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Best Lens for Landscape Photography

Landscape photography covers a huge range, from wide sweeping views to a small patch of light far away on a hillside, so no single focal length suits every scene. Wide-angle options get most of the attention, but standard and telephoto focal lengths can be just as useful, depending on what you want to include, leave out or make the star of the picture.

The best place to start is with the pictures you want to make. Do you love big open views, or do you prefer picking out smaller details within a scene? Once you know that, focal length, weight, weather protection and filters become much easier to prioritise.

If focal length and aperture still feel confusing, our guide to camera lenses explains the basics before you start narrowing down the options.

Weather sealing helps keep out dust and moisture when you're working outdoors. This illustration shows the seals inside a weather-resistant lens.

Start with the picture, not the focal length

It's easy to link landscapes with ultra-wide lenses, but a wider view isn't automatically a better one. Focal length is the number in millimetres that tells you how much of the scene fits into the picture. A small number shows more, and a big number shows less. Together with where you stand, it shapes how the whole photograph feels.

A wide view can make things close to you look bold and give a sense of scale. A longer focal length can leave out distractions and draw attention to what's far away. Standard focal lengths sit in the middle and suit a huge range of scenes.

That's why keen landscape photographers often end up owning more than one. But none of this is a rule. If you're going on long walks, a single versatile zoom is usually more useful than a bag full of choices.

Wide angles for big scenes

Wide and ultra-wide views let you fit a lot into the picture. That helps when there's little room to step back or when something interesting is right in front of you. They're popular for open scenery, buildings and interiors, but they take some care.

Fitting more in can make faraway features look tiny. Look for shapes, paths or other features close to you that lead the eye through the picture. This is called foreground interest, and it's often what makes a wide photograph work. Rather than assuming wider is always better, ask what you want the viewer to notice.

Standard focal lengths for a natural view

You don't have to go extremely wide. Standard zooms, which run from a fairly wide view up to a short telephoto, can handle a huge range of scenery while staying easy to carry.

They're especially useful when you'd rather simplify a scene than exaggerate it. One zoom can cover wider views, closer details and everything in between without any swapping, which makes it a practical first choice for many people.

Telephotos for distant details

Some of the most interesting landscape photographs are made with longer focal lengths. A telephoto lets you pick out a small part of a scene, such as layers of hills, distant buildings, trees, a patch of light or a pattern that would disappear in a wider view.

It also helps when you can't move. You can't always walk closer to what you're photographing, so changing focal length may be the only way to tighten the framing.

If this way of seeing appeals to you, our guide to long lens landscape photography explores the technique in more detail.

Prime or zoom?

A prime has one fixed focal length, while a zoom covers a range. Both can produce excellent results, but zooms have a clear advantage outdoors. Being able to adjust the framing without moving your feet is a big help whenever you can't easily step forwards or backwards.

A prime is often smaller and lighter, and having just one view can make you think harder about your composition. If you already enjoy working at a particular focal length, there's no reason not to use one for landscapes.

For most people building a small kit, though, a zoom gives more flexibility from a single purchase. Our prime vs zoom lens guide looks at the differences in more detail.

Do you need to spend a lot?

You don't need the most expensive model in a range to make excellent landscape photographs. Some of the features that raise the price matter far more in other types of photography.

A very wide maximum aperture is brilliant in low light, but landscapes are often shot with a much smaller opening because it keeps more of the scene sharp from front to back. Very fast autofocus is a huge advantage for sport and wildlife, but it matters less when the scene isn't moving.

There are still good reasons to spend more. Better control of flare, the washed-out glare you can get when shooting towards the sun, is helpful when you're pointing into the light. Weather sealing is reassuring in rain, sea spray and dust. Sharpness towards the corners of the picture can also matter when you want fine detail all the way across.

Weight deserves just as much thought. A bigger, heavier model might perform beautifully, but that advantage fades if you're walking several miles to reach a location. A smaller one that you're happy to carry often ends up being the one you use most.

Filters, weather and working outdoors

Landscape photography puts your kit in very different conditions from shooting indoors. Weather resistance is useful around rain, sea spray, sand and dust, although it doesn't mean waterproof, and sealed equipment still needs looking after.

It's also worth checking filter compatibility before you buy, particularly with ultra-wide options. Some have large, curved front elements that can't take ordinary screw-in filters, although dedicated holders are sometimes available.

Two types of filter are especially popular for landscapes. A neutral density (ND) filter darkens the scene so you can use a longer exposure, which blurs moving water or clouds. A polarising filter reduces reflections and can deepen skies and make foliage look richer. Our guide to using ND filters for long exposure photography explains one of the most popular techniques.

Do you need image stabilisation?

It's helpful, but not essential. Stabilisation reduces blur caused by the small movements of your hands. It makes the most difference when you're holding the camera rather than using a tripod, when the light is fading or when you're using longer focal lengths. Depending on your system, it may be built into the lens, the camera body or both.

A tripod is still the better tool for long exposures, carefully planned scenes and keeping the framing identical from one shot to the next. If you mostly walk and shoot handheld, remember that the weight of a tripod becomes part of the decision too.

Remember your sensor size

The view you get from a focal length depends on the camera it's attached to. Full-frame is the usual reference point. APS-C and Micro Four Thirds cameras have smaller sensors, so the same focal length shows a narrower view. This is known as the crop factor.

Most APS-C systems have a crop factor of around 1.5x, Canon APS-C is around 1.6x and Micro Four Thirds is 2x. Multiply the focal length by that number to find the full-frame view it's most similar to. The focal length itself hasn't changed. A smaller sensor doesn’t actually give the lens more reach; it gives a narrower field of view. Given we’ve just carefully corrected the preceding explanation, “extra reach” slightly reintroduces the misconception.

Choosing your first landscape lens

Before adding anything new, look at what your current kit stops you from doing. If you're always wishing you could fit more into the picture, look at something wider. If distant details get lost in the background, more reach could make a much bigger difference.

Your own photographs can help you decide. Most photo apps show the focal length used for each picture, so you can check whether you were nearly always at one end of your zoom. That's a strong clue about what to look for next.

If neither is a regular frustration, a versatile standard zoom may already cover most of what you need. Spending more doesn't automatically mean better photographs, and there's no need to carry several focal lengths if you're happy making pictures with just one.

A full kit might one day cover wide, standard and telephoto views, but it doesn't have to happen all at once. Build around how you actually photograph rather than trying to cover every possible focal length.

Finding what works for you

The best landscape lens is the one that helps you frame the scenes you're drawn to. Wide angles can emphasise scale and foreground interest, standard focal lengths are flexible, and telephotos can pick out distant details and simplify busy views.

Think about how far you walk, whether you use filters, the weather you usually shoot in and how much you're willing to carry. Those practical questions can matter just as much as how sharp the pictures look.

Browse our range of camera lenses when you're ready to compare options that fit your camera.

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By Park Cameras on 03/01/2024