When I look forward, one eye covered, the other one relaxed, I can see one arm width from left to right, at one arm length. From geometry this implies that my field of view is 30* center to side (as tan(30)=0.5) for one eye without eye-muscle usage / eyeball movements.

When I put a number of pilons in a Poser scene and start zooming, then I find that a field of view of 30* matches a focal length of 45mm. When I zoom out a bit to F=35mm, the result sort of matches the field of view of TWO eyes, in relaxed mode.

This matches the standard lens for compact digital cameras. High end digital cameras have standard lenses with a larger focal length (50mm, or even 70mm on Hasselblad), while the good old analog cameras had a 50mm standard lens as well.

When comparing a camera with my eye, my problem is that I've a hard time shutting off the auto-focus and auto-lighting functions of my eye. This distorts any conclusions.

When using a (compact) camera, 20-28mm is good for landscapes, 35-50 is good for scene overviews and cars, 70-100 is good for portraits, and 150-200 is good for fashion, hair, makeup, jewelry (all deliberately flattening the model) and product closeup shots. A Hasselblad needs different (larger) settings.

Just my 2 cents to the debate.
Have fun.

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Usually I'm wrong. But to be effective and efficient, I don't need to be correct or accurate.

visit www.aRtBeeWeb.nl (works) or Missing Manuals (tutorials & reviews) - both need an update though