Sounds like your using live view. The zoom is only for focus purposes. The shot will always be what lens you have and the mm set. If you have a 50mm lens on then the picture is at 50mm, no matter if you zoom in. Take it off live view and look through the view finder. What you see is the picture you will get.
I'm impressed! I did not understand the question either, but after hearing your explanation, it sure sounds right.
There are two aspects called zoom.
To change the photograph it takes, you zoom with the lens (assuming a zoom lens), rotating the lens barrel to a different focal length number. Even if using Live View, this new zoomed view will show in the LCD, and will be used. You rotate the lens to do this zoom (on zoom lenses). A quick test should show this.
Or you can "zoom" the picture on the rear LCD, which only changes just the view of that existing picture... This is a button on the rear of the camera, and it does not change the picture the lens takes, it just magnifies the view of the LCD. The purpose is that sometimes Live View focus is easier when zoomed in larger here.