What does the "3.5-5.6/18-55" marking mean if I can still set smaller apertures like f/22?
Asked 7/25/2013
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My zoom lens is labeled "3.5-5.6/18-55." I understand the 18-55mm part is the focal-length range, but I’m confused about the aperture numbers. On my Sony A65 I can still set apertures outside that range, such as f/22, at different zoom positions. What do the 3.5-5.6 numbers on the lens actually mean? Are they the maximum aperture available at the wide and telephoto ends of the zoom range?
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Photography Stack Exchange contributor
13y ago
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Yes. On a lens marked 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6, the f/3.5-5.6 refers to the maximum aperture the lens can open to, not the full range of apertures you can select.
That means:
- At 18mm, the widest aperture available is f/3.5
- At 55mm, the widest aperture available is f/5.6
- At focal lengths in between, the maximum aperture changes gradually between those values
You can still choose smaller apertures (higher f-numbers) like f/8, f/11, or f/22 across the zoom range, as long as the lens supports them. So the marking is telling you the lens’s light-gathering limit at different zoom positions.
In other words, those numbers are the lowest f-numbers available, not the only f-stops the lens can use.
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