shroud72's reviews
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Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II
10 out of 10 points and recommendedinexpensive optics are worth twice the price, fast lens excels in low light, colors are better then kit lens, sharpcheap plastic feel, manual focus ring difficult to use because it is small, fragile lensThis lens has been recommended by many people to a beginner photographer as the first lens after the kit lens.
reviewed September 28th, 2011 (purchased for $99)
I´ve had this lens for over a year now and have had sort of a love / hate relationship with it.
The cheap plastic feel and the almost impossible to turn manual focus ring are the main reasons for my dislike for this lens.
It does make a great portrait lens and after some practice you will be taking much better portrait shots with this lens then with the kit lens.
However where this lens really excels, and the reason why this small lens always has a place in my photography bag is because it is really incredible in low light night photography.
I normally shoot this lens at f/2.0 as I find f/1.8 a bit soft but still somewhat acceptable when needed in a pinch. Shooting at f/2.0 in AV aperture mode with 800 ISO produces amazing night time results with my 450d/XSi.
Here are some night shot samples
http://flic.kr/p/aqsjEF
http://flic.kr/p/ag8UCp
http://flic.kr/p/apYE3n
http://flic.kr/p/a6N1YZ
http://flic.kr/p/a6MTcF
This shot has been cropped by about 75% and still the results are acceptable
http://flic.kr/p/agknfj
Bokeh shot
http://flic.kr/p/aniSPo
Nature Panoramic shot
http://flic.kr/p/agxiqP
Portrait shots
http://flic.kr/p/akdFKd
http://flic.kr/p/afgs1G
Shot through a restaurant window
http://flic.kr/p/agQvgt
Handheld 4 shot panoramic at dusk
http://flic.kr/p/agTqC1
Overall Opinion: Although the build quality leaves much to be desired, I have not experienced that many Autofocus problems, even in low light and have gotten photos that I would have otherwised missed.
For a beginner photographer on a budget highly recommended performance for the price. Overall rating is image quality based on price. -
Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS
10 out of 10 points and recommendedGreat lens for the price, Great focal length as it picks off where the kit lens leaves off, Better quality then the kit lens, Lightweight with 4 stops IS, Colors are good for the price, Lens is sharp except around 250 but still very acceptableCheap plastic feel, A bit soft at 250mmDon´t let the cheap price fool you, its a great lens if you follow the photography fundamentals and is capable of some amazing shots.
reviewed September 28th, 2011 (purchased for $250)
Build quality is a step above the kit lens and the image quality is about 2 steps above.
Its a great lightweight lens and I have used it as a Zoo lens and I find that it covers the range that I need when I go to the Zoo.
This lens will probably always have a place in my bag even though I have more expensive lenses, the price, quality and weight make it very attractive for me.
Some of my favorite shots taken with this lens:
Straight out of the camera with no post processing for this first shot!
http://flic.kr/p/8pfi4H
Some other shots with normal amounts of post processing
http://flic.kr/p/9J7nsN
http://flic.kr/p/8jzYpr
http://flic.kr/p/9ttgWD
http://flic.kr/p/9vEuZC
http://flic.kr/p/9vrAnv
http://flic.kr/p/9umdaP
http://flic.kr/p/9vvQd2
Overall a welcome addition if money is a concern but still capable of taking quality shots. -
Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM
10 out of 10 points and recommendedSharp Lens, Nice Colors, Extreme Wide Angle of View, USM, Good Flare resistanceExpensiveI originally bought this lens for landscapes but when I first started to use it, I felt a bit disappointed. This has nothing to do with the lens but in my skill and understanding of this lens.
reviewed September 28th, 2011 (purchased for $650)
The first thing to realize about an Ultra Wide Angle lens is that this lens is for foregrounds and not backgrounds. As the foregrounds are brought closer forward and enlarged while the backgrounds are pushed further back. However if you keep this in mind you will be well rewarded with some outstanding photos that you otherwise would not have been able to get.
Landscape Photos:
http://flic.kr/p/ajbq7W
http://flic.kr/p/9T4NBX
Low Light Handheld
http://flic.kr/p/aiMk5C
http://flic.kr/p/anYFf6
http://flic.kr/p/ao2qN7
http://flic.kr/p/adv7z5
Low Light with tripod
http://flic.kr/p/9pqbQq
HDR Shots
http://flic.kr/p/9tM4mh
http://flic.kr/p/9tDNTZ
http://flic.kr/p/9tLArn
http://flic.kr/p/9p7K1Y
http://flic.kr/p/9tGHXW
http://flic.kr/p/a8XbVd
http://flic.kr/p/9pn26n
Interesting Shots that need Ultrawide Lens
http://flic.kr/p/9pqnMd
http://flic.kr/p/af1HiD
http://flic.kr/p/aevqoY
Expensive yes but fills a unique niche in your camera bag. If these types of shots inspire you and you can afford it then highly recommended. -
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
10 out of 10 points and recommendedQuality optics, amazing color and contrast, 4 stop hybrid IS, bokeh, lens barrel does not rotate during focusinga bit expensive over the non-IS Canon version but inexpensive for an L lensWow, where do I start, this is truly a very magical piece of glass. I am always amazed at the quality of the images that I get from it when I use it.
reviewed September 28th, 2011 (purchased for $795)
For the price of 1 lens you are able to get 3 purposes:
1. Portraits
2. Short Telephoto
3. Macro
Many people may argue that you should not take portraits with this lens as the results are too sharp, however I find that you can always soften an image in post processing if needed but I am always happy with the results and the bokeh that this lens produces with portraits.
Short Telephoto
100mm equal to 160mm on a crop sensor makes a nice distance to shoot short telephotos from. The added plus is the new hybrid 4 stop IS which works rather well. This lens is sharp at 2.8 but stop it down to 4.0 and its sharp as a razor blade.
Macro
This lens makes handheld macro shots possible although it does take some practice with the shallow depth of field.
Sample Shots:
Macro Flowers
http://flic.kr/p/a8soD1
http://flic.kr/p/agJGcx
http://flic.kr/p/agJJMT
Macro Bugs
http://flic.kr/p/9FF51T
http://flic.kr/p/9KynYu
Short Telephoto
http://flic.kr/p/agTocC
http://flic.kr/p/9MwXnG
http://flic.kr/p/akoWSz
http://flic.kr/p/aaxLiK -
Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS
9 out of 10 points and recommendeddecent kit lens, IS works well, center sharp with decent cornersbuild quality is cheapNot a bad kit lens or starting lens to have as it performs above average although it is not exceptional in any one thing.
reviewed September 29th, 2011
I recently reviewed by photo collection and saw that among my personal favorite photos this lens took a lot of them.
A great starter lens capable of taking decent enough photos until you need a lens capable of lower light shots.
Some of my favorite shots:
http://flic.kr/p/8jp3PC
Taken the first day of owning the camera, I was surprised by the image quality.
http://flic.kr/p/8jougA
http://flic.kr/p/8TJkTW
http://flic.kr/p/8ju446
http://flic.kr/p/8ju4Kr
http://flic.kr/p/8HuR9k
http://flic.kr/p/8KqTrq
http://flic.kr/p/8V1XhQ
http://flic.kr/p/8WuJrp
http://flic.kr/p/8uk5KP
Build quality is cheap, the little silver sticker above the focus ring has fallen off from use, but is pure cosmetic.