but the use of the wide angle made the ordinary a little more interesting.

This shot is from the Vallée d’Ara. As I descended I found myself walking through some wonderful, pastural country that featured a wonderful display of wild flowers. Even a wide angle couldn’t do justice to the breadth of the view; I would have to pick out some detail.

I quickly took this shot. It’s not much really, some grazing animals, some wild flowers, the mountain in the background. It does give you an idea of the terrain. But what makes the shot interesting is the stone with the GR11 flash mark on it. This occupies the foreground. The wide angle allows you to still capture much of the background. The shot has more depth.

This is a very simple shot that shows the opening up of the valley as you descend from high ground. It isn’t much of a composition but you can see the point. The rocks in the foreground add depth and perspective. They kind of point their way towards the valley beyond.

I really like the widening aspect of the wide angle lens. Whatever the photo it seems to add drama and depth. You do have to get closer to subjects though. This next shot is a good example of what can happen.

These are sheep on the Shropshire hill, Caradoc. It was taken early in the morning. For some reason I like photographing sheep (I think they’re a misunderstood animal). Here I was quite close. The wide angle somehow adds something to the spacing between the sheep and their relationship to each other.

Sometimes the effect of the wide angle is more subtle than others.

This is Moel Siabod in Snowdonia, taken from the Carnedds. The wide angle allowed me to get the mountain into the shot, but it also allowed me to focus on the path. The path is as much the subject of the picture as the mountain.

This was taken while yomping across the Moelwyn fells. It was the light that made me take this shot, not the scene itself. The sunshine suddenly broke through (those sunshine and showers again) and for a few moments the sky was saturated and the light picked out the colours of the heather. There’s not much to the picture but, again, the foreground is featured and has more depth. I like this photo simply because it reminds me of this open country. I love walking hear, aimless and time-free, when the weather is bad on the tops.

Some other — simple — examples. If you have a wide angle end to your zoom, then you too can take these kind of shots.

A simple path in the Cairngorms

The Barns of Bynark, Bynark More, the Cairngorms

The Ogwen Valley from up high

In the Knoydart

The Knoydart, taking the scenic route to Barrisdale

This winter shot, on the North Downs Way, owes everything to the wide angle.

The Undertow at Southwark!

The Selfridges Building, Birmingham. Close up with wide angle.

The wide angle brings problems with perspective as well. But I’ll deal with that next time.