Top 5 Nikon Camera Lenses For Wedding photographers (with reasons)

So are you still looking for a collection of lenses to take on for your wedding shoot???

Nowadays people invest a lot in wedding photography.

Wedding Photography is one of the more popular genres of photography in today’s time.

People want to capture every little moment of their special day so they can enjoy them as memories for the rest of their lives. 

Wedding photography is one of the genres in photography that requires more sophisticated gear to capture everything.

starting from every tear, every laugh, candid pictures, and stunning pictures of the bride and groom and every person present at the ceremony. 

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If you are a professional wedding photographer and aim to deliver the best wedding portraits you will certainly need a good lens that allows you to capture the moments without any trouble. 

So, If you’re a Nikon user and looking for some best Nikon Camera Lenses to crush your wedding photography game then this is the article that you need to follow.

you can still follow this article if you’re Sony or Canon user, just check the focal length and buy the same lens according to your camera mount.

Nikon Camera Lenses For Wedding photographers

Some of the best Nikon Camera Lenses that can be used for wedding photography are listed below…

  • Nikon AF-S Nikkor 20mm f / 1.8 ED Lens (Black)
  • AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8E ED VR
  • NIKON AF-S NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G ED
  • NIKON  50mm f/1.8G AF-S NIKKOR
  • NIKKON 70-200mm F/2.8E FL VR (AF-S)

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 20mm f / 1.8 ED Lens (Black)

While photographing a wedding it is important to have a wide-angle lens to capture your subjects in all kinds of environments whether it be indoor or outdoor. 

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 20mm f : 1.8 | wedding photography lens

The AF-S Nikkor 20mm f/ 1.8 ED lens is a wide-angle lens that is compatible with both full-frame FX and DX crop sensor cameras.

A wide-angle lens can prove quite useful in wedding photography.

It can be used to capture the bride in her surroundings. 

This lens is compact, lightweight, a fast  f/1.8 maximum aperture allows a shallow depth of field for selective focus use, as well as for shooting in low-light situations.

The Innovative Silent Wave Motor (SWM) in this lens uses ultrasonic waves for fast, accurate, near-silent autofocusing as close as 7-8 inches from your subject. 

The AF-S Nikkor 20mm f/ 1.8 ED lens delivers a 20mm, 94-degree angle of view that is ideal for stills or motion capture. 

It produces beautifully blurred backgrounds in the photos and videos and also lets you shoot at lower ISO settings (a camera setting that will brighten or darken a photo) to retain high image quality at its maximum aperture setting of f/1.8.

When photographing a wedding a wide-angle lens can have many uses.

like revealing the scene/ location, particularly when capturing interior architecture like ballrooms, dining halls, etc, and large groups. 

It is true though that a wide-angle lens may distort subjects at a close distance hence you should avoid using a wide-angle lens for a close-up portrait.

There are many other wide-angle lenses available in the market.

but the AF-S Nikkor 20mm f/ 1.8 ED lens from NIKON is one of the best and is the best choice for wedding photography. 

AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8E ED VR

here’s one of the best Nikon Camera Lenses, which I personally love ( because of some reasons… )

This AF-S NIKKOR 24-70MM f/2.8E ED VR is the lens with the most buyers.

NIKKOR 24-70mm Lens

This lens is a truly versatile wide-angle to short telephoto lens characterized by its constant f/2.8 maximum aperture and electromagnetic aperture mechanism.

this one covers most of the needs of any photographer whether it be an amateur or a professional, nature or a wedding photographer. 

Nikkor 24-70mm can be very versatile, it can help you to skip bringing and carrying multiple lenses with you like 24mm, 35mm, etc.

It has the sensational image quality and sharpness with virtually no distortion has a focal length range from 24-70 mm.

With this lens, photographers can click in varied conditions and have fun photoshops without using more than one lens.

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These are not particularly great when shooting in low-light conditions (an f/1.8 prime is over a stop faster in comparison).

They are not great for portraiture either due to their f/2.8 maximum aperture, even at the longest end of the focal length range. 

The Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8E ED VR has sufficient sharpness in the center of the frame.

it has a fast and exact focus power, high back lightning resistance, excellent work of a stabilizer, it has a little vignetting at 24mm.

The Nanocrystal and Super Integrated Coatings in this lens further benefit image quality by reducing lens flare.

it dramatically improved contrast and color accuracy and fluorine coatings on the front and rear elements protect against dust, moisture, and smudging.

It has four stops of Vibration Reduction for handheld and low-light shooting.

The Non-stick glass of the lens makes it easier to wipe off water, dirt, and smudges.

The NIKON AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8E ED VR is an upgrade from The NIKON AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8G.

which is light, cheaper, and smaller but the main loss is the vibration reduction which is most useful in capturing in low light settings. 

This lens is great for clicking full-body portraits, group pictures, and more detailed pictures.

Using this lens you get a supersonic quality on zoom that can be used in low-light as well as outdoors.

You can use zoom lenses for exotic genres of photography.

Crisp, sharp images can be achieved with every click that can make your wedding pictures exceptional. 

NIKON AF-S NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G ED

The NIKON AF-S NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G ED lens feels solid in hands, definitely no worse than any of the modern professional Nikkor prime. 

AF-S NIKKOR 35mm Lens for wedding photographers

This lens is considered as a “Sweet Middle” for photography as its focal length is not too wide and not too long either.

The Silent Wave Motor provides fast, accurate, and near-silent autofocus.

3 Steps To Enable Back Button Focus | Easy Way To Get Sharp Images 

It is not only great for low-light portraits but can also be used for isolating subjects from the background at close distances.

The focus link is quite thick which makes the lens extremely easy and convenient to use for manual focusing with thumb and fingers, whether shooting videos or pictures.

This lens has a very practical wide-angle prime lens useful for multiple photographic applications.

Rear focus in this lens means only rear lens groups move during focusing, thus eliminating changes in the physical length of the lens while focusing and enabling faster focusing.

This model is a perfect option for taking wedding photoshoots.

The sharp lens gives you amazing coverage when you want to take those lovely portraits and the bride’s face is being focused upon most of the time.

It can also take stunning portraits of the bride and groom during nighttime. 

It features a maximum aperture of f/1.8 which allows you to create separation between your subjects and the backgrounds.

This also could capture high-quality images in low light conditions.

This combines with Super Integrated lens coatings which enhances light transmission that minimizes the ghosting and flare, resulting in a clear image across the frame. 

The Nikon 85mm f/1.8G ED AF-S seamlessly works on DX as well as FX frames.

the portrait quality becomes a spectacular affair.

The Nikon 85mm lens also helps you shoot at two speeds simultaneously.

This magical aspect of the pair of the lens makes bokeh and background portrait photoshoots look fabulous as well.

NIKON AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8G

This lens is the most popular and one of the favorite lenses among wedding photographers.

My 2nd most favourite Nikon Camera Lenses in the list 😀

NIKON  50mm f:1.8G

The primary reasons for that include that it is sharp, lightweight, inexpensive.

and the bokeh it produces is relatively good for a 50mm prime

Nikon’s Super Integrated Coating in this lens enhances light transmission efficiency and offers superior color consistency.

and also gives a reduced lens flare in the pictures and videos. 

This lens includes Silent Wave Motor technology (SWM) which helps in fast and precise autofocus.

Nikon’s Silent Wave Motor uses ultrasonic vibrations rather than a gear system to focus the lens, providing incredibly smooth, silent, and precise autofocus operation.

It also has M/A Focus Mode Switch for seamless changes between manual autofocus operations.

When fine manual focusing is needed, simply rotating the lens focus ring M/A mode allows you to seamlessly override the AF system with virtually no time lag.

It even has an aspherical lens element for outstanding optical performance with high contrast which allows capturing the unforgettable moments of one’s wedding both gracefully and beautifully. 

Since the 1960s, aspherical lenses have been an important part of the NIKKOR  lens family.

Virtually, eliminating coma and other types of aberration, every new addition to the lineup provides a new level of contrast, resolution, and compact design.

Its large aperture of f/1.8 is great for low-light photography.

and the shallow depth of field helps isolate subjects from the background, beautifully rendering the background highlights, also known as bokeh.

This 50mm lens is ideal to capture beautiful portraits and full-size body shots of the bride and groom if stand a little further from the subjects.

however, its wide-open performance is not as great.

While there are plenty of 50mm lens options available from both Nikon and third-party lens manufacturers.

the personal favorite of many wedding photographers has always been the Nikon 50mm f/1.8G due to its excellent overall performance and very lightweight construction. 

NIKKON AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm F/2.8E FL VR

This is one of the lenses that can be found almost in every professional wedding photographer’s kit.

NIKKON 70-200mm Zoom lens for wedding photographers

The reason being able to zoom from 70 to 200mm with a relatively wide f/2.8 aperture can be very useful when taking portraits.

The lens is also ideal for low light shooting conditions and the user need not have a tripod or a flash to achieve amazing results.

The lens uses the finest optics from NIKON and is resistant to dust and moisture, compact, and is maneuverable at the same time.

With a minimum focusing distance of 1.1m, this remarkable lens brings you nearer to your subjects with absolute focus and precision.

This feature allows you to capture the pure moments without disrupting them.

Its Vibration Reduction (VR) ‘SPORT’ mode also provides a stable viewfinder image even when tracking randomly moving subjects during high-speed continuous shooting.

This feature is especially effective when shooting a wedding, it allows you to capture more candid and fun shots.

This lens has a lightweight body for a large aperture lens featuring professional specifications.

The lighter weight can assist the photographers by reducing their fatigue, allowing them to maintain their concentration even in tense situations on the location.

This lens has NIKON’s original fluorine coat applied to the extreme front surface, providing high antifouling performance and peel-resistant properties which contributes to more reliable shooting with easier maintenance.

These elements allow the photographers to continue the shooting even under unpredictable conditions such as sudden light rain.

The Fluorine coat is also effective for capturing clearer images due to its high anti-reflective effect.

The weather-resistant performance combined with the reduced weight makes this lens a highly recommended equipment that supports shooting in various environments.

The NIKON AF-S NIKKOR 70-200mm f/2.8E FL VR provides a high-resolution image across an entire frame almost throughout the zoom range.

These features allow capturing candid moments with getting close and disturbing the moment.

The highly durable tripod collar ring incorporates bearings that enable quick and smooth switching between horizontal and vertical orientations.

and the tripod collar is detachable to reduce the weight of the lens.

This lens captures phenomenal stills and videos in stunning high resolution.

This is the perfect lens for any photographer, any light setting, any environment.

and especially for a wedding photographer, as it can capture every tear and every laugh at the wedding.

Final words

At the end of the day, the above Nikon Camera Lenses are just suggestions or recommendations it is up to the photographer what they are comfortable with and whatever suits their style.

pre wedding pewdoc grid

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There are many more Nikon Camera Lenses available on the market.

each has a different defining quality, every one of them is unique. 

Every wedding photographer has different preferences.

some prefer using two cameras, while some are comfortable with one lens. 

Weddings are entirely unpredictable hence you should be ready to capture the moments.

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you should be comfortable with your gear to capture more and more of the candid moments from the wedding. 

In the end, it’s just about capturing the best and the most heartfelt pictures of the wedding day for your customers to make them happy and satisfied. 

which are your favorite & go-to Nikon Camera Lenses as a wedding photographer?

Hi, I'm Manthan I'm a professional photographer and founder of photographywith.com. this site hosts all of my writing on photography stuff like blogs, reviews, editing, and much more. whatever I learn new, I publish here as a blog with some good and easy examples. Cheers, Manthan

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