The best lenses for real estate photography in 2023

Quality lenses for real estate photography will allow you to capture a room or exterior space in the best light to entice buyers or renters. Photographs of real estate listings have become crucial. Most people search for listings online, scrolling through options. Many even buy based on the online listing alone, never setting foot in the property first. The listing photographs alone can entice potential buyers to take a deeper look or even give them the confidence to purchase right then and there. 

Successful real estate images should almost function as a walkthrough, showing the home’s layout and where key features are in relation to other areas of the house. The only way to show a property in such a way is to use a wide-angle lens. An ultra-wide-angle focal length will allow you to show nearly the entire room, even small ones like bathrooms. And it will help show expansive spaces in fewer shots. The best lenses for real estate photography can elevate your photographs, helping to bring you more work and make your clients happy.

• Best for Nikon mirrorless: Nikon NIKKOR Z 14-24mm f/2.8 S Lens
• Best for Nikon DSLRs: AF-S NIKKOR 14–24mm f/2.8G ED
• Best for Canon mirrorless: Canon RF 15-35mm f/2.8 L IS USM Lens
• Best for Canon DSLRs: Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L USM
• Best for Sony: Sony FE 12-24mm f/2.8 GM Lens
• Best for Fuji cameras: Fujifilm XF10-24mm F4 R OIS WR

How we chose the best lenses for real estate photography

The editors and writers at Popular Photography have decades of photography experience in just about every genre and have covered and reviewed just about every major camera on the market. I have been photographing real estate for the past 10 years and also helped build out a photography program at a major vacation rental company, where I helped establish gear requirements. During this time, I worked with and evaluated many different lenses from a range of manufacturers.

When selecting the best lenses for real estate photography, I considered a handful of features. Focal length was the primary consideration, as real estate photography requires a wide lens. Full-frame lenses were prioritized since it is the preferred format for real estate work. Distortion was also a significant factor. Although all ultra-wide angles will always have some distortion, I only selected lenses where it is straightforward (barrel or pincushion) and easy to correct in editing. Lastly, I looked at general quality related to sharpness, chromatic aberration, and vignetting.

The best lenses for real estate photography: Reviews & recommendations

According to the National Association of Realtors, 95% of buyers searched for homes on the internet. First impressions matter and high-quality photographs can make a significant difference. They are also crucial for vacation rental listings, driving traffic, securing bookings, and validating the prices of a listing. As photographers, we can make a big impact on a real estate or vacation rental listing with the right gear.

Every major camera company makes excellent ultra-wide angle lenses that work well for real estate photography. If you already have a quality camera for real estate photography, your best bet is to stick with that system and invest in a lens that will work with it. Here are some of our favorite lenses for each camera manufacturer.

Best for Nikon mirrorless: Nikon NIKKOR Z 14-24mm f/2.8 S Lens

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Why it made the cut: Nikon’s wide angle offering for Z mount is sharp with limited distortion. And the wide maximum aperture makes it versatile for other types of photography.

Specs

• Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Filter size: 112mm
• Maximum aperture: f/2.8
• Lens mount: Nikon Z

Pros

• Relatively lightweight and compact
• Impressively sharp
• Modest distortion
• Fast autofocus

Cons

• Front filters are large and expensive
• Pricey

Nikon’s 14-24mm for its DLSR camera was the best ultra-wide for quite a while. The company’s new mirrorless version carries on that legacy. It offers truly exceptional sharpness across the zoom range. And there is minimal and easy-to-correct distortion with limited aberration as well, resulting in superb image quality all around.

The Z mount 14-24mm is much lighter than its predecessor as well, coming in at 1.4 pounds. It’s still not a tiny lens, but it’s much easier to carry around. The autofocus of the lens is fast and accurate, so you can get the shot and move on to the next angle of the house. It also features a unique OLED information panel on the top of the lens so that you can quickly verify your settings. 

The only real downside to this lens is the price. Real estate doesn’t rely on wide-open apertures, so if you don’t want to use the lens for much else or don’t care about losing a stop of light, the NIKKOR Z 14-30mm f/4 S Lens is a great budget-friendly solution.

Best for Nikon DSLRs: AF-S NIKKOR 14–24mm f/2.8G ED

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Why it made the cut: The Nikkor 14-24mm is the best real estate lens option for Nikon DSLRs, with little distortion, excellent sharpness, and fantastic colors and contrast.

Specs

• Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Filter size: N/A
• Maximum aperture: f/2.8
• Lens mount: Nikon F

Pros

• Exceptional sharpness
• Minimal lens distortion
• Fast autofocus
• Wide maximum aperture for good low-light performance

Cons

• Not compatible with standard filters

Though it is an older lens (released in 2007), the Nikkor 14-24mm is still one of the sharpest ultra-wide-angle lens options available. Because of that, it is still one of the best lenses for real estate photography. As a rectilinear lens, the distortion is minimal and easy to correct automatically in post. The distortion and chromatic aberration are also not much of an issue due to the optical design; it contains three aspherical elements and two extra-low dispersion elements. In addition, the lens has a Nano Crystal Coat to cut down on flare and ghosting, which is helpful when shooting toward windows with direct sunlight or with certain types of ceiling lights.

Nikon’s 14-24mm has a fixed maximum aperture of f/2.8, and it is impressively sharp even when wide open. Although that wide of an aperture doesn’t come into play much for real estate photography—you want to use a smaller aperture for that—it does make this lens a bit more versatile. The front element protrudes a decent amount, which means you cannot use traditional filters, and it is prone to hit things, but the built-in lens hood does help protect it.

Best for Canon mirrorless: Canon RF 15-35mm f/2.8 L IS USM Lens

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Why it made the cut: Canon’s RF mount ultrawide offers excellent sharpness, a weather-sealed body, and five stops of shake reduction.

Specs

• Weight: 1.85 pounds
• Filter size: 82mm
• Maximum aperture: f/2.8
• Lens mount: Canon RF

Pros

• Extremely sharp
• Fast autofocus
• Rugged build quality
• Five stops of image stabilization

Cons

• Expensive

Those with Canon RF mount cameras don’t have too many options for ultra-wide angle lenses. Luckily, the company’s 15-35mm f/2.8 is a fantastic lens. It produces sharp, clear images with minimal distortion, aberration, and ghosting. All of that can easily be corrected in editing or even done automatically in the camera.

As with most of Canon’s mirrorless lenses, it features fast and accurate autofocus. This lens also provides five stops of image stabilization, which is very helpful if you don’t have the sturdiest tripod. The RF 15-35mm is also weather-sealed, so you won’t have to worry too much if you get caught in the rain while shooting exteriors.

As with the Nikon 14-24mm, this Canon lens is quite expensive. Some may also want a smidge wider than 15mm. If so, and you don’t mind losing out on an aperture stop, the RF 14-35mm f/4 L IS USM Lens is also an excellent lens for real estate photography that will work well for real estate photography while saving you some money.

Best for Canon DSLRs: Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L USM

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Why it made the cut: Canon’s 11-24mm is the widest full-frame lens on the market, and it also happens to be one of the sharpest ultra-wide angles as well.

Specs

• Weight: 2.6 pounds
• Filter size: Rear insert-type
• Maximum aperture: f/4
• Lens mount: Canon EF

Pros

• Exceptional sharpness
• Minimal distortion
• The widest focal length for full-frame cameras
• Weather-sealed

Cons

• Expensive
• Heavy

The Canon EF 11-24mm f4L USM is an ultra-wide-angle designed for Canon full-frame DSLR cameras. However, this lens would still be wide enough on a crop sensor for real estate photography due to the extremely wide focal length. It is a rectilinear lens, and the design of the 16 optical elements does a great job of reducing distortion and chromatic aberration. It also has excellent edge-to-edge sharpness, which is difficult to achieve on a lens with this wide of a focal length. This lens is touted to be the sharpest wide-angle lens available. And although the maximum aperture isn’t as wide as Nikon’s ultra-wide-angle offering, f/4 is still plenty for real estate work.

The lens body of the 11-24mm is sealed against dust and moisture, so you won’t have to fret if you get caught in bad weather while shooting a property’s exterior. It is a heavy lens, at 2.6 pounds, but real estate photography is usually done on a tripod, so the weight isn’t as much of a factor. The front element on this lens is also bulbous, though Canon has designed it to accept rear insert filters. If you don’t want something quite as wide, perhaps if you shoot higher-end architectural work, the Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM Lens is a great alternative.

Best for Sony: Sony FE 12-24mm f/2.8 GM Lens

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Why it made the cut: Sony’s 12-24mm f/4 is the lightest, most compact option on the list–weighing in at only 1.24 pounds–ideal for those who may frequently travel for their real estate shoots.

Specs

• Weight: 1.86 pounds
• Filter size: Rear gel filters
• Maximum aperture: f/2.8
• Lens mount: Sony E

Pros

• Lightweight and compact
• Fast, quiet focus
• Good edge-to-edge sharpness
• Weather-sealed

Cons

• Not compatible with standard filters
• Very expensive

Sony’s ultra-wide offering is a powerhouse of a lens. It is weather-sealed and utilizes rubberized control rings for better handling in cold temperatures. Though real estate photographers don’t typically shoot wide open, the fast f/2.8 aperture and rounded nine-blade diaphragm results in attractive bokeh, making it a versatile lens.

This Sony lens offers 2mm of extra focal length on the wide end compared to the Nikon and Canon lenses, which is useful for real estate photography. There is some distortion, but it is easily corrected with a lens profile in most editing software. And perhaps most importantly, the lens is extremely sharp with excellent image quality at all focal lengths. 

Of course, as a G Master lens, the Sony FE 12-24mm is pricey. If you don’t mind an f/4 aperture and a tiny loss of sharpness, the Sony FE 12-24mm f/4 G will save you a significant amount of money. Or, if that f/2.8 is more important to you than 12mm reach, the Sigma 14-24mm F2.8 DG DN Art is a fantastic and very reasonably priced lens.

Best for Fuji cameras: Fujifilm XF10-24mm F4 R OIS WR

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Why it made the cut: This compact lens packs a lot of imaging power into a relatively small package.

Specs

• Weight: 13.6 oz
• Filter size: 72mm
• Maximum aperture: f/4
• Lens mount: FUJIFILM X

Pros

• Lightweight
• Affordable
• Robust weatherproofing
• Autofocus is excellent for both stills and video

Cons

• No hard stops on the focus ring

The Fujifilm XF10-24mm is one of two ultra-wide-angle zoom lenses available from Fuji. Fuji also offers the XF 8-16mm f/2.8 R LM WR if you need something slightly wider or with a stop more aperture, though it is twice the price. We picked the 10-24mm for this list since it is plenty wide for most real estate needs and is much more budget-friendly.

The XF10-24mm uses advanced optics such as four extra-low dispersion and four aspherical elements to reduce chromatic aberration and distortion and improve sharpness and color accuracy. In addition, Fuji uses a Super Electron Beam Coating (EBC), a multi-layered anti-reflective coating to cut down on lens flare and ghosting, a necessity for real estate lenses. This lens also has a filter thread, making it easier to use filters than other ultra-wide-angle options. This lens is also the lightest one on the list, at only 13.6 oz, so if you travel for your real estate gigs or partake in landscape photography, this is a great choice.

Things to consider before buying the best lenses for real estate photography

The most crucial feature of a lens for real estate photography is a wide-angle focal length. You will want something wide enough to show most of a room, though not so wide that distortion becomes an issue. A fisheye lens is absolutely to be avoided, as the distortion is not correctable and will not give potential buyers a good sense of the home. Instead, a lens with a maximum focal length of between 12 and 16mm will cover a wide enough range without excessive distortion.

It is also worth pointing out that there is a bit of a difference between real estate photography and architectural photography. A less wide lens—something around 24mm—is better suited for higher-end architectural photography, as even the distortion from 12-16mm is seen as too much. Beyond focal length, there are a few other things to pay attention to before making your purchase.

Crop factor

Crop factor comes into play because it could impact the focal range that you get from a lens. If you have an APS-C–or crop sensor– camera, you will not get the full field of view you’d expect on a full-frame camera. For example, on a Canon APS-C such as the 90D, the crop factor is 1.6x. As a result, a 16-35mm lens on your D500 will be the equivalent of 25.6-56mm. The image will appear more zoomed-in than it would with those focal lengths on a full-frame camera. Unfortunately, 25mm is not wide enough for most real estate needs, so you will need a more extreme wide-angle if you have a crop sensor camera. 

If you have a full-frame camera, you simply need to ensure that the lens you are looking at is compatible with full-frame cameras. 

Zoom or prime lenses for real estate photography

The second thing to consider is if you would like a zoom or prime lens. Prime lenses will have one fixed focal length, whereas zoom lenses provide a range of focal lengths. Generally speaking, prime lenses will be cheaper than zoom lenses, and they can also be sharper. However, prime lenses don’t have as much versatility as zooms since you are stuck with one focal length.

If sharpness is your primary goal, and you are okay using your feet as your zoom or packing a few different lenses for a shoot, then a prime lens or two will likely be a good fit. However, if you don’t want to be switching lenses and want more flexibility, a zoom option will be best.

Chromatic aberration and distortion

The last piece to look at when deciding on a lens is quality, part of which will be visible in the amount of chromatic aberration and distortion. While all wide-angle lenses will have some distortion (called barrel distortion in wide-angles) and chromatic aberration, they should be easily correctable in a quality lens. Some cameras will even correct distortion in-camera, or built-in lens profiles in programs like Adobe Photoshop can make adjusting for it a breeze.

Cheaper lenses will have more pronounced, exaggerated distortion and could even have a more complex form of distortion called mustache distortion. Mustache distortion has both pincushion and barrel distortion in one image, and it is extremely difficult to correct. In some cases, it may not be fixable without specialized software. In addition, heavy chromatic aberration in cheaper lenses may also not be fully correctable. So for quality, professional-level real estate images, stay away from excessively cheap lenses or lens brands that aren’t very common.

FAQs

Final thoughts on the best lenses for real estate photography

The best lenses for real estate photography will largely depend on what camera system you use. All major camera systems have quality wide-angle lenses that work with their cameras. You don’t necessarily need to switch systems just for a lens for real estate photography. The options listed above will serve you well for real estate photography specifically and any other wide-angle uses.