We know that everyone loves the film look. The joke about Reddit posts is that they have to have really nice bokeh in order for them to do well — at least that’s part of it. But if you don’t want to shoot film right now, consider the alternative: LUMIX. With the Real Time LUT feature, you can get the film-look by applying luts to your photos. And combine that with a bit of really nice bokeh and you’ll have creamy images that the photographer-version of Gordon Ramsey would fall for. Here are some of the best lenses with great bokeh for that film look you want.
This blog post is presented in partnership with LUMIX.
How We Test and Choose These Lenses With Great Bokeh
The Phoblographer’s various product round-up features are done in-house. Our philosophy is simple: you wouldn’t get a Wagyu beef steak review from a lifelong vegetarian. And you wouldn’t get photography advice from someone who doesn’t touch the product. We only recommend gear we’ve fully reviewed in these roundups.
If you’re wondering why your favorite product didn’t make the cut, there’s a chance it’s on another list. If we haven’t reviewed it, we won’t recommend it. This method keeps our lists packed with industry-leading knowledge. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
When we test lenses, we’ve got various things in mind. First off, we consider who might want to buy the lens and what they might do with it. With that in mind, we try to tackle at least three genres of photography with that lens in a variety of situations. If the lens has weather resistance, then we’ll test it accordingly with a weather-resistant camera. We also test the autofocus of the lens in continuous mode, single mode, with exposure preview effects, without those effects, and then with all the major image quality parameters. These days, no one really makes a bad lens — but some are far better than others.
In this specific roundup, we’re basing our findings on the reviews that we’ve done. We’re choosing a favorite, but we’re also giving photographers a bunch of others that they might like, depending on how they shoot.
Our Choice Amongst the Best Lenses with Great Bokeh: LUMIX 50mm f1.4 Lumix S Pro
Well, if you’re looking for nice bokeh, then this lens could be the one that you’ve seen in those hazy dreams you’ve got at night. Indeed, this lens was designed to have some of the highest image quality on the market. And with it comes lots of the classic things that we expect from lenses like this. The LUMIX 50mm f1.4 boasts an f1.4 aperture, a ring to control the f-stops, weather resistance, very vivid colors, and a look that we can’t get over. This lens was released before the Real Time LUT feature was introduced. And today, it’s guaranteed to make you happy in so many different ways. It’s almost like it just keeps getting better.
Very sharp
Beautiful bokeh
Nice colors
Sharp images
With Panasonic’s latest firmware updates, it focuses surprisingly quick
Well built
Super well weather sealed
The following specs are from Lensrentals.
Angle of View47°Aperture Blades11, RoundedAutofocusAutofocusBrandPanasonicDiameter3.5″Focal Length50.0-50.0Groups/Elements11/13Hood IncludedNoImage StabilizationYesItem TypeLensMaximum Magnification0.15xMinimum Aperture16.0Minimum Focusing Distance1.44’MountL MountWeight2.1 lbs.
What We Think
In our review, we said:
Now with all heartfelt honesty, the strongest feature of the 50mm f1.4 LUMIX S Pro is the image quality. Photojournalists, wedding photographers, landscape photographers, portrait photographers and those who just like pixel peeping will admire what the 50mm f1.4 LUMIX S Pro can do. This lens is so sharp that it makes the LUMIX S1 seem like it’s a higher megapixel camera. Beyond that it has beautiful bokeh, can focus closely, and has no major problems at all.
5 Other Lenses With Great Bokeh You’re Going to Adore
Photographers want great color — that’s not even a question; it’s a demand. In over a decade of camera and lens testing, we’ve found that some of our favorite colors come from prime lenses. So, sure, the zoom lens that we recommend will do a great job if you’re buying an interchangeable lens camera. But if you want stellar colors, then you need to check these out. These are a few LUMIX lenses that we think have phenomenal colors.
LUMIX 50mm f1.8
In our review, we state:
The Panasonic 50mm f1.8 S has 9 aperture blades. And of course, that’s more than enough to give it creamy bokeh. Is it the creamiest 50mm? No. I’ve seen creamier for sure. But I think that for a 50mm f1.8, it’s more than usable.
LUMIX 85mm f1.8
In our review, we state:
The Panasonic 85mm f1.8 has nine aperture blades and a beautiful, creamy bokeh. For what it’s worth, I really like it. I think most photographers will really like it for the price point. Is there better bokeh? Yes, but not for this price point.
24-70mm f2.8 LUMIX S PRO
In our review, we state:
Because the Panasonic 24-70mm f2.8 LUMIX Pro has 11 aperture blades, the bokeh is going to be gorgeous. That’s one of my favorite things about this lens. Portrait photographers and photojournalists who use it will be happy with the bokeh it delivers. They’ll be able to tell stories more effectively if they can get their subjects perfectly in focus.
70-200mm f2.8 LUMIX S PRO
In our review, we state:
Points of light create nice, rounded bokeh balls at the center that, as expected, elongate towards the edges. Telephoto lenses will make the background appear closer. At 200mm, you can make those nice bokeh balls appear larger and much more obvious.
LUMIX 100mm f2.8 Macro
In our review, we state:
From the color, the sharpness, and the bokeh that’s capable, there’s a lot to love about this lens.
How to Use This Guide to Lenses with Great Bokeh for that Film Look You Want
Here’s what you should know about using this guide to the best lenses with great bokeh for LUMIX:
This guide contains products we’ve reviewed. Lucky for you folks, we’ve reviewed the vast majority of Panasonic lenses and modern lenses in general. Our Ethical Practices don’t allow us to feature products we haven’t fully reviewed. So when we say these are the best wide-angle lenses with great color for LUMIX, we mean it.
This guide is sponsored by LUMIX, who trusts us and understands that we have a set of ethics when it comes to reviewing products. All the product images and sample images in this roundup were shot by Phoblographer staff. There are also links to our full reviews.
These are the best lenses with great bokeh for LUMIX if you’re looking for smaller lenses or don’t mind something larger with even more resolving power.
There are lenses in this list that work well with LUMIX’s autofocus features and many have continued to improve with firmware updates.
LUMIX is otherwise known in the market as Panasonic.
When considering the best lenses with great bokeh for LUMIX, remember this is full-frame, otherwise known as LUMIX S. So, unlike Micro Four Thirds, the focal length is exactly what it is.
Generally speaking, LUMIX lenses work better on LUMIX bodies than they do with others within the L-Mount Alliance. Part of this has to do with the motors being used.
We’ve chosen lenses with weather-resistance. Weather resistance has more use than just shooting in the rain. Think of it as “weathering away” instead of “talking about the weather.” It helps prevent dust from getting into your lens and camera. That means you don’t need to retouch sensor dust. If it helps any more, all LUMIX S lenses have weather resistance as of the publishing of this article.
These lenses are for full-frame LUMIX cameras! So they’ll also work on Leica and Sigma L-mount cameras too.
With these lenses, you can pretty much do everything with the Leica L-mount. We should know; we own two of them.
Basically, treat these like you’re using a higher-end lens. They give that level of performance for a bargain.
All the product images and sample photos in these roundups are shot by our staff. In fact, we don’t talk about products at length in roundups like this unless we’ve done full reviews of them. But you can surely know that we’ve done all the research ourselves.
This list of the best LUMIX lenses with great bokeh includes a lot of options for a variety of photographers. We didn’t necessarily feel the need for a longer portrait focal length because a few of the lenses are more than good enough for most needs when it comes to shooting that subject matter. But otherwise, we were focusing on small, lightweight, rugged, and high-performance.
Picking the Right One For You
If you’re still a bit confused as to the right lens for you, here are some questions to ask yourself
What’s your budget?
How will you use the product?
What lighting situations are you in, and how will that affect what you’re doing? Our reviews hyperlinked in this article can help with that.
Are you traveling a lot with it?
Will you be using it in a situation that’s a bit rougher?
Who else uses this product? How are they using it?
What’s so appealing about this product that I can’t get from what I have already or something else?
When will I really have time to use this product?
Where will I bring this product?
How will this product help bring me joy and joy in my photography?
