# What is lens distortion?

> Lens distortion causes straight lines to appear curved in your images. Wide-angle lenses tend to produce barrel distortion (lines bow outward), while…

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## Lens distortion causes **straight lines to appear curved** in your images. Wide-angle lenses tend to produce barrel distortion (lines bow outward), while telephoto lenses tend to produce pincushion distortion (lines bow inward). Most modern cameras and software correct this automatically.

## **Types of lens distortion**

**Barrel distortion:** Straight lines near the edges bow outward, like the sides of a barrel. Most common in wide-angle lenses under 35mm. Makes buildings look like they are bulging.

**Pincushion distortion:** Lines bow inward toward the center. More common in telephoto lenses. Less visually obvious than barrel.

**Mustache distortion:** Complex combination where lines bow outward in the center and inward at edges. Hardest to correct. Found in some zoom lenses at certain focal lengths.

## **How distortion is corrected**

**In-camera correction:** Most modern cameras apply lens profiles automatically to JPEG and viewfinder preview. The correction is invisible.

**In editing software:** Lightroom, Capture One, and DaVinci Resolve have built-in lens profiles that correct distortion with one click.

**Optical correction:** Higher-end lenses use aspherical elements to minimize distortion optically, reducing the need for software correction.

## **Low-distortion lenses at Camera Shop Egypt**

## **When distortion matters**

**Architecture and real estate:** Straight walls and doorframes must look straight. Correction is critical.

**Product photography:** Straight edges on products should remain straight.

**Portraits and creative work:** Minor distortion is usually invisible and irrelevant.

**Video:** Correction can cause a slight crop. Some videographers prefer lenses with low native distortion.

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Do not avoid wide-angle lenses because of distortion — modern software corrects it instantly and perfectly. Focus on sharpness, bokeh, and build quality instead. Distortion is a solved problem.

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