When it was released in 2016, the Nikon D750 was a bit of a game-changer. Rather surprisingly, it outperformed many of Nikon’s other full-frame DSLRs when it came to low-light shooting. It was, and still is, an affordable way into the FX full-frame DSLR line-up and brings with it compatibility with a whole host of FX lenses.
Much cheaper than the Nikon D810, which was the preferred model of pros at the time, the D750 offers great value for money. It has great high ISO image noise handling, which it produces minimally and uniformly across the frame making it ideal for weddings, real estate and astrophotography.
While you can use DX crop-sensor lenses with this camera, users should instead opt for the optically superior FX glass on offer. After all, that’s why anyone would purchase the D750 because there are, now, better performing full-frame DSLRs from Nikon such as the current D850. That, plus the smaller form factor and the fact it’s lighter than most other full-frame models, makes this a portable FX DSLR perfect for a range of photographer types.
We’ll be walking you through our round-up of the best lenses for the Nikon D750, covering a range of options for all kinds of photographers. Whether you need a macro lens that also shoots portraits, an ultra-wide lens for astro, or a general purpose zoom, we’ve got you covered. However, if you’re itching for something that doesn’t appear on our list, check out our best nikon lenses guide. For something with a bit of extra reach, be sure to see our guide to the best 150-600mm lenses.
Jase Parnell-Brookes
Jase Parnell-Brookes is an award-winning photographer, educator and writer based in the UK. They won the Gold Prize award in the Nikon Photo Contest 2018/19 and was named Digital Photographer of the Year in 2014. After completing their Masters, Jase has spent a good chunk of two decades studying and working in photography and optics. Now the Channel Editor for Cameras and Skywatching at Space.com, their speciality is in low-light optics and camera systems.
This is a workhorse of a lens, with a robust build and weather sealing. It’s also brilliant at delivering sharpness and handling low light.Read more below…
Ideal for landscapes and architecture, this zoom retains its sharpness from corner to corner, with optic treatments to minimize color fringing. Read more below…
Many pro photographers find a 70-200mm f/2.8 essential to their work, and this is a terrific – and affordable – demonstration of why that is. Read more below…
This prime delivers 1:1 lifesize magnification for capturing tiny subjects, while its 105mm focal length is also handy for portraits. Read more below…
Best lenses for the Nikon D750 in 2024
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This list wouldn’t be complete without including the legendary Nikon AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8E ED VR. A real workhorse, it’s fully weather-sealed and feels pretty bulletproof. Supremely sharp through the focal length range and across the frame, it has minimal color fringing thanks to the fluorine coating, which actively repels water, dirt and more.
The fast aperture, when paired with four stops of Vibration Reduction, is a beast in low light and makes it helpful for weddings, indoor events, or even astrophotography. There’s a reason this is one of Nikon’s holy trinity of DSLR lenses.
Arguably the best ultra-wide DSLR zoom lens you can get for the Nikon D750, the AF-S 14-24mm f/2.8G ED has extra-low dispersion glass and nano crystal coating to reduce color fringing and ghosting.
This super-sharp lens is fantastic across the entire frame. Its claim to perfection is thwarted only by the fact that the protruding front element means filters require a specialist mount and need to be huge. It’s also a little bulky and heavy, but nothing that DSLR owners won’t be used to. Overall, this is an incredible lens.
One of the best portrait lenses, without the price tag of the faster f/1.4
Our expert review:
Specifications
Diaphragm blades: 7
Stabilization: No
Minimum focusing distance: 0.8m
Filter thread: 67mm
Weight: 350g
Dimensions: 80 x 73mm
Reasons to buy
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Excellent portrait lens
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Super fast autofocusing
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Great value for money
Reasons to avoid
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Specialized, mainly for portraits
Known for their supreme ability to shoot great portraits, 85mm lenses are sought after for their flattering perspective compression and wide maximum apertures, with this lens being no exception.
The Nikon AF-S 85mm f/1.8G, while not as fast as the 85mm f/1.4G, offers much better value for money considering its maximum aperture is only marginally narrower. Fast autofocusing and optical characteristics like soft vignetting and gorgeous bokeh make this a favored lens among portrait photographers.
A 70-200mm f/2.8 is a must-have lens for most pros, including wedding, sports, wildlife and documentary photographers. Top-flight Nikon professional photographers may still stay loyal to own-brand Nikon glass and choose the Nikon AF-S 70-200mm f/2.8E FL ED VR, but this Sigma Sports alternative matches the Nikon in almost every respect – handling, performance and image quality. And it does all thids whille costing a great deal less.
Sharpness and contrast are excellent throughout the entire zoom range, even when it’s set to its widest aperture. The autofocus system is very responsive, with a high degree of accuracy.
If you’re looking for a super-telephoto lens with a handy zoom range, Sigma’s 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM | S is our pick of the bunch. A step up from the company’s Contemporary edition of the same focal length, this lens is comparatively larger and contains two FLD (ultra-low dispersion) elements to keep chromatic aberration at bay.
This lens benefits wildlife photographers, or those into aviation or motorsports, or indeed sports of any kind, but due to its size and weight, you will likely want to pair it with a monopod to take the load off.
Max angle of view (diagonal): 114 degrees (Full-frame)
Dimensions (WxL): 87x106mm
Weight: 791g
Reasons to buy
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Generous viewing angle
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Superb image quality
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Good build and handling
Reasons to avoid
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Manual focus
Sold as the Rokinon SP 14mm f/2.4 in North America, this is a great super-wide lens for shooting the Milky Way, thanks to its ability to capture a big stretch of the night sky and its wide maximum aperture.
During our hands-on testing, we were hugely impressed by the way this lens maintained image quality at its widest aperture, an essential trait for astrophotography. Sharpness is also very good, and remains so right across the image frame. Maintaining this level of image quality at the widest aperture is a genuine challenge in such a wide-angle lens, but this Samyang pulls it off.
A compact, versatile macro lens giving genuine 1:1 reproduction
Our expert review:
Specifications
Diaphragm blades: 9
Stabilization: 4 stops
Minimum focusing distance: 0.314m
Filter thread: 62mm
Weight: 750g
Dimensions: 83 x 116mm
Reasons to buy
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Incredibly sharp optical performance
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Focuses to infinity
Reasons to avoid
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VR weaker when focusing closer
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Not the cheapest FX macro lens
This macro lens offers a good balance between close-up focusing and a compact size. It’s able to be used as a genuine macro lens due to the 1:1 reproduction ratio, which means a subject appears the same size in real life as it does on the image sensor. Not only this, but the lens focuses to infinity which, thanks to the longer 105mm focal length, makes it perfect for portraiture.
It does have a massive four-stop Vibration Reduction built-in, but this drops down to three stops when the reproduction ratio reaches 1:2 and two stops when shooting at 1:1. This means that when you really need it for macro work, it’s a little less helpful, but it only makes a difference when you’re shooting small subjects at slower shutter speeds.
The D750 uses the Nikon F mount and is compatible with all lenses designed for that mount. Nikon’s own F-mount lenses have AF-S or AF-P at the start of their model names.
Some F-mount lenses are designed for use with APS-C format cameras rather than full-frame cameras such as the D750. Nikon lenses that fall into this category have DX as part of their model names. While they physically fit on the D750, these lenses produce a cropped image. None of the lenses in this guide is a DX-format lens.
If you are buying a third-party lens for the D750, always check that it is designed for full-frame (or FX) Nikon cameras like the D750, rather than APS-C (or DX) Nikons.
The D750 is not able to use Z lenses, which are made for use with Nikon’s mirrorless Z cameras. If you upgrade to a Z camera later, you can buy an adapter that allows most F-mount lenses to work with your new camera.
How do I know which lens to get for my D750?
The reason there are so many types of lens in the first place is that different scenes demand different lens designs, particularly when it comes to focal length and aperture rating.
Usually, you will decide what you want to photograph, then get a lens with the focal length that suits the situation. For example, to shoot landscapes you will need a wide-angle lens, while for sports and wildlife you will need a telephoto.
The lens experts in our testing lab run a range of tests under controlled conditions, using the Imatest Master testing suite. Photos of test charts are taken across the range of apertures and zooms (where available), then analyzed for sharpness, distortion and chromatic aberrations.
We use Imatest SFR (spatial frequency response) charts and analysis software to plot lens resolution at the centre of the image frame, corners and mid-point distances, across the range of aperture settings and, with zoom lenses, at four different focal lengths.
There's more to it than just the technical side, though! Beyond the lab, our reviewers test lenses in real-world environments – and sometimes on professional shoots! We work with lenses both indoors and outdoors, in studio conditions and in natural light, with as many different subjects as is possible (or appropriate – there's no point testing a landscape lens' ability to shoot a portrait!).
We take into account everything from handling and ease of use to speed of autofocus and the overall quality of the images produced.
Jase Parnell-Brookes is an award-winning photographer, educator and writer based in the UK. They won the Gold Prize award in the Nikon Photo Contest 2018/19 and was named Digital Photographer of the Year in 2014. After completing their Masters Jase has spent a good chunk of two decades studying and working in photography and optics shooting and writing all over the world for big-name brands and media outlets. Now the Channel Editor for Cameras and Skywatching at Space.com their speciality is in low light optics and camera systems.
