6 Best Lenses For Canon EOS R100 (…and 3 to avoid)

The Canon EOS R100 is an affordable and very capable crop sensor camera in Canon’s lineup and despite the affordability, you can get some very good performance when paired with a quality lens.

My favorite lens for this camera would be the 28mm f/2.8 because the compact size and wide maximum aperture make it a versatile lens that will give you high quality images.

But depending on what you shoot most, you may want a different option. So keep reading to see my complete breakdown of the best lenses for the Canon R100 based on what might be right for you.

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This might be my personal favorite lens to carry around on a crop sensor camera. It’s small and lightweight enough that pairing it with the R100 makes for a very small kit that is perfect for everyday shooting.

In addition to that, the 28mm focal length (45mm full-frame equivalent on the R100) is wide enough to capture scenery but not so wide that pictures of people are distorted. Combine this with the f/2.8 aperture and it’s about as versatile a prime lens as you can get.

But the real reason this lens gets the top pick is because of the quality of the images you’ll get at such a low price point.

Prime lenses in general are easier for the manufacturer to make well because they have fewer moving parts than a zoom lens. This means that they can be more precise with the placement of the lens elements, resulting in a sharper image.

It also means that it takes less elements to produce a lens that is very sharp and produces good colors and excellent contrast. So you’re not going to have to pay nearly as much for a prime lens as you would for a zoom.

All this adds up to this being the perfect lens to pair with an affordable camera like the R100 and still get excellent images.

But if you want something that has a little more versatility in terms of focal length and are willing to spend a little more then check out this next option…

The 24-105mm f/4 lens gives you a decent f/4 maximum aperture with a very wide focal range and still delivers very good image quality. On the crop sensor R100 the effective focal range is 38mm to 168mm.

I like this lens for the R100 because its compact size coupled with a big focal range.

You can shoot everyday shots and even some landscapes at 24mm and still have the reach for far away objects at the 105mm end. This makes it the kind of lens that you can put on your R100 and leave it there.

I like this option as an everyday lens for this camera a lot better than the 18-45mm that is often sold as a kit lens with it. You’ll get sharper images and better colors as well as the consistent f/4 max aperture across the entire focal length.

But…keep in mind that although it is a solid investment, this lens is more expensive than the kit lens by a good amount.

It is a full frame lens, which means that you won’t have to upgrade your lens if you upgrade your camera to full frame.

If you travel a lot and don’t want to bring multiple lenses or are just looking for one lens that can handle the widest variety of shooting situations then this is a great option.

If you’re looking for something a little less expensive but the 28mm above is a little too wide then try this…

The 35mm f/1.8 is one of the lenses (along with the 28mm above) that I recommend for almost anyone with a crop sensor camera as the next one to get after they get frustrated with their kit lens. The f/1.8 aperture opens up an entire world of possibilities compared to most kit lenses.

The 35mm focal length will be equivalent to 56mm on a full frame camera and the big advantage this lens has over the 28mm above is the f/1.8 maximum aperture.

The f/1.8 aperture is often a massive difference for anyone that’s never used a lens with a wide maximum aperture like that before. It will allow you to experiment with shallow depth of field as well as shoot in low light.

The R100 is a great option to have as an everyday camera and if you plan to use it for things like photographing your kids or get-togethers with friends and family, you’ll be thankful to have the option to use f/1.8, especially in indoor situations. You’ll find that indoor lighting is often far darker than you perceive it with your eyes.

Another added benefit of this lens is the compact size (although it is larger than the 28mm). Paired with the small R100, it makes for an easy kit to carry around with you.

So if you want a little more low light capability than the two options above, then I highly recommend checking out this 35mm lens.

So far we’ve been talking about everyday shooting, but what if you want to get great shots of your kid’s sporting events. Try this lens…

This was a tough one to pick. For those of you that want a longer telephoto zoom lens it was between this and the 50-210mm f/5-7.1.

I’m assuming you don’t want to spend a ton on expensive telephoto glass, but I also am not a fan of a lens with a maximum aperture at the long end of f/7.1.

When you shoot a longer focal lengths, you need a faster shutter speed to avoid blur from handholding the camera and an f/7.1 aperture can make it very difficult to do that unless you’re shooting in bright sunlight.

So even though the 70-200 f/4 is not cheap (coming in at $1400 MSRP) it’s still a lot less than the f/2.8 version.

Budget Friendly Alternative: I recognize budget might be important. You can save $1000 and go for the 55-210mm f/5-7.1. Just be aware that the image quality is a bit less and you’re going to have to shoot at much higher ISO settings. The good news is that the R100 handles higher ISOs better than most crop sensor cameras.

Back to the 70-200mm f/4…

You’re going to get exceptional image quality in terms of both sharpness and color rendition. This pairs nicely with the 24-105 above to give you a huge focal length range with just two lenses.

But if you just want a little longer focal length to shoot portraits then the 70-200mm is overkill…so try this lens instead…