Canon produces an outstanding range of lenses for SLR cameras, and the best Canon lenses are those from acclaimed Canon L-series. We make Canon Lens Reviews because they are highly appreciated by the majority of professionals as the correctly built lens with amazing image quality, design and selected durable materials. Choosing the best Canon lens is far from being a simple task. A variety of lenses with different focal length, apertures, auto and manual customizations, telephoto or a wide type lens makes it necessary to deepen into details of each lens to make the choice.

Feel free to read at least one lens review to have an idea of what criteria are used in order to find a perfect lens for you. The most important moments that you will come across while reading any canon lens articles are as follows:

• EF range
• Maximum aperture
• Weight of lens
• Availability of fluorite and UD elements
• Autofocus mechanism

Starting with equivalent focus range (EF), best Canon lenses vary between:

– Telephoto lenses like Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM, which are intended for creating exceptionally beautiful images of wildlife, sports events or scenery pictures,

– Wide angle lenses, for instance, Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM, which is described it details in our articles.

Wide angle lenses are more suitable for short distance photos, indoor conditions, and wide perspective shots. All other Canon L lenses fall in between these two sides.

Among telephoto lens, we recommend Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM, which is a superb by all parameters – its design is well-thought and produced only from high-quality metal and plastics.

The images produced by it are very crisp, sharp, vibrant in colours. It is just a pleasure to work with them. All famous wildlife photos shot with the help of this lens.

Canon EF 500mm f/4.0L IS USM, is another monster of long-distance shooting and at the same time one of the most expensive lenses in the Canon L line. Being the second version of the popular lens, it now has an image stabiliser that makes it even more efficient for motor sports, soccer matches and safari pictures. Being frankly the top lens, it shows the maximum of what a lens can do – and leading photo galleries are the result of its work. You may read in details our website to know why this lens is worth its price.

EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5 6L IS USM lens finds this piece of photographic art amazingly proficient in creating crisp images with high contrast, especially if you slightly stop down the zoom. The focus is smooth and swift, and you may rely on the picture stabiliser – in awkward moments it will not lose a single shot.

Another objective which can be also considered the best is Canon EF-S 15-85 mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM UD Wide Angle Zoom lens because it has a versatile focal range, especially complex and performance element system with 1 ultra-low dispersion element, an amazing image stabiliser, and weighs only 20.3 ounces. Besides, it’s one of the most famous lenses for shooting events like weddings, celebrations, indoor events. In addition, it’s highly suitable for object shooting.

We hope that each canon lens review will be useful concerning finding an appropriate lens for your field of photography and your personal taste.

 

Canon lenses: how to choose the right one among the best

It’s a real blessing that manufacturers have once come up with the idea to create cameras with an interchangeable camera so that can kind of build up your perfect camera. There can never be too many Canon lenses. Ideally, a photographer needs many of them for different purposes. But to define which lens to get first, assess your photographing needs.

If the future purchase is going to become one of your first Canon lenses, opt for multi-purpose lenses. But in case you are a talented photographer (and most photographers are), you need lenses that are developed specially for the specific tasks.

It is essential to have the right lens when you are taking pictures of some huge events. Otherwise, the guest that won’t find themselves in the photos (just because they didn’t fit) will never recommend you as an excellent photographer. To avoid this, one needs a lens with a small focal lens. The result would be great pictures of sceneries and city panoramas.

You have just returned from a spectacular football match. But you look at the photos, and you don’t see all that action that you have just enjoyed at the stadium. You are not going to experience these unexpected moments once you’ve got yourself the right lens – in this case; you need the one with a focal length of 70 mm and more.

One can buy a lens with an exceptionally large focal length of like 400 or even 600 mm but these are sure to cost you a lot, and you will have to face up to the fact that those are quite heavy to carry them around.

You may also need lenses featuring distinct characteristics if you enjoy taking photos of small objects like flowers and insects. Good-quality portrait photos also require special lenses.

Once you have found out what type of lenses your photographing lifestyle requires, you only need to read a small number of reviews of lenses within this category. And to choose a particular item, rely on customer reviews and your experience.

It is advisable to check the retailer’s return policy so that you can exchange your lens for another in case the lens you bought is not the one.

Some Canon lenses can seem way too expensive, but they are well worth the money. Your professionalism as a photographer much depends on the quality of the photos. Even if you are a pro at working with light and stage perfect photo shoots this can’t make up for poor quality images. And the opportunity to capture the moments with maximum accuracy is invaluable.

Besides, remember that the quality of the lenses must answer to the quality of your camera. Keen photographers are so willing to share their experiences that you are sure to find useful tips on the Internet. Still, information on the Internet is not enough if you are making such an important purchase as a Canon lens – it is advisable to visit a real shop rather than an online one and try out several lenses on your camera.

 

Canon Lenses Under 500

Canon EF 50mm f1.4 USM Telephoto Lens Review

The Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM lens is an example of a small lens with serious intentions. This lens frequently purchases by professional and day-to-day amateur photographers, though it is less affordable than a f/1.8 lens, for instance.

The EF 50mm f/1.4 USM lens makes possible to create sharp and crisp images by its new generation Gaussian optics and an unusual combination of lens elements with high refraction. It also allows short focusing at the minimal distance of 1.5 feet.

The colour richness of this lens is over expectations. The colour saturation is brilliant, and photos do not require post processing in graph editors. Lens flare, ghosting, astigmatism are well-controlled by the lens, and their presence softens if not mitigates at all.

Overall, the lens produces perfect crisp pictures in any light conditions. It’s good for indoor portraits and some kind of scenery pictures outdoors. It would be reasonable to have it as an essential lens for Canon camera, as it’s highly universal and straightforward to use. The lens makes the background look beautiful, much better than f/1.8 in the same conditions.

Full manual focus with pleasant-feeling ring makes possible to make small corrections to the image. Focusing is fast; some canon lens reviews mention that it’s faster than any other f/1.4 lens. It’s a frankly fast lens. In low light, it works even more quickly.

Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM lens has a decent quality of materials, body and overall design. It’s difficult to break; it feels solid. The body is of metal; the backlashes are minimal — it is a pleasure to feel yourself the owner of EF 50mm f/1.4 as it feels stylish and reliable.

Concluding all the parameters of the lens, it’s necessary to underline that the lens is maximally even suitable for home-made portraits, and it’s a «must-have» for photographers that bought their Canon camera for family pictures.

The photos made with this lens are crisp, atmospheric, warm and pleasant — just exactly what family photographers appreciate. Moreover, it is a perfect lens for portraits.

The f/1.4 Canon lens can compare to the f/1.8 lens, which is entirely different from its price, parameters, quality. Choose f/1.4 if you prefer paying more but having highest output, reliable and surprising device.

F/1.8 is cheaper, simpler, lighter, it’s made of plastics and is surely worth buying, but F/1.4 beats it by all parameters. Many Canon lenses review rates its quality/price ratio much higher than for F/1.8. Well-built, producing high-quality photos, it is worth buying.

Product Description

• 50 mm FE and f/1.4 max aperture
• Six groups of 7 lens
• 10.2 ounces weight
• 46-degree angle of view
• Warranty of 1 year

Advantages

• Solid metal body
• Full manual focus
• Crisp and sharp photos
• Vibrant colour and saturation

Drawbacks

• Filters are expensive for 58 mm lens

 

Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Lens Review

Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Lens is a highly flexible lens with full EF value, dynamic image stabiliser and high functionality that makes focusing quick and straightforward.

The main features of the lens are 70-300 equivalent focal length, the image stabiliser of descent quality, special coating against flare and ghosting, perfect autofocus. They help to make a high-quality image with colours that look natural, and the whole picture looks bright, crisp and balanced.

If we compare Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS with similar lenses, it makes clear that this lens makes possible to focus very quickly, and, what is also important, the lens produces less sound. This means you can get excellent photos without wasting time for focusing, and losing some good moments on the scene. This is substantially important when you are a photographer at a sports event like baseball, soccer or hockey. Besides, it is lightweight enough, so it’s not another pound addition to your photo bag. The weight is22 ounces, which is just fine.

Image stabiliser turns out to be highly efficient in this lens, as it reduces blur and distortion even from heavy jolting, and shaking is not a problem anymore since you use this lens. Inside the heart of the IS is a Gyro sensor which works intellectually by detecting unwanted vibrations and correcting the lens position in an appropriate way.

Though the function is quite simple, you can customise the stabiliser a little bit: there are two modes for the stabiliser, one for shooting static objects, and the other for shooting dynamic ones. Sometimes it is reasonable depending on conditions to use a tripod, and the IS function shuts down itself when you mount your camera on it. So, I should conclude that it is not necessary to carry the tripod for this lens.

What is also pleasant about this lens is a sympathetic background blur effect. The circular aperture creates it in the diaphragm. The defocused background of a particular pattern makes the image slightly more stylish and unique.

Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Lens requires due respect: it is highly recommended to make many experiments and training before going to work with it. The lens is much more flexible than it appears.

Speaking about the quality of assemblage and materials, it is high and reasonable; the body is very robust and reliable. You should be attentive only at sports events when a ball can hit your camera — this lens may probably not survive such extreme things. For other situations, the body quality is reasonable, and even good for its price.

Product Description

• 70-300 mm EF, f/4-5.6 max
• Image stabilizer
• 1.4 pounds weight
• Lens coating against ghosting and flare
• Ultrasonic monitor

Advantages

• Quick focus, calm and lightweight lens
• Efficient image stabiliser
• Pleasant background blur effect
• Solid body

Drawbacks

• The damage protection is low

 

Canon Lenses Under 1000

Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM UD Zoom Lens Review

Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM UD Wide Angle Zoom demonstrates highest quality/price ratio by a combination of sustained portability, sound materials and high-quality images. Let’s see what makes it popular among professional and amateur photographers.

Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM UD Wide Angle Zoom lens is considered one of the best Canon lenses with universal intended use. The central and crucial thing in this lens is the lens itself. It has 17 elements combined in 12 groups, including an UD glass and three aspherical elements, which results in spectacular image quality, incredible richness of colour and impressive reach. The wide lens produces sharp pictures, and it is unexpectedly clean in the corner, where other similar lenses may have problems.

The body of the lens is made of plastics, though of high quality, designed against dust inflow. The materials feel pleasant, and it’s well-textured. Of course, plastics is not so durable as metal, but the plastics are most probably used to minimise the weight for this universal day-to-day lens and to cut the cost that could have been a deal higher. A big bag of lenses is almost a synonym of a professional photographer, just like a set of various tackle and feeding points out a professional fisher. But when it comes to choosing one multifunctional lens, Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM UD is a good and balanced solution by its weight and functionality.

The lens also has an image stabiliser built-in, it helps to reduce shaking and micro-movements while handling the camera. Of course, it won’t contribute to freezing the object you are shooting, but it will work on your behalf to minimise distortions from your side.

It’s a 100% general purpose lens, which shows its best performance in right light conditions, outdoors, at weddings, sunny beaches, beautiful parks, and that’s pretty good at shooting portraits. In other words, it is a universal lens to be ready for any situation. The focusing speed is above average, the weight is quite low, and the functionality perfectly fits family and travel photographs.

Conclusion

I highly support the Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM UD Wide Angle Zoom lens as a universal general purpose lens for all kinds of conditions. It has an incredible reach, the output is crispy, sharp and the focusing is quite quick. Maybe this is one of the elements that Canon EF-S 15-85 mm is among the most favourite lenses.

Product Description

• 1 UD and three aspherical elements
• 15-85 mm FE
• 1/3.5-5.6 aperture
• 20.3-ounce weight
• 1.15 minimal shooting distance

Advantages

• Universal intended use of lens
• Active image stabiliser
• Lightweight
• Advanced lens of 17 elements in 12 groups

Drawbacks

• Body made of high-quality plastic

 

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L USM Telephoto Zoom Lens Review

Making awesome long-distance photos becomes easier when we speak about Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L USM Telephoto Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras, which may seem inexpensive.

Nevertheless, as approved by many Canon lens reviews, it is worth its price and is even better, as it is a real Canon L lens, famous for its quality.

Canon L-series telephoto lenses are mostly used to take photos of wildlife far away from cities and civilisation. Wildlife photographers spend lots of time waiting for a single moment to catch a bird or an animal in a unique situation.

This telephoto lens has a weight of 25 ounces, which is light enough for being used all day long from hands. The lens is shorter, lighter and more comfortable than its competitors. It is perfect for wildlife, sports events and nature pictures. The lens can be carried day by day without feeling yourself tired.

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L is an entirely L-series lens, a real flagship among professional lenses. It is well-known for high-class design and perfect precision optics. It combines highly accessible and universal focal range with excellent quality of build and body. The image quality is also above expectations.

The lens comes with ring-type ultrasonic autofocus mechanism, another advantage underlined by many Canon lens reviews. It produces quick and accurate focus without any noise. It is also possible to turn on the autofocus range limitation which helps to adapt to photo conditions.

The handling of focus and zoom is superb as the buttons and rings are easy and pleasant to touch and manipulate. Besides, when you rotate the lens, the objective does not change the length of the lens, which makes its size manageable and predictable.

We underlined the high quality of outside photos made by Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L, but the indoor images can also be quite amazing. The only prerequisite for this is right light or standstill objects.

For instance, it is possible to use this lens shooting weddings in churches, as people and objects there are not moving too much. For this reason, the lens should be sufficient enough not to lose the only chance for a beautiful photo.

The body is of high-quality assemblage, and the materials are of high quality and well-textured. Overall, you get a somewhat performance lens for the lower-than-average price. It can quickly become the primary lens if you are specialised in wildlife photos and second lens after a general purpose lens.

Product Description

• EF 70-200 mm with 1/4 F maximum aperture
• Weight of 25 ounces
• Ring-type US monitor
• Lens consists of 16 elements within 13 groups
• Zoom by rotating

Advantages

• Relatively light and short
• Quick autofocus mechanism
• Accurate zoom and focus
• Image stabiliser works efficiently

Drawbacks

• Intended for outdoor photos

 

Canon Lenses Under 2500

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens Review

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens is a combination of superb parameters, excellent build and highest popularity among photographers of all fields. This telephoto lens produced a huge number of accurate and sharp photos that you may see in central photo galleries.

Here it is — highly recommended Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens is for your attention. The main and primary thing about this lens is the lens itself, in particular, 23 high-quality elements combined in 19 groups, including five UD and one fluorite glasses — it impresses simply by looking inside this digital multiclass eye.

The photographs are outstanding, highly crisp, sharp, surprising — find any synonyms for the word «perfect», and it won’t reveal the quality of all technical characteristics. However, the list of parameters is something worth seeing.

An equivalent focus range of 70-200 mm and f/2.8 aperture, it’s one of the best representatives of Canon L-series range, as it shows how good a lens can be, beginning with its body to the output. It is the second version of the lens, and it makes some improvements in comparison with version 1, mainly: reduced chromatic aberration, flares, improved contrast and bright viewfinder.

The lens has a rounded aperture made of 8 blades for delivering pleasant bokeh or creating highly blurred backgrounds of photos.

The image stabiliser shows high performance. It’s recommended to use IS when taking photographs of sports events, celebrations, weddings, when you shoot quickly with autofocus, while highly sharp on-tripod shot do not require the stabiliser. By the way, autofocus mechanism is available to deliver an impressively high speed of focusing due to quiet ring ultrasonic motor engine. It’s reasonably suitable for shooting sports events that usually require quickness.

The body and materials demonstrate what the Canon L-series is famous for: selected high-quality materials with soft textures, robust and reliable body, and social movement of handling rings. Besides, it comes with weather appliances for being used in different outdoor conditions. The lens is designed to preserve its length while shooting. In other words, it does not extend while you focus or zoom, and this is very comfortable.

Conclusion

So far Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L II IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens is the second generation of a great lens, and many photographers around the globe, appreciate even more. It’s well-design high-quality system of lenses produced entirely fine and impressive photographs. Despite the relatively high price, it is among the most sold lenses, and the reason is quality/price that works out 100% of the result in beautiful shots.

Product Description

• 70-200 mm focus range
• Image stabilizer
• Quiet ring ultrasonic autofocus
• 23 lens elements within 19 groups
• 52.6-ounce weight

Advantages

• Unbeatable quality of photographs
• Fast autofocus
• Luxury-series body design with best materials
• High-performance image stabiliser

Drawbacks

• Heavy due compound lens system

 

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM Standard Zoom Lens Review

Let us introduce Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM — a highly recommended wide general use lens of famous Canon L-line. Until now this lens has received myriads of positive opinions by many Canon lens reviews, and the quality of images it produces shows that its value is much higher than the price.

The determination to buy a new lens comes when the new best lens reviews demonstrate advantages in the light of new technological innovations in lens manufacturing sphere. However, this model of lens is so outperforming that sometimes you get surprised. The lens is entirely worth its cost and the portfolio of excellent shots made with the help of it is the best compliment to Canon manufacturing art.

Unboxing the lens shows that besides the lens itself you receive a relatively comprehensive set of additional goods. Besides the lens, you get a 1219 soft case for the lens, two caps, a hood, and the EF mount. The parameter list of Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM includes the mentioned focal length of 24-70 mm, permanent maximum aperture F 1/2.8, fast ultrasonic-mechanism autofocus, and two additional pounds of weight to your kit.

The lens comprises a system of 16 elements within 13 groups; it produced from 29 to 74 degrees of view angle. The body of this lens is typical for Canon L lens for SLR cameras — it is respectably thick, durable, made of high-quality well-textured materials that get you feel good and safe. It protects from dust and water.

By the way, some reviewers mention that the weight of the lens is high. It is not light indeed, but the weight allows working with it all day long without getting tired unless the photographer is subtle. You feel full value of this length when holding it in your hands.

The quality of images produced by the lens is above expectations; it squeezes maximum from conditions of photo process. It is a universal lens, as it’s perfectly suitable for indoor photo sessions, portraits, close-up views, but you will surely enjoy how the scenery shots look from it. It outperforms many competitors by giving extra sharp pictures with excellent contrast and vibrant colours.

The Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM is a perfect lens for professional that would like to get a little closer and wider. It allows making balanced macro shots, excellent low-light photos, still sharp and elegant.

Conclusion

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM is a highly recommended wide lens from luxury L-series. With proper weight and superior build quality, it produced perfectly sharp and precious photos. The lens perfectly suits for photographing events, and it’s able to make maximum out of low-light conditions. The set you receive together with the lens for this reasonable and fair price has many pleasant devices.

Product Description

• F/2.8 max aperture
• 29-74 degrees of view angle
• FE 24-70 mm
• Lens system of 16 elements within 13 groups
• 2.1 pound weight

Advantages

• Faster autofocus mechanism
• Improved superior optics
• Finest materials and high-quality build
• Right in low-light conditions

Drawbacks

• Relatively high weight

 

Canon EF 100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens Review

With impressive EF value, high-performance image stabiliser, several UD and fluorite elements, Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5 6L IS USM is among the most spectacular telephoto lenses. Perfect for shooting from the tripod, it is a balanced solution of famous Canon L-series.

We recommend the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5 6L IS USM as one of the best telephoto Canon lenses of L series. First of all, let’s get acquainted with main features of this spectacular lens.

The focal length is 100-400 mm, which is intended for long distance photos, but it’s also suitable for portraits of a special style if you want to put the accent on the model and make the background blurred. The lens itself is very sophisticated; it comprises 17 different elements combined in 14 groups. It includes super UD-glass and fluorites elements to cut undesirable range of spectrum by reducing spectral flares, make colour, saturation and contrast-rich.

The image stabiliser makes possible to catch good shots from a distance and on the other hand, to make explicit short distance photos with little blur. It is highly suitable for taking pictures of wildlife, shooting sports events and architecture. The image stabiliser creates miracles when necessary to make photos from hands.

The body of the lens is respectably weighty, and you may want to purchase a new bag for all the stuff. Besides, you may notice that the lens extends heavily while zooming. It almost doubles, the lens is white and stylish, and in some cases, this can look quite spectacularly.

Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5 6L IS USM a choice for photographers who need more universality in operations, as it has the image stabiliser, high portability, and zoom which may consider an additional option, but it can be helpful. The zoom mechanism is push-pull, and it needs to adopt a little bit, but it turns out to be very comfortable to use on a tripod.

Together with the lens, you receive a nice case for storage and an additional anti-glare hood.

Conclusion

We recommend Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5 6L IS USM as one of the best telephoto lenses of famous Canon L-line, especially if you intend to take photos of wildlife or sports events. It makes sharp and clear photos with pleasant bokeh; the image stabiliser helps you to shoot from hands. Besides, this lens looks like a superstar lens with the correct size and stylish white colour.

Product Description

• 100-400 mm FE
• Lens made of 17 elements in 14 groups
• 5.9 ft minimal distance of focusing
• 3.1 pounds weight
• 1/4.5-5.6 aperture

Advantages

• Super UD and fluorite elements of lens
• Spectacular sharpness and clarity of photos
• Image stabilizer
• Stylish look

Drawbacks

• Heavy for long photo sessions

 

Canon Lenses Over 2500

Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM Super Telephoto Lens Review

The greatest L series of best Canon lens represents «luxury» lens for performance SLR cameras, and it includes such impressive models like Canon EF 500mm f/4.0L IS USM that beginning photographers call big, and professionals name them super telephoto.

Highly recommended is Canon EF 500mm f/4.0L IS II USM Super Telephoto lens for SLR cameras, it’s big, but light, it’s designed well, and photographers that work at sports events or take photos of wildlife will love it.

Canon EF 500mm f/4.0L IS USM represents next generation of telephoto lenses. Besides 500 mm focal length, a super system of lens, fluorite and extremely low dispersion glass, it has an image stabiliser that makes work of photographer a lot easier and more admirable.

Photographers use this lens for wildlife photos. To support this fact it is usually enough to surf through wildlife pictures of most famous photographers, and it becomes evident, that they use Canon EF 500 mmf/4.0L IS. If something can be compared to this lens (though with little success), it would be another telephoto lens from Canon L series. It has an amazingly superb, absolute sharpness and richness of photo.

As any other L-series lens of Canon, it is made of superior materials, its design is well-thought, and it gives you maximal performance regarding excellent photos. The lens together with the camera aims to be protected from rain, sand and all other weather troubles that one may come across in the wilds. Besides, it does not blind anybody, either animals or people.

The majority of Canon lens reviews underline the necessity of tripod for using it. Though for telephoto lenses small weight is not standard, Canon 500 mm is lighter than similar lenses. Many professionals come to make a choice between a500 mm and600 mm lens, and despite functionality of600 mm, many of them choose500 mm just because of its smaller size and weight. When a photographer works with it on a daily basis, weight is what matters, especially, the weight of the telephoto lens.

The lens focuses quickly both in manual and automatic modes. Moreover, it produces highly crisp pictures when handled. The reason is the stabiliser which does its job pretty well and helps when the photographer is not yet ready to shoot. The image quality is something that amazes: even 400 mm f/4 extender cannot beat it.

Product Description

• FE 500 mm
• Maximum aperture of F/4
• Rain-protection design
• Ultra-low dispersion fluorite glass
• Efficient image stabiliser

Advantages

• Lighter than competitors
• Quality of photos above expectations
• Superior materials and robust body
• Designed for all weather conditions

Drawbacks

• Requires tripod to work long