New lenses are getting better than ever, but sometimes it feels like prices are rising to stratospheric levels. Chris and Jordan share their picks for the best budget lenses for Canon APS-C DSLRs.
Want us to make similar videos for other brands? Let us know in the comments! Also make sure to check out our sample galleries for some of the featured lenses below.
A fairly inexpensive longer telephoto lens not on this list is Tamron SP 70-300 F4-5.6, <$450. It's a full frame lens, very good sharpness (especially <200mm), good contrast, fast focus, and excellent image stabilization... And if you decide to upgrade to full frame, this lens is ready to go...
I am a Nikon User. For curiosity I have also used my friend's Canon Gear for few months : Canon 77D and following Budget APS-C lenses.They are really best value lenses.
Wide Zoom: 10-18 f4.5-5.6 STM IS
Standard zoom: 18-55 f4-5.6 STM IS and 18-135 f3.5-5.6 STM IS
Tele zoom :55-250 f 4-5.6 STM IS
Wide Prime: 24 f2.8 STM
Portrait and Macro Prime: 60mm f 2.8 USM Macro
Additionally 50mm f1.8 STM.
Best thing about Canon APS-C DSLR and above list of lenses is that they are also very well suited for Video though 50mm f1.8 STM and 24mm f2.8 are not so silent compared to others in the list.
I wish there could be more of a focus on low budget focused lenses. Usually someone who spends $400 on a camera, is not looking to spend more than the price of their camera on a single lens. At the budget end people are looking for something cheap but decent enough.
Then when spending more money (someone more serious in getting a better camera, will likely also invest more heavily in a lens. e.g., they are not looking for a 35mm lens that is slightly better than the entry level one but twice the price, they are instead looking to go more high end and get something that will last through their next 5 camera upgrades.
crop sensor: Canon EOS M50 plus 18-55 (not 15-45!) plus canon adapter plus your choice of EF-M/EF-S/EF lenses suitable to your needs, ideally second-hand, in excelkent or even mint condition, at very affordable prices - many early EOS R adopters dumping there little-used EF gass. :-)
FF: EOS RP + canon adapter + EF glass, 2nd hand, excellent condition, very affordable, lots of choice. eg EF 24-105/4 L IS mk I and even Mk II - often found for only € 500. IQ very close to RF version.
Please don’t let the luddites get you down, Chris and Jordan, your videos are great! They’re the only i thing I look forward to seeing in DPR these days.
those videos are the only thing i never warch on dpr.
as literate, able reader i always prefer precise, short text along with a few well done illustrative images for full info on specs, handling, performance, functionality and technical image quality and relevant shortcomings/disadvantages. i can read and digest a "classical" dpr review in less time than those video dudes need to say "hello" and crack gheir first weak joke in their videos.
i never watch talking heads yapping away videos. not in tv nor on websites.
@xeppelin - As a literate, able reader, I also enjoy entertaining video content. The personality of the hosts adds a layer of entertainment to the information. For pure efficiency, the written articles can't be beaten. But I'm nonetheless glad dpreview offers both.
Also, you're like a broken record. Every dpreview video published has you registering a new complaint. I think you can stop. You've been heard on this point.
i am sick and tited of those shallow video episodes and do t find them entertaining either. if i want entertainment, i watch a great movie not a gear-related infotainment-advertorial.
this episode is just another example of their shalliwness and/or ignorance. it is in no way what it pretenfs to be: a meaningful guide or even review of all relevant budget lenses for Canon APS-C cameras (they changed the title to DSLRs only later on). it is quite evident that they just try to promote some Sigma shards, because they love Sigma, their yamasomething ceo (and Fuji) and consider all of Canon's crop sensor cameras - mirrorslappers and EOS M lineup - as too lowly, too cheap and not hipsterite cool enough. it actually is the one coherent line in all of their editorial content over the last few years.
ps: my typos are due to tiny iphone SE touch screen and avoidance of auto correct. but i otherwise like the small form factor of this "crop smartphone".
@paul - good point. but i did watch some parts of their earlier vids and draw my conclusions from the accompanyibg text and even more so from their selection of featured lenses they promote below the video. and the ones blatantly mussing.
no. i am just no palliator but prefer to call a spade a spade.
Videos like this one are simply super-shallow, devoid of any real insights, substance, data, facts and content. And even their "entertainment value" is rather ... limited. They clearly just grabbed a few lower-priced lenses more or less randomly - instead of doing a thorough examination of what lenses are available and which ones of those are recommendable and deliver decent bang at an affordable price ("budget").
As an apparently more able writer than you, xeppelin, and therefore an equal or better reader, I'll just say that both you and babart need to find a new hobby that doesn't involve yelling people to get off of your lawns.
Seriously, drop it. DPRreview TV is meant to be TV, for frick's sakes.
Xeppelin - I found the video interesting; and despite the fact a lot of the videos don’t relate to the systems I use, I still find them entertaining and of interest ... funny too (you clearly have no sense of humour). Ironically, You talk about insults, yet you’re happy to let the makers of these videos know what they’ve created is shallow, devoid of substance etc etc. - essentially insulting their work and them indirectly.
So, I still think you’re an idiot, but on behalf of all others on here, might I suggest if you don’t like something created by others (that so many do) you keep your unconstructive, rude opinions and insults to yourself ... essentially, just shut up. Might I also suggest you learn how to spell ... because it’s a bit rich calling other people’s work, when you yourself can’t even string a grammatically correct sentence together!
@chadley: reported again. personal insult, inacceptable.
I shared my strongly critical opinion of videos like this one and gave speicif reasons for it. Criticism is not a personal insult. Yes, some watchers might like this video, because they are not as well informed about available budget lenses for Canon APS-C. Same as I might find a some video on aerospace matters interesting, while you would dismiss it. No problem.
BUT - these videos are targeted at less experienced, more entry level users as "information/orientation/guideline" to help them with their buying decisions and should therefore be held to a minimum yardstick in assessing their usefulness. My criticism still stands: seemingly haphazard list with a few lenses, rather than a well-researched selection of recommendable "budget" lenses. Not understandable, why 3rd party lenses are included, while key *budget-priced* native Canon lenses are missing: eg EF-S 55-250, EF-S 24/2.8, EF-S 60/2.8 macro, EF 40/2.8, EF-S 15-85
xeppelin said: "this episode is just another example of their shalliwness and/or ignorance." xeppelin said: "reported again. personal insult, inacceptable."
Jeez, how many times are you going to report yourself for personally insulting others? I've never seen anyone post so many insults as you, then complain about them.
Xeppelin doesn’t seem to understand the difference between a direct insult and an indirect insult. He feels it ok to criticise people’s efforts for producing something really good (done for the benefit of all) to a point where he’s being rude and indirectly criticising/insulting himself; but ironically, doesn’t like it when people put him in his place. Is this the sort of person we want in this community of ours?
I think in his last rant he’s also implying we shouldn’t cater for the beginner; or if we do, it should be on products that meet his agenda. Well how about you go make us a video ... or just shut the **** up.
I could go on critiquing everything he’s said, but I think we all get the jist ... he’s clearly just a pathetic person all round.
We have a Canon RP and use the 40mm f2.8 via the Canon adapter. Works perfectly. I also have a Nikon D7500 and use the Nikon 35mm f1.8 DX lens. That lens is very good when stopped down to f2 or f2.8. Both the Canon 40mm and the Nikon 35mm DX lenses easily cost less than $200US; affordable enough that most people can buy new rather than used on eBay. Of course refurbished with a warranty is also an option.
I do realize that this article is about which budget lenses can be attach to Canon APS-C bodies and that a budget EF 40mm F2.8 STM lens can be included in the list as well... ;-) Well, concerning the Nikon 35mm, it is another story...
To Jerome and Karroly: All good points. Yes I know this was Canon APSC. However the Canon 40mm for full frame makes an excellent budget short tele lens on an APSC body. As for noting the Nikon 35 DX lens I did this because at the end of this video it was mentioned that they might do this same sort of video for other APSC brands, Nikon among those mentioned.
Why are the Sigma Art 18-35 CONSTANT 1.8 and the 50-100 not included ???? Those are not only affordable they are pro-level industry standard image quality lenses!!
Image quality wise they both blow oit of the water all the reviewed lenses... And with the 24-70ish and 70-135ish 2.7 aperture equivalence on full frame.. the aps-c camera could stand face to face with ANY FF DSLR and the differences between them would be practically non existent!! And the famous bokeh argument becomes practically a non issue!!!
We thought hard about those. I adore both of those lenses with mirrorless bodies and when manual focusing, but this is for APS-C DSLRs, and both of the Sigma 1.8s tend to be very inconsistent focusers through the OVF even after micro-adjustment (which many crop Canon bodies don't even offer).
Back when I worked at The Camera Store, I saw huge numbers of these lenses returned because of the AF accuracy issues. For this reason, we decided not to include them, even though the 18-35mm is one of my favourite lenses of all time.
sigma 18-35 is big, heavy, not wide enough (only 28mm FF eq. FOV) and mount communication protocol reverse-engineered only. definitely outside the scope of an APS-C "budget lens".
For a large and "not-budget" WA zoom lens on Canon crop, i'd take the excellent and by today's Sigma standards reasonably priced Canon EF-S 17-55/2.8 IS over any 3rd party glass. i'ce used it for many years after a Tanron 17-50/2.8 without VC. Canon so mich better in every respect, especially AF.
I missed the EF-S 2.8 60 macro lens - not because it was my first EFwhatsoever lens but because it is a very fine lens: stellar IQ/rendition, relatively wide aperture, very fast AF, 1:1 real macro for 21 x 15mm² field of view without any additional stuff! And this + e.g. SL2 is light and compact compared to FF solutions like 5D classic + 100mm macro! And it's a gem on the M50 @ 24 MPix too, close to the EF-M 32. So a real investment into the future. But one has to like shooting with primes :)
The older 35mm f/2.0 EF lense is one of my favorites. It is very small and only cost 100€ used. Combine this with a Viltrox 0.71x speedbooster and you get a great EF-M low light evening lens of 24mm f/1.4 (in EF-M langauge).
You also get some really cheap and great lens when using an older 100mm f/2.0 combined with the Viltrox speedbooster. This make it a 71mm f/1.4 (in EF-M langauge). Great for portraits and the lens only cost 150€ used.
I have to admit that if I knew how much the lenses would cost I probably would have gone EF-S or EF-M over Sony E. Sony APSC lenses are pretty dang pricey for the optical quality.
Sure, but if you want IBIS, Canon’s DSLRs don’t have it; if you want a modern, top of the line crop f/2.8 zoom, Canon doesn’t have it; if you want a really good and affordable f/1.4 prime for crop, Canon doesn’t have it.
The only lens that I feel Sony E doesn’t have an answer for is the 10-18mm IS STM, and even then a good copy of the 10-18mm f/4 OSS is better, more compact and brighter, but at a considerable expense, of course.
* Canon EF-S 17-55/2.8 is was first launched in 2006, but it still is current and more than that, an excellent IQ, constant f/2.8 zoom lens with IS for APS-C. While very reasonably priced by today's standards, it is not a "budget" lens - but no constant f/2.8 zoom is.
* Canon EF-M 32/1.4 is an excellent IQ, fast, compact, native prime lens for Canon mirrorfree APS-C cameras. Not exactly "budget" either, but well in line with similar lenses even from 3rd party lenses with reverse-engineered, hacked mount protocol and AF.
* Canon EF-M 11-22 is one of the very best IQ UWA zooms for crop currently available from any brand. It is very affordable, bordering on "ridiculously inexpensive".
@Kharan: The f2.8 zoom is ludicrously expensive for a hobbyist like me. Canon now has the Sigma f1.4 primes just like Sony E. And while I like my 10-18mm OSS it's twice the price of the EF-M version and suffers from awful sample variation.
I've assembled a stable of lenses I'm happy with and like how the E APSC lenses are compact and stabilized across the board. But if I knew that the 10-18mm was $750 and the nifty fifty was $425 with so-so quality I would have taken another look at the D5600 or M50.
Brentschummer; that’s exactly why I moved from Sony APSC to the EOS M6 and then the M5. Buying an equivalent Sony 11-22mm and 18-150mm would have set me back well over £1,000 - for lenses that don’t even perform half as good as their EOS-M counterparts .... at half the price! I also find the EOS M5 much nicer to use than the Sony A6300 with a much better choice of cheap, used EF-S & EF-M lenses.
I’ve not seen a good review for the Sony ... which even used costs circa £400. I got my 18-150mm M lens in a kit with the M6 for £500 ... and most reviews here are the opposite of that for the Sony. Says it all really. It would be cheaper to buy a used high spec Canon EOS and EF-S 10-18mm than the poor IQ Sony lens!
To expand the 18-135mm + 10-18mm + 35mm prime + A6400 are a great travel combination that cover most focal lengths in a tiny footprint. But the price is rather prohibitive.
Ideally Canon would release an M5 Mk2 that offers their latest tech and an EVF with access to a horde of EF glass. That might tempt me to switch from Sony's intentionally-crippled APSC systems, as the cheap Canon glass would offset the price of switching systems.
Always considered this lens. I use a 17-50 f2.8 sigma. But the 15-85 versatility seems great. Only issue now is - i feel the resale value is going to become £0 so I’m afraid to buy even used efs lenses. At least ef can work with R mount. EF-s on M would be unbalanced. If Canon would give a solid roadmap we can invest!
I use EF-S on M all the time. It's fine. For big lenses you hold the lens instead of the camera.
RE: 15-85 I've seen some impressive pictures taken with this lens and once you get used to using the Ms 15-45mm kit lens it's really hard to go back to an 18-anything.
I'm another user of the EF-S 15-85 lens; it has excellent range, particularly as it goes wider than the others. I also have a very old but decent EF 24-105 L (mk 1 model). It works fantastically on my 80d when I have the 16-35mm on my 5dsr for the wide end; its IS isn't fantastic and you have to watch what you focus on sometimes, but it gives you a decent medium telephoto as well as the standard range when you need one.
I had one, but in the end found it unsatisfactory - I found that it wasn’t consistent. I replaced it with a lens Chris mentioned, the Sigma 17-70 Contemporary, and my experience with that lens has been excellent.I’ve used on the 100D (SL1), 750D (T6i?) and now a 90D, and I’ve been very happy with it. But that’s just m,y experience and view, of course - other people will have different views.
I'm free to pick and choose cheaper Canon lenses with my fringer adapter which supports PDAF, and I have access to the excellent native Fuji lenses at the same time, not feeling stuck with my Fuji bodies 🎶🎵🎶
The Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM is a great walk-around lens. Yes, it has a little barrel distortion at the wide end. So what, just PShop it away. This lens (introduced in 2004) has been on sale for about the last five years. All the BIG online dealers sell it less than $300.00, a 50% discount. https://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canon-17-85-4-5p6-is-usm-c16
I've been using mine since 2006. An I like it a lot.
@JordanDrake, there are 67 of the Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM listed on e-bay. Priced from less than $60.00 to twice the price asked by BandH for a new one. KEH has an Ex rated EF-S 17-85, with Caps and Hood for $131.46.
For a bargain shopper, an EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM could be a good lens. This was all I was trying to say.
Budget lenses (kit lenses) are OK for learning but if you become a decent photographer you'll want far better glass, the camera doesn't matter so much and all the camera bodies are generally fantastic regardless of what make and price. I have a Pentax K-70, not an entry camera but their cheapest body but I have a selection of their top quality * star and 'Limited' lenses costing much more than the camera.
With experience you'll learn the better glass has much better rendering, 3d pop, colours and colour saturation amongst other qualities, generally producing much more striking images providing the photographer is decent.
I said nothing like that insinuation but sure you can beat me with your iPhone.
Please stay out of discussions you have no idea about, you use a phone and don't know enough to know what you don't know. It's called the Dunning Kruger effect, look it up on your iPhone.
Not really. The Canon IS STM lineup is extremely good for its price, and can kick the crap out of a lot of older, very expensive gear in terms of resolution, AF speed and reliability.
Of course, if you want trioplan bubble bokeh then no, it won’t be good, but I highly doubt that any photographer will find themselves hopelessly limited by a set of Canon’s IS STM lenses. And neither should an amateur find themselves in that position.
Indeed. May be the benchmark for 'budget telephoto' for ANY system. It's $300 MSRP; I can't think of any 80-400mm equivalent from another system that is as good for so little money. Actually...I can't think of ANY telephoto zoom that is as good for that price.
Definitely a great lens. Having done lots of comparisons before buying the 55-250, I'm really glad I didn't get sucked into buying the EF 70-200 F4 L IS... at 5x the price... since the weight, bulk, limited range, and expense are simply not worth it. My Canon EF-S 24mm f/2.8 STM is also a fantastically sharp lens for tiny money, and is so small it has become my normal walkabout lens.
I once put the 55-250mm STM beside the newest 70-200mm f/2.8 IS II, shot both at 70mm f/4.5 and 200mm f/5.6, and I swear to god there isn't the tiniest image quality difference, both sharp as hell. It's MUST have for any telephoto shooter on a budget and way cheaper the the 70-210/4 they mentioned with just a stop difference.
The 70-200/2.8 you're paying for the FF coverage and the ability to shoot an night and bokeh, which are a big deal but you can get a Yongnou 100mm f/2 for that goal as well, also a great 160mm f/2.8 equivalent.
Ans btw it's the STM version that made this leap in IQ, the old IS & IS II are not very good lenses both in IQ and construction, and the IS system on the STM is Waaaaaaaay better and makes a huge difference in video shooting handheld. You can shoot tripod-like footage at 55mm and very stable footage even at 250mm. Just a wonderful wonderful lens if you aren't shooting at night or lowlight
@Reactive - The 24mm f/2.8 is also my walkabout lens. I also found it to be very sharp. I used the 10-18mm on my last trip overseas and it turned out to be a great lens for the money. The same holds true for the 40mm which I used on the same trip. After about 30,000 shots with my original version 70-300mm 4.6-5.6, the AF motor stopped working, so I bought the latest version of the same lens. The new version is bigger and heavier, but faster AF and better IQ. A terrific lens for sports and almost as good as the L lens.
the canon looks very good ..the fuji 10-24 may be better but the canon is still a very good lens ...The Fuji is in a different league price wise it is £846 GBP the canon 10-18 at the same vendor is £199...is the fuji £650 better??????.....however the canon EF-M 11-22 is still way cheaper and .......a little sharper than the fuji
The Canon 10-18 is particularly good because as well as being cheap it's stabilised, so you can shoot dark interiors and video. That said I think the Canon 10-22 is a better lens, but for someone not specialising in UWA the 10-18 is an excellent choice IMHO.
Also that Fuji fails the "reasonable price" test, being over 4.3x the price of the Canon 10-18 and c. 2x the 10-22.
I tried both the 10-22 and 10-18 and prefer the later by miles. The IS makes a HUGE difference in IQ, what I could shoot at 3200 ISO I can shoot at 400, and the combination of IS and very wide angle 10mm gives you the ability to take sharp photos at almost half a full second!
The 10-18mm is also a way better video lens with a smoother focus ring, less breathing, and the IS of course.
The Fuji 10-24mm takes the same images at 5x times the price, yes they aren't exactly the same optically but no client ever mentioned they wanted sharper results that the 199$ 10-18mm. This lens alone is a very compelling reason to go Canon and Nikon APS-C if you want to get into landscape, archeticture, video, etc
Well the Canon EF-s 55-250mm IS STM is unbeatable at 199$ US. ;-) AF is reasonably fast and boy is that thing sharp! The 70-200mm F4.0 IS USM is almost indistinguable from the former at F5.6! The 55-250mm is also much lighter and more compact. Although, it is NOT weather sealed!
It must be a latent desire to be in show business. Other than demostrating stabilization, what possible purpose could video serve for evaluating lens quality?
In my opinion, best standard zoom lens fon Canon APS-c is 15-85mm. I had been using it for nice studio portrait for long even when I needed to have large printes on prolab
I'm wondering if you are ever going to produce a text companion piece to your videos. It would be so much quicker and easier to scan down to what's most important to the reader. I know video everything is ever so 21st century, but those of us who prefer to not miss important words, and don't wish to deal with the whole video, would certainly appreciate a companion version in text. Even without photos or sample galleries. Call me what you like, but one thing I'm not is a teen listening to a DPR video while watching TV and typing on his laptop. Thanks for listening.
maybe it different for sume but 95% of the kit in the videos i am not going to buy..i think most are the same and watch the videos for entertainment value...i wouldn't take the time reading about EF-S lenses or anything else i am not going to buy
They really love making the videos. Why? It's like many of the new camera features--they do it because they can.
And sometimes video is genuinely helpful. I like the YouTube videos that teach you how to open the box that a camera comes in. I watch those over and over.
There already is a "best lenses for ef-s" article on the site. This is a video for people who enjoying watching Chris and Jordan..and maybe a couple of people who care about EF-S.
Maybe you should be buying a photography magazine from the newsagents instead of browsing the internet for content if you really want to make sure its read only?
I would like to see this done for Fuji, although I suspect it would be hard to find a full set of lenses across the focal length range that are good value. Fuji's own lenses tend to be expensive, the inexpensive options are not always good performers, and as far as I know there are no third party lenses/adapters that can communicate with X-mount—so if you go with something third party you are giving up AF, in-body aperture control, lens profiles, and EXIF data.
I'd like to see a video like this done for Fuji, both to help out people who are considering getting into their system and also to give Fuji themselves a nudge that they need to be making more affordable glass and considering making their mount protocol to third parties.
The Canon EF 50/1.8 STM is just a overhyped Lens, but 1st things first: 1) It's "just" a Nifty-Fifty, 50mm Focal Length, F1.8 2) There are Zillions of 50mm MF (Manual Focus) Lenses from the Film Era being avialable 3) The 40/2.8 STM into contrast, whileas also being build-quality wise plasticky, like the mentioned 50/1.8 STM, albeit a tad better...is being the sharper Lens of both. Again, on (also overrated, overhyped "Fullframe" 36x24mm Sensor Format, it does excel more, being better than the 50/1.8 STM, IQ-wise. (albeit not F1.8) 4) Last, but not least: On Canon APS-C (EF-S, EF-M) The 50/1.8 becomes a Portrait Lens, from Focal Length, compared to FF, due to Cropfactor - not everybody is shooting Portraits, and a small Tele (which the ~80-81.5mm truely is on APS-C) isn't the right "shoot it all" Focal Length on Canon APS-C ! 5) The Allrounder Format Lens is truly (for APS-C Canon) the EF-S 24/2.8 STM, it gives ~39mm FoV, compared to FF, (x1.62..1.63 Crop) Albeit F4 DoF vs. FF.
Did you really just imply APSC shooters do want a 50mm lens because it is for portrait a only? 50mm has always been a favorite of mine on APSC, and I rarely shoot portraits.
~80mm FoV is a short Tele, and it's not by all means "universal" on APS-C. People forget the Cropfactor totally. On Film, 50mm is 50mm, as well as on "Fullframe".
80mm isn't "universal" into any way, it's not wide enough, and it's a short Telelens, nothing more - nothing less. And that isn't "universal" for anything, around 80mm Focal Length. But true 35 to 50mm is.
Anyway, Fujifilm does have the best APS-C Lens LineUp bar none, of any APS-C System - so it's questionable, that DPR is doing Canon a favour here...well anyway, DSLR Sales are down, no matter if FF or APS-C/DX, and so are DSLMs, sad, but true.
The Masses are nowadays using (just) their Smartphones, and being happy with that.
It doesn't get better, if you like your own Post - and many Review showed, the 40/2.8 STM is more contrasty, tad sharper, than the 50/1.8 STM, if you believe, or like it or not. I don't care. 40mm is a much better focal length on FF. I've had my Hexanon 40/1.8 on my Konica >3 Decades ago.
It's little less contrasty, and less sharp, the 50/1.8 STM, End of Story.
@Opera Man - 80~81mm is an odd Focal Length on APS-C, it seems besides Portraits, for which it's good, pretty much sense-less. A short Telephoto is a short Telephoto, no matter on which PoV you'd see that Focal Length, due to Cropfactor - it's too much Telephoto for ordinary things, and not wide enough either way. Have fun!
Hi Marc I agree 100% about what you say for 50mm and APSC! If you are outside it is somehow ok. But for internal spaces if you are not some kind of aristocrat with big castle it is very tight at least. 20-30/35mm range is much more "universal" for APSC I think. And there is almost no choice which is total shame for all this "FF" marketing producers. Just will ask you to use not "equivalent mm" but correct FoV angle in degrees for example. Because focal length mm-s never change. Does not matter of any kind of "factors".
Marc, I own some old MF 50mm F1.7 or 1.8 lenses from Canon, Olympus, Pentax that were considered good at their time. But my EF 50mm 1.8 STM is definitely better, especially wide open... And the AF is definitely a plus. I will never use an MF 50mm F1.8 lens on my EOS 200D again...
I have the 50mm f/1.8, the 40mm f/2.8, and two film primes, a Helios 44-7 58mm f/2 and a Zenit 50mm f/2
I never touch any of them as long as I have the 50mm STM. It's simply for the AF, and for the MUCH shallower DOF for beauty shots compared to a shorter FL and a 2.8 aperture.
And yes at f/1.8 the 40mm is WAY not a tad sharper, but as soon as it's stopped down to f/2.8 for a fair comparison, they are identical and I defy you to show me otherwise. So why buy a more limited lens just for being lazy to take a step back? The 40mm is made for its pancake size, something many of us don't need but it's a great lens.
As for my old primes, they're great and give lots of charachter and swirly bokeh with an old look, it's a speciality use for video for me. The 50 STM is very well built and just unbeatable for the value for money.
Marc, Please, compare apples with apples. The EF 50mm F1.8 STM and 50mm Contax are not in the same ligue and price range. Compared to the old MF 50mm lenses of about the same price that I own, the Canon 50mm STM is optically better. And I personally like "plasticky" lenses because they are light...
They do! The 50/1.7 Contax usually goes away nowadays for 100-150 bucks, depending onto the Condition. The 50/1.8 STM can being bought for ~100 bucks, and that AF Motor won't last a Life-time, so much is being clear...and it neither does have the same Microcontrast & 3D Pop.
As for reference, many 28-80/2.8-4L USM AF Motors already died, from this 1989 Lens Design - and so is it with the 28-70/2.8L USM, from 1993....
Therefore, if you just give it some TLC, CLA'ing all couple years...it can surely last a Lifetime...those manual focus Lenses....it's just Metal & Glass Elements, but those AF Lenses...no way...if you put them into a box, and lock them decades away, without usage...perhaps... but not when you do use them, as usually... ;) Horses for Courses.
When you compare the 50/1.8 STM vs the 40/2.8 STM, the latter one is the clear winner. Not F1.8, therefore funny, what the Guy above writes, the 40/2.8 can't do F1.8, like the 50/1.8 STM...but it's more universal.
The manager at my local camera store said they sell more entry level DSLRs than mirrorless. I was shocked, but it makes sense. They are cheap, and do all the basics well, and are easier to hold. Lenses, especially uses, and cheaper too, and that makes a big difference.
That's the catch. Unless you actually know what you are doing, you will probably get pretty bad images and be disappointed by the camera and leave it home the next time.
We both know how to use the camera, how to control the DoF, how to bounce the flash, etc. But, it took time and effort to get there. For those buying it for a few special occasions, I don't know how much time and effort they are willing to invest.
On the other hand, their phones do most of the heavy lifting behind the scenes and just produce decently tone-mapped images, blurred backgrounds, etc. It's a tricky situation for an average person.
"That's the catch. Unless you actually know what you are doing, you will probably get pretty bad images and be disappointed by the camera and leave it home the next time." --- YES!!! And if you include crappy lenses with also crappy video specs and this camera will never leave the drawer.......... So many people left them and batteries get drained to 0. So after 1 year they are unusable.
I think most cameras even the expensive ones sit around unused a lot of the time. Instead the owners use their smartphone, and only bring out the expensive camera for special occasions.
The camera owners here are in a very small minority.
A friend of mine doesn't know what a mirrorless is. I told her to look for mirrorless because they are smaller and lighter but she wanted a real camera so she bought a DSLR. People buy what they know.
Maybe I was just lucky enough to get an excellent copy, but my Canon 40mm f/2.8 pancake ($170) is so good, that when I moved over to Fujifilm mirrorless, I kept a Canon body just so I can keep using that lens.
Sizewise, it a a perfect match for the smaller rebel bodies
Really interesting and useful for those already using or thinking of buying Canon DSLRs. A series of videos like this covering other manufacturers' systems is a great idea too, and would go one further in helping to decide on which system to buy into for those of us not planning to buy really expensive gear. Then, of course, another series on the 'top-notch' stuff...….
10-18 STM, 40/2.8 STM (Fullframe also - sharper than the 50/1.8 STM (which is also FF capable, and a ~80-81mm Lens in FF-terms on FF (x1.62...1.63 real life Cropfactor, Canon APS-C) also the fine 55-250 STM Zoom Lens, and the latest 18-55 STM/4-5.6 is optically being pretty decent, albeit all these Lenses without the Size, and haptics from their X-Mount Equivalent, from Fujifilm. For instance - i do enjoy way more the underrated XC 16-50/3.5-5.6 OIS II, on my X-E1, than my 18-55/4-4.6 STM on my 40/50D. Also do have 24mm Wideangle in FF terms. (I do own the XF 18-55/2.8-4, too - the difference besides the XC 16-50/3.5-5.6 in Aperture into IQ is neglible)
Further, the Tamron 17-50/2.8 for Canon APS-C should being mentioned here, quite cheap, and much better Corners/Edges, sharper, than the whole Sigma Gang, means 17-50/2.8, 17-70/2.8-4 Iterations - of course, the Non-VC Version, which is optically being better, than the 17-50/2.8 VC.
Does the Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8 offer a higher image quality than the one they mentioned the Tamron 17-70mm f/2.8-4 contemprory VC?
IS is VERY important to me and need a general useful zoom for a modest budget, and other good options you know that have IS and 2.8ish (4max) aperture without breaking the bank? Sharpness is not that relevant as I shoot 1080p and 8mp 4K max so I don't want to needlessly pay for a Canon 17-55/2.8 IS for example for a sharpness advantage no client of mine will ever see.
The 17-70 Contemporary is also a Sigma lens, not Tamron. I have one, and I’m happy with it. I’ve never used any of the 17-50 lenses, from Canon or anyone else, so I have no comparison. I do feel, however, that they are all a bit long in the tooth now. The 17-70 C lens is the third version that Sigma have released, and (going by test results) they have gently tweaked the optical formula with each re-release.
I just find that it’s an excellent compromise - just about wide enough, long enough, fast enough, sharp enough, well-built, has stabilisation - an excellent travel and general walk-around lens.
Hmm i didnt like the STM so much. Looked softer. But we are splitting hairs here about versions. Probably it comes down to having a good specimen of either and then stick on to it.
I used to own the sigma 17-70 when I was a Canon user. But I have mixed feelings about it. It may have been a bad copy, but I remember lots of back focused shots. And that was when the sensor resolution was much lower than it is on current cameras.
I was looking how the Sigma 150-600 was bouncing and shuddering in his hands cause his ergonomics to hold the lens were wrong. The thing I --as an ex sports photographer - IOPP Los Angeles and Moscow and Sarajevo and Lake Placid) make clear for my students all the time. How to hold and touch your cam is the most important thing for a photographer, go and see how a carpenter holds his hammer. Allways the same way, balanced and without a shudder. But then, people write about the noise etc all the time. Pity.
Cheap lenses is why i still recommend newbies on a budget to go for DSLRs instead of mirrorless. Even preowned ones are fine. You need to look at the entire lens ecosystem, and when it comes to DSLR lenses, sub-$300 lenses are aplenty and they perform very well for the price optically. This is where canon EF especially is hard to beat.
Canon EF has the cheap pancakes, a $130 50mm prime, while nikon has $200 35mm and 50mm primes, and lots of additional selection from 3rd party for both mounts. Mirrorless lenses may be slightly better optically but the price premium is not worth it for people who just want to post on social media.
FWIW, there's cheap pancakes and $150 50mm EFL lenses as well on some MILC systems... I don't think the price disparity is very significant across the board, tho the ~$300 UWA zooms that CaNikon both developed are definitely a standout value you won't find on the mirrorless side (UWA zooms tend to start at well over $500).
"Cheap lenses is why i still recommend newbies on a budget to go for DSLRs instead of mirrorless."
Fujifilm glass is expensive. For Canon however, nothing beats an EOS M50 with a very affordable set of EF-M lenses - e.g. 11-22 + 22/2 + 18-150. All together for about a € 1000 if you shop carefully, using cashbacks etc.
Much smarter than buying one of them stupid tunnel-viefinder "Rebels" and EF-S lenses.
Exception: if you want a very good, compact, useful and bugdet-priced 1:1 Macro lens that also works very nicely for portraits and general use, get the EF-S 60/2.8 macro. Works well on EOS M bodies too with adapter.
What difference does that make? In the end what matters is getting the shot (and enjoying your day out or in). If the DSLR systems happen to become more affordable in their twilight years, that might leave more money to try and create some spare time.
Maybe it's because the focal length is rather tricky to use on APS-C--too long for snapshots, too wide for portraits. I never used it much on my Rebel, in spite of being happy enough with the IQ, for this reason. EF-S 24mm STM would be a more generally useful solution.
Tanks for the video. I enjoyed like always, although I am with Jordan. EF lenses? That was yesterday. OK, millions of EF lenses are around, they can be used on almost every modern camera body. Maybe this video was sponsored by AMA? (Adapter Manufactuerre's Association :-)
I purchased and really enjoy the Tamron 100-400 on my 800D. It has a 640mm equivalent length, but is only around a kilogram, and has great image quality. I got this as the reviews had suggested it a bit better than the sigma, but also it comes with a tripod collar.
Has DP Reviews ever reviewed the 400mm options? So Tamon, sigma, Canon, Nikon, 100-400mm’s? The tamron is great value too for my cheaper camera.
Good to know Chuckmet. I haven’t purchased one yet, it is light to carry. I also read centre sharpness was better on the Tamron, which on a cropped appealed to me. But ultimately, you cant go wrong with either, both great lenses I think, I just had to make a choice as the price was the same at the time!
The Canon EF 24mm and 28mm f2.8 IS USM lenses are great value for money. Small, light, great optical quality. Undervalued lenses, great for cityscapes.
Very cool, thanks! I'd really like something like this for Micro Four Thirds. That is such a huge lens catalog that I keep stumbling upon lenses I never heard of, like some from Samyang, Meike, or 7artisans.
forgot to mention Canon EF-S 60/2.8 macro. Outstanding 1:1 capable macro lens, brilliant IQ, excellent focal length also for portraits, compact and inexpensive. Second hand copies often in hardly used, mint condition available - dirt cheap, less than € 200. for a razor sharp, smooth bokeh, low lateral CA, macro/portrait/street prime lens!
one of my go-to crop lenses when i go on "general photo walks/outings in nature and in city/street. also wirks well adapted to EOS M bodies, although it has no STM or Nano USM AF drive, but "regular" USM - also very quiet and fast enough for general use.
2. Canon Nano-USM lenses EF-S 18-135 EF 70-300 IS II
all of these lenses are very affordable and will work perfectly on each and every Canon EOS camera with APS-C sensor. DSLR and EOS M mirrorfree series (with adapter fir EF-S, EF lenses).
no need whatsoever for thirdparty lenses with reverse-engineered AF and mount protocol.
apparently the later 15-45 lenses seam much better..since the arrival of the 6mkii it don't seem a lottery anymore to get a good one.. and some tests put it in front of the 18-55
18-135 not acceptable resolution, certainly away from center. Before i got that lens i shot with 18-55 stm wich is rediculously good. So i was spoiled. Was 125 euro btw NEW. Dont get why they come up here with the f4 18-55 at 250 dollar. Whatever the staff says i dont feel them like they are on our side. Example above.
dpr is PRO-FUJI FUJI FUJI and anti Canon, anti Canon. retro stuff hipsters, all of them. So evident. They don't care about IQ so much, they are just absolutely INFATUIATED with Fujic retro cam appearance and LOOKS! Oh and they absolutely love to yap about those APERTURE RINGS.
I had it all, started in manual focus age. had the coolest looking of all SLRS ever ... Minolta XD 7. 2 of them, actually. And MD Rokkors, with smooth aperture rings and manual fiocus rings only. Sold it all long ago. GLAD i did. Dont miss that antiquated h*t. I am digital imaging all the way. But stills only. I wil never be a wannabe cinematographer, movie director or "hybrid user". Unlike those wannabe dpr Video dudes. I have an amazingly good EF-M 18-55 IS STM kit zoom as well. :-) Also just got an EF-M 18-150. Of course very useful focal length range, but starup time with EOS M (1st gen) is about 4x longer than with my EF-M 18-55.
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