Buying Guide: Mirrorless lenses

Our comprehensive listing of key speci cations for mirrorless lenses

Lenses

Interchangeable lenses come in a huge array of types for shooting di erent kinds of subjects

IN GENERAL, the easiest way to expand the kinds of pictures you can take is by buying different types of lenses. For example, telephoto lenses let you zoom in on distant subjects, while macro lenses enable close-ups of small objects. Large-aperture lenses allow you to isolate subjects against blurred backgrounds, or shoot in low light without having to raise the ISO too high. Meanwhile, all-in-one superzooms cover a wide range of subjects, but usually with rather lower optical quality.

Lens mounts

On the whole, each manufacturer uses its own proprietary lens mount. Notable exceptions are Micro Four Thirds, shared by Olympus and Panasonic, and the full-frame L-mount that’s used by Leica, Panasonic and Sigma.

Built-in focus motor

Lenses for mirrorless cameras invariably use built-in motors for autofocus, which are also used for electronic manual focusing. Silent, video-friendly stepper motors are most commonly employed. Manual-focus optics with traditional aperture rings are also widely available.

Filter thread

A thread at the front of the camera will have a diameter, in mm, which will allow you to attach a variety of filters or adapters to the lens.

Maximum aperture

Wider apertures mean you can use faster, motion-stopping shutter speeds.