Best lenses for Canon APS-C DSLRs
For each of the categories below the winner is the lens we find to offer the best combination of quality and value. In most cases, we've also provided a more budget-friendly option, as well as a choice for those with more to spend.
Jump to:
- Best kit lens replacement
- Best prime/single focal length lens
- Best wide-angle zoom lens
- Best telephoto zoom lens
- Best portrait lens
- Best macro lens
- Best travel zoom lens
Best kit lens replacement (standard zoom)
Standard (kit) zooms are just what they sound like - versatile, general-purpose lenses that start with a fairly wide angle of view and allow you to zoom in to a focal length traditionally used for portraits.
Our pick: Canon EF-S 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 IS USM
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The Canon EF-S 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 IS USM gives much greater reach at the long end of its zoom. The Nano USM motor also gives fast, quiet autofocus for live view and video work.
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Budget option: The Sigma 17-70mm gives a noticeably wider and longer coverage than the standard kit zoom and offers a wider aperture, particularly at the long end of the zoom. It's also quite the bargain. |
Money no object: The 18-35mm only covers a limited zoom range but it gives more creative flexibility in terms of low light image quality and depth-of-field that you'd usually only get from a single focal length 'prime' lens. |
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Best prime / single focal length lens
Prime lenses are just a single focal length; removing the complexity of a zoom often allows for these lenses to be smaller, lighter and sharper, while letting more light through and being more useful in dimly lit situations.
Our pick: Sigma 30mm F1.4 DC HSM Art
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The Sigma 30mm F1.4 DC gives a slightly zoomed-in view of the world that you'd get with a 48mm lens on a full-frame camera. This is a pretty flexible focal length to have (neither too wide nor excessively long) but what makes it valuable is a huge F1.4 maximum aperture. This gives the option for some shallow depth-of-field shooting and ability to take photos in much lower light than your kit lens can.
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Best value: Unlike most prime lenses, the 24mm F2.8 doesn't offer a super-bright maximum aperture. What it does offer is a flexible focal length in a tiny package, making it easier to take everywhere. |
Best wide-angle zoom lens
Wide-angle lenses are often useful for taking photos of interiors, landscapes and architecture.
Our pick: Sigma 10-20mm F3.5 EX DC HSM
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The Sigma 10-20mm F3.5 offers a wide to very-wide field-of-view, making it ideal for a range of photography. The constant F3.5 maximum aperture lets in plenty of light for this type of lens and solid optical design helps maximize image quality.
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Best value: Canon's own-brand 10-18mm isn't as bright as the Sigma but offers a similarly useful zoom range and adds the convenience of image stabilization. |
Money no object: The Canon 10-22mm is a little more expensive than the Sigma but is well-respected for its image quality. |
Best telephoto zoom lens
Telephoto lenses start out being fairly zoomed-in, and allow you to zoom in further so you can fill your frame with more distant subjects.
Our pick: Canon EF 70-300 F4-5.6 IS II USM
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Canon's 70-300mm zoom provides an impressive amount of telephoto 'reach' without becoming ungainly. Its F4-5.6 maximum aperture range is reasonably bright, and Canon's Image Stabilization is invaluable for avoiding hand shake when shooting at long focal lengths.
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Best value: The Sigma is one of the most cost-effective ways to gain so much 'reach,' but at these long focal lengths you might miss the image stabilization that the Canon offers. |
Money no object: It might not sound like much of a difference but the constant F4 aperture makes this a great sports-shooting lens. It's optically excellent and stabilized, but still a sensible size. |
Best portrait lens
Whether you're taking informal headshots or making a living shooting weddings, a fast prime, medium focal length lens is a must-have.
Our pick: Canon EF 50mm F1.8 STM
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The Canon EF 50mm F1.8 in its various versions is something of a classic, in part because its low cost makes it an excellent gateway to prime lens ownership. It’s worth springing for the current STM version which adds a quieter motor to the existing optical design. At 80mm equivalent it’s a fraction short for classic head-and-shoulders portraiture, but its low cost more than compensates for this.
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Best value: The Canon EF 50mm F1.4 is a well-priced, optically excellent lens. It gives an 80mm equiv. field-of-view on Canon’s APS-C cameras, which is at the wider end of what works for head-and-shoulders portraits. Take half a step back and it’ll do a great job. |
An alternative: The Canon EF 85mm F1.8 is another well-priced lens with a great reputation for image quality. It gives a much longer 136mm equiv. field-of-view, which some photographers prefer, making it excellent for tight head shots, but perhaps a little less flexible overall than the 50s. |
Best macro lens
Macro lenses allow you to focus very close to small subjects, which is very handy for photographing flowers or bugs.
Our pick: Sigma 70mm F2.8 DG Macro Art
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The Sigma 70mm F2.8 DG Macro Art is a short-telephoto prime that takes life-size (1:1) photos. It's known for being very sharp and has numerous special elements to reduce distortion and aberrations. As with all of Sigma's Art-series lenses, build quality is top-notch, and the lens is dust and splash resistant.
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Best value: The 35mm focal length means getting very close to your subject but the LED lamp reduces the problem of the lens blocking out the light. Its stabilization is very good, too. |
Money no object: The 100mm focal length gives you a fairly long working distance, which can be handy. Hybrid stabilization and superb optical quality make this something of a classic. |
Best travel zoom lens
Travel zooms are like your kit zoom lens but taken to the extreme. You still start out with a fairly wide field of view, but you can zoom in almost as much as many telephoto lenses. This is convenient, but these lenses tend to let less light through them, so aren't as useful in dimly lit situations, and they may not always give you the sharpest results.
Our pick: Canon EF-S 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 IS USM
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The 18-135mm is a great travel lens. The 18-135mm focal length range is highly flexible without making the lens too big or inducing too many compromises in image quality. The fast, quiet 'Nano USM' motor means it's as good for shooting video as it is for bringing back photos from your travels.
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Best value: The Sigma offers even more telephoto 'reach' than the Canon, with only a small cost in terms of maximum aperture. It's not quite as optically consistent as the Canon, though. |
Money no object: The 18-400mm lens range gives the Tamron immense flexibility. Stabilization is useful for those very long focal lengths, too. Getting that range into such a small package does mean some optical compromise, though. |
