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Features

What’s the Best Cheap 35mm Lens for Great Photos?

Chris Gampat
No Comments
05/23/2023
5 Mins read
Chris Gampat The Phoblographer Canon 35mm f1.8 RF IS USM review product images f2.8 1-100s ISO400

The 35mm lens is my personal favorite. It mimics the way that the human eye sees and has an incredible amount of versatility. With that said, manufacturers understand just how important this lens is. So they’ve made high-end versions and more affordable ones. So what’s the best cheap 35mm lens on the market? Well, we’ve reviewed the most of any publication. And here’s what we found.

How We Chose the Best Cheap 35mm LEns for Great Photos

Here’s some insight into how to use this guide to the best cheap 35mm lens for great photos:

  • The Phoblographer’s various product round-up features are done in-house. Our philosophy is simple: you wouldn’t get a Wagyu beef steak review from a lifelong vegetarian. And you wouldn’t get photography advice from someone who doesn’t touch the product. We only recommend gear we’ve fully reviewed in these roundups.
  • If you’re wondering why your favorite product didn’t make the cut, there’s a chance it’s on another list. If we haven’t reviewed it, we won’t recommend it. This method keeps our lists packed with industry-leading knowledge. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
  • For this roundup, we’re focusing on full-frame lenses. If you’re shooting with an APS-C camera, then other lenses might be a great choice. Those lenes are also far more affordable. But specifically, this guide is the best cheap 35mm lens for great photos using a full-frame camera.
  • So what makes a lens the best cheap 35mm lens for great photos for great photos? We test lenses based on their ergonomics, build quality, focusing, and image quality. When it comes to build quality, we value durability. There’s also the idea of having a lens with a lot more character than being clinically sterile.
  • The best cheap 35mm lens for great photos won’t necessarily be a lens that you get rid of after a while. We expect that you’ll use it for a while to come.
  • Be sure to also check out our review of these cameras too!

The best cheap 35mm lens for great photos: canon RF 35mm f1.8 USM IS

street photography

The Canon RF 35mm f1.8 is genuinely the best cheap 35mm lens for great photos. However, we wish that there were a more affordable weather resistant variant on the market. Manufacturers haven’t made one, though. And while there are more affordable options, we like this one for several reasons. First, it’s very lightweight. On top of that, it focuses very quickly — in fact, it has a macro focusing distance. If that’s not enough, Canon packed image stabilization into this lens. Finally, the image quality is also pretty decent. Obviously, there’s the price tag too.

We think that photographers buying this lens will stick with it for several years. But we’re curious to see if manufacturers make more affordable 35mm lenses that are worth their weight.

Pros

  • Small
  • Lightweight
  • Fairly fast to focus
  • It’s a lens designed to always be on your camera
  • Image stabilization (very much needed in the system)
  • Gorgeous bokeh
  • Sharp enough for most uses but not as sharp as most L glass I’ve seen and used. Still, it’s a shocker
  • Pretty affordable at $449 regularly.

Cons

  • We would have gladly paid more money weather sealing

Tech Specs

Specs table taken from LensRentals.

Angle of View63°
AutofocusAutofocus
BrandCanon
CompatibilityFull Frame
Diameter2.9″
DimensionsLength: 2.5″
Filter Size52.0mm
Focal Length35.0-35.0
Groups/Elements9/11
Hood IncludedNo
Image StabilizationYes
Item TypeLens
Lens TypeWide Angle and Macro
Magnification0.5x
Max Aperture1.8
Maximum Reproduction Ratio1:2
Minimum Aperture22.0
Minimum Focusing Distance0.6feet
MountCanon RF
Weight0.7 lb.

In our review, we said:

Arguably one of my favorite things about the Canon RF 35mm f1.8 USM IS is the bokeh. It’s smooth and creamy–this is all assisted by the fact that it can focus so darned close. Want that little bit of Korean BBQ or your Dumpling to really shine? Get close and let the background be blown out into a Monet painting.

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Captured with the Canon RF 35mm f1.8 USM IS

2 Other Great Options You Might Think Is the best cheap 35mm Lens for great photos

Here are three other great options that photographers will enjoy. For some photographers, these might be the best cheap 35mm lens for great photos because of image quality, balance, or affordability.

TAMRON 35MM F2.8 DI III OSD Macro

PROS

  • Compact (although the Sony 35mm f2.8 Zeiss is still smaller)
  • Lightweight
  • Class-leading weather sealing
  • Excellent image quality overall
  • Very affordable (only $349)

CONS

  • Plasticky build quality
  • Low light autofocus is a tad slow

Our review said:

The colors rendered by the Tamron 35mm f2.8 Di III OSD M1:2 (Model F053) are accurate and vivid without being overly saturated. Under certain lighting conditions, the colors produced by the Tamron 35mm f2.8 can be downright painterly. Landscape and portrait photographers alike will appreciate the Tamron 35mm f2.8’s ability to accurately capture their subjects.

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7Artisans 35mm f2

Pros

  • Full aperture stops only
  • Sharp images
  • Beautiful bokeh
  • Small and lightweight
  • Metal body

Cons

  • Nothing really, except that it’s not Leica’s quality, Zeiss’s quality or Voigtlander’s quality. But it’s still very good.

Tech Specs

  • Aluminum Body, Copper Bayonet, Sonnar Structure. Compact and Lightweight 6.87oz/195g
  • 7 Elements in 5 Groups. Ideal Aperture with 10 Diaphragm Blades. F2-F16 Focal Range. 35mm Focal Length. 43mm Filter Diameter
  • Excellent Color Balance and Lens Optimization, 7 Anti-Glare High Light Transmission Coating Effectively Deal with the Backlight Environment
  • Optimized for Working on Full Aperture with the Great Sharpness and Contrast. Fast Aperture and Lowest Chromatic Aberration, Producing Pleasing Portrait Style Quality
  • Available for Leica M Mount with A Rangefinder Coupling. Works with Leica M2 M3 M4-2 M5 M6 M7 M8 M9 M10 M4P M9p M240 M240P ME M262 M-M CL and Voigtlander M Mount Cameras. NOT compatbile with Leica M4 Cameras manufactured in Canada. Works great with Leica M4 Cameras that are manufactured in other Countries

In our review, we state:

The colors from the 7Artisans 35mm f2 tend to be a bit more muted and cooler than I’ve seen with first party Leica lenses. That’s absolutely fine for sure if you like that look. Hey, it means that you can load up your camera with CineStill 800T and get even more of that beautiful Blade Runner look when shooting in Daylight environments at night. If you want Leica’s vibrant and warm colors, then get a Leica. I’d like to equate the 7Artisans 35mm f2 lens to something more akin to that of Voigtlander vs Leica in the same way that people can consider Canon vs Nikon lenses. While Nikon lenses offer a more cool tone to them, Canon’s lenses tend to warm the scene up and make skin tones look phenomenal.

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35mm 35mm Lens 7Artisans autofocus best cheap 35mm canon cheap 35mm lens image quality review sharpness tamron
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Written by

Chris Gampat is the Editor in Chief, Founder, and Publisher of the Phoblographer. He provides oversight to all of the daily tasks, including editorial, administrative, and advertising work. Chris's editorial work includes not only editing and scheduling articles but also writing them himself. He's the author of various product guides, educational pieces, product reviews, and interviews with photographers. He's fascinated by how photographers create, considering the fact that he's legally blind./ HIGHLIGHTS: Chris used to work in Men's lifestyle and tech. He's a veteran technology writer, editor, and reviewer with more than 15 years experience. He's also a Photographer that has had his share of bylines and viral projects like "Secret Order of the Slice." PAST BYLINES: Gear Patrol, PC Mag, Geek.com, Digital Photo Pro, Resource Magazine, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Finance, IGN, PDN, and others. EXPERIENCE: Chris Gampat began working in tech and art journalism both in 2008. He started at PCMag, Magnum Photos, and Geek.com. He founded the Phoblographer in 2009 after working at places like PDN and Photography Bay. He left his day job as the Social Media Content Developer at B&H Photo in the early 2010s. Since then, he's evolved as a publisher using AI ethically, coming up with ethical ways to bring in affiliate income, and preaching the word of diversity in the photo industry. His background and work has spread to non-profits like American Photographic Arts where he's done work to get photographers various benefits. His skills are in SEO, app development, content planning, ethics management, photography, Wordpress, and other things. EDUCATION: Chris graduated Magna Cum Laude from Adelphi University with a degree in Communications in Journalism in 2009. Since then, he's learned and adapted to various things in the fields of social media, SEO, app development, e-commerce development, HTML, etc. FAVORITE SUBJECT TO PHOTOGRAPH: Chris enjoys creating conceptual work that makes people stare at his photos. But he doesn't get to do much of this because of the high demand of photography content. / BEST PHOTOGRAPHY TIP: Don't do it in post-production when you can do it in-camera.
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