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Best Camera Lenses

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Best Camera Lenses

Aftermarket camera lenses will expand your horizons in digital photography (you can only go so far with the stock camera lens that came with your camera!) Get much more out of your shots with something bigger, better, wider or faster.

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Deciding On a Camera Lens...

Pointers for setting out on the journey:

Camera lensOnce you've mastered the basics of using your new camera (hopefully a digital SLR), you can now move on to the next level with a great lens. Camera lenses will enable you to to add filters, wide angle shots, farther zooms, and enjoy greater overall results. The opportunities that will open to you and your new lens won't stop at taking great family and recreational pictures - but even the possibility to become a freelance photographer, once you've improved your skills and eye for detail.

Before Deciding On A Lens...
It is always best to get educated about what the specifications of a camera lens mean, and decide which one is right for you, based on the style of photography you'll be doing. Of course, you'll also want to get a camera lens that is compatible with your camera.

A Big Purchase & Big Decision
Be sure you are selecting the lens only if it is in line with what you are looking to do in photography. Choosing a budget lens will result in 'buyer's remorse,' as you will be seeking out a new lens in a few short years. Selecting a very top-of-the-line lens might result in a lens that has features far above and beyond what you were looking for. Buying a wide-angle lens will limit you to wide-angle shots. Be sure to educate yourself, and then read all descriptions and customer testimonials before making your decision, and good luck!

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Other Considerations for a New Camera Lens

A digital camera with no camera lensLow Light Situations
Want to take pictures in low light settings? Go for a fast lens (f/2.8 or below), since faster lenses will yield better results. Slow lenses are known to struggle when focusing in low light, and will undoubtedly fail to do so by taking blurry and un-focused pictures.

Photographing Motion
Want to photograph objects in motion -- perhaps, sports players running or animals in their natural habitat? Once again, you'll want a faster lens for this. It also helps when your camera has a setting where it can snap multiples, so that you can pick and choose which shot looks the best out of a sequence.

Touching Up Photos
Are you a Photoshop pro, or do you have Adobe Photoshop Elements for photography? If so, you probably won't need to buy that Fisheye Lens after all, the effect can be replicated with these computer programs. While Photoshop is rather expensive, Photoshop Elements is affordable. If you're freelancing, you can even claim it as a business expense, along with your new camera lens.

About Lens Zoom
"Do I need a lens with an extravagant zoom capability?" It depends on what you want to do. Far zooming camera lenses can reduce sharpness, while mid-range zooms are helpful for most (if not all) photographic situations, retain sharpness, and give you a more desired output. Use a zoom lens if you primarily take pictures of distance-related subjects...otherwise, don't bother with them.

Manual vs. Auto Focus Lenses
As you get more into photography, you'll need a Manual focus lens for custom-tailored results. It's generally a bad idea to buy a lens that does not have Manual focus as an option (most have both Manual and Automatic). With a manual focus camera lens, you can add a personal touch to the way your pictures come out: from streaked-out neon lights to powdery white exposures.

Camera & Lens Terminology

Know your 'lens features' before you buy!

The most intimidating part of buying a new camera lens for any beginner is that you have to understand features, ins and outs of lenses - most of which you will not know of, unless you've taken a course. Once you start understanding the intricacies of a camera lens and begin using one, the benefits of having bought an aftermarket lens will become very apparent. Here's an overview of what you must know before you consider buying a lens:
  • Aperture: The size of the lens hole or opening, regulating how much light goes through. It is measured in "f-stops" (for instance, f4-5.6 is larger than f10). Higher aperture = less light going through, and vice-versa.
  • DPI: Dots per inch, or the image's resolution. Higher DPI means better image quality.
  • Fisheye lens: A lens that gives takes pictures with a "bloated" effect, where the image appears ball shaped.
  • Focal Length: The measure of distance between the camera lens and the focal plane of the camera. When focal length increases, field of view decreases.
  • IS: Image Stabilization - a technology using gyroscopes to reduce the blurriness typically caused from your shaking hand (or even your pulse!)
  • ISO: A measure of light sensitivity. Higher ISO = greater sensitivity.
  • Macro mode: A digital camera mode that allows you to get an extreme closeup on a subject's detail (skin pores, flower pollen, etc).
  • Megapixel: One million pixels. This dictates the quality of an image. A 1 megapixel camera takes much lower quality pictures than an 8 megapixel camera.
  • MM: Millimeters. All lenses are classified by their focal length in millimeters.
  • SLR: "Single Lens Reflex," a term that means that the camera's viewfinder looks through the same lens that exposes the image sensor. Digital SLRs are superior to non-SLR cameras because they show the effects of the lens settings, and more accurately show what the final image looks like in general.
  • Wide Angle Lens: Sometimes called a "Panoramic" lens, these lenses have extremely wide fields of view only otherwise possible by taking multiple pictures with a non-panoramic lens, and stitching them side by side with panorama software.
  • Zoom: Optical zoom is always better than digital zoom. Optical zoom manually extends the view, while digital zoom stretches pixels in an attempt to achieve the same result.

Interchanging Camera Lenses

Another common question

The best part about a digital SLR camera is that its lenses can be removed and interchanged with others. If you don't have an SLR, you'll eventually want one for this capability, as other cameras will hit that "glass ceiling" of productivity as you become more familiar and eager to grow in the world of photography.

"Can I use an X lens on my Y camera?"
These questions go on and on amongst matching up different cameras with different brand-name camera lenses. The answer is technically "yes", with the usage of various adapters that are available on the aftermarket, which can retail for approximately $200. As your digital camera manual most likely suggests - using another brand lens on your digital camera is not recommended, and it is generally advised to use lenses of the same brand, or those that are listed as compatible.

Doing What's Recommended
The camera company is not saying this to boost sales for their own lenses, but for your product's proper maintenance. A general rule of thumb is to stick with the same brand lens of your camera's brand. I doubt you'll want to take a chance with something as valuable as your digital camera and new lens!

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Best Digital SLR Camera Lenses

You can't lose with these best selling, top-rated digital SLR lenses. It's no surprise to see Canon and Nikon constantly head-to-head in these 'best of' lineups: both companies produce superb cameras and lenses.
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Best Image Stabilization Camera Lenses

Shaky hands, wind, or even your own pulse will be all that it takes to ruin a picture. If you typically run into these problems, a lens with advanced "vibration reduction" or image stabilization features will eliminate your problem. Don't worry - that's not their only selling feature. They also enjoy resolution, zoom and capabilities that other lenses have. Here are lenses that are well known for their optical stabilizers:
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Best Wide Angle Camera Lenses

Whether you need a wide shot of the beach, a New York City skyline view or anything else 'fitting' enough for such an outcome, snap on your wide angle lens and enjoy the results. Here's a list of the top-rated camera lenses capable of taking wide-angle images:
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Best Macro Camera Lenses

Shots that detail minute details not clearly seen by the human eye, such as pollen on a flower petal, the texture of a butterfly wing or the weathered cracks on an old glove will need top-notch macro capabilities. These macro lenses specialize in taking such shots. Simply connect one to your SLR, enter macro mode, and you'll be able to take the most interesting, curiosity-inspiring images of your career:
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Best Fish Eye Camera Lenses

Strange name - interesting results. Fish Eye lenses will produce images that appear as though they're being looked at inside of a crystal ball (if that makes sense). Imagine a spherical image that looks similar to what you see when peering through the peephole of your front door. There's a lot of interesting stuff being done with Fish Eye photography, and you'll need one of these lenses to do it:
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Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Camera Lens 

Our spotlight camera lens

Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Camera Lens

Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Camera Lens

Amazon Price: $112.30 (as of 02/16/2012)Buy Now

* 50mm standard lens with f/1.8 maximum aperture
* Traditional Gauss-type optical design is extremely sharp
* Focuses as close as 18 inches for extreme close-ups
* Ideal for natural-looking shots; excellent color balance
* Measures 2.7 inches in diameter; 1-year warranty

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