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The Best Camera Kit for Beginners
Choosing the right combination of a capable camera with a quality lens isn’t the easiest task for a beginner photographer, so we did it for you.
Our choice for the best camera kit for beginners is the Nikon Z5 & Z 24-50mm f/4-6.3. It’s a very approachable yet highly capable camera kit for beginners. It’s also a mirrorless camera, so if you would rather buy a DSLR, then we recommend the Nikon D7500 & AF-S DX 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G.
If you want to read reviews for the kits above, see a few other options, or just learn more about what you should consider when choosing the best camera kit for beginners, then read on!
Table of Contents
Best Camera Kit for Beginners
The best camera kit for beginners needs to be both approachable and capable. There’s no point in buying a camera if you’re going to quickly outgrow it due to its limitations in producing quality photographs.
Likewise, you’ll want the camera to be easy to understand so you’ll be able to get the most out of it as soon as possible. Camera settings and functions can be a barrier for beginning photographers, so it’s ideal to choose a camera that makes figuring it out as easy as possible.
The word “kit” gets a pretty bad wrap in photography and has come to be used as another word for “not good.” This isn’t necessarily true, although it definitely can be if you are planning to just buy the cheapest kit you can find.
The 4 camera kits on this list are going to be great for beginners, especially for those of you that want to take photography seriously and plan to pursue it as a larger hobby or even a side hustle. Find the one that you think will work best for you, your goals, and your budget.
With all that in mind, here’s our choice for the best camera kit for beginners.
Best Overall Camera Kits
Nikon Z5 & Z 24-50mm f/4-6.3
This Nikon Z5 paired with the 24-50mm lens is the best camera kit for beginners when everything is taken into consideration. It’s a kit I wish was available when I was first starting and I currently recommend it to everyone that asks.
You’re getting both a quality camera and a quality lens that can easily be used for professional purposes should you ever get to that point.
Either way, you will be purchasing an easy to understand camera with a lens that is very capable of producing sharp images.
Pros:
- High quality camera and lens
- Kit will grow with you as you learn more
- Great starter lens that will last forever
- Mirrorless camera technology is the future
- Great value for price
Cons:
- More focal lengths would be ideal
Sony a7 III & 28-70mm F/3.5-5.6
The Sony A7iii is a professional grade camera that I’ve used many times. It’s an amazing camera that is extremely popular amongst professionals.
The 28-70mm lens offers up excellent focal lengths and has the ability to capture really sharp images. Overall, this is an excellent pairing for any beginner that has side hustle or professional aspirations.
The only downside is the notoriously not beginner friendly settings/functions menu. With that being said, if you’re the type of person who doesn’t get discouraged and is willing to work through some initial confusion, this is easily the best camera kit for beginners.
Pros:
- Camera of choice for many professionals
- High quality camera and lens
- Kit will grow with you as you learn more
- Lens offers very good focal lengths
- Mirrorless camera technology is the future
Cons:
- Settings/functions menu not intuitive
- Most expensive on list
Best Budget Camera Kits
Canon EOS Rebel T8i & EF-S 18-55mm F/4-5.6
This Canon Rebel T8i paired with the 18-55mm lens is great for anyone that isn’t quite sure whether or not they want to take photography seriously.
It’s the cheapest on our list, so if you know that you enjoy photography and plan to continue it as a hobby, turn it into a side hustle, or even start a business, I would purchase one of the other camera kits.
Pros:
- Very affordable
- Lens offers solid focal lengths
Cons:
- Will need to upgrade for a serious side hustle or professional job
- Both camera and lens are not the highest quality
Nikon D7500 & AF-S DX 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G
Featuring the most adaptable lens on our list, this Nikon D7500 paired with this 18-140mm lens offers you a very wide range of focal lengths.
Although this combination won’t produce the best quality images that you see coming from professional cameras, it will absolutely help you photograph any type of genre.
This lens in particular is great for landscape photography since you can zoom extremely far in-and-out.
Pros:
- Affordable
- Wide range of focal lengths
- Lightweight and compact design
Cons:
- Sharper images would be ideal
- Will need to upgrade if you want to photograph professionally
Recommendations
Our choice for the best camera kit for beginners is the Nikon Z5 & Z 24-50mm f/4-6.3. It’s everything that you could want in a camera kit for beginners, especially when the simplicity of the settings/functions menu is taken into account.
With that being said, the Sony a7 III & 28-70mm F/3.5-5.6 is a professional grade camera that is absolutely worthy of being the best camera kit for beginners IF you don’t mind taking some time to learn the menu functions.
If your budget is tight and can’t stretch for one of the two listed above, then opt for the Nikon D7500 & AF-S DX 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G. If you’re serious at all about photography, then this is the best budget camera kit available.
Finally, check out our Gear page to read more articles just like this with up-to-date product reviews for gear across all photography genres.
Frequently Asked Questions
What camera should a beginner start with?
Generally, one that is easy to use without hard to grasp menu functions. We recommend the Nikon D7500 & the AF-S DX 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G lens.
Is Canon or Nikon better for beginners?
If we’re being honest, both are about equal. Although the Nikon D7500 & the AF-S DX 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G lens is our choice for the best camera kit for beginners.
What is a good beginner camera for videography?
The Nikon Z5 is a great introduction to mirrorless cameras that have good videography capabilities. Pairing it with the 24-50mm lens listed above is an excellent choice for video as well.