Most of the beginner photographers have tried to capture the moon and failed miserably. They often blame their camera for not being able to capture the moon clearly, but lenses play an essential role.
If you want to capture the moon with all of its details and marks, a good lens is a must. There’s no way around that.
But it’s not all about gears. Skills and expertise are needed for capturing a stunning shot of the moon through your lens.
Best lens for moon photography in 2024
Lenses are much improved in 2023 with their functional ability. Now, high-functioning lenses don’t weigh a lot like older lenses. Sony, Nikon, Canon and other companies are competing to produce the best lens of the current time.
Each of the top brands has some unique features that make one different from the other. That is why it is tough to determine the best lens for moon photography.
However, by determining the needs of moon photography, we can compare the lenses and choose the best one from them. Every lens has its speciality in specific fields. Some lenses are suitable for wildlife photography of insects while others are good for astrophotography.
Comparison table of top 10 lens for moon photography
| Images | Name | Details | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR lens (Expert’s Choice) | * 18-300 mm (Focal length) * 1.63 pounds * 3.9L x 3.11W x 3.11H inches | Check Price |
 | WEEBUY150X-0513 | * 360 mm * 0.16 (pounds) * 18.8 x 9.1 x 5 | Check Price |
 | Canon EF 2746B002 (Editor’s Choice) | * 800 mm * 9.92 (pounds) * 18.1 x 6.4 x 6.4 | Check Price |
 | Panasonic LUMIX Professional G LEICA DG VARIO-ELMARIT | * 8-18 mm * 0.6875 pounds * 3.46L x 4.49W x 7.24H inches
| Check Price |
 | Opteka | * 650 mm * 1.43 (pounds) * 18.5 x 4.1 x 4.1 | Check Price |
 | Nikon Zoom Lens | * 70 mm * 15 (pounds) * 4.6 x 2.9 x 2.9 | Check Price |
 | Altura Photo | * 8 mm * 1.14 (pounds) * 3 x 3 x 3 | Check Price |
 | Panasonic G F2.8 LEICA DG VARIO-ELMARIT | * 2-35 mm * 0.675 pounds * 2.9L x 2.7W x 2.7H inches
| Check Price |
 | Canon EF-S 55-250mm Lens | * 55-250 mm * 0.825 pounds * 4.37L x 2.76W x 2.76H inches
| Check Price |
 | Canon EF 24-70 mm | * 70 mm * 2.55 pounds * 4.45L x 3.5W x 3.5H inches
| Check Price |
Our 10 picks of best lens for moon photography
1. Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR Lens – Simply the best
Looking for a portable lens that delivers good image quality? The Nikon AF-S DX might be a great choice! This lens has been designed with advanced features such as the three extra-low dispersion glass elements which are designed to correct chromatic aberrations or optical color defects. You can capture clearer and sharper photos, making it a promising option for photographers on the go.
This versatile Nikon lens is a one-stop shop for capturing both photos and videos in various situations. Its huge zoom range lets you switch from wide-angle landscapes to super-telephoto close-ups without needing to change lenses. The built-in image stabilization (VR) helps reduce camera shake and allows you to shoot sharper images, especially at longer zoom lengths or in low light.
Despite its long zoom range, the lens remains relatively compact and lightweight which makes it ideal for travel and everyday shooting.
A lower focal length (18mm) captures a wider angle of view, while a higher focal length (300mm) captures a narrower, zoomed-in view. This lens can focus as close as 16 feet (0.48 meters) from your subject. This is the closest distance at which the lens can achieve sharp focus.
In terms of survivability, we suggest you don’t hit the front of it. To conclude, the Nikon AF-SDX is a good, portable lens that can do almost anything. That is why it is easily the best lens for moon photography Nikon is producing
- It is a portable lens that acts as a contributing factor
- It has a focal length of 18-300mm
- It delivers a crisp, high-quality image in high-pixel-count cameras
- Its autofocus is fast and accurate, and manual focus is good at the long end
- The front portion of the lens is not very strong and may break if hit
- Strong distortion might be an issue for some people
Bottom Line
The Nikon AF-S DX minimizes camera shakes by providing a stable effect. The camera helps in delivering high-quality images with stunning clarity. That is why it’s our top pick when it comes to moon photography.
Read Also: Best Low Light Mirrorless Camera – Review and Complete Guide
2. WEEBUY – Best telescope for moon photography
Yes, a telescope is very useful for moon photography. Especially if you want close-up shots with all the details of the moon’s service, this is why we are recommending the WEEBUY telescope.
The glass of the telescope is highly coated for clear and crisp images. Due to the presence of a special moon filter, the viewing of the moon and its craters become easy.
The device is highly portable and due to the quick and easy way of assembling and dissembling the products makes it highly valuable.
The stability of the telescope comes due to the special tripod fixed in it that allows a clear image of the moon or any other beautiful scenery. The pictures of far distant can also be seen due to the wide range of lenses.
The bigger and better lenses make it easy for astronomers to view objects. The earth telescope is less likely to be damaged by flying space debris. The stability of the telescope gives a clear image of the moon or any other cluster of objects.
- It has an aperture of 70mm and a focal length of 360mm f/4.
- The picture is of good quality.
- Tripod is stable, which makes the viewing of object non-disturbing.
- Easy to assemble.
- A very powerful telescope.
- The price usually is very high.
- If mistakenly broken it becomes hard to repair.
- The instruments are not replaceable and become out of date very often.
Bottom Line
Due to the glass coating, the images are sharp and crisp. The telescope is easy to assemble and dissemble. The telescope lens becomes way more stable with the help of a tripod. The telescope is lightweight and portable and can be carried to places.
3. Canon EF – Full-time manual focus feature
The Canon EF is the most expensive lens manufactured by Canon. The lens is widely sharp from corners and slightly sharper at the bottom. For making it no less than the best lens for moon photography, Canon has put a lot of features in this product.
One of the most significant improvements in the lens is reduced vignetting. The 800mm focal length nicely magnifies the out of focus background of an image by creating a strong blurred background.
Chromatic aberration (CA) tends to be very low, and the flare is very well controlled. The main expectation is of the color and contrast of the picture with the help of this lens which is very pleasing. The image quality is excellent.
The Canon EF 800mm be the longest telescoping lens among other canon lenses. It consists of a ring-type ultrasonic motor and inner focus system, which makes the image sharper by all means. The outstanding correction of color fringing along with a good contrast comes from the refined optical design.
- Full-time manual focus.
- Super Spectra lens coating which delivers a clear image.
- The extension tube allows good focussing.
- 8 blade rounded aperture creates a strongly blurred background.
- The heavyweight of the camera makes it difficult to carry.
- Hand holding of the lens without any support would be of risky.
- The framing of images becomes difficult because of the 800mm focus.
- Exposures at f/5.6 are darker even in the centre of the frame, which is more than f/8 exposures.
Bottom Line
The weight of the lens is quite heavy and becomes challenging to carry out. While telescoping a moon, the image barely fits into the picture. The lens is a bit costly, but when it comes to sharpness and high-resolution photos, we should count on this lens.
4. Panasonic G LEICA DG VARIO-ELMARIT – For excellent pictures and videos of the moon
The PANASONIC LUMIX Professional 8-18mm Camera Lens has a wide angle which provides a great deal of zoom into a picture.
Teaming up with Leica, Panasonic created this lens to deliver crystal-clear, sharp photos. The lens uses special elements that reduce color fringing and blurring (aberrations) for stunning image quality, ensuring your photos look their best.
This lens goes the extra mile to ensure your photos look their best. The special coating on the lens reduces unwanted reflections and haziness and also keeps your colors sharp and clear. Moreover, the tough metal build is built to withstand the elements.
This lens is a great choice for both photos and videos. It can perform with lightning-fast autofocus that locks onto subjects in a flash (240fps). Plus, the rounded diaphragm creates a beautiful blurred background (bokeh effect) for your photos that makes your subject truly stand out.
Be mindful that this lens is on the heavier side and might not fit standard filters. It also requires careful handling due to its premium build quality. While its weight and sturdiness might feel reassuring, any potential damage could be costly to repair.
- The wide-angle zoomed lens delivers a clear view of the very depth of the image
- Nano surface coating reduces unwanted ghosting and flaring
- High-speed autofocus of 240fps for improved video performance
- Durable metal body for any kind of harsh weather.
- 4k video support for the smooth running of any shoot
- Not optimal for astrophotography.
- The front glass elements retract into the lens when zoomed inwards.
- The tube is fixed in its fully opened where dust and moisture could enter easily
Bottom Line
The all-round performance of the lens is superb. It is a great lens with a perfect weight. The image tends to be sharp at almost all the focal lengths. The only things that lag behind are the variable aperture along the long end tube, which is fully opened to allow dust to enter easily.
5. Opteka – Highly compatible
The Opteka is a high definition manual focus telephoto zoom lens for both professional and amateur photographers. The lens is designed for photographing distant objects.
The lens is super adapting for a variety of wide-angle camera types. The optical lens is fully multi-coated for the suppression of ghost and flare images. The built-in rotating tripod mounts the lens very steadily and easily to the tripod.
A soft lens pouch is given in addition to store the lens while travelling. The item weighs 1.43 pounds. It has a minimum focus distance of 4.9m and has an aperture of f/8-16. The unbeatable purity and color saturation beat the need for lab color timing corrections for other filters.
Using a tripod while shooting is necessary to allow a stable shoot overall. The size of the lens gives it a very heavy look, but in actuality it only weighs 1.43 pounds which is nearly 2 kg.
The Opteka lens is very simple to use for professional photographers. The quality of the image is excellent. Due to the superzoom feature, far off images could be seen very easily. The slip ring present allows you to rotate the camera with convenience.
- The advanced optics used by the lens reduces chromatic and spherical aberrations.
- The super zoom performs spectacularly well.
- The compatibility of the device is very high.
- The solid construction of the lens helps it withstand hard situations.
- A very feature limited lens.
- Not recommended for amateur photographers as it is difficult to operate.
- Manual focus is difficult and slow.
- The focus is not very high and stable.
Bottom Line
Overall the lens is of a high quality which clicks tremendously good pictures. The price is not very high. It brings you really close to the subject matter located miles away.
Read Also: Best Low Light Point and Shoot Camera – Top 10 Picks
6. Nikon 70mm – Lightweight Nikon lens for moon shots
This lens works great on FX if you want to buy a cheap lens and goes well with a tripod. The lens goes great with portraits but not very well with landscapes.
To make it a decent lens for moon photography, Nikon has made some developments in this product that previous versions lacked.
The lens works with almost all FX digital cameras. The lens only works with autofocus cameras. It works fine at almost all focal lens. The autofocus speed is somewhat identical and slow.
The maximum aperture is 300mm with a focal length of f/5.6. The hood is of plastic and not metal, and there are no front bumpers.
- The image stabilization makes handholding more efficient.
- The lens is of a lightweight.
- The stability of the image enhances with the use of a tripod.
- Works on auto-focusing camera.
- Good at taking portraits.
- High power 4.3x zoom lens.
- Does not work on manual camera.
- Not good at capturing landscape photography.
- Does not produce very sharp images as compared to other high-end lenses.
- Not suitable for professional photographers.
Bottom Line
The lens provides a lot to learn about real photography. Very much comfortable for amateur photographers. The lightweight and the low price makes it more efficient for buying the product.
You can capture wonderful night photos at higher shutter speeds. The only thing that it lags behind is the non-availability of working on manual cameras.
7. Altura Photo – Lens with high-quality multi-layered coating.
The Altura photo fisheye lens in the new addition to a professional series of lenses. The straightforward use of the lens makes it easy for amateur photographers to capture images.
With a multilayer lens coating, the AP-8MC unlocks new angles for capturing high definition sharp pictures. The highly advanced optics makes the Altura fisheye the most used and ultimately the best fish-eyed lens. Comes with an additional petal lens hood which can be used to protect the lens from damage during travelling.
It is a great lens for landscape photography which makes it one of the best lenses for astrophotography. It doesn’t really show up with the perfect sharpness of distant images.
It is a recommended product for creative landscape but not for portraits. The focus and aperture work manually. The fisheye lens goes well with artistic shots and landscapes. It takes stunning pictures in the low light camera. There is a decent range of angles to make the picture look straight.
- Aperture range- 8mm and focal length of F/3-22.
- Multilayer lens coating for reduced flare and ghosting.
- Manual focus and aperture control increase the demand for this fisheye lens.
- Lens construction with hybrid aspherical elements to increase the sharpness of an image.
- The lens sometimes is of poor quality.
- Doesn’t fit to most of the Nikon cameras.
- The autofocus is rather disturbing as it takes time to focus a distant image.
- It is hard to adjust the image manually.
Bottom Line
The overall performance of the lens is spectacular as it proves to be the best astrophotography lens because of its stability using a tripod.
The lens proves to be the best for the landscape picture shoot and lags behind portrait pictures as its main aim is to provide sharpness of an image rather than blurring the background.
8. Panasonic G F2.8 LEICA DG VARIO-ELMARIT – Good looking and durable
The PANASONIC LUMIX Professional 12-35mm Camera Lens is a versatile zoom wide-angle lens that is particularly popular for capturing portrait pictures.
This lens offers a flexible zoom range (24-70mm equivalent to full-frame). It makes the lens useful for various situations like landscapes, portraits, and street photography. The big advantage? It shines in low-light settings, capturing clear images, and allows you to control the background blur for creative effects. It is a great companion for photographers who value versatility and low-light performance.
Leica DG Vario-ELMARIT works seamlessly with your camera’s autofocus system and ensures quiet and speedy operation. With a sensor drive reaching up to 240fps, you can capture sharp photos and videos without any distracting noise from the lens.
This Panasonic LUMIX G series lens comes combined with your camera’s built-in stabilization system to combat blur caused by camera shake. This double dose of stabilization ensures you capture sharp and steady photos and videos, even when shooting handheld or in low-light conditions.
Remarkably compact and lightweight (306 grams), the Leica DG Vario-Elmarit 12-35mm lens is perfectly suited for Micro Four Thirds cameras. Its portability makes it easy to carry and swap between different camera bodies within the system.
It is built tough to handle challenging environments. Its dust and splash-resistant design can withstand light rain and dusty conditions, even at temperatures as low as 14°F (-12°C). This makes it a reliable companion for outdoor adventures and unpredictable weather
- Standard zoom for micro four-thirds mirror less-camera
- Bright constant focal length maintains consistent performance
- Compact and lightweight
- Rugged dust- and splash-resistant design
- Good image stabilization
- Smooth aperture changing and allows 4k video recording
- Videos are unwatchable due to the issue with jittering
- The lenses contain a few bugs that are not repairable
- It creates a problem while shooting video because of focus breathing
Bottom Line
The Panasonic Lumix is a versatile wide-angle lens that magnifies to a very great extent. The lens is suitable for cinematic shoots and not landscape events.
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9. Canon EF-S 55-250mm Lens – For both amateur and professional
The Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4.0-5.6 STM is one of the most inexpensive lenses with less metal and more plastic. It has a 400mm effective focal length of f/4-5.6 which is most suitable for wildlife photography. Wildlife and sporty images require a low fps to achieve a fast shutter speed, the lens, unfortunately, provides a 250mm fps which is not very suitable for clicking motion pictures. At least the excellent image stabilizer helps to lower the shutter speed to capture motion pictures. The blurred movement somehow cannot be prevented.
This Canon lens brings distant subjects closer with its powerful zoom, making it a good choice for capturing wildlife or faraway objects. It’s also compact and lightweight. It fits well in your bag for easy carrying. Plus, the lens features image stabilization to help reduce blur in your photos, especially at longer zoom lengths or in low-light conditions.
This Canon lens is designed to be compact and portable despite its impressive zoom range. Its new design with six groups of lens elements allows you to capture distant subjects with ease while still maintaining a lightweight and easy-to-carry lens. Additionally, it offers a maximum magnification of 0.29x at the telephoto end, bringing faraway details closer for clearer viewing.
While this lens offers a powerful zoom, it has limitations. It lacks a switch to limit the zoom range, which can accidentally zoom in too much, causing blur. When you adjust the zoom, you’ll need to refocus manually, as the lens is not parfocal.
- It captures images within a range of 250mm
- Works well with amateur and semi-professional photographers
- Compact and lightweight
- Built-in image stabilization helps minimize camera shake
- The stepping motor provides smooth and quiet autofocus
- Perfect for beginner and amateur photographers
- Limited for low-light photography
- Lack of a switch to limit the zoom range
- The lens uses more plastic and potentially feels less sturdy
Bottom Line
The Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS STM is a good value option for beginner and casual photographers with Canon APS-C DSLR cameras who want to extend their zoom range for capturing distant subjects. However, its variable aperture and potential limitations in image quality might be factors to consider for photographers seeking the best possible low-light performance or image quality.
10. Canon EF 24-70mm F/2.8L II USM Standard Zoom Lens
– High accuracy lens for clear moon pictures
This Canon lens offers impressive image quality throughout its zoom range (24-70mm). It has a large f/2.8 aperture and special lens elements that minimize color fringing. This makes it a versatile choice for capturing various subjects, from landscapes and portraits to events, all while delivering sharp and clear photos.
This Canon lens boasts silent and speedy autofocus, perfect for capturing fleeting moments. It also allows for manual focus for creative control over soft-focus effects. The lens excels at close-up shots, getting you as close as 0.38 meters from your subject with a magnification of 0.29x.
Want low-light performance? This lens offers a wide aperture of f/2.8 throughout its zoom range that allows beautiful blurred backgrounds and excellent low-light performance. It also features a silent and fast autofocus motor, and the option to switch to manual focus for creative control.
While this lens shines with its fast and silent autofocus, it lacks built-in image stabilization (IS). This means camera shake might cause blur in your photos, especially at slower shutter speeds or in low light.
- The lens is very shard and also has excellent contrast
- Fast autofocus
- Contains a multiple range of focal lengths
- Constant f/2.8 aperture offers good low-light performance
- It is best for both image quality purposes as well as accuracy
- No image stabilization feature
- Comparably heavy and expensive
- Time-consuming manual focus
Bottom Line
The Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM is an exceptional lens that delivers outstanding image quality, performance, and durability. Its weight, size, and price point might make it less suitable for casual photographers or those on a tight budget.
Things to consider when buying the best lens for moon photography
Moon photography is not quite the same as general astrophotography. Astrophotography can be taking pictures of stars, galaxies and other celestial objects including the moon. But if you are interested in only moon photography, you need your lens to be specific features for that.
So, what makes moon photography different? Well, first of all, the difference in light. The moon is the second brightest object of the sky, and that means, it does not require a lens to have a very low aperture.
The stars are not very bright because of the distance. So, taking photos of stars is entirely different from moon photography. But both are still a subcategory of astrophotography or night sky photography.
Another thing to know is that the moon does not have the same shape all the time. We all know that it changes eight times in a month. Most photographers are interested in taking pictures of a full moon and close up shots of the moon’s surface.
There are some other things to consider when you are going to buy the best lens for moon photography. We have described them below for your assistance.
Type
Any random type of lens is pretty useless in moon photography. There are specific lenses that are usable for this purpose. There are even subcategories of moon photography as a result; you need to know what kind of moon photography you are interested in.
To have a general idea, we can recommend a lens that can give you good performance. That’s a telephoto lens, also known as a zoom lens. If you are a beginner, the best choice for you can be a zoom lens. A telephoto lens has a 60mm or more focal length, which helps in moon photography.
Aperture
Even in general photography, the aperture is an important term to know. You might already know about this if you have a minimum understanding of cameras. In that case, skip to the last paragraph of this section where have talked about the aperture range for moon photography.
For those of you who don’t have an understanding of aperture, the aperture is the term that describes the opening of the diaphragm through which light passes. The measurement unit of the aperture is f/number. The smaller the number, the bigger the aperture and the brighter the pictures.
It does not take a high aperture to capture the bright moon in a moonlit night. We recommend an aperture range of f/8 to f/10 for the best performance.
Frequently asked questions
This field of photography needs special features. You might come across to some confusion while dealing with them. This is why we have provided the top 10 questions when it comes to moon photography.
What ISO setting is needed for moon photography?
Keeping the ISO as low as possible is the best method. Best lens for taking pictures of the moon should have a wide range of ISO.
Why am I unable to take close-ups of the moon?
You might haven’t use the right settings for it. You can find further information about it on the web.
What should be the shutter speed for moon photography?
We recommend a minimum shutter speed of 1/80th for camera lens for moon photography.
Manual vs autofocus, which is better?
Definitely manual. But as a beginner, you can use autofocus to get used to the lens.
Are all the lens suitable for a professional?
Not all lenses can be a good choice for professionals but can be a good starting point for newbies.
What should be the aperture for moon photography?
f/8 can be a good setting for a full moon.
Why is stabilization important?
You do not want your camera moving even a bit when taking pictures. This is why stabilization is a must.
Telescopes vs Lenses, which one should I use?
Telescopes are definitely better for some fields. But if you are a newbie, we suggest that you get used to a lens first.
How to be sure of the compatibility?
The best way is to buy the featured lens for your camera. Nikon and Canon have featured lenses that are compatible with most of their cameras.
What are the extra pieces of equipment that I should use?
You need a good tripod, a compatible lens, and the best camera for moon shots and you’re good to go.
Wrapping up
Moon photography is not as simple as we may think. The field has its special requirements, and we recommend our readers to have good knowledge of all the necessary information.
Only some photography gear cannot take a picture great. The person behind the camera needs to know the camera well to ensure high-quality and stunning photos of the beautiful moon.
This is why besides purchasing the best lens for moon photography, we advise you to improve your skills to become a professional.
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