When I think about third-party lenses, I think about optics that sit at a more affordable price range – but the latest trends list coming out of Japan suggests that third-party lenses aren’t only about snagging a bargain.
According to Minna Camera, an online “flea market” of sorts for selling new and used camera gear, the trendiest third-party lenses in Japan over the last seven months are almost exclusively zooms. But, some of the most popular third-party optics are those that cover a range that’s hard to find from the first-party brands – and many of the lenses aren’t budget picks either.
The top ten third-party lenses in Japan are a near even split between Sigma and Tamron, with Sigma at 54.7 percent and Tamron at 45.3 percent. While a Carl Zeiss lens made the top 20, only those two popular optics brands make up the top ten list, which includes:
- Sigma 28-70mm f/2.8 DG DN (Sony E)
- Tamron 17-70mm f/2.8 Di III-A VC RXD (Fujifilm X)
- Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM (Canon EF)
- Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 DC DN (Fujifilm X)
- Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 DG DN II (Sony E)
- Tamron 90mm f/2.8 Di III Macro VXD (Sony E)
- Tamron 18-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di III-A VC VXD (Sony E)
- Tamron 150-500mm f/5-6.7 Di III VC VXD (Nikon Z)
- Tamron 50-300mm f/4.5-6.3 Di III VC VXD (Sony E)
- Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 DG DN (Sony E)
While there are a number of standard focal length options on the list, including multiple 24-70mm f/2.8 workhorse lenses, several of the top lenses are options that don’t quite have an exact match in the brand native to the mount.
The Tamron 17-70mm f/2.8, for example, covers an equivalent of a 25.5 to 105mm, all-in-one lens that still maintains that bright f/2.8 throughout the range. That’s an unusual combination that doesn’t have an exact match from Fujifilm – and the crop sensor lens is also available in the Sony E, and now Canon RF and Nikon Z.
Similarly, Tamron’s 18-300mm and 50-300mm cover an all-in-one approach that makes the lenses more unusual.
Even the top lens, the Sigma 28-70mm f/2.8 DG DN doesn’t have an exact match, though Sony does offer the same focal length range in an even brighter f/2 lens.
The number of lenses on the list that don’t have an exact match from a first-party brand, combined with the number of lenses selling for more than ¥100,000 ($618 / £468 / AU$839 / CA$877), leaves Minna Camera drawing one key conclusion: Buying a third-party lens isn’t necessarily about getting a better price.
The other thing that surprised me about the list of top third-party lenses is that only one prime makes the list, a Tamron 90mm that has macro capabilities. While I’m not surprised that there are more zooms than primes, I would have expected at least one of Sigma’s popular Art series primes to be a trending option.
Another surprise? While I fully expected Sigma and Tamron to dominate the list, the growing number of third-party Chinese lens brands hasn’t become popular enough to break into the top 20, though expanding the list to 20 options does bring in a Carl Zeiss lens.
The top trending third-party lenses in Japan – and from an app that has both new and used lenses – may not match up exactly with the trends in other regions. But, the data offers an interesting insight into the popularity of some third-party lenses – and it seems it’s not just about price.
You may also like...
take a deep dive into the best zoom lenses or the best telephoto zoom lenses.
