Last Updated on 03/14/2025 by Lara Carretero
A zoom lens is a must in the arsenal of any photographer. Whether you are into landscape, events, portraiture, or wildlife photography, zoom lenses always give you a much-needed extra reach, as well as beautiful bokeh that can make your subjects truly shine. However, if you are someone who is just starting their journey, we know how challenging it is to pick the best for yourself. So, we bring you the six best zoom lenses from five years ago, which offer great quality, even if some are a bit expensive even today.
Sony 12-24mm F2.8 GM: One of the Best Zoom Lenses That’s Wide!
A wide-angle zoom lens from Sony, the 12-24mm f2.8 offers 3XA (extreme aspherical) lenses, 2 Super ED (extra low dispersion) elements, 3 ED elements, and aspherical elements. In addition, it has nine circular aperture blades for smooth bokeh, XD Linear Motors for fast focusing, and robust weather sealing. It has a minimum focusing distance of 11 inches and a maximum magnification ratio of 0.14. What we liked about the lens was its excellent build and image quality, fast and silent autofocus, and the ability to use drop-in filters. It is an overall powerhouse that can be used for various scenarios.
You can purchase it here.
Olympus 100-400mm F5-6.3 IS: A Great Lens for Birding
This is a much awaited entry in Olympus’ lineup for wildlife and bird photographers. The lens offers a 35mm equivelanent of 200-800mm, nine circular bladed diaphragm, 3-step IS stabliation, and weatherproof construction. Although heavy at 1,120g weight, the Olympus 100-400mm can reach up to 1600mm with a teleconverter. We also found the lens to have sharp images with excellent colors and overall excellent autofocus performance. It has a close focusing distance of 1.3m, maximum image magnification of 0.09x at wide and 0.29x at telephoto. Since it has great build, along with other features, you won’t be disappointed.
You can find the lens here.
Nikon Z 14-24mm F2.8 S: A Monster of a Lens
When Nikon launched its mirrorless cameras, they were still struggling to give us something unique. However, their lenses, on the hand, was a different story. The 14-24mm is an example of how good a lens can get if the company knows what its doing. Its extremely lightweight at 640g, has internal focusing, nine rounded diaphragm, and has several coatings for controller dflares and chromatic aberration. The lens one of the sharpest image quality, bokeh and colors, as well as as excellent autofocus performance. Furthermore it is robust and can withstand challenging shooting conditions.
You can purchase it here.
Canon RF 70-200mm F2.8 L IS USM: A Favorite of Many Photographers
Canon has always had some exceptional lenses in their EF lineup. However, when they launched the RF line, we weren’t sure if the same could be achieved. But Canon proved us wrong with the Canon RF 70-200mm F2.8 L IS USM, a lens that is extremely compact for its focal range. It offers 5-stop optical image stabilisation, smooth and quite autofocus, dust and weather resistant, and offers control ring for direct changes to settings. Overall, the lens offers great bokeh, image quality and colors, making it a great option for various genres of photographers. Its build quality, size and weight are also making it a great choice for travel photographers.
Panasonic 24-70mm F2.8 Lumix Pro: One of the Best Zoom Lenses That’s Very Sharp
Although this lens is huge, 934g and measuring 5.5-inch in length, the Panasonic 24-70mm f2.8 Lumix Pro is one of the best 24-70mm lenses we have tested on the website. It offers 11 rounded bladed diaphgram, 82mm filter, and 0.25x maximum magnification. The lens offers fast and accurate autofocus, “nearly class-leading image quality” and build. However, it is pricey, and may not be affordable for some.
Fujifilm GF 45-100mm F4: One of the Best Zoom Lenses for Medium Format
A medium format lens, the GF 45-100mm weighs 1,005g, has 82mm filter size, nine round bladed aperture and 0.13x maximum magnification. But despite the size, some of its pros include excellent image quality, smooth bokeh robust weather resistance, amazing image stabilization, and little to no chromatic aberration. The zoom range is great allowing you versatility with one lens. The only drawback is the aperture, which we wish was a bit brighter.