Sony has finally released the Sony ZV-E1, an advanced full-frame camera designed specifically for content creators and vloggers in mind with advanced features like the AI autofocus system from the Sony a7RV, a highly capable sensor from the expensive Sony a7SIII, and shrank it all down into a small tiny camera that is actually vlogger-friendly.
If you have bought this camera and are looking for great lenses to pair with, you are in the right place. Within this guide, you will find a complete list of the best Sony ZV-E1 lenses for travel vlogs and photography that will allow you to take advantage of all the cool features the new camera has to offer. The list is based solely on my personal experience shooting with Sony mirrorless cameras for more than a decade.
From zoom to prime lenses, here are the 7 best Sony ZV-E1 lenses for travel that can handle whatever situations the world throws at you. Let's start off with a quick summary:
- 📸 Quick Summary: The best lenses for Sony ZV-E1
- 👍 What Makes for a Good Travel Lens for Sony ZV-E1?
- 🌎 Best All-Around Travel Lens
- 🌎 Best Budget All-Around Travel Lens
- 🏔️ Best Landscape & Architecture Lens
- 🏔️ Best Budget Landscape & Architecture Lens
- 🎥 Best Video Lens
- 🤳 Best Vlogging Lens
- 😃 Best Portrait Lens
- 😃 Best Budget Portrait Lens
- 🚶♂️ Best Street Photography Lens
- 🚶♂️ Best Budget Street Photography Lens
- ⭐️ Best Astrophotography Lens
- ⭐️ Best Budget Astrophotography Lens
- 🐯 Best Wildlife Lens
- 🐯 Best Budget Wildlife Lens
- Further Reading for Photography
📸 Quick Summary: The best lenses for Sony ZV-E1
👍 What Makes for a Good Travel Lens for Sony ZV-E1?
For me, what makes a good travel lens is the lens that strikes the perfect balance between high-quality glass, weight, and features that will help me take great photos in any situation I might find myself in without hindering the ability to travel around effectively.
I'll be including lenses for different travel situations and shooting style that reflect the type of traveler you are like street photography, wildlife, and general purpose, as well as budget alternatives that will make your Sony ZV-E1 reaches its full potential.
Of course, feel free to mix and match and see which travel lenses fit your needs the most. Let's begin with the most important travel lens of all, the best all-around general-purpose lens that every travel photographer should have in their kit:
🌎 Best All-Around Travel Lens
- Extremely Light & Compact
- Packed with Features
- Very sharp at almost every focal length
- Expensive
- Distortion
Sony FE 24-70mm f2.8 GM II Lens: This is, hands down, the best lens you can get for travel for your Sony ZV-E1 cameras. The Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM II lens is an updated version of the wildly popular but old Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM lens bringing new features and technologies to an all-purpose lens while keeping it light and small.
The focal range of this lens is also extremely versatile allowing you to go wide at 24mm which is great for architecture and landscape while you have the option to punch in at 70mm and shoot portraits.
The Sony FE 24-70mm f2.8 GM II lens's optical performance is also outstanding with its corner-to-corner sharpness, excellent build quality, and with its fast aperture at F2.8, the lens can produce some stunning bokeh and subject separation while allowing you to produce sharp images even when the lighting is poor.
The best part about this lens is its form factor. Sony called this lens the world's lightest Full Frame F2.8 constant aperture standard zoom lens weighing only 690g which is unheard of for such a versatile lens.
The new form factor also goes really well with the compact body of the Sony ZV-E1, unlike the previous version which I personally found to be too heavy and bulky for the Sony ZV-E1.
For those of you who are looking for the best and lightest travel lens to buy for your Sony ZV-E1, this is the one to get. It is a little expensive but considering the impressive quality-to-size ratio, I think it is worth the price tag. This lens is truly one of the best lenses to buy for your Sony ZV-E1 camera.
To sum it up, this is the best lens to get if you are looking for one lens to rule them all.
🌎 Best Budget All-Around Travel Lens
- Lightweight
- Affordable
- Fast aperture
- 28mm might not be wide enough
- Not as compact
Tamron 28-75mm f2.8 G2 Lens: For a cheaper alternative, the Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 G2 lens is also highly recommended for those of you who are looking for a great all-around travel lens that is affordable while retaining 85% of the quality of what you get from premium lenses like the Sony GMaster lenses.
Tamron has recently upgraded and released a new version of its popular Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 with new glasses and technologies, improving upon the optical and autofocus performances while keeping the price the same as the previous version, making it one of the best budget all-around travel lenses out there.
Even though the focal range is not as wide as the Sony 24-70mm F2.8 lens, you are ultimately paying less than half the price of the Sony lens and if you do not shoot at 24mm as often, there is no better option out there than the Tamron lens.
To sum it up, this is the best budget lens to get if you are looking for one lens to rule them all.
🏔️ Best Landscape & Architecture Lens
- Light & Compact
- Extremely fast autofocus
- Very sharp at almost every focal length
- Stunning sunstar
- Expensive
- Vignette & Distortion
Sony FE 16-35mm f2.8 GM II Lens: If you are looking for a lens for your Sony a7C R to film landscapes and architecture on your travels, the Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM II, the latest iteration of its beloved versatile wide-angle lens, is just hard to beat.
With the super-wide focal length of 16mm, you will be able to capture more of the landscape and architecture you are seeing, allowing you to gain a perspective that you wouldn't be able to replicate with other lenses, not even the all-purpose lenses like the Sony 24-70mm F2.8 GM II lens.
As you could come to expect with the new Sony GM lenses, the image quality produced with this lens is extremely sharp from corner to corner at almost all focal ranges. The F2.8 aperture allows you to use the lens in any condition, which is great for travel as you are often shooting in an uncontrolled environment. This lens is also perfect if you like shooting during sunrise or sunset, as well as astrophotography. Really, a one lens to rule them all.
Not to mention the fact that Sony was able to reduce the weight of the lens by approximately 80% while still being able to improve the sharpness, the autofocus speed, and minimum close focusing distance, is just incredible. It is a better lens than its previous version that I used to recommend in every way.
This lens allows you to cover the ranges that the general all-purpose lens, like the Sony 24-70mm F2.8 GM II lens, can't capture, which makes it a perfect secondary lens to go with your all-around lens.
To sum it up, this is the best lens to get if you enjoy taking photos of landscapes and architecture.
🏔️ Best Budget Landscape & Architecture Lens
- Light & Compact
- Affordable
- Fast Aperture
- Not the fastest autofocus
- Distortion
- Doesn't zoom to 35mm
Sigma 16-28mm F2.8 DG DN Lens: Again, the G Master lenses are not cheap and it might not be reasonable to buy them especially if you are just starting out so for those of you who are looking for an excellent but affordable architecture/landscape wide-angle lens for your travel, I highly recommend you take a look at the Sigma 16-28mm F2.8 DG DN lens.
Even though the Sigma 16-28mm F2.8 DG DN lens is cheaper than the Sony 16-35mm lens, the Sigma lens delivers excellent image quality that is quite comparable to the Sony's GM lens in most situations but in a much lighter and compact package, making it perfect for travel.
Unlike the Tamron 17-28mm F2.8 lens that I recommended earlier, the Sigma lens does go all the way to 16mm which makes it great for many travel applications. The lens doesn't go as tight as the Sony GM with its 35mm focal range but I am happy to sacrifice the tight focal range for a lens that is more compact and lightweight.
Best of all, the price of this lens is more than half of the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM lens, making it one of the best value wide-angle lenses you can get. With such an extremely attractive price point, this Tamron lens even had a Sony avid fan like me think twice about buying the 2000+ USD GM lens over the 900~ USD Sigma lens. If you are looking for an affordable landscape/architecture lens for your Sony camera, this lens is a great option to consider.
To sum it up, this is the best budget lens to get if you enjoy taking photos of landscapes and architecture.
🎥 Best Video Lens
- Light & Compact
- Power-Zoom
- Quite Sharp
- F4 Aperture might be too slow for some
Sony PZ 16-35mm F4 G Lens: If you are looking for the ultimate vlogging lens that you can pair with the Sony ZV-E1 and the Sony Wireless Bluetooth Shooting Grip to create the ultimate vlogging machine, the Sony PZ 16-35mm F4 G Lens is definitely one of the best pairs you can make.
The Sony PZ 16-35mm F4 G Lens is a new series of power zoom lenses that allows you to electronically control your zoom allowing you to capture smooth footage while zooming in and out which is a valuable feature for video shooters.
The lens also has an internal zoom barrel which doesn't extend nor collapse while zooming allowing you to utilize the zoom feature on a gimbal without having to rebalance it every time you zoom.
With the power zoom feature and its versatile focal range, you can perform some really cool video tricks with it as well like the cinematic dolly zoom technique that is often used in Hollywood films by famous directors like Alfred Hitchcock, etc.
Not to mention the sharpness you get from the lens, its extremely light and compact form factor, and the affordable price. This lens is definitely one of the best lenses to buy for your Sony ZV-E1 camera.
To sum it up, this is the best lens to get if you use your camera with a gimbal a lot.
🤳 Best Vlogging Lens
- Versatile focal range
- Fast fixed aperture
- Affordable
- Not the fastest autofocus
- Some distortion
Tamron 20-40mm F2.8 Lens: If you are looking for a vlogging lens that is a little faster than the Sony PZ 16-35mm F4 lens I recommended earlier, the Tamron 20-40mm F2.8 lens is a great lightweight lens that both performs extremely well while being reasonably priced and extremely flexible with its unique 20-40mm focal range that allows you to be more flexible while vlogging, making it a perfect starter lens for to start your travel vlogging career.
The lens weighs only around 367g grams which is half the weight of the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM lens, another popular vlogging lens, making it much more comfortable to hold for a long period of time while vlogging.
It also has a reasonably fast aperture of F2.8 which will allow you to throw your background off focus a bit and create the beautiful bokeh effect while you vlog as well as allow your viewers to focus on the subject may it be you or a product you are reviewing.
It is a versatile lens that is made for vloggers and if you are looking to buy one for your Sony ZV-E1, the Tamron 20-40mm F2.8 lens is hard to beat.
To sum it up, this is the best budget lens to get if you want to vlog with your camera.
😃 Best Portrait Lens
- Light & Compact
- Beautiful Bokeh
- Extremely Sharp
- Pincushion & Vignetting
- Not the cheapest
Sigma 85mm F1.4 DG DN Lens: This lens is probably the most lightweight and compact 85mm F1.4 lens out there. It weighs about 630g (22.2oz) which is 200g less than the Sony GM lens. It is only a little bigger than the Sony FE 85mm F1.8 but provides a wider aperture which is mind-boggling.
This lens produces beautiful bokeh as you can come to expect from a lens with such a wide aperture. It is also considerably sharper in most use cases compared to other 85mm lenses, even sharper than the Sony 85mm F1.4 GM lens, and best of all, it is almost 700 USD cheaper!
Of course, there are some drawbacks to having such a small and lightweight body like pincushion distortion but this can easily be fixed in Lightroom, and for the size and weight you get, it is totally worth the sacrifice.
I do not know how Sigma does it but they really knocked it out of the park with this lens and if you are looking for the best portrait lens for travel, there is no better lens than the Sigma 85mm F1.4 DG DN lens.
To sum it up, this is the best lens to get if you enjoy taking portraits of people.
😃 Best Budget Portrait Lens
- Light & Compact
- Beautiful Bokeh
- Affordable
- Not the best build quality
- Strong Vignetting
Sony FE 85mm F1.8 Lens: Even though the Sigma 85mm F1.4 DG DN lens is the best portrait lens to get, it is not as light and affordable as this lens and if you are looking for a travel portrait lens that is the most compact and lightweight but capable of producing stunning bokeh, the Sony FE 85mm F1.8 is a much better option for you.
The Sony FE 85mm F1.8 lens comes at only 371 grams which is perfect for the Sony ZV-E1's compact body and it costs only around 550 USD retail which is almost half the price of the Sigma 85mm F1.4 DG DN lens.
It is also capable of producing sharp images as you can come to expect from Sony native lenses and even though the aperture is one stop less than the Sigma 85mm F1.4 DG DN lens, the depth of field produced with this lens is still stunning, allowing you to capture a person in tack-sharp detail and throw the rest of the background out creating one of the most satisfying subject separations ever.
For such a compact size and an affordable price point, it is hard to beat the Sony FE 85mm F1.8 lens when it comes to price-to-quality ratio. If you want to save some money, I highly recommend you go for the Sony 85mm F1.8 lens and use the money you saved to invest in other lenses instead.
To sum it up, this is the best budget lens to get if you enjoy taking portraits of people.
🚶♂️ Best Street Photography Lens
- Light & Compact
- Very fast aperture at F1.4
- Extremely Sharp
- Expensive
Sony FE 35mm f1.4 GM Lens: In street photography, you will be running around shooting at moving subjects that often move spontaneously and you will need a lens that is at the most natural-looking focal length, unobtrusive, and extremely fast which is why I recommend the Sony FE 35mm F1.4 lens.
The Sony FE 35mm F1.4 lens has a focal length of 35mm which is closest to what our eyes see and so the photos you capture with this lens will have a more natural look and feel that will resonate more with the human eyes.
With its compact size, lightweight, and unobtrusive profile, you can easily blend into the crowds and take photos of spontaneous moments while traveling that you wouldn't be able to do with other bulkier lenses.
The fast aperture also helps with the run-and-gun style of shooting that comes with street photography which is why the Sony 35mm F1.4 lens is the best street photography lens to get for your Sony full-frame camera.
To sum it up, this is the best lens to get if you love street photography and environmental portraiture.
🚶♂️ Best Budget Street Photography Lens
- Versatile focal range
- Fast fixed aperture
- Affordable
- Not the fastest autofocus
- Some distortion
Tamron 20-40mm F2.8 Lens: For the best value lens for street photography, I have to give it to the Tamron 20-40mm F2.8 lens. The lens has a unique focal range of 20-40mm which covers the classic 35mm length while allowing you to be more flexible and react to the fast-changing situation of street photography.
With its compact size, lightweight, and discrete body, you should be able to blend in with the crowd and allow you to take awesome street photos while not sacrificing flexibility. Best of all, the lens is very affordable a the retail price of 680 USD. Given the amount of flexibility you will get with this lens, you are definitely getting your money's worth here.
The lens also comes with an F2.8 aperture which should be fast enough for the run-and-gun style of shooting that comes with street photography. With such a great price point, incredible flexibility, and the discreteness of its design, the Tamron 20-40mm lens is the best value street photography lens to get for your Sony full-frame camera.
To sum it up, this is the best budget lens to get if you love street photography and environmental portraiture.
⭐️ Best Astrophotography Lens
- Ultra-wide focal length
- Extremely fast aperture for such a wide focal length
- Extremely Sharp
- Quite heavy
- Expensive
Sony FE 14mm f1.8 GM Lens: When it comes to astrophotography, you are going to need an ultra-wide-angle lens that will allow you to capture the landscape together with the stars to give your image a sense of scale as well as a fast aperture to retain the sharpness of stars when shooting in pitch black.
The Sony 14mm F1.8 GM lens is designed to do just that. With the ultra-wide focal length of 14mm, you will be able to capture the stunning landscape in all its glory while also retaining the expansiveness of the night sky all in one frame.
The fast F1.8 aperture will also allow you to capture sharp images of the Milky Way without having to crank up your ISO all the while allowing you to keep your shutter speed at a reasonable value to prevent star trails.
This lens is probably the widest and fastest lens you can get for your Sony ZV-E1 and so if you are into shooting timelapse of the night sky and are looking for the best lens to capture the Milky Way, this is the best one to get.
To sum it up, this is the best lens to get if you love astrophotography and want to take expansive photos of stars.
⭐️ Best Budget Astrophotography Lens
- Wide focal length
- Fast aperture for such a wide focal length
- Compact and Lightweight
- Affordable
- Corner Sharpness at Wide Apertures could be better
Sony FE 16mm f/1.8 G Lens: For the longest time, I’ve always recommended the Sony 14mm f/1.8, arguably one of the best astrophotography lenses available. However, with its high price tag and relatively heavy, bulky build, it might not appeal to everyone, especially those who travel light, like I do. Now that Sony has released the 16mm f/1.8 G lens, we finally have an astrophotography lens that’s wide at 16mm, fast with its f/1.8 aperture, and still lightweight and compact.
Even better, the price point has come down significantly, making it much more accessible for beginner astrophotographers starting their stargazing journey. Of course, there are some compromises, such as reduced corner sharpness at wider apertures, which may not satisfy professionals, but for amateurs like myself, it's more than enough. If you're looking for a budget-friendly lens to take your astrophotography to the next level, this is the one to get.
To sum it up, this is the best budget prime lens to get if you love astrophotography and want to take expansive photos of stars.
🐯 Best Wildlife Lens
- Very versatile range
- Compact size for the range
- Works with teleconverters
- Quite heavy
- Variable aperture
- Expensive
Sony FE 100-400mm f4.5-5.6 OSS G Master Lens: If you are looking for the very best telephoto lens to get for wildlife photography and money and weight is no object then the crown has to go to the Sony 100-400mm f4.5-5.6 G Master Lens. This lens has an incredible focal length of 100 - 400 mm which will allow you to bring your subject much much closer than any other lens.
The Sony FE 100-400mm f4.5-5.6 lens is not a small or compact lens in any sense but relative to the reach it gives you, this is as small as it gets. The lens is also one of the sharpest Sony lenses out there allowing you to capture crisp and clear images of wild animals like birds or the big five during a safari trip.
If you have a little bit of space left in your backpack, have 2,500 USD to spare, and are looking for the very best wildlife lens with great reach, this is the one to get.
To sum it up, this is the best lens to get if you enjoy wildlife photography and looking for a lightweight solution.
🐯 Best Budget Wildlife Lens
- Amazing range
- Very lightweight and compact
- Affordable
- Optical stabilization
- Not compatible with teleconverters
- Slow aperture
Tamron 50-300mm F4.5-6.3 Lens: For those of you who are looking for a more compact and affordable option for a wildlife lens, the Tamron 50-300mm F4.5-6.3 lens, a new version that replaces the Tamron 70-300mm F4.5-6.3 lens, one of my favorite budget telephoto lens, is the lens you are looking for.
This lens improves upon everything the previous version offered. It comes with a wider minimum focal length of 50mm, providing more flexibility when shooting wildlife, and it finally features optical stabilization, something I wish the previous version had. With this new focal length, you can easily zoom in on wildlife or zoom out to capture a bit of the environment without having to switch lenses, which is extremely convenient, especially for wildlife photography.
The lens is slightly heavier than its predecessor, weighing in at 665g. It also costs a bit more at 700 USD, but you will get your money's worth with the extra 50mm on the wider end and the added optical stabilization, which is especially useful for wildlife photography.
I brought the previous version with me on my safari trips around East Africa, and I was able to capture some incredible wildlife shots despite it being a budget option. With this new version, it can only get better! If you are looking to get into wildlife photography and do not want to spend over 2,000 USD on a lens, the Tamron 50-300mm F4.5-6.3 lens is, hands down, the best choice.
To sum it up, this is the best budget zoom lens to get if you enjoy wildlife photography and are looking for a lightweight solution.
Want to take your photography game to the next level? Here are some resources to help you upgrade your work and photography gear:
Further Reading for Photography
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