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EF 50mm f/1.8 II
This is the lightest EF lens of all at a mere 4.6 oz. (130g). Compact and high-performance, standard lens. Its Gaussian optics provide sharp delineation from near to far focusing distances. The color balance is excellent for a standard lens.
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Average Customer Rating:
4
out of 5
16 out of 21(76%)customers would recommend this product to a friend.
Customer Reviews for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Review 1 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
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Performance
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Price/Value
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Quality
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Nickname: archietf
Location: Des Moines, IA
Used this product for: more than 1 year
Expertise Level: Hobbyist/Enthusiast
Product replacement: No
Got stuck to my Rebel.
Date: February 16, 2010
Pros: great for portraits
Cons: Poor build quality
Got stuck to my Rebel XT. Tried forcing it to come out and it ended up breaking. Unfortunately it damaged the sensors in my camera and now I'm out of a lens and out of a camera. Definitely spend the extra bucks and buy the f/1.4.
Other than the quality of the build, the lens did help me take some excellent portraits of my two kids.
Other than the quality of the build, the lens did help me take some excellent portraits of my two kids.
1 of 5 people found this review helpful.
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Review 2 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
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Features
4
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Performance
4
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Price/Value
5
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Nickname: taytaymarieski
Location: Remer, MN
Used this product for: more than 1 year
Expertise Level: Hobbyist/Enthusiast
Stunning shots for amazing price
Date: February 9, 2010
Pros: Superior build quality, Super-sharp images
I borrowed my uncle's 18--55mm kit lens when I bought the XTi until I got this 50mm lens. I have used the "Nifty Fifty" for over a year and up until recently, it was the only lens I owned and used. I was very satisfied with the outcome of the photos. The f/1.8 is a great feature of this lens. I now also own a zoom lens and the biggest drawback I find on my new lens is that it's f stop is from 3.5/5.6 which is hard to get used to when you are so lucky to use the nifty fifty with a 1.8 f stop. I would say the biggest drawback for having the nifty fifty is that I find myself backing up to get more in the picture because 50mm is pretty "close". I LOVE this lens though. It is WELL worth the price. I hope to have this lens forever.
7 of 7 people found this review helpful.
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Review 3 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
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Features
4
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Performance
5
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Price/Value
5
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4
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Nickname: Pilot850
Used this product for: 1 to 3 months
Expertise Level: Hobbyist/Enthusiast
Best Bang For Your Buck
Date: January 21, 2010
Pros: Fast auto-focus, light, great value/ price, compact, simple
Cons: Semi-sharp images
I was short on money, and needed a good short length prime. I decided to get this one. With it's low price, I didn't expect much, but it was much better than I thought. It is light, inexpensive, and it most importantly provides good shots. I like the soft backgrounds they provide. These are great for portrait and candid shots of people. I would recommend to anyone who is on a budget.
7 of 7 people found this review helpful.
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Review 4 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
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Features
2
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5
Performance
3
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Price/Value
5
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Quality
1
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Satisfaction
2
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Nickname: trancefusion
Location: Ventura, CA
Used this product for: 1 to 3 months
Expertise Level: Advanced Amateur
Product replacement: No
Be warned...
Date: January 19, 2010
Pros: Super-sharp images, inexpensive
Cons: Poor build quality, gets stuck on camera bodies
Used this lens on my 40D, and after a few uses, it got stuck on the camera body and would not come off. This was in the beginning of my Yosemite vacation, when I really wanted to use my 17-40L for landscapes.
I read about this common problem online, this has happened to a few others others. I learned that since the mount on this lens is plastic instead of metal, I could break the lens off, probably without damage to my 40D. I did just that, twisted HARD and broke the lens right off. Then I was able to use my other lenses.
Not sure why this got stuck on my body - probably cheap construction or shoddy tolerances. I will not re-buy this lens. Instead, I'll get the 50mm f/1.4
7 of 8 people found this review helpful.
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Review 5 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
3
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5
Performance
5
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5
Price/Value
5
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Quality
4
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Satisfaction
4
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Nickname: DawoodBC
Location: Vancouver BC
Used this product for: Less than 1 month
Expertise Level: Hobbyist/Enthusiast
Awesome for specific shots
Date: December 30, 2009
Pros: Super-sharp images, using focal length to blur backgrounds
Cons: Slow auto-focus
I Just bought this product and so far I am quite impressed. The image quality is at least a 25-50% imporovement from the lens that came w/ my Canon Rebel XS. Colours are much better, it works great in low light situations, picture quality is awesome.
So far I have noticed that it's great for macro shots, there is a wide range of focus options so you can really be specific with close ups, etc. It also works quite well for portaits, etc. Only thing is that you might have some difficulties including all of the background (might be hard to keep it in focus). This is the right lens if you are looking to have the subject of your photo in perfect focus and the background out of focus.
This may not be the right lens for ppl who want to take shots and don't have a lot of room to back up. 50mm is pretty close up. Also the lens really can take a while to focus in low light situations. Other downsides is that it does not have image stabilization, so if you need to take shots without flash in a low light situation, you'll probably want a tripod. (I think that the cons mentioned can also be pros when using this lens in the right situation)..
All in all, for the price, this lens is a great addition, but probably not the lens to leave in at all times. For close ups and macro it's a great choice especially for noobs like myself..
12 of 13 people found this review helpful.
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Review 6 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
3
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5
Performance
5
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5
Price/Value
5
out of
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Quality
3
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Satisfaction
5
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Nickname: jgo75
Location: Los Angeles
Used this product for: 1 to 3 months
Expertise Level: Hobbyist/Enthusiast
Product replacement: No
Great Value lens
Date: December 22, 2009
Pros: Super-sharp images, best bang for the buck
Cons: Poor build quality, no wider lens available with the same price
I just got into photography a couple of months ago with my T1i. You will get your money's worth with this little lens. It certainly outperforms my kits lenses. It's very fast, very sharp and very cheap. Everybody should have one these.
You will hear everybody say that the focus ring is very small and loose but it is actually perfect for shooting video with the T1i because you can adjust focus with your left index finger with ease. The focus ring is very close to the camera body so you can hold the camera and adjust focus very comfortably. And since you won't be using the autofocus while capturing video, you won't have hear the irritating auto focus motor during playback. Perfect!
Con: the one thing I wish for is an exact lens in the same price point but wider (28mm or 35mm)
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.
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Review 7 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
4
out of
5
Performance
5
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Price/Value
5
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Quality
3
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Satisfaction
5
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Nickname: Peej Studio
Used this product for: more than 1 year
Expertise Level: Advanced Amateur
Product replacement: No
Low light on a tight budget?
Date: December 10, 2009
Pros: Fast auto-focus
Cons: Semi-sharp images, only 5 blade aperture
Great little portrait lens and for low light situations. As long as the aperture is not opened past 2.8 on a 1.6 crop sensor camera, this lens produces sharp images.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Review 8 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Performance
4
out of
5
Price/Value
5
out of
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Quality
4
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Satisfaction
5
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Nickname: g9
Location: Arlington, VA
Used this product for: 6 to 12 months
Expertise Level: Advanced Amateur
Not the best, but great with its price!!
Date: October 16, 2009
I never think about to use a standard fixed focus lens before 'till I tried this little lens.
With the price, there is no surprise for the low quality build. However, the body would be plastic or metal does not really matter to me, my job is not to drop or make damage to any lens.
The best point of this lens is price.
For me the only problem is auto-focus (which I rarely use). On my 50D, auto-focus won't work at all when I turn on live-view mode.
With the price, there is no surprise for the low quality build. However, the body would be plastic or metal does not really matter to me, my job is not to drop or make damage to any lens.
The best point of this lens is price.
For me the only problem is auto-focus (which I rarely use). On my 50D, auto-focus won't work at all when I turn on live-view mode.
10 of 16 people found this review helpful.
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Review 9 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Performance
5
out of
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Price/Value
5
out of
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Quality
3
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Satisfaction
5
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Nickname: RSP
Location: Houston,Tx
Used this product for: 1 to 3 months
Expertise Level: Professional or Expert
Product replacement: No
Great Beginner Lens
Date: September 12, 2009
Pros: Super-sharp images, Fast auto-focus
Cons: Poor build quality
I use this lens with my Canon 40D and it's not slow at all. Focus is in seconds and talk about crisp images, wow! I also started doing shots in niteclubs with this lens and it does tend to focus longer in dark environments but the quality of the images is amazing. This lens is worth every penny!
17 of 19 people found this review helpful.
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Review 10 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Performance
3
out of
5
Price/Value
3
out of
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Quality
5
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Satisfaction
2
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Nickname: Ashley
Location: Pennsylvania
Used this product for: 1 to 3 months
Expertise Level: Advanced Amateur
Product replacement: No
Frustrated with auto-focus
Date: August 13, 2009
Pros: Super-sharp images
Cons: Poor build quality, Slow auto-focus, terrible auto-focus on vertical shots
If you are trying to focus this lens while in the vertical position, good luck! I could not get it to take a picture to save my life in the vertical position with the autofocus. I had to use the manual focus, which doesn't work out too well because I am near-sided. However, it does take fantastic pictures every other time. The picture quality is amazing.
5 of 20 people found this review helpful.
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Review 11 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Performance
4
out of
5
Price/Value
5
out of
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Quality
3
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Satisfaction
5
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Nickname: Mirza
Location: Chicago
Used this product for: Less than 1 month
Expertise Level: Advanced Amateur
Product replacement: Yes
Best Buy
Date: June 16, 2009
Pros: Fast auto-focus
Cons: Poor build quality
This is a great lens for starters. I sold my kit lens after very bad experience with first couple indoor/outdoor shots (i.e. over/under exposed with/without flash, issue focusing, etc).
Got this lens and it bought out the true capabilities of the DSLR camera. I have read many many many review about this camera and its best (sharpest) performance is at F/4 and little soft on corners in/around F/1.8 stop.
Very essential playaround kit lens.
9 of 15 people found this review helpful.
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Review 12 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Performance
4
out of
5
Price/Value
5
out of
5
Quality
4
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5
Satisfaction
5
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5
Nickname: Nicho
Location: Nashville TN
Used this product for: more than 1 year
Expertise Level: Advanced Amateur
Product replacement: No
Fun
Date: June 8, 2009
Pros: Super-sharp images, the ideal portrait lens for the rebel xti
Cons: Semi-sharp images
This was my second digital lens purchase and is my second most used lens. Wide open without a shade it will flare and is soft enough to be the classic Sonnar portrait lens. Stopped down with a shade it is as crisp and saturated as the Standard Canon normals are famous for being. It is so light and plastic-y that it will make you wonder where those quality images come from. If you have been using multi-multi element huge and heavy zoom lenses it will be a revelation what a fixed focal-length lens can do for you. This "cheap, plastic" lens, a "plastic" Rebel body and a 2 Gig card will make you a better photographer over the weekend. It did me.
11 of 16 people found this review helpful.
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Review 13 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
1
out of
5
Performance
1
out of
5
Price/Value
1
out of
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Quality
1
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Satisfaction
1
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Nickname: SPW
Location: Columbia SC
Used this product for: 6 to 12 months
Expertise Level: Professional or Expert
Product replacement: No
Awful lens
Date: May 9, 2009
Cons: Semi-sharp images, Poor build quality, Slow auto-focus, plastic lens mount, no lens hood
I had this lens and tried hard to get decent photos from it on both my XT and my 30D. It never ever seemed to be able to focus sharply. Focussing was slow, inaccurate and the lens was a haze magnet. I'm saving up for the 50mm f1.4.
10 of 51 people found this review helpful.
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Review 14 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Performance
5
out of
5
Price/Value
5
out of
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Quality
3
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5
Satisfaction
5
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Nickname: CanonMan
Location: New York
Used this product for: more than 1 year
Expertise Level: Advanced Amateur
Product replacement: No
Great Prime!
Date: May 4, 2009
Pros: Super-sharp images, great low light shots
Cons: Poor build quality
This was my first lens, though borrowed, I also own in today and it's a keeper. After you use it, you get spoiled with nice crisp images in any light condition. Pictures it produces are the best. Shallow depth of field very useful if that is what you are after. It is simple and beautiful. It takes very little space as well.
It is cheaply-made, no question, and that is why you can just buy it and not think about it twice. One thing I wish is the metal mount instead of plastic. First version of it many years ago had a metal mount, and it costs much more if you find one. Other than that, it's a great prime, great starter lens, and if you don't mind walking it will do some amazing things for you.
Enjoy it!
20 of 20 people found this review helpful.
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Review 15 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Performance
4
out of
5
Price/Value
5
out of
5
Quality
4
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5
Satisfaction
4
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Nickname: Duke of all the West
Location: Kansas
Used this product for: 3 to 6 months
Expertise Level: Advanced Amateur
Product replacement: No
Good practice lens
Date: April 5, 2009
This is a good lens for those interested in lenses with a wide maximum aperture. It's good to use this lens as a springboard for other prime lenses as well. Those making the transition between the kit lens and this prime will notice a good deal of difference. This lens is much faster than the 18-55mm kit lens.
One complaint I have about this lens is how in lower light situations the AF may have to hunt around a bit before it finds a focus point. Another issue is while the lens is focusing, the gears make a good deal of noise as well. I should certainly hope Canon fixes these issues when they make a new 50mm f/1.8. All issues aside, I have made some excellent images from this particular lens.
A word of caution to those new to wider aperture lenses: don't always shoot wide open. Some problems may arise due to this:
1) You may not have as much in focus as you may have initially wanted.
2) If you have a slow shutter speed (usually under 1/50 sec.), and if you move forward or back while taking the photo, your subject may come out of focus.
3) In the bright of day, shooting wide open may cause your photo to be overexposed (i.e. too bright).
1) You may not have as much in focus as you may have initially wanted.
2) If you have a slow shutter speed (usually under 1/50 sec.), and if you move forward or back while taking the photo, your subject may come out of focus.
3) In the bright of day, shooting wide open may cause your photo to be overexposed (i.e. too bright).
64 of 68 people found this review helpful.
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Review 16 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Performance
4
out of
5
Price/Value
5
out of
5
Quality
2
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Satisfaction
4
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Nickname: js311
Location: Huntington, WV
Used this product for: 3 to 6 months
Expertise Level: Professional or Expert
Product replacement: No
Good Lens for Beginners
Date: February 14, 2009
Pros: Super-sharp images
Cons: Slow auto-focus, build quality isn't "poor" but it's not the best
This lens is ideal for beginning photographers and students and not a bad backup lens for professionals.
It's lightweight, affordable and makes super-sharp images.
For those who want to explore photography a little more in-depth and achieve more creative freedom that a kit lens allows, this is the lens to purchase.
17 of 19 people found this review helpful.
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Review 17 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Performance
5
out of
5
Price/Value
5
out of
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Quality
2
out of
5
Satisfaction
5
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Nickname: Izzybee
Location: Jersey Shore.
Used this product for: 1 to 3 months
Expertise Level: Advanced Amateur
Product replacement: No
Super Sharp Image Quailty
Date: February 10, 2009
Pros: Super-sharp images
Cons: Slow auto-focus
Purchased this as a knock around Lens for my 5D Mark II
I was very impressed with with the Super Sharp images received with this lens mounted on the 5D Mark II. This is the lens to use when you don't want to use any of your L GLASS. SUPER CHEAP
I was very impressed with with the Super Sharp images received with this lens mounted on the 5D Mark II. This is the lens to use when you don't want to use any of your L GLASS. SUPER CHEAP
10 of 14 people found this review helpful.
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Review 18 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
2
out of
5
Performance
4
out of
5
Price/Value
5
out of
5
Quality
4
out of
5
Satisfaction
4
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Nickname: Analytics
Location: Overland Park KS
Used this product for: Less than 1 month
Expertise Level: Hobbyist/Enthusiast
Product replacement: No
Fast, Clear, and Cheap
Date: January 19, 2009
Pros: Super-sharp images, big aperture (fast!)
Cons: Poor build quality, Slow auto-focus, auto-focus doesn't work well in dark
I purchased this lens for my Rebel XSi, because I wanted smaller f-stops than the lens that came with the kit (EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS). Here are my thoughts:
Positives: The optics on this lens are nice, and the big aperture is fantastic. I’ve been able to take some incredibly sharp photos with a really nice background blur to bring out what I’m focusing on. I took the lens to a party with pretty dark club lighting, and was able to take great photos without a flash.
Negatives: The auto-focus doesn’t work very well in dark environments when you need the big aperture and really need the auto-focus because of the narrow depth-of-field you’re working with (the auto-focus was awful when my camera's auto-focus was set to One-Shot, but was passable when set to AI Servo). It also has a cheap, plastically feel to it—much more so than the EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS that came with the camera.
Other: One interesting thing I noticed with this is that when I spontaneously pointed the camera at people, they’d instinctively move too close to the camera to pose. When taking photos of people in small or crowded rooms, this lens doesn’t work very well due to my dSLR’s crop factor. I like the depth of field that a 50mm at f/1.8 gives you, but it would be more handy on a camera with a full-size image sensor.
34 of 38 people found this review helpful.
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Review 19 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
1
out of
5
Performance
4
out of
5
Price/Value
5
out of
5
Quality
4
out of
5
Satisfaction
4
out of
5
Nickname: Paul C
Location: Wesley Chapel, FL
Used this product for: 6 to 12 months
Expertise Level: Advanced Amateur
Product replacement: No
This is your second lens
Date: November 20, 2008
Pros: great learning tool, amazing value
Cons: af misses
This isn't the lens that you go pro with, but it's a great learning tool. The fixed focal length means you have to think a good bit more about positioning yourself to take the shot. Also, with the wide aperture you will be able to take natural light photographs and put away that awful pop-up flash. Once you start paying attention to how you compose your shot and what light you have to work with, I assure you will you improve your skills. This is the primary reason this should be your first additional lens for anybody starting out with an SLR (after the kit lens that is).
While this happens to be Canon's cheapest lens, it is also one of their sharpest. It can be a tad soft at f/1.8, but by about f/2.2 it's more than you need. f/4.5 is ideal, but often unnecessary unless you need the additional depth of focus.
That being said, sharpness isn't the only quality of a lens. For just about all other attributes that makes a lens a lens, this piece of glass falters. Focus is noisy and inaccurate, it's built like a cereal box toy, the 5-blade aperture can make for some jumbled background blur, and it seems to soak up crud inside. However, what do you want for the price?
My #1 issue with this lens is the accuracy of the auto-focus. I have a lot of shots that are misses. Part of that is the fact that I tend to get very close to my subject and shoot with a wide aperture for a shallow depth of focus, which is a challenging condition for the lens.
73 of 79 people found this review helpful.
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Review 20 for EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Overall Rating
out of
5
Features
1
out of
5
Performance
1
out of
5
Price/Value
2
out of
5
Quality
1
out of
5
Satisfaction
1
out of
5
Nickname: Don
Used this product for: Less than 1 month
Expertise Level: Professional or Expert
Product replacement: No
Low Quality Optics
Date: November 11, 2008
Cons: Poor build quality, Slow auto-focus
Before I go into the negative aspects of this lens, I will look at the positive aspects.
If you want a lens based only on the aperture settings (like myself), then this may be the lens for you. The aperture is very large, allowing for beautifully blurred backgrounds which come in handy for portraits. Also, the lens is very lightweight, which may come in handy for field or location work. But for professional work, this lens just dosen't make the cut. The images are not clear, the build quality of the lens is plastic (as is the lens mount, which may stretch over time), and the optics are low quality. Not to mention the AF which is quite slow and noisy. For beginners, it is a great choice. But for anyone who deems himself more than a beginner, he or she should look into a higher quality lens. Believe me, if you pay more now, you will reap the benifits of higher quality images later. And higher quality images recreate timeless memories that can last a lifetime.
If you want a lens based only on the aperture settings (like myself), then this may be the lens for you. The aperture is very large, allowing for beautifully blurred backgrounds which come in handy for portraits. Also, the lens is very lightweight, which may come in handy for field or location work. But for professional work, this lens just dosen't make the cut. The images are not clear, the build quality of the lens is plastic (as is the lens mount, which may stretch over time), and the optics are low quality. Not to mention the AF which is quite slow and noisy. For beginners, it is a great choice. But for anyone who deems himself more than a beginner, he or she should look into a higher quality lens. Believe me, if you pay more now, you will reap the benifits of higher quality images later. And higher quality images recreate timeless memories that can last a lifetime.
27 of 71 people found this review helpful.
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