Superzoom



A superzoom or ultrazoom lens is a type of photographic zoom lens with unconventionally large focal length factors, typically ranging from wide angle to extreme long lens focal lengths in one lens. There is no clear definition of a superzoom lens, but the name generally covers lenses that have a range well above the 3× or 4× (e.g., 28-85 mm or 70-210 mm) of a standard zoom lens, with lenses being 10×, 12×, 18×, or above considered superzoom.

Advantages of a superzoom lens include compositional flexibility, reduced need to swap lenses, and enhanced portability by consolidating the functionality of multiple lenses into one. Due to trade-offs in the optical design, superzoom lenses are noted for having poorer optical quality at the extreme ends of their zoom ranges, often due to distortion. The longer focal lengths are usually accompanied by optical image stabilization in order to be usable handheld.