7 Best Lens for Documentary in 2023

Are you shooting a documentary? here is a list of the best lens for documentary.

Are you looking for the best type of lens to capture all your interviews and b-roll while also giving an appealing look that can powerfully tell your story?

Picking the right lens makes a huge difference in creating beautiful and effective visuals.

You need something versatile that will help bring out the nuances of your film.

Luckily, various lenses are available today designed specifically for documentaries—each offering unique benefits.

Here we’ll break down what features you should consider when selecting an ideal lens for your project or career and provide reviews and recommendations for some of our favorite documentary lenses.

Is Zoom or Prime lens better for documentaries?

So you’re getting ready to shoot a documentary, huh?

One of the most significant decisions–and investments–you’ll be making in creating quality footage is choosing the right lenses for your camera.

While both zoom and prime lenses have their benefits, it’s essential to consider your shooting style first.

Zoom lenses offer a greater focal length and range, which makes changing focal points on the fly easier, especially for fast-paced shooting environments.

On the other hand, prime lenses may have a narrower focal range but provide higher image quality due to their more straightforward design.

Ultimately, the best lenses for your documentary will depend on your specific needs and budget.

So weigh the pros and cons, try them out, and see which suits you and your story the best. Happy shooting.

Its wide maximum aperture also allows you to create attractive images with beautiful bokeh and shallow depth of field, making this lens an excellent choice for many documentary filmmakers.

You can get the best quality even when working with an out-of-focus background while using the lens.

The standard lens has weather sealing and is perfect for every documentary work.

The Canon lens must be among your lens options for shooting single-person talking headshots.

This prime lens offers sharpness throughout the frame, and its fast autofocus system ensures you never miss a moment while capturing your story.

Its fast aperture of f/2.8 ensures sharp images with excellent low-light performance.

Additionally, it has a fast autofocus system and an optical stabilization feature that helps reduce camera shake—making handholding your footage easier and smoother without sacrificing image quality.

The fast autofocus ensures crisp images without compromising sharpness or color accuracy, essential for documentary filmmaking.

It also features image stabilization technology that helps reduce camera shake and produces steady footage even when shooting handheld or at longer focal lengths.

You’ll appreciate the lens’s versatility and ability to capture scenes without moving your camera or switching lenses quickly.

The zoom lens is incredibly sharp with an outstanding manual focus.

It’s also lightweight—ideal for handheld shooting—and robust enough to use in any environment without worry of damage or wear.

The built-in autofocus ensures you always get the shot you want with sharpness and clarity, even when filming in low-light conditions.

It is one of the best lenses for documentary filmmakers because of its different focal lengths. The only problem might be that it doesn’t have image stabilization built-in.

Telephoto lenses are some of the best documentary-style lenses because they can shoot your subject at different angles and focal lengths.

Sigma’s lens also comes with a custom-engineered motor that provides fast and quiet autofocus, allowing you to capture every detail of your documentary without interruption.

Its maximum aperture of f/1.8 creates beautiful out-of-focus backgrounds, making it perfect for portrait shots and closeups.

Its impressive 11-blade circular diaphragm also produces attractive bokeh effects in your footage and photos.

You should expect compelling images and shallow depth when recording sit-down interviews with the Sony lens.

Sony’s lens also features a minimum focusing distance of just 0.17 meters—great for closeup shots—and fast autofocus, quickly capturing fast-moving subjects.

It is one of the top lenses on a budget, and it works with a Sony Camera with an E-mount system.

This lens is also incredibly lightweight and compact so that it won’t add extra bulk or weight to your production kit.

This lens offers a fast f/1.8 aperture and excellent image quality throughout its focal range—ideal for low-light conditions or when you want to create beautiful bokeh effects.

It can shoot at different focal lengths and angles, so you don’t need to change lenses throughout your documentary filmmaking process.

You can use a single camera; your lens choice will be the Sigma.

It will deliver incredibly sharp images when paired with any DSLR or Mirrorless camera.

It also features a unique Hyper Sonic Motor (HSM) that allows for silent autofocus so as not to interrupt your filming process.

The focus and zoom rings are well-built, with smooth movement and accurate focusing.

It’s also incredibly lightweight—ideal for handheld shooting—and robust enough to use in any environment without worry of damage or wear.

The built-in autofocus system ensures crisp images without compromising sharpness or color accuracy, which is essential for documentary filmmaking.

You can get the best quality even when working with an out-of-focus background using the YONGNUO lens.

This lens is an excellent choice for capturing single-person talking headshots as it offers sharpness throughout the frame, and its fast autofocus system ensures you never miss a moment while capturing your story.

What lens do documentaries use?

There is no one-size-fits-all answer when it comes to lenses used in documentary filmmaking.

Documentary filmmakers need versatile and flexible tools to capture different angles and compositions depending on their specific project needs.

The best lens for documentaries will depend on the type of shots you plan to capture—whether closeups, wide landscapes, or low light scenes—as well as the budget constraints of your production.

Well-known documentary lenses include Canon EF 50mm f/1.2L USM, Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 DG DN Art, Canon EF 70-200mm F2.8L IS II USM, Sigma 28-70mm F2.8 DG DN Art, Sony FE 20mm F1.8 G, Sigma 18-35mm F1.8 Art, and YONGNUO YN50mm F1.8.

Each of these lenses offers unique features and benefits that can make them ideal for your documentary project or career needs.

Conclusion

Regarding documentary filmmaking, your lens choice is as essential as your camera.

Your lens selection can mean distinguishing between a compelling and amateur story.

The right lens for your project will depend on various factors such as focal length, aperture, autofocus speed, and image quality.

We’ve gone over some of the best lenses for documentaries available today that offer both quality and value—these are perfect choices no matter what type of project you’re shooting.

So weigh your options carefully and find the right fit for your documentary needs!