Budget lenses for mirrorless
Nith Black Friday and Cyber Monday merging into Christmas and January sales, you might well have treated yourself to a new Nikon Z mirrorless camera recently. There are plenty to choose from, ranging from DX (APS-C) options like the Z fc, which serves equally well an objet d’art to pose on your mantelpiece, to the ultra-high-res Z 7II and the speed demon Z 9. However, with all of the other seasonal spending taking its toll, chances are there’s not much left in the kitty for additional lenses. The good news is that there are some splendid budget options that deliver excellent image quality, but without fearful price tags. We’ve picked out the best options, including a brace of very affordable DX format zoom lenses, plus Nikon’s new Z 28mm and Z 40mm compact primes, that work a treat on both DX and FX mirrorless bodies. We’ve also rounded up some excellent manual primes that cover everything from ultra-wide-angle shooting to portraiture and extreme macro photography.
The contenders
1 Nikon Z 40mm f/2 £249/$297
2 Nikon Z 28mm f/2.8 (SE) £299/$297
3 Samyang MF 85mm f/1.4 Z £319/$399
4 Nikon Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR £329/$297
5 Samyang MF 14mm f/2.8 Z £359/$399
6 Nikon Z DX 50-250mm f/4.5-6.3 VR £379/$347
7Artisans 50mm f/1.05 £450/$486
8 Laowa 100mm F2.8 2:1 Ultra Macro APO £469/$499
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High quality on a budget
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