A new lens

Last week I bought a flash for a friend from a couple who'd inherited the camera gear from their uncle and they also had a wide angle lens on offer... I bought that as it was a nice opportunity.
Today I tried it in use and noticed that I need to get used to its wide angle and especially to the exposure of light; the lighter parts are easily overexposed or the darker parts underexposed... HDR will do the trick, I imagine, what's a new learning to master.
Do need to try this lens more and when I notice it's not my angle of view, there's always an escape for me as I'd please my Benjamin lots with this lens as a gift.