These telephoto zooms will become a landscape photographers best friend

Telephoto zooms for landscape photography? Have we gone mad? Absolutely not! Most landscape photographers have a telephoto zoom in their camera bag because of their versatility.

Using telephoto zooms for landscapes isn’t as weird as it might sound. It’s quite possible that, when you’re out in nature, you’ll see a scene where gorgeous standout details could become lost; a gorgeous tree being hit by a ray of light, for instance. Telephoto zooms, allow you to isolate distant subjects and details with ease. Telephoto zooms also create gorgeous compression, which can make far-away objects appear much closer than they are.

In this roundup, we’re going to take a look at five superb telephoto zooms that are lightweight, weather-sealed, sharp and incredibly versatile. These lenses will serve any landscape photographer well during winter, spring, summer or fall.

Telephoto zooms — Fujifilm XF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 R LM OIS WR

The Fujifilm 70-300mm f/4-5.6 R LM OIS WR has a long list of features that make it great for landscape photography. This lens has the longest equivalent focal range out of any lens on this list. With the Fujifilm crop factor of 1.5x, you’re looking at an equivalent focal range of 107-457mm. Fancy doing some wildlife photography between landscape shots? Well, that’s no problem with this lens.

The weather-sealed design will come in handy during wet months. It’s light at 1.3lbs, and the 5.5 stops of stabilization will help you save time by not having to set up a tripod. The colors this lens renders are nice and vibrant, so your images will pop. It’s incredibly affordable as well.

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Telephoto zooms — Olympus 12-100mm f/4 PRO

The Olympus 12-100mm f/4 PRO is just a stunning lens. Its manual focus clutch will let you quickly override the autofocus so you can nail your shot. The weather sealing will fight off inclement weather when you’re in the field, and the colors it renders are beautiful.

When used with an Olympus or OM SYSTEM Micro Four Thirds camera, dual body and lens stabilization kicks in. This means you can leave your tripod at home. The 24-200mm equivalent focal range means you can shoot sweeping scenes and you can focus on one gorgeous feature. It weighs just 1.23lbs and is small enough that it won’t burden you on long hikes. It’s a must-have when it comes to micro four-thirds telephoto zooms. Check out our full review here.

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Panasonic Lumix S Pro 70-200mm f/4

There isn’t many telephoto zooms out there for L mount photographers. However, when you have one that’s as good as the Panasonic Lumix S f/4 Pro, it doesn’t matter. This lens lives up to its Pro moniker thanks to its stellar build quality, incredible weather sealing and sharp optics. Whether you’re focusing on a lone tree in the distance or the peak of a mountain, this lens will capture all of the glory.

The constant aperture of f/4 is more than enough for landscapes, and the lens stabilization makes it easy to handhold. However, there is a built-in tripod collar if you prefer to use a tripod. The double focus motor system (one linear and one stepping motor) will ensure that you never miss a shot. It weighs 2.17lbs, which isn’t bad for a full-frame 70-200mm lens. If you shoot landscapes with L mount cameras, check this beautiful lens out.

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Canon RF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM

It took a while for Canon to get an f/4 70-200m lens to market. Still, the wait has been worth it. The Canon RF 70-200mm f/4 is a stunning lens that features sharp L series optics. Weather sealing, optical image stabilization, rapid autofocus motors, solid construction, and fluorine coatings make this an ideal lens to take with you on your landscape photography adventures.

This lens, when paired with the EOS R5 or EOS R6 will give you 7.5 stops of image stabilization. The configurable control ring can be set to control just about any setting you desire. This will help keep you in the moment and out of the menus. Amazingly, it weighs just 1.5lbs! This full-frame telephoto zoom is approaching micro four-thirds lens weights. Now that’s impressive.

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Telephoto zooms — Tamron 70-180mm f/2.8 Di III VXD

Tamron’s 70-180mm f/2.8 Di III VXD is another stellar choice for landscape photography. Because it’s a third-party lens, you can get a significantly faster maximum aperture for roughly the same price as a first-party f/4 zoom without making compromises in any other area.

This option from Tamron for Sony E mount photographers features dual linear focus motors. There are a whopping six low dispersion elements that help create gorgeous colors, high contrast, and low ghosting and flaring. The bright f/2.8 aperture will make capturing landscapes during dawn and dusk easier, and the weather sealing will protect your investment while out in the elements. Check out our full review.

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