8 Must-Have Nikon Lenses for Weddings & Ceremonies

When I started to work as a wedding photographer, I believed that the 70-200mm f2.8 lens is everything I need for taking photos. Later, I found out that there are plenty of great lenses for shooting wedding pictures. Some of them I use more often than this one.

I decided to help you, especially if you’re a fresher, choose an all-in-one lens kit and review the best Nikon lenses for weddings that I always take with me to take different types of photos. These lenses cost from $200, which allows every photographer to select the most suitable solution for their budget and needs.

Sigma 20mm f/1.4 DG HSM Art, Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G ED, Nikon 105mm f/1.4E AF-S ED Nikkor

This kit is perfect for taking wedding photos. While some options on the market may seem more advanced, the lenses included in this one have great value for the money.

It’s better to take portrait photos using a 105mm lens. However, you will need to stand 3-4 meters away from your models. It will allow you to snap high-quality pics with a beautifully blurred background. Most photos you can take with a 35mm lens as it is suitable for snapping candid pics during the day. You can also use a 16mm lens as your main wide-angle lens https://fixthephoto.com/best-wide-angle-lenses.html (Top Wide-Angle Lenses List).

When selecting the best Nikon lens for wedding photography, think about what type of photos you want to shoot. In this article, I have rounded up the most popular options available on the market and described when you can use them to take pro-level photos. Read on if you want to know what lens is most suitable for shooting weddings.

Dimensions: 5.75 x 5.75 x 9.25 inches | Weight: 2.35 pounds | Lens Type: Standard | Autofocus: Yes

I believe that the Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8E ED is a great solution for beginner photographers and newbies alike as it boasts an impressive zoom range and excellent image quality. It is one of the best Nikon lenses for weddings as it allows you to shoot at wide and long angles. At the 24mm end, you can take stunning pictures of architecture as well as capture close-up photos of the bride and groom in their rooms on the morning of the wedding day.

When shooting at the 70mm end, you can capture excellent portrait photos and candid pictures of the wedding ceremony and reception. Most photographers use 85mm lenses for capturing such moments, but a 70mm lens with also cope with the task. The lens also has great focusing speed, which makes it stand out among similar options.

Dimensions: 2.83 x 2.83 x 2.83 inches | Weight: 0.68 pounds | Lens Type: Wide-angle | Autofocus: Yes

Nikon 35mm f/1.8 is a very light and compact model, which makes it one of the best budget Nikon lenses for weddings. Among all prime lenses with a focal length of 35mm, this model can be called the sharpest. It ensures great clarity from the center to the edges of the image. The great luminosity allows you to shoot in low light without raising ISO as well as to make portraits with a blurred background, due to the small depth of field.

In case you are on a budget and can’t purchase an f/1.4 model, this option will suit your needs perfectly as it doesn’t weigh much and is more affordable. If I were looking for a 35mm prime lens, I would buy the f/1.8 model as it allows a photographer to take clear photos with a great level of detail, even when snapping pics at large apertures.

Dimensions: 3.72 x 3.72 x 4.17 inches | Weight: 2.17 pounds | Lens Type: Telephoto | Autofocus: Yes

Every wedding photographer who uses the best Nikon lenses for weddings will benefit from using this option. It appeared in 2016, but many shooters have been waiting for it for a long time. It is very precise and sharp. I use it for portraits when I need to emphasize the skin texture.

This lens works perfectly both in the studio or outdoors. Whatever the lighting is, the lens will provide an elegant bokeh and sharp details even at the extremely open aperture. It has got fast autofocus so you won’t have to wait. The only problem is that there is no stabilizer, which makes shooting in poor light conditions more difficult.

Dimensions: 7.9 x 3.4 x 3.4 inches | Weight: 3.15 pounds | Lens Type: Telephoto | Autofocus: Yes

If you compare this lens with its previous version, it becomes difficult to see the difference. However, the new version is shorter and lighter, which increases its compactness. The image quality is more than decent – an excellent sharpness, even with an open aperture and a beautiful blurred area. All the details and texture of the skin are visible in portraits.

Personally, I think that it is worth every penny due to the improved image quality, AF, and optical stabilization. It will meet the requirements of photographers who specialize in popular wedding photography styles and use a 70-200 lens daily. It makes it better than the previous version.

The most important feature of this lens is the improved quality when working in bad lighting conditions. It’s one of the best Nikon FX lenses for weddings for me, as I know that it will help me get better images in difficult lighting conditions.

Dimensions: 2.87 x 3.15 x 3.15 inches | Weight: 0.76 pounds | Lens Type: Telephoto | Autofocus: Yes

It’s a great portrait lens for snapping pro-level pictures. This 85mm 1.8 G lens has been available on the market since 2011. It features a 67-millimeter filter thread and supports noiseless focusing thanks to its FS motor. What I like about it is that it allows you to take top-level photos with little to no effort.

Another advantage of this Nikon wedding lens is that it has impressive AF capabilities. I liked taking photos using autofocus. While it’s not ultra-fast, you will enjoy using it. The only shortcoming of this lens is that it doesn’t have VR, so keep it in mind when making your choice.

Dimensions: 4.37 x 3.39 x 3.39 inches | Weight: 1.66 pounds | Lens Type: Wide-angle | Autofocus: Yes

This lens is an excellent and universal (medium-focus) high-aperture zoom for Nikon DX cameras with a crop matrix. Due to its high speed, it can be safely used in conditions when ‘darker’ lenses are no longer able to produce a bright picture even when the stabilizer is activated. The sharpness is high even with an open aperture, and it increases even more with a slight aperture.

I would like to note that the zoom ring is quite narrow and is almost close to the bayonet. Before purchasing a lens, it is better to attach it to the camera and check the balancing, and most importantly, the convenience of zoom. With the Follow Focus system installed (in fact, the gearbox for easy focusing in manual mode), it becomes more difficult to get to the zoom ring. The lens is not equipped with a stabilizer.

Dimensions: 3.2 x 3.2 x 4.7 inches | Weight: 1.8 pounds | Lens Type: Telephoto | Autofocus: No

Rokinon 135mm F2.0 ED UMC is a full-format manual long-focus lens with a fixed focal length for 35mm SLR and digital mirrorless cameras. The aperture ring works smoothly, and it clearly gets in whole and half positions. Ring stroke exceeds 180°.

The high speed makes it the best Nikon lens for weddings and allows you to manipulate the depth of field creatively. As there is no autofocus, you need to get used to shooting. Experimentally, I concluded that it is advisable to set the shutter speed no longer than 1/500s for shooting with a camera in your hands.

Dimensions: 3.6 x 3.6 x 5.1 inches | Weight: 2.1 pounds | Lens Type: Wide-angle | Autofocus: Yes

This is a wide-angle lens of the premium Art line from Sigma. Sigma Art 20/1.4 DG HSM had no direct competitors that allowed the company to announce the innovation to be “the first full-frame 20 mm f/1.4 lens in the world”, excluding Leica Summilux-M 21/1.4 ASPH at $6,730.

The picture quality is magnificent as the distortion is not critical and can be easily corrected. There is good sharpness over the entire frame and chromatic aberrations are minimal. It’s no doubt, a decent lens and has no competitors at all. This lens offers a unique ratio of focal length, luminosity and image quality.

Most weddings consist of 4 parts: bridal morning or groom’s preparations, a walk, signing of a marriage license, and reception. Every stage has its own peculiarities that you need to take into account when selecting a camera lens. Because of this, you need to consider the following factors when choosing a Nikon wedding lens.

Since the most popular images among customers are taken with natural light, a high-aperture lens is an advantage. Professional and mid-range digital SLRs and lenses with f/2.8 and even “faster” aperture also provide better autofocus performance.

Leading camera manufacturers release lenses that are suitable for crop or full-frame cameras. You need to consider what type of sensor your camera has when selecting a lens.

To select the best Nikon lenses for weddings, check what is the crop factor of your camera and calculate the best focal length based on it. For instance, if you have a camera with a 1.5x crop factor, your 50mm lens will have a 75mm focal length. Because of a small sensor, the angle of view may be a bit limited.

When important wedding events happen in dim light (for example, in church) and you have to take photos quickly, an image stabilizer is a very useful feature. The best Nikon camera lenses for low light weddings that come with image stabilizers have the VR (Vibration Reduction) abbreviation in their name. Sigma lenses use OS (Optical Stabilization) and Tamron Company uses VC (Vibration Compensation) lenses.

Most professional lenses are equipped with special elements that reduce aberration and distortion. Low-dispersion elements compensate for chromatic aberration, and aspherical elements cope with geometric aberration. Some lenses do this better while others don’t cope well with such issues.

It is another reason why professional optics of the best Nikon lenses for weddings and portraits cost more. The advantages of such pieces of equipment make them perfect for taking professional wedding photos.

Most lenses these days allow you to choose between auto and manual focus, which makes them perfect for those who want to take photos like a pro. Many DSLR cameras have advanced AF capabilities as well.