Posting By : Semua-free.blogspot.com
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Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II The Cheap Camera Lens
The Great
Lens for less than $150, Optically,
you can't really do that much better than the f/1.8 - strong contrast, good
color rendition, and very sharp even when shooting wide open. I bought this
lens and it lived on my camera for several months and was the default piece of
glass that I reached for when the quality of the shot "really
mattered".
But,
honestly, it's built about as solid as a toy prize in a box of Cracker Jack.
After a few months of use - use, not abuse - the lens literally came apart, the
front barrel separated from the mount. The bad news was that the lens was
completely shot - it was in pieces, after all - the good news was that it had
been cheap, so my pocketbook was able to stand the cost of replacement.
I
replaced the lens with it's older brother, a used version of the Mark I - much
more solid, and which gives equal optical quality even used. It's a shame that
the body and housing on new version of this lens is so shamefully cheap,
because the glass is very nice. But I can't recommend it, unless you either a)
don't do that much shooting, or b) don't mind replacing the lens on a fairly
regular basis.
My
suggestion is to either cough up the money for Canon's 50mm f/1.4 - gains you a
half a stop and is built to pro-quality standards - or pick up the older
version of the f/1.8 on the used market. Either option will likely end up being
cheaper in the long run.
Pros:
Small
Size, Low Price, Light Weight, Ok at F/1.8, Better at F/2.2 F/2.5 F/2.8, Sharp
as most lens at F3.2 and still blurs the background well, Natural light
photography sharper at F1.8 then the Kit lens at any setting, Great portrait
lens on cropped 1.6 cameras like the Rebel Xti
Cons:
Slow
Focus, Poor low light auto focus, Poor motion tracking auto focus, Cheap
plastic construction, Flash performance much worse then the 18-55 Kit lens, No
Lens Hood
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| Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II The Cheap Camera Lens |
Actual
use and thoughts:
I
bought this lens because I wanted to take sharper clearer photos then the kit
lens until I can afford another L lens and because I wanted to shoot using
natural light inside churches while photographing wedding portraits.
Is
it sharper then the Kit 18-55 lens? In natural light shots you bet!!
I
did some tripod mounted tests at different F stops and it's sharper at F1.8
then the kit lens is at any setting at any focal length. However!! You do not
want to use flash with this lens. I know I know you buy this lens to take
natural light photography. But I flipped up the flash on my Rebel Xti to add
light when my daughter wanted the lights out to blow out the candles on her
birthday cake. The results where terrible!! There was glare on all reflective
materials and highlight over exposure. Plus when trying to focus on moving
subjects in candle light you had better be ready to switch to manual focus.
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| Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II The Cheap Camera Lens |
