Lightweight lenses that will let you capture nature in all its beauty

Finding a great lens that can capture all that Mother Nature has to offer can be tricky. Sometimes you want a wide view, other times you want something close up. And other times you want something that’s a bit outside the box. But by no means do you want to lug around something that will weigh you down!

These lenses are some of our favorites for capturing nature. With spring weather officially upon us, now’s the perfect time to pick up one of these beauties and get outdoors and capture the world around you.

Lensbaby Edge 50 — Shallow yet sharp focus, perfect for a relaxed look

Need to put the spotlight on your subject? The Lensbaby Edge 50 makes for a great close-up lens, and has a nice, soft falloff in the background. While technically a tilt-shift lens, the Edge 50 makes for a shallow focus area, making for a gorgeous result. Here’s what Levi Sim had to say in his review:

“I enjoy close-up photography, and the Lensbaby Edge 50 is a wonderful lens for it because it is razor sharp, has built-in and accessory macro features, glows beautifully when desired, built extraordinarily well, and has the ability to tilt the focal plane to match my subject’s positioning.”

Levi Sim

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Olympus M.Zuiko 7-14mm f/2.8 Pro — Beautiful wide-angle that’s reigns supreme

If there’s one lens I’ve tried in the past few years that I can’t get enough of, it’s the Olympus M.Zuiko 7-14mm f/2.8 Pro. This lens is absolutely gorgeous, and provides sharp, beautiful images. Autofocus is fast, and the field of view is perfect for landscape photographers. Here’s what Brett Day had to say in his review:

“If you don’t need the extra stop of light that the significantly larger 40-150mm f/2.8 Pro offers, this f/4 version will more than please you. The lens is rapid when it comes to autofocus. It’s one of the sharpest telephoto zooms I have used in quite some time. The colors and bokeh are pleasing, and the lens controls flares, ghosting and aberrations very well.”

Brett Day

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Tamron 70-300mm f/4.5-6.3 — A bargain zoom that will surprise outdoors

All-in-one telephotos sometimes get a bad rap. But the Tamron 70-300mm f/4.5-6.3 for Sony E mount cameras proves the naysayers wrong. Featuring moisture resistance and well-performing autofocus, this lens is perfect for helping you experience the great outdoors. Here’s what Julie Powell had to say in her review:

“The zoom turned out to be a brilliant addition for photographing birds, as I couldn’t get very close. I must admit I am not much of a bird photographer normally (especially while they’re in flight), but standing relatively still, it was fabulous to capture up-close details otherwise unavailable in my standard 75mm lens.”

Julie Powell

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Canon RF 35mm f/1.8 — Lightweight entry-level macro lens

If you want to capture macro nature images without breaking the bank, the Canon RF 35mm f/1.8 is a good option to take a look at. While this lens lacks weather sealing, it’s lightweight, meaning it’s easy to take on-the-go. It offers a close focusing distance of 6.7 inches, letting you create images with a 1:2 magnification ratio. Here’s what Brett Day had to say in his review:

“This lens from Canon is an easy one to use thanks to its manageable size and weight. While it’s small, there’s still plenty of room to use the control and manual focus rings easily. The built-in lens stabilization and the IBIS in the newer Canon mirrorless cameras combine to give you an impressive seven stops of stabilization.”

Brett Day

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Lensbaby Sweet 80 — Quirky creativity in nature

If you’re looking for something a bit outside the box, be sure to check out the Lensbaby Sweet line of lenses. This allows for a “sweet” spot of focus, with the rest of your image having a swirly blur and bokeh. It’s simply unlike anything else you’ll try! Here’s what Julie Powell had to say in her review:

“The Sweet 80 is an optic produced by Lensbaby, which creates a gorgeous range of creative optics for various camera makes. It’s designed to spotlight your subject in a sharp, round sweet spot of focus while surrounding that in super smooth blur and bokeh.”

Julie Powell

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