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Best Lens for Landscape Photography

The best lens for landscape photography will allow you to capture stunning images of any landscape, from grand scenes to abstract details and epic skies. Most cameras are capable of capturing great landscape shots, but you need the right lenses to frame the beauty in a scene.

The appropriate lens will help you frame the best composition, resolve all of the details and should be high enough quality to give the best results. It's a good idea to have a solid grasp of how lenses work from the outset, as using the wrong lens won't give you the results you're after.

There’s no single best lens for landscapes and many committed landscape photographers will bring two or three alternatives in order to capture the perfect shot. But whether you’re a beginner or seasoned landscape photographer looking for your next lens, our top picks will get you ready to head into the great outdoors and capture beautiful landscapes at any time of year.

Weather sealing is a great feature and this illustration shows internal seals inside Olympus 12-40mm PRO II lens

How to Choose the Best Lenses for Landscape Photography

When exploring what lenses are best for landscape photography, the best place to start is to determine the best focal width for the types of scenes you most want to photograph.

1. Ultra-wide and wide-angle lenses are popular as they allow you to capture more of the scene in front of you.
2. Standard focal width lenses give a natural perspective with low distortion, similar to the field of view which the human eye sees.
3. Telephoto lenses and super telephoto lenses help you pick out details from more distant scenes. Long lens landscape photography is gaining popularity with many landscape photographers.

However, once you’ve determined the most useful focal width, it doesn’t stop there – there are many other considerations you need to make when choosing the best camera lens for landscape photography to find the perfect one.

Optical quality is important, as you’ll want the sharpest and most detailed results possible. Weather sealing is another important feature to have, just in case you get caught during a downpour without a rain cover.

Although most landscape photographers use a sturdy tripod, there’s a rise in handheld shooting, thanks to the effective optical stabilisation which many cameras and lenses now offer. If you intend to shoot handheld landscapes, lens-based optical image stabilisation is an essential feature to look out for.

Standing with giants landscape sample photo using Nikon AF-S 14-24mm F/2.8G ED lens

The Best Olympus Lenses for Landscape Photography

Olympus makes several great landscape photography micro four thirds lenses, which are extremely lightweight, making them great for travelling or hiking to your destination. Many of these Olympus lenses have some of the best features have suitable features and cover the most popular focal lengths for epic landscape shots.

An ultra-wide angle zoom lens such as the Olympus Digital ED 8-25mm f/4 PRO is perfect for capturing the grand scene. This versatile option is weather resistant, weighs just 411g and supports focus stacking to get details sharp.

Alternatively, the ED 12-40mm f/2.8 PRO is also an impressive performer, spanning a versatile wide-angle to short telephoto zoom range. This model also features weather sealing and captures impressive edge-to-edge sharpness.

For distant landscape shots the ED 40-150mm F/2.8 PRO compresses the scene beautifully. This telephoto lens offers dust and moisture sealing, excellent optics and accepts standard 72mm lens filters, which are essential in certain conditions, such as when shooting long exposure images.

Urban landscape using Nikon Z 14-30mm F/4 S lens @14mm. Camera settings: 5sec. f/4. ISO 100

Which is a Good Nikon Lens for Landscape Photography?

Nikon’s extensive lens ecosystem is perfect for landscape photographers, with numerous high-quality options for Nikon mirrorless cameras and DSLRs.

If you’re a DSLR shooter, the best Nikon wide-angle lens for landscape photography is the Nikon AF-S 16-35mm F/4G ED VR. If you prefer an even wider field of view, the AF-S 14-24mm F/2.8G ED is a great alternative. Both of these deliver outstanding optical quality with edge-to-edge sharpness and effective weather resistance, so you can capture incredible images no matter what the weather.

Alternatively, the Z 14-30mm F/4 S lens makes a brilliant choice for mirrorless system landscape photographers and includes effective image stabilisation for handheld photography. If you want a slightly longer zoom range, the Z 24-120mm F/4 S is another good option, which gives equally impressive optical quality.

Seascape with Sony FE 12-24mm F/4 G lens

Which Canon Lens is Best for Landscape Photography?

Canon is a popular brand with landscape photographers, offering brilliant quality from an extensive range of lenses for DSLR and mirrorless EOS R cameras. With so many available in a number of popular focal widths, choosing the best Canon lenses for landscape photography isn’t always a simple task.

If you want to capture wider scenes with a mirrorless camera, there are few better choices than the Canon RF 15-35mm f/2.8L IS USM. This premium wide-angle zoom lens combines L-series build quality andweather-sealing to produce outstanding images.

However, a more beginner-friendly choice, which captures an even wider field of view is the RF 14-35mm f/4L IS USM lens. Both compact and lightweight, it produces excellent image quality and can be used for any wide scene.

Choosing the Best Zoom Lens for Landscape Photography

When out photographing landscapes, you’ll often find that a zoom is more versatile than a prime, allowing you to change compositions without needing to move your equipment. This key difference between a prime lens and a zoom lens is what encourages many landscape photographers to have at least one zoom in their backpack at all times.

Made exclusively for the RF system, the Canon RF 24-105mm Lens f/4 L IS USM is hard to beat. It offers a versatile wide-angle to short telephoto zoom range, weather-sealed construction and overall impressive performance.

One of the best affordable landscape zooms for Sony cameras is the FE 12-24mm F/4 G, which is both dust and moisture resistant. You’ll be impressed not only by the image quality, but by just how compact this ultra-wide zoom is when you’re out in the field.

Fujifilm X photographers have the updated Mk II Fujifilm XF 10-24mm lens for wider scenes and the highly capable XF 16-80mm F/4.0, which covers a broad focal range with just two lenses.

Whether you’re shooting a dramatic seascape or quiet forest scene, it’s essential to have the right lens for the job. Landscape photographers tend to favour more versatile zooms over primes and choose lenses with weather sealing to keep the elements out.

Browse our extensive range of lenses to find the best optics to capture your own beautiful landscape photos today.

By Park Cameras on 08/11/2022