Readers' Choice: Best gear of 2025 For the past few weeks, our readers have been voting on their favorite cameras and lenses released in 2025, and this year we've seen some of the closest races in recent memory.
Now that the first round of voting is over, it's time to reveal the winners.
Remember, though, it isn't over just yet! Now it's time to pick an overall winner. Make sure to cast your ballot for the 2025 Reader's Choice Product of the Year – this one's for all the bragging rights.
Best prime lens runner-up: Canon RF 45mm F1. 2 STM
First up is our runner-up for Best Prime Lens of 2025: the Canon RF 45mm F1. 2 STM, a fast, normal prime lens that makes fast aperture photography a possibility for just about any Canon RF user. While it may not be as critically sharp or optically perfect as the other F1. 2 primes in Canon's RF lens lineup, it offers a more accessible price point that won't break the bank, providing many Canon shooters with the creative opportunities that such a fast lens can offer.
It's also worth pointing out that while the RF 45mm F1. 2 STM was the runner-up in our poll, this category was a horse race with a photo finish, with the winner nosing its way to victory by a mere 0. 1% margin.
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Buy at AdoramaBuy at B&H PhotoBest prime lens winner: Sigma 135mm F1. 4 DG Art
The 2025 Readers' Choice Award for Best Prime Lens goes to the Sigma 135mm F1. 4 DG Art, a fast prime that practically begs to be used for portrait work. Sigma has a history of creating unique lenses, and this one is no exception; while there are similarly fast manual focus 135mm lenses, and several 135mm F1. 8 lenses with autofocus, this is the first such lens to feature both a fast F1. 4 aperture and autofocus in the same lens.
It's easy to understand why the Sigma 135mm F1. 4 DG Art garnered so much attention from our readers this year. If you plan to shoot it, though, you'll want to make sure your arm is ready: this lens weighs 1420g (50. 1oz) and sports a 105mm filter thread. However, the results are marvelous, and the workout will likely be worth the effort when you see the results.
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Buy at AdoramaBuy at B&H PhotoBest zoom lens runner-up: Nikon Nikkor Z 24-70mm F2. 8 S II
Our Readers' Choice runner-up for Best Zoom Lens of 2025, the Nikon Z 24-70mm F2. 8 S II, proves that lenses don't have to be unique to win respect. Sometimes, making a solid workhorse even better is all the magic that's required.
Nikon's second-generation 24-70mm F2. 8 zoom lens for Z-mount builds upon the original with an internal zoom design, offering enhanced weather sealing and increased utility for use with gimbals and video rigs. And at 675g (23. 8oz), it's 16% lighter than the original while gaining a faster voice-coil autofocus motor. Considering how popular the 24-70mm F2. 8 category is with enthusiast and pro photographers, it's no surprise to see this lens gain such well-deserved recognition.
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Buy at Amazon. comBuy at AdoramaBuy at B&H PhotoBest zoom lens winner: Sony FE 50-150mm F2 GM
The 2025 Readers' Choice Award for Best Zoom Lens goes to the Sony FE 50-150mm F2 GM, which secured a clean sweep across zoom lens awards this year; this same lens also won the Best Zoom category in our 2025 DPReview Annual Awards.
The Sony FE 50-150mm F2 GM was one of the most interesting lenses of 2025, providing a versatile zoom range, fast aperture and outstanding image quality that delivers sharp images while also allowing for impressive levels of background separation, and it does it all in a design that's actually manageable to carry around. This is a well-deserved win for a lens that will undoubtedly remain popular for years to come.
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Buy at B&H PhotoBest camera runner-up: Sony a7 V
Grabbing the runner-up position from our readers for Best Camera of 2025 is the Sony a7 V, a model that almost didn't make it into our poll this year, thanks to the fact that Sony announced it just days before the poll went live.
However, it appears that Sony has delivered a gem, significantly improving upon its predecessor and winning the confidence of readers. The a7 V arrives with an updated 33MP 'partially stacked' sensor that supports 30fps shooting with full 14-bit readout, features the most up-to-date AF system in the a7 line, pre-burst capture and 4K/60p video derived from 7K capture. It also manages to deliver impressive dynamic range thanks to its ability to simultaneously utilize data from the sensor's low-gain and high-gain modes.
The a7 V will likely be Sony's workhorse camera for enthusiast photographers for the next several years, and judging by your votes, it looks like Sony has a winner.
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Buy at AdoramaBuy at B&H PhotoBest camera winner: Nikon Z5II
Our 2025 Readers' Choice Award for Best Camera goes to the Nikon Z5II. This is quite an accomplishment considering the variety of interesting and impressive cameras released this year, but it likely speaks to the fact that the Z5II has everything it needs to get the job done, even if it's missing a few bells and whistles.
The Z5II isn't the fastest camera released this year, nor does it have the most impressive specs. However, it can deliver great stills and video, includes in-body image stabilization, Nikon's latest AF system, and has the great ergonomics users have come to expect from a Nikon camera. It's a great all-around camera that does most of the things most photographers need, and at a price that makes you wonder if there's a catch. (There isn't. ) In our review, we concluded that few of us really need anything more, and it looks like our readers agree with that assessment, awarding this camera the top spot for 2025.
Buy now:
Buy at Amazon. comBuy at AdoramaBuy at B&H PhotoVote now for the Readers' Choice Product of the Year!
You helped determine the winners in the individual categories, so now's the time to cast your vote in one last poll! Choose your favorite product from this list of winners and runners-up between now and Thursday, January 8th. Watch for an announcement of the winning products shortly after the poll closes.
As always, thanks for casting your votes and being a part of our community throughout the year.
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This poll is meant to be a bit of fun. It's not sponsored, promoted, or paid for in any way, and DPReview doesn't care how you vote. Our readers' polls are run on the basis of trust. As such, we ask that you only vote once from a single account.
. dpreview.com2026-1-1 17:00
