Slowly replacing its predecessor, the Nikon D3300 is another 24.2MP entry level DSLR from Nikon, but this time they’ve also removed the low-pass filter in order to improve the quality.
Check out some of the best lenses for Nikon D3300! Make sure that the lens you are buying has an AF-S motor, otherwise it will not auto focus on the D3300 (it will fit normally, but only manual focus will work). This also applies to third-lenses (Sigma, Tamron and so on), but you don’t have to worry about this in our tutorial as all lenses we selected will work/focus normally.
Best prime lenses we covered:
Nikon 35mm f/1.8G AF-S
Nikon 50mm f/1.8G AF-S
Nikon 40mm f/2.8G AF-S Micro
Best zoom lenses we covered:
Nikon 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED IF AF-S VR
Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 AT-X Pro DX II
Nikon 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S
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Best Prime Lenses for Nikon D3300
Nikon 35mm f/1.8G DX – This is Nikon’s best selling lens, simply because it’s affordable and has great image quality. It’s a small, lightweight prime with a maximum aperture of f/1.8, perfect for both low light photography and blurring the background on your images. This is the best way to make your shots look more professional, and can only be done by using a bigger aperture. The 35mm length is great for almost all types of photography so you shouldn’t worry if you’re used to zoom lenses, as the quality is unmatchable on the 35mm! You can see reviews here.
Nikon 50mm f/1.8G – Similar to the 35mm above, but slightly longer, meaning you can expect even shallower depth of field (more blur) and have it easier when shooting subjects that are further away. The 50mm range is also perfect for a ton of different photography styles, such as street photography, weddings, casual/daily stuff, food and so on. You can see reviews here.
Nikon 40mm f/2.8G AF-S DX Micro – For macro photography on a budget, it doesn’t get any better than this. Cheap, delivers great results, focuses quickly and has a closest focusing distance of 0.4″. It’s a perfect choice for product photography, details and also smaller bugs (but you do have to get a lot closer than with the 90mm above, so keep that in mind). You can see reviews here.
Best Zoom Lenses for Nikon D3300
Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 AT-X Pro DX II – Much better option than Nikon’s pricier competitor, and it also comes with 2 stops bigger maximum aperture at both ends of its range! Because of that it’s aimed at landscape, architecture, group, wedding and night photographers, as you can use it in low light as well. You can see more reviews here.
Nikon 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR – The D3300’s 18-55mm is an okay lens, but if you’re looking for an even more versatile choice with better quality and 3x more zoom, you’ll love the 18-140mm! You can see reviews here.
Nikon 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR II – The most affordable telephoto lens with good image quality. It’s a great choice if you want to get your feet wet in sports and animal photography but don’t want to spend too much. It also features Vibration Reduction that will help you when shooting with slower shutter speeds. You can see reviews here.
Nikon Lens Terms Explained
FX – Mount that fits and works perfectly with all Nikon DSLR cameras
DX – Mount made specifically for DX cameras such as the D3300 and all the way up to Nikon D500. They’re often lighter and cheaper than FX lenses.
VR – Stands for Vibration Reduction and it helps you when you’re shooting with slow shutter speeds (like at night or indoors) and you’re trying to get sharp results. Basically it tries to minimize the blur caused by your movement (more info here) and is almost always successful, but only if your subject is static.
AF-S – Lenses with AF-S have an auto focus motor built-in and will focus with cameras that don’t have a motor built in them (the D3300 and all other entry-level models don’t have it). You don’t have to worry about this too much as almost all lenses today do have the AF-S in them.
G – No aperture ring on the lens itself, kind of like in the old days. Again, pretty much 99% lenses for the past 10 years.
ED – Stands for Extra-Low Dispersion glass elements, helps at reducing chromatic aberration (color fringing).
IF – Internal Focusing, it means the front element of a lens does not rotate when auto focusing (useful when used with polarizing filters)
Micro – These ‘macro’ lenses have a 1:1 ratio and make your subject look as big as it is in real life.
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