Zooms can be useful, but a good prime lens is a photographer’s best friend. A prime lens – a catch-all term denoting any lens with a fixed focal length – can seem restrictive to those first starting out on their photographic journey. However, once you start using primes, it makes sense.
Prime lenses tend to field larger maximum apertures than zooms, making them excel in low light and for creating a shallow depth of field. They also pack in sharper optics, giving images a crispness. Then there’s also the subjective – but popular – view that using a prime lens makes you a more engaged and thoughtful photographer. Having to move your feet to change your framing makes you active, immersing you in the scene.
Of course, prime lenses can get seriously expensive, especially when the apertures get larger. So, we’ve set our sights on some of the cheapest primes to buy right now, and for that we’ve turned to the second-hand market. Buying used is unquestionably the best way to maximise bang for your buck when it comes to photographic equipment. If you go with a reputable retailer who’ll offer a warranty on used items, there’s much less risk than there is with buying from private sellers on eBay and the like. Plus, you’re doing your bit by making a more sustainable choice.
So, in this article we’ve rounded up all the best bargains on prime lenses across the used market right now. We’ve focused on both mirrorless and DSLR lenses to give options to as many shooters as possible.
Used prime lenses under £200
Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM
● Expect to pay: £160-£215
● www.canon.co.uk
Key specs
● Mount: Canon EF
● Min. focus distance: 0.85m
● Filter thread: 58mm
● Weight: 425g
Portrait shooting doesn’t need to be expensive – and this short-telephoto prime for Canon’s EF DSLR mount is an ideal lens for getting started with people pictures. It was a cheap lens even when new, and while its plastic build means it doesn’t feel as premium as the more swanky short telephotos for EF-mount, the optical performance still impresses. Images look great even when shooting wide open, which of course you’re going to do, and the eight-bladed diaphragm produces attractive bokeh in the defocused areas of images.
That ‘USM’ in the name, for those who don’t know, denotes Canon’s Ultra-sonic Motor autofocus system, which is reliably snappy and accurate. It’s also completely silent, making this lens a contender for video as well as stills. Prices currently vary across Park Cameras and MPB.
Sony FE 50mm f/1.8
● Expect to pay: £130-£150
● www.sony.co.uk
Key specs
● Mount: Sony FE
● Min. focus distance: 0.45m
● Filter thread: 49mm
● Weight: 186g
This nifty-fifty prime
