| |  | Brand: Canon
Category: Photography
List Price: $150.00
Buy New: $82.00
You Save: $68.00 (45%)
New (27) Used (8) from $79.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  735 reviews
Media: Electronics
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Maximum Focal Length: 50
Minimum Focal Length: 50
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 2.7 x 2.7 x 1.6
MPN: 2514A002
Model: 2514A002
UPC: 829662127272
EAN: 0082966212727
ASIN: B00007E7JU
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 5 stars for the price and speed January 3, 2006
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
This lens is great because it's both cheap and fast. Sure, it's plastic but the glass is good. Don't expect to take it mountain climbing. I'm on my second one because my son pulled the camera off a table (a height of about 3 feet) and the lens came apart. Autofocus is slow, but most of the time you'll need to focus manually anyway. In the low light that this lens exceeds, the autofocus is useless. Just an aside about the wide aperture, it's very tough to focus on a close subject in low light. The depth of field is so narrow and detail is difficult to make out. I usually end up "bracketing" my focus. Anyway, buy it...what the heck!
 canon ef 50 mm 1.8 ii January 1, 2006
1 out of 19 found this review helpful
i believe you but this lens is'nt plastic because is some polimer ;because the lens is no moving inside is very crisp
Excellent Value December 31, 2005
I've had the 50mm f1.8 for about three months now, so I wanted to put in my two cents worth after a little field use. What originally attracted me to this lens was, obviously, the price. It is very, very inexpensive. This is likely due to the fact that the housing is, unlike its predecessor the Mark I, entirely plastic. That initially put me off, but after seeing some images posted that had been taken with this lens (and after seeing the prices of the f1.4 and the used mark I)I decided that I really had nothing to lose. There are, as with most lenses good and bad elements to this lens. Lets start with the bad.
Keep in mind that if you are shooting a canon DSLR (as I am) this 50mm lens actually behaves as an 80mm lens, so it isn't that terribly wide. The fact that it is functionally 80mm can make framing shots a bit difficult. This is definitely a secondary lens and really isn't that appropriate for a "walking around lens." At least it isn't for me, as I tend to prefer shooting wider angles.
If you have some sort of mishap with your camera, like dropping it, you can likely kiss this lens goodbye. I have fortunately never had to test this, but I imagine that it wouldn't stand up to any sort of impact very well. The flimsiness of the build is very obvious when compared to some of the older canon lenses. MY 35-135mm USM is about 10 years old, and has a metal chassis. These lenses can often stand drops and still operate. This is not so for the 50mm mark II.
Since everything but the glass is bare bones, the autofocus isn't terribly fast. If all you have ever worked with is USM lenses, you will have to be ready to take a little more time focusing. If you have experience with the 18-55mm kit lens, you will find that it is about the same.
All that being said, you are probably wondering why I rated this lens at four stars instead of, say, three. That's because there are a lot of nice features to this lens that far outweigh the bad.
If you have never used a prime lens before (meaning, a "fixed" lens that doesn't zoom) then you are in for a pleasant surprise. It is far more expensive to build a quality zoom than a quality prime, thus decent zooms tend to cost a mint. Also, zooms are only at their best in the middle of their range. The 50mm doesn't move, and so has been optimally designed for its focal length. Shots are sharp at all aperture ranges; shots at medium apertures (f8-f11) will blow your mind. Really. Search the web for some images made with this lens in those ranges and you will buy it. Resistance is futile. Canon may have skimped on the body, but they didn't cut corners on the glass. It is excellent.
The wide aperture (f1.8) is really outstanding as well. I had never really worked with a lens this fast before because, frankly, I hadn't been able to afford to. You dispense with your flash and handhold at levels that you would not have thought possible. And once you get away from flash use during night/lowlight photography, you will see some truly amazing colors that flash typically obliterates.
The fact that it is fixed, and not too wide, forced me to be a little more creative than I normally would when framing shots. When I went to Burma this year, I left my principal lens at my hotel, and didn't realize it until I was far away, so I was forced to use the 50mm as my principal lens. Some of my favorite shots of my whole trip actually come from that day, as I was forced to come to terms with the focal length limitations of the lens.
And finally, there is the price. A lens with glass this good that costs less than a filter setup, or a dozen 8x10 prints? How can you say no? Unless you have the bucks to spend on the f1.4 or the Mark I, this lens belongs in every EOS shooters bag.
Great lens, even better value! December 30, 2005
8 out of 11 found this review helpful
Alright, first let me give you my opinion regarding some of the qualms I've read around here:
* Yes, the lens might not be of the best build quality; however, judging solely based on optics and picture quality I can hardly justify spending 10X as much money in an L-series equivalent of this lens. I've used both and unless you're an ultra-professional juggernaut, I really doubt you'll notice the difference (image-wise) between this great lens and the much more expensive version.
* Yes, it's not f/1.4 as the $600+ version...it's a whooping fractional step slower (f/1.8) for ~ 10X less money.
As for what this lens actually is:
* Great, inexpensive prime lens.
* Great optics (good enough to use it in a portrait studio).
* Inexpensive enough to be able to take risks with it.
What this lens isn't:
* A lens geared towards ultra-pros looking for absolute perfection.
* A ruggeed, work-horse, durable lens.
* A miracle that will make anyone a better photographer.
* The best thing since diced ham.
In summary, great lens, absolutely outstanding value and a must for portrait amateurs and enthusiasts. No wonder they call this lens "Canon's Nifty Fifty."
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II, a must have December 28, 2005
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
You've got your new digital SLR and are wondering "which lens" should I get? This is one of them. Look at the price, and go to pbase and search the lens and review the results; this lens will make you look like a pro. Very affordable, but the results from this lens are incredible. Great for portraits, indoors or any time you need a relatively fast lens (compared to the kit lens) with very good sharpness and clarity.
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