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It’s not easy to put a focal range length for the landscape photography genre, but it’s safe to say that most people think of wide and ultrawide lenses when we mention this topic. That’s not to say that telephoto lenses can’t produce exceptional landscape photos. Some of my most memorable landscape travel photos were taken using telephoto lenses. We’ve even written an article some years ago on how they can make your landscape photos stand out. But for the sake of this article, we’ll be excluding them. We showcase some of the best lenses we’ve tried and tested that can help you get great landscape photos in any condition. All of the lenses below have received at least a four-star rating in our tests

How We Test And Choose The Best Landscape Photography Lenses

  • The Phoblographer’s various product round-up features are done in-house. Our philosophy is simple: you wouldn’t get a Wagyu beef steak review from a lifelong vegetarian. And you wouldn’t get photography advice from someone who doesn’t touch the product. We only recommend gear we’ve fully reviewed in these roundups.
  • If you’re wondering why your favorite product didn’t make the cut, there’s a chance it’s on another list. If we haven’t reviewed it, we won’t recommend it. This method keeps our lists packed with industry-leading knowledge. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission. You can read more about our ethics on this on our Disclaimer page.
  • When we test products we’ve got various things in mind. First off, we consider who might want to buy the product and what they might do with it. With that in mind, we try to tackle at least three genres of photography with that product in a variety of situations. For example, if a lens has weather resistance, then we’ll test it accordingly with a weather-resistant camera. We also test the autofocus of the lens in continuous mode, single mode, with exposure preview effects, without those effects, and then with all the major image quality parameters. These days, no one really makes a bad lens — but some are far better than others. And that’s what we’re trying to find in our reviews.
  • In all of our roundups, we’re basing our findings on the reviews that we’ve done. We’re choosing a favorite, but we’re also giving photographers a bunch of others that they might like, depending on how they shoot.

Our Choice Amongst the Best Landscape Photography Lenses You Can Buy In 2024: Tamron 17-28mm F2.8 Di III RXD

Supremely sharp, fast to autofocus, and weather-sealed (great to shoot landscapes in the rain), the Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 Di III RXD is one fantastic lens. It’s almost small enough to be a prime lens, giving you extra room in your camera bag to keep more accessories. And it’s small because it’s an internally zooming lens. Because it zooms internally, there are fewer places for moisture and dust to get inside and disrupt the way it works. The lens also has sealing around the mount, a very important feature as the seal keeps moisture out. The last thing you want in your narrow aperture images is dust creeping in on your sensor, showing up as spots in your photos. In our extensive review, we noted:

The Tamron 17-28mm f2.8 Di III RXD is a lens both professionals and enthusiasts will enjoy. If you’re not in love with the size, you’ll be seduced by the image quality. You’ll then stay for the autofocus performance. But most of all, you’ll appreciate how reliable this lens is due to the build quality. Photographers who want a trinity of f2.8 zooms can get it from Tamron. Both their 17-28mm and their 28-75mm lenses are great. If you need and mostly shoot at the under 100mm range, then this lens and the 28-75mm f2.8 will be perfect for you.

Tech Specs

Tech specs are taken from the Adorama listing:

  • Lens Mount: Lens Mount: Sony E Mount
  • Lens Format: Lens Format: Full-Frame
  • Lens Type: Wide Angle Zoom Lens
  • Maximum Aperture: Maximum Aperture: f/2.8
  • Mirrorless: Zoom: 17-28mm
  • Special Features: Aspherical, Bokeh Effect, Weather Resistant

Get yours today from Adorama

For Some Photographers, These Might Be The Best Budget Landscape Lenses To Choose From

Here are some other great options for landscape photography that might appeal to you.

Viltrox AF 16mm f1.8

The only reason this lens didn’t take the top spot on our list was that the Tamron pipped it for being slightly more capable as a zoom lens. Otherwise, if ultrawide landscapes are your thing, don’t think twice about this one. The Viltrox AF 16mm f1.8 is the absolute sharpest ultrawide prime I’ve seen with zero distortion at such a wide focal length. You’re getting weather sealing and dust resistance; the lens mount is also made of metal, which aids in this. And while landscape photos are often taken while stopping the lens down, it’s great to be able to shoot at f1.8 when you need to. In our review we said:

The autofocus on the Viltrox AF 16mm f1.8 lens is blazing quick; the sharpness is incredible for a lens at this price point, and the build quality is exceptional. The distortion? Almost non-existent. Weather sealing? You got it. Want a physical aperture ring? It’s there for you. Worried about your 77m screw-on filters being left unused? Not anymore; this lens has no bulbous front element. In short, Viltrox may have just created the perfect ultrawide lens for amateur and professional photographers and videographers. Currently available for Sony’s FE mount, it’ll soon make its way to more brands’ cameras. This lens could and should have other manufacturers shaking in their boots. It’s a fascinatingly good lens for such an affordable price, and it will tick off all the boxes that many photographers (and videographers) looking for an ultrawide lens would have.

Hasselblad 38mm F2.5 XCD

Sure it’s pricey, but it’s not a lesser landscape lens by any means. The Hasselblad 38mm F2.5 XCD is one of the finest medium format lenses we have used for landscape photography. It’s lightweight, compact, and comfortable to photograph with on the longest workdays. Distortions are minimal, and imperfections are easily corrected. We had high praise for it in our review:

The Hasselblad 38mm f2.5 XCD lens is lightweight, compact, and a perfect travel companion. It is comfortable to photograph with on the longest work days. The focal length is ideal for landscapes, cityscapes, street photography, architecture, commercial, still life, and fun portraits. Hasselblad’s 38mm f2.5 lens satisfies a wishlist for medium format photographers wanting faster primes. And speaking of fast, it is swift to focus in well-lit environments. Backlit images can take a little longer. It also sometimes focuses on the background instead of your subject for macro-type images. Manual focus comes in quite handy here. Other than that, there’s a lot to like about this lens.

IRIX 15mm F2.4 FireFly

More famous for their Cine Lenses, Irix does make a few lenses aimed at photographers too. One of the better ones from this lot of theirs is the IRIX 15mm F2.4 FireFly. Like the pricier IRIX 15mm f2.4 BlackStone, this version too has great weather sealing. It’s got a massive 92mm front element, which is something to be seriously considered if you’re someone that uses circular screw on or magnetic filters. In our review we said:

The IRIX 15mm f2.4 FireFly has lots of the benefits of its bigger brother with very few drawbacks. The IRIX 15mm f2.4 FireFly has weather sealing incorporated into the lens everywhere but the front of the lens. So if you’re shooting, be sure to keep the front covered or get a filter for it. Granted, it’s a massive front filter. Despite the lack of weather sealing and the plastic body, it’s still designed and built very well; nothing about it feels cheap. In hands of varying sizes, the IRIX 15mm f2.4 FireFly will feel comfortable due to not only its chunky design but also because of the rubber grip.

Sigma 14-24mm F2.8 DG DN Art

In terms of color rendition, the Sigma 14-24mm F2.8 DG DN Art has to be among our top picks. Every sort of photographer using this lens will feel satisfied with the results. The best things about it are the colors and the sharpness. It’s capable of rendering bokeh, but it’s not something you’d pick this lens for often. Instead, accept it as a wide-angle zoom, that gives you a deeper depth of field. We had high praise for it in our review:

The Sigma 14-24mm f2.8 DG DN Art is a good lens in many ways. Not only does it have solid image quality, but you’ll be hard-pressed to best its build quality. For Sony E mount, you’ve got very good options with this, Sony’s 16-35mm f2.8 G Master, and Tamron’s 17-28mm f2.8 lenses. However, this lens is the best compliment to Sony’s trinity of zoom lenses. Event photographers, photojournalists, and landscape photographers will really enjoy this lens mated to their camera. Couple this with the autofocus speed and you’ve got something that’s bound to stay in your bag. It’s heavy and large for Sony, but with the L mount, it’s pretty much the same size as everything else.

Olympus 12-45mm f4 PRO

OM System, as they are known nowadays, is a brand gaining traction among older photographers who want to cut down on their camera gear. I know quite a few photographers who have switched to them to reduce the load on their backs when traveling for landscape photography. Among their more popular lenses for landscape photography is the Olympus 12-45mm f4 PRO. In our review, we said:

I really like Olympus 12-45mm f4 PRO as an enthusiast’s lens. And that’s what it’s being targeted to. This is a fantastic walkaround lens that you’ll enjoy mounting on your camera. It’s as small as a prime and it’s versatile. You never need to stop it down really. But where I find the lens to be lacking is more so in its initial design. I wish that it was a faster aperture zoom. That’s what Olympus really needs.

Fujifilm XF 16-80mm f4 R OIS WR Lens

We would have preferred this to be an f2.8 lens, but you don’t always get what you wish for. As its name indicates, the Fujifilm XF 16-80mm f4 R OIS WR is a weather-resistant and optically image-stabilized zoom lens featuring a dedicated aperture control ring. Weighing in at just 0.97 lbs / 440 g, it’s pretty lightweight as well. We loved using it during our review:

The Fujifilm 16-80mm f4 R OIS WR delivers a ton of great features in an affordable package that is compact, lightweight, and well-built. It combines versatile focal range coverage, weather sealing, and optical image stabilization, with overall excellent image quality. While it’s not the sharpest zoom in Fujifilm’s lens lineup (specifically towards the corners), you’re getting a lot for your money with the 16-80mm f4. Would we have preferred a brighter maximum constant aperture of f2.8? Definitely. Corner to corner sharpness? Who wouldn’t? But that would be a pipe dream for the MSRP of $799. You get what you pay for, and you’re getting a hell of a bargain with the Fujifilm XF 16-80mm f4, folks. Its combination of excellent overall image quality, reliable performance, form factor, feature set, and build quality should be more than adequate for most photographers.

Nikon Z 14-30mm F4 S

You can argue that the Nikon 14-24mm f2.8 Z lens is a better lens, but it also comes at a much more premium price tag. The first of their ultrawides for the Z mount, the Nikon Z 14-30mm F4 S is a great lens that can produce some stunning landscape photos with sharpness to die for. In our review we noted:

The Nikon NIKKOR Z 14-30mm f4 S is the first native ultra-wide angle lens for Nikon’s Z mount Full Frame mirrorless cameras, covering a focal range favored by many architectural, landscape, and travel photographers. Slight vignetting is noticeable when shooting with the lens at its widest focal length, but rarely to the point where it becomes distracting. The 14-30mm f4 S for Nikon Z cameras produces remarkable images with outstanding sharpness and little to no distracting aberrations, and is constructed to withstand the elements while maintaining a diminutive footprint

Canon RF 15-35mm F2.8 L IS USM

What’s not to like about an f2.8 wide angle lens that’s weather sealed to perfection. The Canon RF 15-35mm F2.8 L IS USM brings to their mirrorless lineup one of their most popular DSLR era lenses. In our review we stated:

The Canon RF 15-35mm f2.8 L IS USM has truly won me over. Despite a couple of minor things that should be expected (vignetting and a little distortion) with a lens like this, the Canon RF 15-35mm f2.8 L IS USM is perfect, and it would make an excellent addition to any Canon photographer’s library of lenses.

Using This Guide To The Best Landscape Photography Lenses Of 2024

If you’re considering purchasing anything from this list of the best budget landscape lenses, consider the following:

  • All the product images and sample photos in these roundups are shot by our staff. In fact, we don’t talk about products at length in roundups like this unless we’ve done full reviews of them. But you can surely know that we’ve done all the research ourselves.
  • Does landscape photography mystify you? Here’s a cheatsheet to help you
  • We’d never recommend a product to you that we haven’t tested or that we really didn’t like. You can reference our linked reviews, for more information on this.

Picking the Right One For You

If you’re still a bit confused as to the right landscape lens for you, here are some questions to ask yourself

  • What’s your budget?
  • How will you use the product?
  • What lighting situations are you in, and how will that affect what you’re doing? Our reviews hyperlinked in this article can help with that.
  • Are you traveling a lot with it?
  • Will you be using it in a situation that’s a bit rougher?
  • Who else uses this product? How are they using it?
  • What’s so appealing about this product that I can’t get from what I have already or something else?
  • When will I really have time to use this product?
  • Where will I bring this product?
  • How will this product help bring me joy and joy in my photography?