What are must have Canon lenses for Video?
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What are must have Canon lenses for Video?

If you’re confused by what the best must have Canon lenses are for video, this is the article you must read.

Canon has hundreds of lenses, and it can be very confusing for a beginner to figure out the best “must-have” Canon lenses for video.

This article is written for the beginner who wants to start with decent lenses. Nobody wants to make a mistake!

Just a quick note: You can buy third-party lenses for Canon cameras, but we are only focusing on Canon-branded lenses in this article. The assumption being you have made up your mind to only buy Canon lenses for video.

Why do you have (or need) such a large range of Canon lenses?

Canon makes different types of camera systems. The combination of sensor size and lens mount is what makes a system unique. Here are the four important systems:

SystemSensor SizeLens Mount
Canon DSLR xD*36 x 24mmEF
Canon DSLR xxD, XXXD and XXXD*22.5 x 15 mmEF-S and EF
Canon Mirrorless Full Frame36 x 24mmRF
Canon Mirrorless APS-C22.3 x 14.9 mmEF-M

*xD is a number and D, e.g., 5D or 1D. The single digit typically indicates it’s a full frame camera. Full frame is 36 x 24mm.

Canon has recently launched two mirrorless full frame cameras, the EOS R (Amazon, B&H) and the EOS RP (Amazon, B&H). If you would like to know the differences between these Canon cameras for video, check out this article.

All the others cameras have a smaller sensor, called an APS-C sensor. This generally corresponds to the Super 35mm sensor/film size for filmmaking. So there’s nothing “wrong” or “worse” or “unprofessional” about APS-C sensors! Most of the great movies you’ve seen in your life were shot on sensors the size of APS-C.

When it comes to choosing lenses, the system matters. A lens specifically designed for a smaller sensor will have an image circle just big enough for that sensor. If you try to use that lens on a full frame camera, you get vignetting or a dark/black circle around your videos.

This means, if you have an APS-C sized DSLR or Mirrorless camera, you can pretty much use all the lenses Canon has. All you need is an adapter that converts EF to EF-M. By the way, both EF and EF-S have the exact same mount, so you can use EF lenses on EF-S bodies without anything extra.

You can also a adapt EF lenses to RF bodies. Click here to learn more about that.

Does lens quality differ with the system?

Sadly, yes. Canon has always prioritized lenses for full frame sensors, because that is their target audience. You have to remember these cameras were still photography cameras, and they predominantly still are.

The best Canon lenses are given a red ring around the camera, and are labelled “L”. E.g., this is a Canon 28-70mm f/2 USM L-series lens (Amazon, B&H):

If you were using a Canon EOS R camera for video, I would not hesitate to recommend this lens as a must-have lens for filmmaking – but only if you are a professional (or an amateur with deep pockets).

What do you get with expensive lenses?

You get these main benefits over cheaper lenses, generally speaking:

  1. Better image quality overall, and over the entire focal length range.
  2. Consistent image quality over multiple samples.
  3. A wider aperture, in most cases.
  4. Faster autofocus performance.
  5. Quieter focus and zoom motors.
  6. Better construction and weather sealing.
  7. A more consistent size and weight range.
  8. Better ergonomics. E.g., the focus and zoom rings are smoother and larger.
  9. Better resale value.
  10. More consistent filter-size threads.

For simplicity-sake, I’m going to divide this article into the following groups, so you can find what you want quickly.

  1. The Best Budget Canon lenses for APS-C.
  2. The Best Canon lenses for APS-C, price no problem.
  3. The Best Budget Canon lenses for full frame cameras.
  4. The Best Canon lenses for full frame cameras, price no problem.
  5. The Best Canon Cine lenses for video.

I will be focusing entirely on EF and EF-S lenses. If you’re interested to learn what the best lenses for the EOS R and RP system are, please read the Best Lenses for the Canon EOS R for Video.

I’m going to recommend one must-have lens, which should probably be your first purchase. Then I’ll recommend three others that will complement your kit and help you achieve more. Let’s go.

What is the best budget Canon APS-C lens for video?

Get this: Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM (Amazon, B&H)

If you don’t have money for this lens, then go for the Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM (Amazon, B&H)

Three amazing lenses to add to your kit:

  1. Canon EF 35mm f/2 IS USM (Amazon, B&H) – for low light work and a great “walk-around” lens.
  2. Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM (Amazon, B&H) – for wide angle work.
  3. Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS STM (Amazon, B&H) – for telephoto work.

All the lenses I’ve picked here have image stabilization (IS). To a beginner on a low budget this is important – especially for video where your shutter speeds tend to hover around 1/50s.

What is the best Canon APS-C lens for video?

Get this: Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM (Amazon, B&H)

Yes, it’s the same lens! Just because the price is reasonable doesn’t mean it’s not the best choice.

Three amazing lenses to add to your kit:

  1. Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS II USM (Amazon, B&H) – extend your range with just one lens.
  2. Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L II USM (Amazon, B&H) – the low-light legend, and it works great as a general-purpose walk-around lens.
  3. Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L USM (Amazon, B&H) – the wide-angle version, though it doesn’t have IBIS the image quality is superior in every which way.

What is the best budget Canon full frame lens for video?

Get this: Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS II USM (Amazon, B&H)

You might not need another lens!

Three amazing lenses to add to your kit:

  1. Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM (Amazon, B&H) – for low light work and a general-purpose walk-around lens. However, it doesn’t have IBIS.
  2. Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L USM (Amazon, B&H) – when you want to go wider.
  3. Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III USM (Amazon, B&H) – when you want to go “poor-man’s” safari.

What is the best Canon full frame lens for video?

If money is no problem, get this: Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM (Amazon, B&H).

This range will single-handedly cover 90% of most shooting needs. To know why, read What lens to get?

Three amazing lenses to add to your kit:

  1. Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS III USM Lens (Amazon, B&H) – the telephoto sibling. Or if you want to go “rich-man’s” safari, get this: Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM (Amazon, B&H).
  2. Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L III USM (Amazon, B&H) – the wide-angle sibling.
  3. Canon EF 50mm f/1.2L USM (Amazon, B&H) – the low-light legend, and it works great as a general-purpose walk-around lens.

That’s it! These are my suggestions for the best Canon lenses for video and cinema work. Hope you found it useful!

2 replies on “What are must have Canon lenses for Video?”

I was just curious as to why you recommend theCanon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L III USM over the f/4 equivalent since the latter has IS which comes in handy for video.

For wider angles IS is not that much of a priority as wider aperture and image quality.

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