What is a kit lens and why you should use one as a beginner
As a beginning photographer, you might have come across the term kit lens. But what is it exactly and why does it make some people smirk when you tell them you use a kit lens?
In this article, we’ll go through what is actually meant by a kit lens, and dive into the benefits of getting — and using — one as a beginner.
Mountain reflections captured with a kit lens
What is a kit lens?
A kit lens is a lens that comes as part of a “kit,” i.e. with your camera body. It can be any focal length and optical quality and typically has a variable max aperture. An example would be an 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 lens or an 18-140mm F3.5-5.6 lens.
Traditionally, kit lenses don’t have the best reputation. They’re regarded as a cheap option with inferior quality. And even though there is some truth to the fact, a kit lens can be a solid choice when you’re starting out with photography.
My Nikon D5300 with the 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens. I used this set up for 6 years and learned a great deal from it.
The benefits of a kit lens
From price to characteristics, there are some major advantages to using a kit lens that you should take into consideration as you’re starting out on your photography journey.
Affordability
One of the biggest things that a kit lens has going for it is its affordability. As a novice photographer, you don’t want to be spending thousands on your gear.
If you want a lot of bang for your buck, a kit lens is the way to go.
Kit lenses are typically made of cheaper materials, which contributes to their more friendly price tag. While this doesn’t sound like a good thing, it actually means that the lens is smaller and lighter. In other words, easy and comfortable to carry around.
What is more; should something happen to your kit lens, you can have peace of mind knowing you didn’t spend a fortune on it.
You can use a kit lens to practice shooting people
…as well as landscapes.
Versatility
As someone who is just starting with photography, you probably don’t yet know what subjects will draw you the most and what types of shots you’ll want to take.
One of the best advantages of kit lenses is that they are typically zoom lenses. Meaning, you can shoot with different focal lengths.
This allows you to quickly and easily switch between different types of shots and try out various genres of photography, from landscape, to portrait, to product or still life.
It's great for learning
Hand in hand with versatility goes great opportunity for leaning and experimenting. As you gradually try out all the possible focal lengths, you will learn a couple of things:
First, you will understand what focal lengths work best for which subjects and you’ll see what “feeling” and effect different focal lengths convey.
For example, when you zoom in on a subject that’s far away from you, you will see that the background (which is also far away from the subject) appears bigger and as if it is closer to the subject than in reality. This effect is known as “lens compression.”
Shot at 100mm on a crop sensor. The mountains and the clouds appear bigger and closer to each other.
Second, you’ll find out what focal length you tend to use — and like — the most. This is great because it can help you later on, when you want to upgrade to a prime lens, to decide what focal length you should go for.
But it’s not just the focal length. A kit lens typically has a maximum aperture between f/3.5 and f/5.6 at the longest focal length (i.e. when you zoom in). The smaller the aperture (the higher the f number), the less light can pass and reach the sensor.
This means that the performance of a lens with an f/3.5 in low light is not as good as that of a lens with a maximum aperture of f/2 or f/1.4 would be. It can be frustrating but it teaches you a lot of camera skills and creativity.
You’ll learn at what point your images become too blurry without a tripod and you’ll find many creative ways to keep your camera static if you don’t have a tripod with you — but still want to shoot in low light.
I’ve been in situations where I placed my camera on my backpack and surrounded it by a whole bunch of other items to keep it steady. I’ve also used the back of my friends and family as a tripod.
Shot on Nikon D5300 with the 18-140mm kit lens at f/9 and 2.5 sec. shutter speed. Used the back of a family member as a tripod. 🙈
You just have to work for it a little harder to produce the desired image.
TIP: Even though an f/3.5 doesn’t produce that smooth, creamy bokeh, you can somewhat imitate it by zooming in and getting a bit of distance between your subject and its background (using the compression effect mentioned above).
It can help improve your editing skills
If the image doesn’t come out amazing out of the camera, there are usually certain things you can do in post-production to “save” it, or at least enhance it.
Now, you want to make sure your images are as high of a quality as they can be with the gear you have. But it never hurts to understand how you can sharpen an image, how to remove or hide imperfections, and how to bring out the elements that are working well.
The downside of a kit lens
The main concern about a kit lens is that it has a lower optical quality, which in turn leads to lower image quality — especially when it comes to sharpness.
But the gap between budget and expensive options isn’t as wide anymore as it used to be.
Besides, if you’re just staring out, does it really matter that your image won’t have the quality required to print it as a massive billboard? Probably not.
Maybe you’ll want to share your photos on social media, maybe you’ll want to print them for your own wall or photo album… and for all those purposes, a kit lens will do just fine.
A kit lens is a great starter lens with many benefits, from affordability and versatility, to offering some amazing learning opportunities for newbies. As such, it definitely shouldn’t be discarded.
Are you considering getting a kit lens? Or have you already been using one? Let me know your experience in the comments!