Are you looking for the best budget lenses to add to your camera gear? Finding inexpensive and the best budget lenses can be challenging, especially if you’re new to photography or videography. I’m excited to tell you that I have a bunch of the best budget lenses for beginners DSLR camera users in mind.
Let’s admit that photography and videography enthusiasts keep dreaming about the next best camera and lens they want to get their hands on. Perhaps, essential camera equipment for photographers and videographers is a must.
If it resonates with you, meaning you’re trying to find the best budget camera lenses, then I have ten lenses to share with you. The interesting thing about these lenses is that they’re quite affordable, even for beginners. The following compilation of lenses could be used for photography and videography.
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The list contains the best budget lenses for beginners that are compatible for both full-frame as well as APS-C sized crop sensor cameras.
10 Best Budget Lenses for Beginner DSLR Camera Users
Ready to dive deep into the best budget lenses for beginners? Let’s take a look:
| Yongnuo YN 50mm f/1.8 |  |  |
| Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 |  | |
| Canon EF-S 24mm f/2.8 |  | |
| Tamron Auto Focus 70-300mm |  | |
| Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG Macro |  | |
| Canon EF 75-300mm F/4-5.6 |  | |
| Nikon AF Zoom-NIKKOR 70-300mm |  | |
| Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 |  | |
| Yongnuo 35mm f/2 (for Nikon F) |  | |
| Panasonic Lumix G 25mm f/2.7 |  | |
1. Yongnuo YN 50mm f/1.8
The Yongnuo 50mm f/1.8 is a lightweight, affordable, and effective prime lens. The beginner photographers who want to upgrade their camera gear by ditching the kit lens can pick the Yongnuo YN 50mm f/1.8 lens. The Yongnuo YN 50mm f/1.8 lens is available for both Canon and Nikon mounts. The lens has a wide aperture that helps in taking photos with an ample amount of bokeh. The lens does have an autofocus mode that comes in handy when you’re taking photos on the go. The focal length of the lens on a crop sensor camera will be equivalent to 80mm. Long story short, it’s the best budget lens for beginner photographers.
2. Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens
The Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens is an affordable prime lens for Canon users. It’s also known as nifty fifty in the photography realm. The Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM lens gives buttery soft, blurry backgrounds for portraits. This lens is one of the contenders for the Yongnuo 50mm f/1.8 lens. After using Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM lens on Canon 800D which is a crop body DSLR camera, it’s been learned that the image quality is top-notch and it captures are very sharp photos. Portraits that have been taken using this lens provide a satisfactory depth of field.
3. Canon EF-S 24mm f/2.8 STM
The Canon EF-S 24mm f/2.8 STM is a fantastic prime lens from Canon. It comes with a thin profile/body, which makes it appealing. It’s equipped with an advanced autofocus motor. It’s a 38.4mm-equivalent prime lens designed for APS-C-format DSLRs
Furthermore, the 2.8 aperture is wide enough to capture bokeh if you are into it. Although Canon offers this lens in wide apertures such as f1.8 and f1.4, maybe that’s why it’s a little expensive. The lens is good for street photography and capturing landscape photos.
4. Tamron Auto Focus 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6
Tamron Auto Focus 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 is a fantastic pick whenever the subject is far away, for instance, sports photography or wildlife photography. The 300mm on a crop sensor body gives you the advantage of shooting at 480mm which is pretty impressive. Just keep in mind that the sharpness of the lens will not be as good as prime lenses. Tamron Auto Focus 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 is available for both Canon and Nikon mounts and you might find the Tamron Auto Focus 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 lens for Canon much cheaper than the Nikon one.
5. Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG Macro Telephoto Zoom Lens
The Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG Macro Telephoto Zoom lens is well-reputed for outdoor shoots. Sigma is known for high-quality lenses for a wide range of DSLR cameras. Therefore, the Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG Macro lens is no exception. It is best for photographers who are planning to step into wildlife photography, sports photography, or portraits. This lens is available for both Canon and Nikon mounts.
6. Canon EF 75-300mm F/4-5.6 iii Lens
The Canon EF 75-300mm F/4-5.6 iii lens could be a beast if you’re into wildlife and sports photography. The reason is that it’s telephoto zoom is made for full-frame Canon EF-mount DSLR cameras. However, this lens can be used with APS-C camera models, where it provides a 120-480mm equivalent focal length range. Super Spectra coating should minimize ghosting and flare for super crispy photos. The lens is equipped with a DC micro motor, which powers the autofocus system and makes it quick and efficient. If you’re a fan of pleasing bokeh effect in photography, grab this lens asap.
7. Nikon AF Zoom-NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4-5.6G Lens
The Nikon AF Zoom-NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4-5.6G lens sounds like an expensive lens, but that’s not the case. However, it’s a fantastic lens used by professional photographers for portrait photography. If you look at the technical side of the lens, then it’s an f-mount lens with an aperture range of f/4 to f/32. It has a super integrated lens coating to minimize internal reflections, flare, and ghosting. As far as shallow depth of field in photography is concerned, the lens has a rounded nine-blade diaphragm, which provides a pleasing out of focus quality for the kind of background you’re hoping for with this lens.
8. Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS STM Lens
The Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS STM lens could be a go-to lens for all the travelers out there who like to travel and preserve memories through their cameras. Traveling without landscape photography might be a little odd if you own a DSLR camera. Sure, you can use this lens for portraits as well. Although the 55mm focal length is not associated with landscape photography unless it is in the right pair of hands. In other words, don’t worry about the quality and precision of this lens as it’s worth the money.
9. Yongnuo 35mm f/2 (for Nikon F)
Yongnuo 35mm f/2 is a wide-angle prime lens with FX-format designed for Nikon F-mount cameras. It’s one of the best affordable prime lenses for beginners. It’s compact, lightweight, and affordable. The lens comes with a popular 35mm focal length with an f/2 maximum aperture. The Yongnuo 35mm f/2 lens can also be used with DX-format DSLRs, and it will provide a 52.5mm equivalent focal length. Furthermore, it has multi-coated glass elements that reduce the chance of flare and ghosting during photography. The AF/MF switch button on the lens barrel makes switching easier between the focus settings.
10. Panasonic Lumix G 25mm f/2.7
The Panasonic Lumix G 25mm f/2.7 lens is only compatible with Panasonic DSLRs. The lens mount is called Micro Four Thirds. The 25mm focal length simply means that the angle of view is closest to the human visual field, so what you see with your eyes is what the lens captures mostly.
What Budget Lens Would You Buy?
So we shared a bunch of the best budget lenses for beginner videographers and photographers. Now it’s your turn to decide which one of these lenses is suitable for you.
Feel free to share your favorite budget lens for DSLR cameras so that beginners could benefit from your comment.
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