• Question: If camera lenses are round, then why do pictures come out square? Weird.

    Asked by tahirakhan to Indi, Jarv, John, Ken, Vicky on 19 Mar 2012.
    • Photo: Vicky Young

      Vicky Young answered on 19 Mar 2012:

      Ahhhhh I think its because the film is square. The photo is round but the edges are dark because there is not enough light. The square film clips the edges and makes the photo square/rectangle.

      Fisheye pictures are cool! They are round!!! Check them out.

    • Photo: John Prytherch

      John Prytherch answered on 19 Mar 2012:

      I think Vicky has got this one 🙂

    • Photo: Jarvist Moore Frost

      Jarvist Moore Frost answered on 20 Mar 2012:

      Yep, just as Vicky says the image projected by the lens is actually round, but goes soft-focus and dark at the edges.
      Arguably it’s a more efficient use of the lens to actually use square rather than rectangular film, such as with a Hasselblad medium format camera. If you can afford one that is!

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