Have you ever wondered what could be done with an entry-level Nikon D3200 camera? A 2012-model 24.2-megapixel camera with F-mount landing accepts a plethora of lenses with its full-frame viewing interface.
Nikon D3200 lenses are the best preference to opt for when looking for a compatible lens on your camera.
Best Compatible Lenses for Nikon D3200 DSLR Camera
“Ultra-wide landscape modes, multiple elements for contrast correction and lightweight in best price.”
“A multi-use lens with a wide zoom range and ghosting effect reduction technology.”
“Best for macro photography, prime lightweight travel lens with quiet and fast auto-focus.”
“Affordable in price, the zoom range covers from basic to advance capturing with great results.”
“Must have lens for portraits and everyday use, renders creamy bokeh and low-light survivor.”
“Light-weight travel fixed lens, create beautifully blurred backgrounds and very cost-effective.”
For wide-angle photography, Nikon 18-140mm zoom lens offers a wide viewing angle in an 18mm frame and zooms all the way to 7.8x for telephotography without cutting corners on pixel strength and overall sharpness.
For stunning portraits, a prime lens would be a better choice as it extends and isolates both the foreground and background with clear-cut sharpness and depth-of-field.
Nikon 40mm, Nikon 35mm, and Nikon 50mm are perfect portrait lenses for beginners as well as professional photographers.
1. Sigma 10-20mm F3.5 Ultra Wide-Angle Zoom Lens
Sigma’s 10-20mm super wide-angle lens is an updated and transformed version of its predecessor lens versions.
It features multiple cutting-edge functions that ensure brilliant image quality and superb pixel strength throughout the centers and corner lengths of your pictures.
Features
- The weight is not as heavy, and the asking price is inside a purchase range for wide-angle photographers.
- The viewing angle thresholds up to 102.4 degrees at a full viewing angle. Capture buildings, events, nature, or galaxies with a few setting tweaks and get rich and immersive photographs altogether.
- The supporting components inside Sigma 10-20mm are secured with double-coated rubber sealings and super nanocoatings around the spheres. For protection, a petal hood encompasses direct sunlight blocking and cancels out front lens rotation in the sensitive AF modes.
- For lens blurring and bokeh effects, make use of Sigma 10-20mm from a focusing distance of 24cm from the object throughout the entire zoom range. The pixels never burn or squeeze in zoom modes and deliver excellent results when processed through the lens internal CPU.
- Limited freedom is retained for portrait photography as well with bokeh effects and contrast alignment for nearby object capturing.
- An ultra-wide viewing perspective is made possible with wide lens openings and multiple elements compactly stacked inside the lens body.
- Two glass elements and a special Low Dispersion element does all the color compensation tasks in split seconds. Another couple of AA elements control light exposures and colors along with canceling axial and chromatic aberrations.
Pros
- Ultra-wide landscape modes deliver 102.4 degrees viewing angle
- Multiple elements for contrast correction and anti-ghosting
- Quick and accurate AF with a hyper sonic motor
- Large aperture diameter, up to F/3.5
Cons
- Cannot be used for portrait photography
- The zoom range is insufficient
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2. NIKKOR 18-140mm F3.5-5.6G - All in One Zoom Lens
Nikon AF- 18-140mm is fully compatible with all the Nikon DX-format cameras including Nikon D3200 and above.
The peak performance is supported with the largest zoom range that covers everything from telephoto shootings to wide-angle frames with extreme precision and clarity. The dynamics of Nikkor 18-140mm make photos sharper with rich contrasts for later editing.
Features
- Nikon lens features a 4-stop VR stabilization for videography and handheld pictures. Vibration reduction mode utilizes its continuous shooting without blurring a fast-moving object.
- Your priceless moments won’t go in vain, thanks to the dominating VR mode. The resulting pictures are as sharp and in-depth as perceived with a naked eye.
- For close-range photography, Nikon’s 140mm zoom elements create bokeh effects and enhance image quality with its cutting-edge lens glass. The minimal focal proximity is 1.48ft to the object.
- For portraits and close-up photos, ED glass elements with a super nano-coating create superficial sharpness and color enhancements along with reducing chromatic aberration from photos. AA elements reduce coma effects and ghosting effects from the photo in real-time.
- Nikon 18-140mm zooms up to 7.48x with its multi-layered zoom groups. For zooming, while making videos, SWM delivers a spontaneous and silent performance.
- In still photography, the fast SWM quickly adjusts to autofocus modes for superior blurring and sharp foregrounds. The aperture range has multiple f-stops for a variety of shooting modes from night photography to sunny morning shoots.
Pros
- Vibration Reduction technology inculcated to reduce ghosting effects
- Quiet and swift AF motor
- Wide zoom length
- Cost-effective
Cons
- Not compatible with all the Nikon cameras
- Bulky in size
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3. Micro-NIKKOR 40mm F2.8G - Macro Fixed Lens
A great addition to Nikon’s lens inventory, Micro-Nikkor 40mm covers everything indoors and outdoors. It is designed for close-up photography from portraits to macro photography.
The fixed lens construction and no-zoom structure make it lightweight enough to be carried around almost anywhere.
Features
- For portraits, switch your lens to autofocus setting up to 64 inches from the lens and enjoy in-depth blurs with isolated backgrounds and foregrounds.
- The lens construction is compact and lightweight. There are 9 elements in 7 groups including ED glass and AA elements. All the elements are protected with a nano-coating internally, and a waterproof and dustproof rubber coating from the outside.
- ED elements keep chromatic aberrations in check, produce bokeh effects, and reduce light infringements that may occur inside the lens program.
- Aspherical elements lessen spherical aberrations from a photo and make sure the resulting images are sharp and colorful.
- For autofocusing, a silent wave motor is arranged inside that stays quick and noiseless throughout the AF process.
- Nikon AF-S has dedicated wide aperture and ISO settings for cloudy weather photography, indoors and night light pictures, and for bright sunny days.
Pros
- The angle of view maximizes up to 38 degrees
- Compactly designed and lightweight
- Maximum aperture ranges up to F/2.8
- Switchable M/A mode
Cons
- Expensive lens for beginners
- Not zoomable
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4. Nikon 55-200mm F4-5.6G - Biggest All In One Lens
Nikon 55-200mm is an all-in-one zoom lens for DX-type Nikon camera bodies including D3200. Starting with medium-range 55mm wide viewing angle to telephoto shots at 200mm, the image quality remains sharp and realistic throughout.
The lens barrel features a multitude of lens elements and optical image stabilization components that guides all pictures to perfection.
Features
- Image stabilization is achieved with cutting-edge VR technology. Vibration reduction takes clear and finely tuned photos without ghosting effects. There are multiple VR stops to produce custom-tailored autofocus freezing.
- The aperture range aids in capturing a variety of photos in all the light conditions, starting with F/32 for daylight shooting to the maximum F/4 aperture for cloudy and night photography.
- Despite its extended dimensions, Nikon 55-200mm is extremely lightweight. The lens barrel can be carried in luggage bags quite comfortably as a complementary lens or a primary fix for your DX camera.
- The ultrasonic focus has a tight pixel ratio and quick processing time. It only needs a split second to identify and measure the object’s distance for autofocusing and background bokeh effects.
- M/A modes comprehensively switch between manual and automatic focusing. Slide the button and instantly lock your settings to the desired focus.
- The internal lens elements reduce blurs, chromatic aberrations, coma effects, and color disintegrations.
- Optical enhancement is achieved via ED glass elements, and image sharpness and contrasting are carried out by AA elements.
Pros
- Includes a plethora of lens elements for in-built picture development
- Compatible with all the DX cameras with full-frame capacity
- High-speed and silent autofocusing
- Wide zoom range
- Lightweight
Cons
- Picture quality is not promising at full zooms
- Li-ion batteries wear out quickly
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5. Nikon AF-S Nikkor 50mm F1.8G - Best Portrait Prime Lens
With its superior components and cutting-edge software, Nikon AF- S 50mm has been known to be the portrait master lens. The prime lens version has adequate filter threads and a sleek design.
It is amazingly light on the purse and luggage. Nikkor FX prime lens works immaculately on Nikon D3200 camera bodies and beyond.
Features
- The elements include super ED glass for flawless closed focus resolution in all lighting conditions. For low light photography, switch to the manual modes and select appropriate ISO and aperture stop for grain-free photography.
- The aperture range is between F/1.8 to F/16. The aperture frame is designed with a 7-blade diaphragm to repel light infringements and deliver a perfectly spherical angle of capture.
- 50mm photos are captured from a minimum viewing range of 0.45 meters from the object. The bokeh effects automatically add sharpness and clarity to the foreground and blur the background with a rich color mix to deliver the needed contrast.
- For portraits, the lens blur can be achieved with an overall viewing angle of 47 degrees. The maximum reproduction ratio is maximized up to 0.15x.
- Nikon 50mm is exclusively optimized for traveling and event photography. The pixel strength stays the same throughout the edges and center of a captured image.
- It never burns or blacks out pixels in a picture, which makes it the best portrait lens for Nikon D3200. The internal processor is fast and up to date with the award-winning Nikon DSP software, you can count on it for perplexing results.
Pros
- Silent wave motor delivers noiseless focusing in videography
- Best camera lens for portrait and event photography
- Extremely compact and lightweight
- Features switchable M/A mode
- Wide aperture range
Cons
- The viewing angle does not exceed 47 degrees
- Works in crop mode for some cameras
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6. Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm F1.8G Wide-Angle Prime Lens
Nikon AF-S DX Nikkor 35mm is a finely designed prime lens aimed at capturing stunning portraits with a shallow depth of field and the fastest digital signal processing. It is made to be highly portable for traveling and switchable shootings.
Features
- The shooting frame is 52.5mm equivalent with a full-frame viewing angle of 44 degrees in DX modes. In FX cameras, the viewing angle is automatically cropped to DX modes.
- For better autofocusing, the object must be captured instantly after a click. To reduce ghosting effects, Nikon AF-S utilizes a silent wave motor to silently follow and freeze movements by measuring distances of objects with gyro sensors. AF motor is made gear-free for noiseless videography.
- Contrasts and color depth is controlled with 8 elements in 6 groups. ED glass elements and Aspherical elements intelligently remove blurs, enhance sharpness ratios, pixel strength, reduce coma and spherical aberrations, and create a beautifully isolated portrait with its lens blur.
- The aperture diaphragm is better than any other portrait lens available. It expands to F/1.8G for pitch dark settings, both indoors and outdoors. For daylight modes, set aperture to automatic.
Pros
- Features a maximum aperture of f/1.8G
- Expert lens for portrait photography
- Filter thread sizes up to 52.5mm
- Lightweight and cost-effective
Cons
- Only works with DX cameras in full-frame modes
- Prime lenses are not zoomable
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Side Notes
In Which Areas the Nikon D3200 Lenses Used?
There are different areas in which lenses are used. Its use in photography and filmography is best known and most widespread. The lenses make it possible to take countless photos and videos every day – whether professional or amateur, whether a snapshot with a smartphone or a movie production in Hollywood.
Today’s world of entertainment and social media would be very bleak without lenses. Lenses not only show us exciting perspectives, but they also make our lives more colorful. Further areas of application are:
1. A projector in a cinema needs a lens so that you can enjoy the latest film on the screen. The principle is reversed to that of a camera lens, but the optical structure is very similar. A projector follows the same logic in its function.
2. Binoculars and surveying instruments require cut glasses and lens groups in order to create an image similar to that in photography. This image is projected onto a screen so that the eye can see it clearly. The focal length plays the most important role here, with a long focal length you can observe distant events.
3. In contrast, there are optics for microscopes. A special cut of the individual lens elements enables a strong magnification. In order to clearly see the object to be observed, it must be brightly illuminated, as the light rays within the optics are strongly fanned out in width.
4. Telescopes are used in astronomy. In earlier centuries these were made purely with glass lenses, later mirrors were used for a longer focal length with a relatively compact design. Nowadays, telescopes only have lenses for regulating the sharpness in the eyepiece.
Lenses are not only available for changing a single lens reflex or system camera. In compact cameras, smartphones and action cams you will find lenses in permanently installed form.
What Properties of a Nikon D3200 Lens Should I Consider Before Buying?
When it comes to light intensity, small numbers indicate a high level of light transmission. Values from 1: 1.4 to 1: 2.8 are considered to be particularly bright. If you find numbers around 1: 4.0, the light output is mediocre. Values of 1: 5.6 or greater indicate a faint lens.
- Focal length
- F-number used
- Type of focus set – autofocus or manual, active or inactive focus tracking
- Distance to the photographed object
- The maximum and minimum opening width of the aperture
What Types of Nikon D3200 Lenses are there and What can I Use them for?
In photography, you can find different types of lenses for your camera. In the following, we explain the most important features of the individual types to support you in your purchase decision.
The Normal Lens:
Lenses with a focal length of around 50 millimeters are called normal lenses. In relation to a full-frame sensor, the viewing angle is almost identical to that of the human eye. You perceive photos taken with it as pleasant. To get a similar viewing angle on cameras with smaller image sensors, you need a lens with a smaller focal length.
For DX cameras with APS-C sensors, there are suitable lenses with a focal length of 35 millimeters. Due to the crop factor of around 1.5, you get the equivalent viewing angle of a 50-millimeter focal length.
Normal lenses are fixed focal lengths; in the trade, they can be offered at a low price due to the low manufacturing costs. The lenses are very popular in people and street photography.
They reproduce the photographed person true to life and separate them from the background through the most high light intensity.
Wide-angle lenses
It is best to use a wide-angle lens to get as much of the surroundings as possible in one picture. The very wide viewing angle covers a lot more than the human eye. Above all, wide-angle lenses make rooms appear larger than their actual dimensions.
Lenses for the full format from a focal length of 40 millimeters or smaller count as wide-angle. With focal lengths of 24 to 12 millimeters, the result is an almost surreal width.
Wide-angle lenses are most commonly used in landscape and city photography. These models can also be used for interior shots. You get wide-angle lenses as a fixed focal length and as a zoom.
Lenses with a focal length value of 10 millimeters or more are available for DX cameras with APS-C sensors in order to achieve a corresponding effect.
The foreground and background merge due to the short focal length, the depth of field is high with a wide-angle. Models with a high speed are popular with photographers, they offer creative freedom to emphasize the main subject with a slight background blur.
If you want to use a wide-angle lens, you have to consider a careful composition and the choice of the main subject for a good result. You should think carefully about the investment; such fast lenses are expensive.
Telephoto lenses
Telephoto lenses are very popular with amateur and professional photographers. You can use it to capture distant scenes with little effort. Usual focal lengths are 100 to 300 millimeters, higher values are referred to as super-telephoto.
The telephoto lens compresses the focus area and the image section. Your motif is effectively detached from the background by the resulting effect. The background disappears in a great blur, this property is called bokeh.
A characteristic side effect of recordings with long focal lengths is a compression of the space. Individual elements of the motif move closer and appear flat.
Telephoto lenses have a general disadvantage: Due to the high magnification of the subject, even the smallest movement during the recording can lead to a blurred image. Use a sturdy tripod for your recordings. If the lens or camera is equipped with an image stabilizer, it can help you to reduce the unwanted effect.
Popular with animal photographers: Telephoto lenses are mainly used in animal photography. Hobby photographers take pictures of animals in the zoo, for example. A professional uses the telephoto lens, for example, for photo documentation about wild animals.
You can find different types of telephoto lenses in stores. In addition to the various focal lengths and focal length ranges, light intensity plays a major role. Telephoto lenses are available as zoom or fixed focal length. The large selection and the high price range do not make the purchase decision easy.
Before you buy, think about which subjects you want to capture and whether it is necessary to buy a lens with the largest possible focal length. The most common telephoto zoom lenses have a focal length of 70 to 300 millimeters. This is sufficient for most purposes.
Macro lenses
To get as close as possible to a subject, you need a macro lens that has been specially designed for close range. These lenses are mostly fixed focal lengths with an image ratio of 1: 1 or 1: 2.
You can capture a subject in its original size on the camera’s image sensor if the value is 1: 1. High light intensity is not always useful in macro photography.
The depth of field is only a few millimeters with the aperture open. If you want to focus on the subject as sharply as possible, stopping down is unavoidable. F-stops between 8 and 16 are common for greater depth of field.
This is how professionals work: In order to keep the motif as a whole sharp, experienced photographers use another technique: They take individual pictures with differently focussed areas and combine them into a single picture on the computer using a program. This approach is known as focus stacking.
Warning: you should know that! The focal length of 105 millimeters is widespread in macro lenses that do not represent a great deal of effort to manufacture. There are other common focal lengths from 40 to 60 millimeters, more rarely you will find longer focal lengths of up to 200 millimeters.
Macro lenses are usually available as fixed focal lengths, there are hardly any zoom lenses on the market and they are usually designed for special areas such as medical technology.
It is wise to start with a cheap model if you want to get into macro photography. High-priced macro lenses hardly bring a plus in terms of imaging performance but have other strengths such as a long focal length.
The use of a tripod is recommended; you will rarely find a macro lens with an integrated image stabilizer. For example, you use a macro lens to photograph flowers and insects. You can also capture details of larger subjects very well with this.
Fisheye lenses
The lens, known colloquially as fisheye, is a very special lens. What is striking is a strongly curved, large front lens that resembles a dome. The fisheye lens allows you to take spherical shots of the surroundings of 180 degrees and more – significantly more than a wide-angle could capture.
In contrast to a wide-angle lens, which records the surroundings linearly, a fisheye bends the light in a circular manner. The closer objects in the image come to the edge, the more they are distorted. In the extreme case, a very short focal length creates a circular image that does not fill the format.
You should know and consider these properties before buying a fisheye lens. Until a few years ago, fisheye lenses were only available as fixed focal lengths, now they are also available as zoom.
What can I use a fisheye lens for?
This lens is mainly used in panoramic photography. You can create a 360-degree panoramic image by combining several images.
Tilt-and-Shift Lenses
You should remember that! If your subject is large buildings and structures with clear edges, you are faced with the problem of perspective when taking photos: Converging lines make the subject appear tilted.
Thanks to a special design, tilt-and-shift lenses prevent this phenomenon. You can move the entire lens system up or down parallel to its axis (Shift), and also pivot it sideways in a kind of kink (Tilt).
Correct converging lines with the Shift movement. This allows you to adjust the perspective of the front of a building. With the tilt function, you have the option of tilting the sharpness level in order to change it to match the subject.
You can only set the focus of a tilt-and-shift lens manually; there is no autofocus motor due to the design. In addition, these lenses are only available as fixed focal lengths.
You can change the perspective and focus with a tilt-and-shift lens so that photos similar to a miniature landscape are possible. Many photographers and videographers use this effect as a stylistic device.
Consider the high initial cost if you are interested in this type of lens. Perspective errors can be corrected with current image editing programs and are therefore usually a better choice.
Architecture and products: Tilt-and-shift lenses are mainly used in architectural photography. In addition, they have their place in product photography to effectively stage products with a corrected perspective.
Which is better – zoom or prime lens?
The fixed focal length – a classic for creative people
The zoom – for more flexibility
The Equipment of Lenses
The Autofocus Engine:
Ultrasonic motors work almost silently, they ensure precise and very fast focusing. Step motors or stepper motors work even quieter and faster. Because of these properties, they are increasingly being used in lenses.
It can be worth taking a look at cheaper panels from other manufacturers, as they are in no way inferior to the original in terms of function.
Which accessories for lenses are important?
- A common accessory for lenses are various filters that can be screwed on.
- UV filters, prevent rays in the ultra-violet range, which may reduce the quality of your recordings.
- Pol filters reduce reflections on smooth surfaces and bodies of water.
- The neutral density filter is popular among ambitious photographers. It enables a very long exposure time even in bright light. You can use it to smoothly reproduce rough, flowing water in your recordings. People and objects in motion are not visible in the photo due to the long recording time; full spaces appear deserted in the photo.
Proper care and storage
How to clean the Nikon D3200 lens?
First remove superficial dust and dirt with a soft brush. You can find specially suitable cleaning brushes in stores. Alternatively, you can clean with compressed air, but please take great care.
With glass cleaner or camera lens cleaner you can handle the lens surfaces to stains soften and dissolve. Treat the surfaces with a soft lens cleaning tissue and gently wipe from the center to the edges with a gentle motion.
Conclusion
Summing up, identify your needs before opting for Nikon D3200 lenses. if you are a beginner, it is better to start with a zoom lens and practice until you are pro enough for a specialized prime lens for portraits, landscapes, or telephotos.
For novices, kit lenses are not capable of delivering absolute quality and perfection. It’s better to go for a professional lens range instead of relying on a vendor-provided kit lens.
For professionals, it is always a hard pick to choose the best camera lens that adheres to the flimsiest perfections in image quality and for post-capturing edits. Dig into our best Nikon D3200 lenses featuring the tiniest details about the lenses with full compatibility to Nikon D3200 body.
Frequently Asked Questions
All the lenses with DX-type support are compatible with Nikon D3200. Nikon D3200 is the earliest in Nikon’s DSLR series, therefore all the Nikon lenses are made per the compatibility range of Nikon’s early models.
Nikon’s f/1.8G 35mm is the sharpest lens and is fully compatible with the Nikon D3200 body. The lens features a high aperture range, processing speed, and the fastest autofocusing speed at a wide viewing angle of up to 44 degrees.
Nikon 55-200mm is a long-range zoom lens compatible with the Nikon D3200 featuring all-purpose photography modes from portraits and landscapes to telephotos and nature photography. At 200mm, it captures stunning details with isolated backgrounds and perfect foreground shots. The anti-ghosting VR adjustments in Nikon 55-200mm capture close-up objects with near-perfect accuracy.
Nikon D3200 works great in sports photography. It has an impressive shutter speed of 1/4000s that makes it freeze any high-speed action almost instantly without any ghosting effects. Also, the AF is assisted with multiple focus points for continuous and quick autofocusing while trailing a sports action.
Nikon D3200 is lightweight and widely compatible with the contemporary lens range as well as for low-end lens types. It is a great camera to start with if you are a beginner.