Jonathan Brady
Veteran Member
This review will be pretty short. Here's the deal...
This lens is awesome. No doubt about it. It's sharp across the frame, it's decently fast, has IS, and is small/light! What's not to love?
Well, the EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM is f/3.5 at 23mm. That's only 2/3 of a stop and 1mm difference. Although the 18-55 isn't quite as sharp at that setting as the EF 24mm f/2.8 IS USM is wide open - it's decently close (there's a noticeable difference but not substantial). Additionally, the EF-S 18-55 STM costs about 1/5 of what the 24mm f/2.8 IS USM costs (when purchased new and bundled with a DSLR) and it's lighter (but ever so slightly larger).
For MY use (frequently use 35-85 range on my crop), it's just not different enough to justify the cost - again, 2/3 of a stop and 1mm difference, plus some IQ benefits. However, if you CONSTANTLY use 24mm and/or need the superior image quality then perhaps this lens is for you. I can't say anything negative about it - it really is a great lens, it's just not for me.
For full frame users - I didn't use it on FF nor did I compare it to any of the 24-XX(X) zooms. Sorry.
I'm only going to rate this lens because I have to or I can't submit this review. I don't think it's really fair to do so, given my use doesn't really jive with the intended use of the lens and the focal length isn't really a favorite of mine - that's no fault of the lens. So, I'm going to rate it on it's own merits, not vs the 18-55 and when considering the value of such an addition to my lens arsenal. For me personally, I'd rate it 1 star because I just never used it. However, on it's own I'd say it's worthy of 4.5 stars.
This lens is awesome. No doubt about it. It's sharp across the frame, it's decently fast, has IS, and is small/light! What's not to love?
Well, the EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM is f/3.5 at 23mm. That's only 2/3 of a stop and 1mm difference. Although the 18-55 isn't quite as sharp at that setting as the EF 24mm f/2.8 IS USM is wide open - it's decently close (there's a noticeable difference but not substantial). Additionally, the EF-S 18-55 STM costs about 1/5 of what the 24mm f/2.8 IS USM costs (when purchased new and bundled with a DSLR) and it's lighter (but ever so slightly larger).
For MY use (frequently use 35-85 range on my crop), it's just not different enough to justify the cost - again, 2/3 of a stop and 1mm difference, plus some IQ benefits. However, if you CONSTANTLY use 24mm and/or need the superior image quality then perhaps this lens is for you. I can't say anything negative about it - it really is a great lens, it's just not for me.
For full frame users - I didn't use it on FF nor did I compare it to any of the 24-XX(X) zooms. Sorry.
I'm only going to rate this lens because I have to or I can't submit this review. I don't think it's really fair to do so, given my use doesn't really jive with the intended use of the lens and the focal length isn't really a favorite of mine - that's no fault of the lens. So, I'm going to rate it on it's own merits, not vs the 18-55 and when considering the value of such an addition to my lens arsenal. For me personally, I'd rate it 1 star because I just never used it. However, on it's own I'd say it's worthy of 4.5 stars.
