Best Landscape Lens For Nikon D850 in 2023

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Nikon D850 is one of the most popular choices for shooting landscapes with its state-of-the-art features, specifications, and unique build. Not only that, but this standout camera also comes at a lucrative price point, especially affordable for people who’re just looking to step into the world of landscape photography.

However, equipping your Nikon D850 with a stellar landscape lens truly helps you capture the sharpest and most crisp ultra-wide-angle images.

A landscape lens should have a broad depth of field, high-resolution image quality, and a considerable focal length range to capture natural beauty.

For this reason, we have compiled a list of such lenses to shed light on the finest wide-angle lenses for landscape photography.

Is the Nikon D850 Good for Landscape Photography?

Before we get to the lenses on our list, let’s talk about why the Nikon D850 is the best in the game regarding landscape photography.

This camera pretty much has it all; exceptional features, incredible build quality, and a pocket-friendly price bracket.

D850 has an out-of-this-world fast-action image sensor with 45.4 Megapixels, allowing photographers to capture images in brilliant resolution. It hosts 100% viewfinder coverage, making it super easy to compose your landscape shot the way you want it.

This second-to-none DSLR also has an excellent dynamic range, rendering images of sceneries with realistic details. The DSLR even hosts an impressive AF system, making it super convenient to shoot in low-light settings.

The D850 has a special split-screen display, which can be accessed while you’re taking a shot. This display provides you with a zoomed-in view of two different areas of your frame, so you can make sure everything is in focus.

Moreover, the camera comes fully weather-sealed, so you are prepared to get the perfect landscape shot even in unfavorable weather conditions.

What Are the Best Landscape Lenses for Nikon D850?

Now that we have brushed up on why the Nikon D850 is an unparalleled choice for photographers interested in landscape photography, one might wonder what can be done to take their photographs to the next level. Well, using a landscape lens is the way to go.

So, let’s get on with our list to help you find the ideal lens for your Nikon D850 to assist you in shooting landscape portraits of the highest image quality.

Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 14-24mm f/2.8G ED

Our Pick

Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 14-24mm f/2.8G ED


This D850 lens is very sharp with great colors and contrast, providing a flexible ultra-wide-angle range of focal lengths that are perfect for landscape photography.

Pros

  • Exquisite low-light performance
  • Extra-low dispersion glass for minimizing chromatic aberrations and flare
  • Fully weather-sealed
  • Durable body-structure

Cons

  • No image stabilization
  • Heavier for its size
  • Difficulty in adding a filter due to protruding front element

The first wide-angle lens on our list is the Nikon NIKKOR 14-24mm. This lens, paired with a high-resolution DSLR like the D850, is bound to produce pretty sharp landscape photographs.

The 14-24mm comes with a focusing mode that allows switching from automatic to manual focusing instantly. This prevents you from capturing blurry messes, rather, you end up with some pretty sharp landscape images highlighting all the intricate details.
Another benefit of this lens that can’t be ignored is its durability. With its rugged construction and professional-grade dust and moisture resistance, Nikon’s 14-24mm can withstand fairly harsh outside environments.

It also has a built-in petal-shaped lens hood that helps to prevent stray light from causing any sort of flare or ghosting effect. This is also assisted by the Nano Crystal Coating applied on the lens.

Combined, these features come in handy when working with different compositions under the bright sun or an array of street lights.

Along with reducing color aberrations, the extra-low dispersion element in the 14-24mm further helps ensure pictorial excellence in every respect.

Nikon’s 14-24mm has a maximum aperture of f/2.8, which is remarkably fast and delivers consistent performance throughout the zoom range.

A large aperture is not necessary for landscape photography, but it offers illumination for handling low-light situations such as nightscape photography or astrophotography.

Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 20mm f/1.8G ED

Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 20mm f/1.8G ED


This D850 prime lens offers superior sharpness from corner to corner, especially at maximum aperture. It minimizes chromatic aberrations, distortion, ghosting, and flare for better clarity.

Pros

  • Budget-friendly price
  • Extra-low dispersion glass for minimizing chromatic distortions and ghosting
  • Weather-sealed lens mount
  • Lightweight body-structure
  • Optimum image quality

Cons

  • No image stabilization
  • Difficulty in adding a filter due to the front element

The Nikkor 20mm is a handy little prime lens you can dump into your backpack whenever heading in the quest of getting the perfect landscape shot.

This lens is Nikon’s fastest ultra-wide angle lens yet. The AF-S NIKKOR 20mm lets you get vast and expansive shots of your landscape without forcing you to compromise on the composition.

At its maximum aperture setting of f/1.8, the 20mm focuses on the object in the foreground, effectively blurs the backgrounds in your photos, and allows you to shoot at lower ISO settings to maintain optimum image quality. While blurring the background isn’t popular in landscape photography, it’s still a nice option to have.

Additionally, this lens is built with aspherical elements and extra-low dispersion elements with Nano Crystal Coating to make chromatic distortions to a minimum. The images produced have color accuracy and are almost entirely devoid of flare, making your landscape photographs top-notch.

While a fixed 20mm prime focal length may task you on hiking a bit more to get the perfect shot, it promises beautiful colors and sharp images, significantly better than what a zoom lens can produce.

The 20mm is exceptionally compact and supremely lightweight, weighing only 0.7 lb. This allows you to easily chuck the lens into any backpack without worrying about it weighing you down or hoarding too much space in your camera bag.

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 16-35mm f/4G ED

Also Great

Nikon AF-S Nikkor 16-35mm f/4G ED


This D850 lens is an ultra-sharp lens with minimum distortion and vignetting. It even offers Vibration Reduction which is rare for a wide-angle lens.

Pros

  • Great Sharpness
  • Weather-resistant sealing
  • Remarkable image quality
  • In-built vibration reduction provides ultimate image stabilization
  • Silent wave motor enables high-speed and accurate autofocusing

Cons

  • The price is relatively high
  • Evidence of some chromatic distortion
  • Hefty build

If you are always on the move and looking to capture some fantastic shots, then the Nikon 16-35mm is the lens for you. This lens is specifically marketed as the perfect travel lens due to its lightweight and versatile zoom range.

With a wide range of zoom capabilities paired with a constant aperture, the 16-35mm lens is able to produce excellent landscape shots without forcing you to hike your way for the perfect composition. The 35mm zoom range also allows you to capture photos of the view just as your naked eye sees them.

The aperture of f/4 is decent for covering well-light environments and low-light settings. The wide-open aperture lets in plenty of light, and when combined with a complimenting ISO, the lens helps to produce some incredibly well-lit and grain-free shots.

Vibration reduction is a commendable advancement in Nikon image stabilization technology and is a notable feature of the 16-35mm. The feature prevents camera shakes and vibrations from making your images a blurry smudge of colors.  

The Nikon 16-35mm has an ultra-fast autofocus system that allows the lens to sync perfectly with the camera shutter speed, maintaining the sharpness of the pictures. The lens has a focusing mode that allows switching from manual to autofocus whenever needed.

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

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


This D850 lens offers a tighter view and a 3x zoom range for easier landscape composition. It is built like a tank and has great sharpness.

Pros

  • Curved spherical lens to minimize chromatic aberrations and distortions
  • In-built vibration reduction provides ultimate image stabilization
  • Silent wave motor enables high-speed and accurate autofocusing
  • Creamy bokeh
  • Extremely durable and reliable build

Cons

  • Premium price bracket
  • Bulky body structure

Next, we have the Nikon NIKKOR 24-70mm on our list, one of the best zoom lenses for shooting landscapes and portraits.  

The 24-70 mm optical zoom range lets beginners quickly capture the impressive landscape and nature shots without hiking around to find their desired composition. Paired with the f/2.8 aperture, it also performs exceptionally well in settings with awful lighting, which isn’t something you’re in control of when shooting images outside.

The Nikkor 24-70mm is built with rigid and sturdy materials that promise durability and reliability even in challenging weather. Moreover, the lens is equipped with a rear rubber gasket to keep your camera moisture and debris-free, making it a fine choice for taking outdoors.

This lens also includes a Vibration Reduction system, Nikon’s latest image stabilization technology. The technology helps ensure that your end-result images are clear and sharp, even if your camera vibrates during the shot.

Nikon AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 24-120mm f/4G ED

Nikon AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 24-120mm f/4G ED


This D850 lens is pretty sharp even with a 5x zoom range. It is versatile for not only landscape photography but also portraits, weddings, etc.

Pros

  • Extra-low dispersion glass for minimizing chromatic aberrations and flare
  • In-built vibration reduction provides ultimate image stabilization
  • Silent wave motor enables high-speed and accurate autofocusing
  • Expansive zoom range
  • Durable and reliable build

Cons

  • Thin focus ring making focusing manually slightly difficult
  • Heavier for its size
  • Not the best option in harsh weather conditions

The last ultra-wide angle lens on our list is the Nikon 24-120mm. This is the ultimate lens for travel, hosting ample focal length and producing shots of all sorts of compositions when paired up with the D850. The zoom variation allows you to tinker with different compositions and get creative shots.

The 24-120mm comes with two Focus Modes, enhancing AF control versatility with speedy and snug switching between auto and manual focus. This helps any landscape photographer or enthusiast who’s fond of shooting moving objects in the sky with a mesmerizing view in the background.

The 24-120mm lens comes with additional consistency and reduces the ghost effect in your photographs with the help of Nikon’s Nano Crystal Coating and Super-Integrated coating.

Meanwhile, the aspherical lens helps reduce spherical and chromatic aberrations even at the maximum aperture settings, which is something most landscape photographers struggle with.

The FX-format lenses by Nikon are made for high-definition wide-angle photography through your DSLR camera. The 24-120mm upholds image clarity, ensuring reasonably detailed images.

The 24-120mm has a sturdy all-metal build with minimal plastic finishings. The lens mount is also made of solid metal, ensuring durability and reliability in the field. Though the manual focusing ring is made of plastic, it is covered with rubber, which makes it highly comfortable and precise, balancing quite well on your Nikon D850.

Conclusion

The Nikon D850 is the perfect camera you can get for shooting landscapes. With its impressive specifications, unique features, lightweight body structure, and durable build, all packed into a reasonable price bracket, the DSLR comes out on top in every aspect.

However, paired with a high-quality wide-angle landscape lens, you can take some pretty stunning shots. We hope our list of the leading landscape lenses helped you make your next purchase decision. Let us know what camera-lens duo do you own!

Meet the Author


Syed Arham

Arham delved into photography since he got his first phone, a measly Samsung C7, back in 2010. With access to limited gear, he discovered innovative ways to capture some of his favorite shots. While Arham loves to travel, his dream shot, engulfing the northern lights in his camera frame, still remains one on his bucket list. However, until he gets the opportunity to travel to the Norwegian Arctic, Arham spends his time writing in-depth gear reviews for fellow photographers!

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