Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM
|
|
Review Date: Apr 16, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: Not Indicated
|
|
Pros:
|
Fraction of the cost over the f/1.2 L and nearly the same results!
|
|
Cons:
|
I say nearly because it does get pretty soft at 1.8
|
|
I wanted a good portrait lens at an affordable price. I find this lens to be a real pleasure to use. The bokeh is soooooo dreamy...I love it! It's tricky to use at 1.8 and it's easy to get overly soft captures at 1.8.
I have high-resolution photo samples taken with my Canon 30D here:
Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 Sample Photos
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro Photo
|
|
Review Date: Apr 16, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $1,000.00
| Rating: 10
|
|
Pros:
|
Execelent results for the pro. 1-5X Mag!
|
|
Cons:
|
Difficult for beginer
|
|
Brian Valentine "LordV" and Dalantech and were kind enough to show some of their work using this lens. See their comments about this lens these fabulous sample high-resolution shots here:
Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5X Macro Sample Photos
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM
|
|
Review Date: Apr 16, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $380.00
| Rating: 10
|
|
Pros:
|
About $150 cheaper than the 100 and 180mm macro but also just as sharp and fast as them.
|
|
Cons:
|
Less reach and less bokeh on the shorter focal lenght. Supports only EF-S bodies.
|
|
Only drawback is that's it's an EF-S lens and you know what that means.
Execelent lens. The photos speak for themselves:
Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro Sample Photos
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM
|
|
Review Date: Apr 16, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $320.00
| Rating: 9
|
|
Pros:
|
A bit better than the nifty-fifty
|
|
Cons:
|
IMHO, it just doesn't justify the price difference from the nifty-fifty
|
|
Don't get me wrong, this lens IS better than the 1.8. The build quality is better and the AF is faster and quieter (USM), but when it comes down to side-by-side image comparisons, there's only a small margin of "betterness" with the 1.4 IMHO.
This is a great little lens!
Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Sample Photos
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Tamron AF 28-75MM F/2.8 XR Di LD Aspherical (IF)
|
|
Review Date: Mar 28, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $355.00
| Rating: 9
|
|
Pros:
|
Very good lens at a very good price. Good size and weight (smaller than Canon's equivalent).
|
|
Cons:
|
Not built as sturdy as Canon's equivalent.
|
|
Pros: Very good lens at a very good price. Good size and weight (smaller than Canon's equivalent).
Cons:
Not built as sturdy as Canon's equivalent.
Sample Photos Taken with a Canon 300D
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Canon EF 50mm f/1.2L USM
|
|
Review Date: Mar 27, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $1,370.00
| Rating: 9
|
|
Pros:
|
Produces the best bokeh of any Canon L series lens IMHO
|
|
Cons:
|
A little pricy and a little slow on AF
|
|
Wonderful lens. Built like a tank and performs like a gem! I don't think this lens carries Canon's top autofocus abilities and therefore it is actually a bit slower on AF than the 50mm 1.4 usm. Give this lens a chance if you struggle at first using it, it takes practice.
Sample photos taken with a Canon 5D
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM
|
|
Review Date: Mar 25, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $1,579.00
| Rating: 10
|
|
Pros:
|
Sharpness, clarity, contrast, and colors are excellent!
|
|
Cons:
|
None really, except that it's a bit expensive.
|
|
Even though the Canon EF 16-35 f/2.8 L II USM is and expensive lens, I would highly recommend it. The AF is extremely quiet and very fast; it gives a high image quality!
Pros: Sharpness, clarity, contrast, and colors are excellent!
Cons: None really, except that it's a bit expensive.
Here are some sample shots taken with a Canon 30D
Lex
|
|
|
|
|
Sigma 150mm f2.8 APO Macro DG EX HSM
|
|
Review Date: Mar 24, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $610.00
| Rating: 9
|
|
Pros:
|
For the price this is a great macro lens. Also lighter than the more professional Canon version.
|
|
Cons:
|
Slow AF...but MF is used a lot in macro. Need a stead hand and fast shutter speed.
|
|
For the price this is a great macro lens. Also lighter than the more professional Canon version.
Slow AF...but MF is used a lot in macro. Need a stead hand and fast shutter speed.
Sample Photos taken with a Nikon D80
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L USM
|
|
Review Date: Mar 23, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $1,140.00
| Rating: 10
|
|
Pros:
|
Perfect de facto lens, well-balanced in size, very sharp and high IQ lens!
|
|
Cons:
|
A little pricy, but you get what you pay for.
|
|
I would be happy with this lens epoxied to my spare Canon 5D body! If I could only have one lens, then this one would be my choice.
Canon EF 35mm f/1.4 L USM Lens Photo Samples
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM
|
|
Review Date: Mar 18, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $700.00
| Rating: 10
|
|
Pros:
|
Really sharp wide-angle zoom for APS-C bodies.
|
|
Cons:
|
No hood which is highly recommended. Vignetting and barrel distortion.
|
|
Really a very nice lens for APS-C bodies such as the XTi/400D, 30/40D, and the upcoming XSi/450D.
The Vignetting and barrel distortion is easily corrected in post-processing. Really a nice sharp and fun lens to use. Only drawbacks are that it doesn't include a lens hood and it's somewhat slow on aperture sizes and thus is not good in low light w/o a tripod.
Sample Photos taken with a Canon 30D
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Sigma 120-300mm f2.8 EX DG HSM
|
|
Review Date: Mar 17, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $2,750.00
| Rating: 10
|
|
Pros:
|
Very very sharp lens...only a wee bit of edge-softness at 300mm and f/2.8
|
|
Cons:
|
Heavy, AF isn't as fast as expected, some Canon 1-series may have focus issues.
|
|
A truly remarkable Sigma Zoom. This is a wonderful sports and nature lens. Works very well with the Sigma TC's...highly recommend!
Sample photos taken with a Nikon D200 and Canon 5D
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Canon EF 180mm f/3.5L Macro USM
|
|
Review Date: Mar 15, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $1,250.00
| Rating: 10
|
|
Pros:
|
Sharp, good color, great for longer reach macro, and built like a tank!
|
|
Cons:
|
Cost and weight.
|
|
Built better than the Canon 100mm f/2.8 macro USM, every bit as good as the 100mm macro. Very sharp and good colors. This lens is a tank, but you will get more reach from it. Great lens, no issues here!
Sample Photos Shot with a Canon 30D
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Sigma 18-50mm F2.8 EX DC
|
|
Review Date: Mar 14, 2008
|
Recommend? no |
Price paid: $430.00
| Rating: 7
|
|
Pros:
|
Wide angle macro and sharp if stepped down beyond 2.8
|
|
Cons:
|
Soft, soft edges and buid quality is low IMHO
|
|
I'm not going to recommend this lens, but this is my opinion.
Photos speak for themselves. Here are samples taken with a Canon XTi:
Sample Photos
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Tamron AF 18-250mm F/3.5-6.3 XR Di II LD Aspherical (IF)
|
|
Review Date: Mar 13, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $475.00
| Rating: 8
|
|
Pros:
|
Nice walk-around lens if you are not a purist/perfectionist photographer. A definite upgrade from the kit lens.
|
|
Cons:
|
Soft on either end, and noisy AF, and the zoom lock is required to take on/off the lens due to the focus ring being so close to the camera-end of the lens.
|
|
I would say at $475 this lens is a fair deal. Good for those traveling photogs that don't have to pride themselves on perfect shots.
If you like and/or have primes in your bag, you may just be a little upset with this one.
Here are some sample photos taken with a Canon XTi:
Sample Photos
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Canon EF 14mm f/2.8L USM
|
|
Review Date: Mar 12, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $2,000.00
| Rating: 8
|
|
Pros:
|
Great rectilinear wide angle and fun to use.
|
|
Cons:
|
Bulbous front element, prone to flare, rear element very exposed and high cost.
|
|
Honestly $2000 is hard to justify on this lens. Don't get me wrong, it a very nice lens and IQ is definitely very good among its class.
Here are some sample shots taken with a 5D (take note to some comparison shots between the MkII version and this lens, interesting finds with flare and soft edges):
Sample Photos
-Roy
|
|
|
|
|
Sigma 10-20mm F4-5.6 EX DC HSM
|
|
Review Date: Mar 11, 2008
|
Recommend? yes |
Price paid: $510.00
| Rating: 9
|
|
Pros:
|
Solid build, low distortion, good color and decent sharpness.
|
|
Cons:
|
A little degree of CA (purple fringing) present and a little slow on the AF side.
|
|
This is the widest rectilinear wide-angle lens I would ever recommend. For me, it's exactly what I was looking for in a wide-angle. Expect edge-softness at 10mm and probably more so on a full-frame sensor.
Fun lens for architecture and landscape.
Here are some sample shots taken with a Nikon D50:
Sample Shots taken with Nikon D50
-Lex
|
|
|
|
|
