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There are a lot of bokeh lovers out there, but if you’re new to the word bokeh, you can learn more about it in our bokeh tip guide.
Fast lenses are typically the best lenses for bokeh, but what you’re really looking for is a lens that not only renders the background nicely, but also maintains maximum sharpness for your subject. We’ve combed through Nikon’s lens offerings and have identified some of the best lenses which are capable of producing beautiful bokeh.
Nikon 24mm f/1.4G ED AF-S RF SWM Prime Wide-Angle Nikkor Lens
Wide angle lenses are not generally famous for their bokeh or used wide open most of the time, but this wide angle lens renders absolutely beautiful bokeh. The 24mm f/1.4G lens is very sharp and the large maximum aperture of f/1.4 makes this perfect for shooting in very low light conditions. This lens is great but it’s not cheap, so it only makes sense to buy if you plan on shooting with it wide open. If you’ll be stopping your lens down most of the time, there are other more affordable wide angle lenses which might be more cost effective. The 24mm f/1.4G reproduces very accurate color and contrast and the bokeh is extremely smooth.
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Nikon 35mm f/1.4G AF-S FX SWM Nikkor Lens
Functioning as wide angle lens on a full-frame camera like the Nikon D800 and a normal lens on a crop sensor camera like the Nikon D5200, the 35mm f/1.4G Lens renders some of the best looking bokeh around! It’s tack sharp even when shooting wide open at f/1.4. If you’re going to be shooting with a DX crop frame sensor, the Nikon 35mm f/1.8G AF-S DX Lens is a small fraction of the price, but still produces very nice results and has smooth bokeh.
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Nikon 50mm f/1.8G AF-S NIKKOR FX Lens
Every photographer needs a nifty 50 in their kit! You might be surprised to find the Nikon 50mm f/1.8G listed here instead of the faster (and more expensive) Nikon AF-S 50mm f/1.4G SIC SW Prime Nikkor Lens. They’re both very good lenses, but if it’s soft, creamy bokeh you’re after, we think the 50mm f/1.8 offers the best value for your money. Wide open, both lenses produce very similar bokeh and in our opinion, the photos from the 50mm f/1.8 lens are sharper at the maximum aperture than the 50mm f/1.4.
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Nikon 85mm f/1.4G AF-S Nikkor Lens
The Nikon 85mm f/1.4G AF-S Nikkor Lens is a serious lens for the serious portrait and travel photographer who needs a fast lens that produces amazingly beautiful bokeh. If the f/1.4 lens is a bit out of your price range, but you still want wide open performance that is nearly as impressive, the Nikon 85mm f/1.8G AF-S NIKKOR Lens is a great alternative at 1/3 the price. If you must have the most attractive bokeh that you can get and can justify the higher price tag, the 85mm f/1.4G is a must have addition to your kit.
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Nikon 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor Lens
A great general purpose medium telephoto lens and one of the best macro lenses, the Nikon 105mm f/2.8G is a winner when it comes to bokeh too! Its 9 rounded aperture blades help render very smooth bokeh and it’s a very solid and well constructed lens. As a macro lens it excels, making small subjects pop with very sharp focus and a shallow depth of field and creamy bokeh behind them. The 105mm f/2.8 does a great job with portraits as well, making it a good general purpose lens to add to your bag.
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Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II AF-S Nikkor Zoom Lens
The Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G has some of the best optics around, focusing quickly and accurately. Vibration Reduction makes this already fast lens usable in even lower light conditions. The bokeh is fabulous with the 70-200mm f/2.8G and it’s sharp enough to consider using it to replace a few primes in your bag when you can’t take your whole lens collection with you. It comes with a hefty price tag, and photographers who want very similar results in a cheaper lens should also consider the Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8D ED AF Zoom Nikkor Lens, which doesn’t focus as quickly and lacks Vibration Reduction. Both produce incredible bokeh, so the decision comes down to what you’ll be photographing and what kind of conditions most of your shooting will happen in.
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Nikon 400mm f/2.8G ED VR II AF-S SWM Super Telephoto Lens
The Nikon 400mm f/2.8G is a hefty lens with a very hefty price tag. It’s not a lens for the casual amateur and unless you’re a weightlifter too it absolutely must be used with a tripod or monopod, but for the professional who demands nothing but the best, this lens fits the bill. An incredibly large maximum aperture of f/2.8 and Vibration Reduction makes this an ideal lens for bird, wildlife, and outdoor sports photography in lower light conditions. The bokeh is amazing with this lens, offsetting your subject from the smooth background. If you can handle the big price tag, this lens is the bokeh champion among the telephoto lenses.
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