What lens is recommended for landscape?

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Gnat

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nathanael
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I'm fairly new to photography and have read through many articles and forums which I have found to be very useful learning about aperture and various different formats.

I have bought a Nikon D5200 with the idea of taking it on holiday with me this summer, getting some nice landscape pictures up in Cumbria is the ultimate aim.

But with my newly found love for photography I am seeing a lot of nice photos around the place of extremely sharp landscapes with a great DOF.

Currently I just have the standard lens that Nikon supplies with the camera (Nikon AFS DX Nikkor 18-55mm F/3.5-5.6G VR) however I realize with this I wont get the quality of picture I am on the search for. So I wanted to ask what lens would someone with more experience use, in the past I have used much lower quality compact cameras however when you take a picture the quality is extremely low compared to what I have seen people achieve with a DSLR. Which is why I headed in the same direction in order to get the quality with detail, in all the thin strands of grass and the amazing detail in the fur of an animal.

First I am looking at what lens to purchase to get the landscape pictures and then I will look towards animals and detail, however if there is a recommended 2 in one type lens that would also be of interest to me.

What would you all recommend?
 
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Depends on how you shoot landscapes.

When I used crop I used a 17-55mm never felt like I needed anything wider. Now on FX I use a 18-35.

Tokina 11-16 is always a good shout for Landscape for most people on DX though.

I'm not a fan of superzooms so I won't recommend one.
 
you have hit it on the head with the DOF statement as thats the key I think.

I think landscape toggers use a small F stop maybe F14 and a slow exposure on a low ISO 100? on a tripod for that kind of look?
 
I take it the best way to go is to have a selection of lenses and not an all in one such as the Nikon AF-S DX 18-300 f/3.5-5.6 ED VR Lens ?
 
Gnat said:
I take it the best way to go is to have a selection of lenses and not an all in one such as the Nikon AF-S DX 18-300 f/3.5-5.6 ED VR Lens ?
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not realy your current lens will go as low as 18mm and is I think F3.5 to F(a lot) lanscapes generally you use a wider part of the lens to fit more in.
 
Gnat said:
What lens do you use yourself?
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When I am doing those types of piccies I use my 18-105 kit lens.
I would like to go wider such as a tokina 11-16 (i think) but thats more for close up wide type shots rather than landscape pics.
 
i think it all depends on what your taking a photo of the norm is a uwa like 11-16 or a 10-20,or a tilt&shift lens
 
Should I have possibly got a full frame camera instead of a DX, I could possibly get my hands on a full frame if I have gone down the wrong road for a landscape picture camera.
 
Gnat said:
Should I have possibly got a full frame camera instead of a DX, I could possibly get my hands on a full frame if I have gone down the wrong road for a landscape picture camera.
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You've haven't chosen the wrong route, you need to give yourself more time to learn the basics before jumping into the FF world..

The 18-55 you have should be capable of taking good landscape shots, o.k kit lenses aren't the sharpest but nonetheless should be pretty decent...

I'm just wondering why you're thinking of new lenses/camera bodies, is that you've taken shots you are unhappy with, rather than the lens this could be more to do with technique so spending your cash on new equipment might not help until you've allowed yourself the time to develop your knowledge/skills

Simon
 
With my last question in mind I decided to search up on it, finding them both to have different benefits over the other. So I see if I get a full sensor lens with my cropped sensor camera I am then able to get a picture from the centre of the lens which is less distorted than the outside. Does that mean I would be better buying a full sensor lens and using that anyway instead of a cropped sensor lens, then I am getting less distortion in my pictures anyway?
 
I used to use a Tokina 11-16mm on a crop camera and I loved it. The image quality was superb for the money.

If you then go on to look for something a little longer then the Tamron 28-75mm f2.8 is also a great budget lens.

Going even longer then either a Tamron or Sigma 70-200mm are great value and very good quality.
 
There is no specific lens for Landscapes. All lenses will take great Landscape shots. The deciding factor is the style you wish to take.

My personal favourite is 17mm full frame ultra wide angle shots with a strong foreground interest.
Others like using the 70-200mm range which can give you compressed feel to the image.
Ultimately though 10 different people will give you potentially 10 different focal lengths that they like to use for landscapes

I wouldn't worry about full frame just yet. The kit you have will serve you well.
When I started out I had just a Canon 1000D and a standard 18-55mm kit lens and I used it solid for 18 months before I changed camera and lens.
 
Gnat said:
With my last question in mind I decided to search up on it, finding them both to have different benefits over the other. So I see if I get a full sensor lens with my cropped sensor camera I am then able to get a picture from the centre of the lens which is less distorted than the outside. Does that mean I would be better buying a full sensor lens and using that anyway instead of a cropped sensor lens, then I am getting less distortion in my pictures anyway?
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Full frame has advantages for landscapes such as greater detail due to the larger sensor but it also has downsides which at the moment might be even more problematic for you...

a FF camera needs VERY good lenses to make the most out of the increased resolution so you're talking a lot of cash, they also have inherently less depth of field so if you're struggling to achieve sharp shots on a crop camera you're likely to struggle more with a FF. There are plenty of excellent landscape lenses for crop sensor cameras so buying a FF lens to use with your current model isn't necessary.

It really is best to first develop your focusing technique, composition skills and get out in some good lighting...you'll then produce some decent shots and be in a better position to judge whether you need to make the jump to full frame.
 
As others have said there's no one good lens for landscapes, it depends what you're trying to achieve. I've been doing just fine with a 18-55 kit lens. Don't be tempted to fall into the "I'm shooting a landscape, must go as wide as possible" trap. Using the zoom end of the range can produce equally stunning results if you see part of a landscape that you want to isolate.

That said, my next purchases will probably be the Tokina 11-16mm and then a 70-200mm as I enjoy both styles (and love shiny new gear).
 
GNAT I think your not taking on board what people are saying about improving your technique, the kit you have is very capable of good results, develop those first.
 
Thanks all it has been very interesting and useful, I have taken a lot on board and I will go out and improve my photography and then possibly consider in what direction to head as my experience grows.
 
+1 for the Tokina 11-16, the optimum choice imo.

If you're budget can stretch further then the Nikon 17-55 or Nikon 12-24 f/4G

I'd opt for the Tokina though, it's a great lens.
 
I have to agree with many of the statements above. Work on your photographic skills first then worry about kit later. If you we're to buy for example a new wide angle or higher quality lens without progressing your technique you still won't get the results your after.

Mainly I use my sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 which I think is a great lens. If I'm not using that I have a Pentax 17-70mm f/4.

Landscape photography can become a very expensive hobby when you start looking into other kit for example filters. So I would say really take your time & consider whether your buying the right thing.
 
Hi Gnat, I've been using kit lens for landscapes for two years and learning basics along the way. It's no good wasting money on expensive lens if you can't master the technique of what your trying to achieve. Learn your craft, experiment get better than push on with what you need to go that stage further.
 
woody12 said:
Hi Gnat, I've been using kit lens for landscapes for two years and learning basics along the way. It's no good wasting money on expensive lens if you can't master the technique of what your trying to achieve. Learn your craft, experiment get better than push on with what you need to go that stage further.
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woody give yourself a goldfish because this is the most sense ive heard on this site in a long time
 
woody12 said:
Hi Gnat, I've been using kit lens for landscapes for two years and learning basics along the way. It's no good wasting money on expensive lens if you can't master the technique of what your trying to achieve. Learn your craft, experiment get better than push on with what you need to go that stage further.
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As above, the kit lens is capable of getting good landscape shots and with a bit of use it should become clear whether you feel the need for a wider or longer lens.

When I used to use a crop sensor camera I probably did about 60% of my landscapes with a 10-20mm lens, 30% with 17-55mm and 10% with 70-200mm but everybody is different
 
Hey Nathanael,

I’m sure your Nikon Nikkor is a quality lens, I think they are well respected lens, I’m not an expert in the Nikon range but this is 2013, your not going to get a poor lens with a Nikon, just because it comes with the body when sold means nothing, there’s quality lens made today and I bet Nikon users will tell you the same, have a search on google images for landscape photographs taken with your combination, I bet there’s some cracking stuff on there.

1st lesson in photography is all a camera and lens do is hold the image -It’s the person who takes the photograph and how that counts! 18mm even with any magnification factor is still quite a wideangle, so you’ve got the perfect lens as well as having that zoom option up to 55mm, at this point in time, you don’t need anymore lens for landscapes, you’ve got so much scope with what you’ve got, your sorted.

Nature and animals… how close are you going to be and what are you going to photograph? If it’s monkeys a meter away as you find on some holidays, what you have will be fine, if it’s a lion 200-300 meters away, your going to need a large lens, even a 600mm F4 mightn’t surfice! (but have a think about how to fit that one in your suitcase!).

Again don’t be drawn in to the thinking you need this lens for this and this lens for that until you have a dozen lenses and you still have no idea of how to get the best out of any of them because you haven’t studied and used one for longer than five minutes, if your looking and wanting to photograph animals at zoo’s etc, a standard zoom would be a 70mm-200mm or 70/100 - 300mm, you’ll get away with this handheld for most situations, a higher zoom you might be looking at using a monopod or tripod if your not experienced with long lenses.

If this is the case, one of these zooms would work well with your 18-55mm lens you have now, I know a few members don’t recommend a total zoom lens but I bet you any of the quality named brands who make the 18-300mm type zooms produce great results, this would cut out the need to swap lenses and reduce the risk of getting dust in there, if your going to take the lens off the camera, dust will get in there.

I wouldn’t read into too much regarding quality of lenses and zooms these days, the quality of manufacturing in todays’ standards is extremely high, and in the real world 99.9% of the time, today’s lenses will do a great job.

If your looking to capture fine detail like strands of grass, you really need to hold the camera steady if your out and about sightseeing on holiday, but if your serious about doing “proper” landscape photographs your going to need a tripod, and set the camera on timer (or remote release button devices, about £5 on eBay), but your going to have to learn about aperture and shutter speeds to get the best out of the tripod set up, you need to learn how to capture a scene using these controls to benefit going past the automatic results the camera will get you on auto mode ok.

A lot of the members who’s posted are dead right on with what they say, though I have a bit more faith in the capabilities of that lens in terms of quality results, a crop or full frame doesn’t mean much either and not too much to worry about, they wouldn’t make them otherwise if they couldn’t match quality, all you have to do is basically take some steps back to fit more of the scene in to get exactly what a full frame camera gets you, nothing to worry about ok, have faith in the super piece of kit you have now, heck, if it was 15yrs ago you’d have a manual slr body and 50mm lens, nothing fancy like todays gear and having to making each shot of the film count because of the expense, yet photographers got the job done and done well!

Guys, come on, this post isn’t what lenses is the best for landscapes or your favourite landscape lens, it’s what is suitable for Nathanael or any other beginner, would it make his or their landscape images better if they had the best landscape lens in the world??? The answer is simply no.

Nathanael, you have equipment of the highest quality in today’s standards, get out and enjoy using it!
 
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hoochy1 said:
i think it all depends on what your taking a photo of the norm is a uwa like 11-16 or a 10-20,or a tilt&shift lens
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Tilt and Shift would be my #1 choice (what I use). Nikon T&S are a little pricey
but well worth it. You also have to pay $100USD to Nikon to be able to do both versus just one or the other. Samyung just came out with T&S, and it has some good reviews.

Other than T&S, my next choice would be primes. Zoom lenses would be my last choice.

Sorry - Nikon PC-E's won't T&S on DX cameras.
 
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I used a sigma 10-20mm or nikon 18 -200mm at the wide end on my crop. Just updated to ff and using 16-35mm.
Your kit lens should be fine for landscapes. If your going wide, it helps to have a large foreground interest.
Use hyperfocal distance for optimum sharpness.
 
I would say as others have the only thing you need is your kit lens and a sturdy tripod and shutter release, maybe some graduated filters and just go play :)
 
woody12 said:
I've been using kit lens for landscapes for two years and learning basics along the way. It's no good wasting money on expensive lens if you can't master the technique of what your trying to achieve. Learn your craft, experiment get better than push on with what you need to go that stage further.
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This and what others said similarly is exactly right. Shopping can be a drug-like false escape from confronting the issue of actually learning. Also focal lengths are personal to some extent & by using a kit zoom you'll get a clue about what focal lengths you are naturally drawn to use the most. The techniques of seeing must parallel the techniques of exposure. It may help to have a genuine inner passion for the world, then the task is to learn how you may express that through the mechanics of photography. Alertness is partnered by discipline. If necessary, use 2 hands with fingers and thumbs extended to test-frame what you're looking at - it may school your perceptions. Nothing you spend money on can do this for you.
 
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sigma 10-20 and tokina options
you can go crazy so if you want the best?
here's an example. 5Dii (£1000+) 16-35L (£1000)
Tripod, £350, Lee filters £500
Canon centric but you get the point]

I would get a decent ish tripod
one of the above lenses
some gradient filters and a holder (teamphoto iirc are reasonable) and build from there
learn about hyperfocal values
also invest in a decent alarm clock and some good walking/waterproof boots :)
 
I hear a lot of suggestions for the Tokina 11-16 here, however for landscapes I'd go for the Tokina 12-24 if that's the price range your looking in. With my Tokina 12-24 I end up using the 24mm side of things to the 12. I've found it extremely sharp and durable :)
 
I'm going a little against the grain here and suggest for now you avoid an UWA and go for something more in the 18-55/70 range as an upgrade to your kit lens. UWA can be excellent for landscapes but do need a lot of thought regarding composition, as you're just starting out I think you'd find the transition much easier by sticking to more "normal" focal ranges, which are actually equally, if not more useful for landscapes

Simon
 
The 18-55 kit lens is an excellent lens, the only think extra I want is the wider aperture of the tokina 11-16 for stars etc.
When are you taking landscapes? The results will always be so-so when the light is poor, but when the light quality is right then the 18-55 is outstanding. Make sure you have a good tripod too.
 
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