Finding the right SLR Camera Digital Lenses made simple and easy! Choose from the best range of SLR Camera Digital Lenses and Cameras from Nikon, Canon, Sigma, Tamron, Sony et al. Below is a simple explanation of what to look for.
What Brand Is Your Digital SLR Camera?
Before we begin, which brand of digital SLR camera are you buying a lens for? If you haven’t already bought a camera, then click here to read more about purchasing a camera.
Lenses are not interchangeable between brands. For example, Nikon, Pentax, Sony lenses cannot be used on Canon SLR Cameras. Each brand uses its on unique technology and lense mount (where the lens connects to the camera body), though all working to the same principle.
Branded Camera Digital Lenses are more expensive and this may not suit your budget. However you can buy third party lenses that are significantly cheaper from makers like Sigma, Tamron etc but you must check that the lens mount is compatible with your Digital SLR Camera model.
Third party lenses are great value for money and provide excellent quality these days. However some advanced users find there is a slightly noticeable difference compared to the equivalent branded lenses. Often the difference can be due to minute compatibility issues rather than the actual quality of the lens’ construction. Most people will find this negligible and happy to pay 30-50% less for a third party lens.
Decide on a Lens
Follow this process and you will find yourself with 2-3 options to compare. Write down your options as you complete each step. It’s well worth it!
1. Decide on focal length: What will you use the camera for?
|
Lens |
Focal Length |
Use |
|
Wide Angle |
28mm or less |
Indoor and Landscape |
|
Standard |
35mm to 85mm |
Portraits/Parties etc |
|
Telephoto |
100mm to 300mm |
Action shots/Sports/Portraits |
|
Super-Telephoto |
300mm or more |
Sports/Distance/Wildlife shots |
You can buy some very flexible lenses with a very wide focal length range (more on the this below), but the above are the typical options available.
-
- 28mm SLR Camera Digital Lenses
-
- 50mm SLR Camera Digital Lenses
-
- 70mm SLR Camera Digital Lenses
-
- 210mm SLR Camera Digital Lenses
Do you want a prime lens or zoom lens
Zoom Lenses
Zoom lenses have an adjustable focal length range. Most ameras come with a standard 18-55 or 18-70mm lens.
Note: the bigger the difference between the two numbers indicates a more powerful lens and greater versatility in the type of shots you can take. This flexibility is great, especially when you are just starting out.
The focal length range of any zoom lens will have two numbers:
Wide angle: the smaller number
Telephoto: the larger number
Prime Lenses
Prime lenses have a fixed focal length. If you want to change the angle of view, then you will need to physically move the camera to accommodate or change the prime lens to a suitable focal length. These are often used by professionals because they take much clearer photographs. If your subject is in a fixed position and you want to spend some time capturing the perfect shot, then these are great. But if you are wandering about a new city or park etc then you will probably need to bring a range of lenses to accommodate the different subjects you will want to photograph. Not particularly convenient
3. Select the desired maximum aperture
The maximum aperture of the lens you choose can have a significant impact on the types of photos you can take with your digital SLR camera.
However, you have to make sure that you don’t get carried away and get a lens with a wider maximum aperture than you need.
Why? Because the wider the lens gets, the more it costs (and I’m not talking nickles and dimes here).
Since maximum aperture is directly related to aperture, let’s talk about that one first.
Aperture
The aperture is a hole that lets light in through the lens and into the camera. The size of this whole can be regulated by adjusting the aperture.
The standard scale for aperture numbers is as follows:
|
1.4 |
2.0 |
2.8 |
4.0 |
5.6 |
8.0 |
11 |
16 |
22 |
32 |
NOTE:
- Small Aperture Number (2.8) = More Light due to a bigger Aperture
- Larg Aperture Number (22) = Less light due to a smaller aperture.
It is the opposite of what you may have assumed.
This is what it graphically looks like (though not to scale!)
Most lenses today can be set to f/16, however not every lens can be set to f/1.4 (the largest aperture). The latter is called the maximum aperture.
A lens with a bigger maximum aperture can let more light in, therefore take better pictures indoors or under conditions of low light.
4. Choose between branded lenses or third party lenses
There are two options when it comes to lenses:
Branded: the same brand lens as the camera.
3rd party: made by a company other than the brand of the camera body.
NOTE: Lenses from the major manufacturers are not compatible with each other’s camera bodies eg Nikon lenses can only be used on Nikon cameras.
Some 3rd party lenses can be interchangeable between camera brands, but this depends entirely on the camera mount. Always check the compatibility of the camera mount when buying a 3rd party lens. It can make for an expensive mistake.
The historical formula when it comes to choosing between branded and 3rd party lenses was price v quality. 3rd Party lenses have long been considered to be of lesser and even poor quality.
This quality gap has now been closed by Tamron and Sigma, two of the biggest 3rd party lens makers. Their lenses offer excellent quality with barely discernable differences for the purposes of most enthusiasts.
Compatibility issues may still arise with 3rd party lenses and professionals still have a strong preference for branded lenses because of the continued quality superiority.
For most enthusiasts, 3rd party lenses are more than adequate and well worth considering, though you will need to buy a Nikon or Canon camera as 3rd party manufacturers tend to make lenses for these companies more so than the others.
If you are still having difficulty deciding and you are just starting out, go with the 3rd party lens until you confirm your enthusiasm for photography. If it just the occasional outing, then they will do you just fine. If you find you want to take things more seriously, then you haven’t lost anything through buying a pretty good quality lens.
5. Read lots and lots of online reviews: Google your options and read reviews. There are some very good blog reviews and user recommendations online. Just type in the “lens model + review”
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