Review: A Look at 24-105mm Lenses

There are endless lenses for every genre of photography. But what should you buy if you’re a beginner who needs an affordable, versatile zoom lens? Regardless of your favourite brand, one lens stands out from the rest: the 24-105mm zoom lens.

Rather than focusing on one specific model of 24-105mm, this article will focus on the zoom lens and why it's a great choice for all cinematographers and still photographers. We’ll also show a few standout models from Canon and Sony and highlight a newer version of this lens that could change the game for good. Read our MPB guide to buying lenses for any photography genre.

Zoom Lenses vs. Prime Lens

There’s a lot to consider when comparing zoom and prime lenses, especially depending on your camera. But one can’t deny that a trusty zoom lens will keep you covered if you need versatility or are shooting run and gun.

Let’s look at the cost. For the price of one zoom, you can get your money’s worth with a range of focal lengths, which is very attractive to beginners.

However, while offering limitations at a fixed focal length, prime lenses force you to be more intentional and creative with your composition and offer more wiggle room with apertures often between f/1.8 and f/2.

Now, let’s break down the key differences between the two types of lenses. Zoom lenses provide versatility by adjusting focal lengths without swapping lenses. They're perfect for busy events, wildlife photography, or travel, where swapping lenses quickly isn't practical. Their ability to handle various shooting scenarios makes them essential tools for maximising creative flexibility with a single lens. Prime lenses deliver top-notch image quality while nailing the dreamy background blur. Unlike zoom lenses that zoom in and out, primes have a fixed focal length that challenges you to get creative with framing and composition. They're perfect for portraits and for shooting in low light when you need extra brightness.

Focal Range

The 24-105mm focal range is a popular choice for zoom lenses, offering significant versatility for many photographic situations. At the wide end, 24mm provides a broad field of view for landscapes, architecture and group shots. As you approach 50mm, this focal length is great for street photography and portraits. The long end, 105mm, allows for closer framing of distant subjects for tighter portraits and event photography.

Aperture

An f/4 aperture refers to a camera lens setting where the lens opening allows a moderate amount of light to enter. At f/4, the aperture is wide enough to allow sufficient light for shooting in various lighting conditions, balancing depth of field and light sensitivity. This results in a depth of field that is shallow enough to isolate subjects from the background while keeping the scene in focus, making it perfect for portraits and landscapes.

Our Picks

Best Canon Zoom Lens

If you want a versatile Canon lens, you can’t go wrong with the Canon RF 24-105mm f/4 L IS. This high-performance zoom lens offers a flexible focal range that suits everything from landscapes to portraits. It features advanced optical stabilisation, which reduces camera shake and produces sharp images in low-light conditions. Its robust build quality protects against dust and moisture, making it a reliable choice for amateur and professional photographers.

Best Sony Zoom Lens

Sony has a plethora of zoom lenses, but look no further than the Sony FE 24-105mm f/4 G OSS. This member of Sony’s full-frame E-mount lineup caters to many different needs of photographers. The 24-105mm f/4 G OSS is known for its versatile zoom range, making it an excellent all-purpose lens suitable for various photography genres from landscapes to portraits. It features Optical SteadyShot for image stabilisation, ensuring sharp images even at slower shutter speeds. 

If you want another option, consider the Sony FE 24-70mm f/2.8 GM. Part of Sony's prestigious G Master series, this lens offers superb optical performance with a constant f/2.8 aperture for exceptional low-light capabilities and beautiful bokeh. It is favoured by professional photographers for its sharpness, build quality and ability to deliver stunning images in tough conditions. Both lenses are robust and well-constructed, reflecting Sony's commitment to high-quality optics.

Video and Filmmaking

The draw for these lenses is their versatility. This naturally appeals to videographers and documentary filmmakers who shoot run-and-gun projects that call for quick movement. Rather than switching out prime lenses, a flexible zoom lens like a 24-105mm provides all you need.

Below are some examples shot with a Sony FX3 and a Sony FE 24-105mm f/4 zoom lens, but you may want to check out our video on 24-105mm lenses to get an even better sense of how advantageous the 24-105mm is for video.

The 24-105mm zoom lens lets you quickly go from a wide…

…to a medium…

...to very close, if needed.

This is great if you're shooting interviews or events or following a subject and need to shift quickly from wide to close or close to wide and in between. 

Most 24-105mm zoom lenses also have image stabilisation, a huge plus for shooting walk-and-talk videos and tracking subjects. 

The limited f-stop at f/4 doesn't hold you back much, especially when you're outside. This may even challenge you to think more critically about framing, composition and distance instead of relying on shallow depth of field.

Still Photography

A handy 24-105 mm zoom lens for still photography covers you on all fronts. Check out some examples below shot with a Canon EOS R5 and a Canon RF 24-105mm f/4 zoom lens.

Zoom vs. Prime Image Comparison

Let’s look at some actual comparisons in the following screenshots and see how a 24-105mm zoom lens compares to a prime lens shooting the same thing. These were all shot with a Canon EOS C70, a Canon RF 24-105mm f/4 zoom lens and Canon RF prime lenses. You can also check out the video for a closer comparison.

There isn’t a noticeable quality drop from the 24-105mm to the prime lenses. This may change depending on what camera and lens you are using, but as far as the Canon RF 24-105mm f/4 lens goes, it’s safe to say you’re getting a good bang for your buck with choosing the zoom.  

Limitations of f/4

Considering all this, we can’t ignore the limitations of f/4. If you're shooting indoors or working with low light, you'll have to crank your own light sources or make the shadows work to your advantage. Check out the screenshot below of the Canon RF 24-105mm f/4 zoom lens shooting a subject in low light on the Canon C70.

Pretty underexposed…

Canon RF 24-105mm f/2.8

However, Canon recently released an RF 24-105mm f/2.8 lens. It's a newer lens, but we wouldn't be surprised if it started a trend of similar lenses being released in the near future, rendering lenses like the 24-70mm f/2.8 obsolete.

When shooting the same model in the same low-light conditions at f/2.8 with this lens, we didn't have to crank the light source as much to get an evenly exposed image.

We go a bit deeper into this lens with some other test shots in the video, too.

Summary

While having many lenses at your disposal may be preferable, you can’t go wrong with a trusty 24-105mm zoom lens when you need versatility on a budget. If we haven’t fully convinced you, though, check out our top-selling lenses with cameras.

For more expert articles, interesting interviews and camera gear guides, check out the MPB content hub.