A zoom lens and a photographing apparatus including the zoom lens that includes a first lens group having a negative refractive power, a second lens group having a positive refractive power, and a third lens group having a positive refractive power that are sequentially arranged from an object side; during zooming from wide to telephoto, the distance between the first and second lens groups decreases and the distance between the second and third lens groups increases; the first lens group includes a first lens having a negative refractive power and is a double-concave lens and a second lens having a positive refractive power that are sequentially arranged from the object side; and the second lens group includes a third lens having a positive refractive power, being disposed closest to the image side, and is a meniscus lens having a concave surface toward the object side.