Badmono's reviews

  • Canon EF 400mm f/2.8L IS USM

    10 out of 10 points and recommended
    IQ-IQ-IQ
    Colour - everyone notices you, but this can workin your favour when it comes to blagging your way into events!

    Awesome, I always wanted one, saved my pennies for a few years - was it worth the money & wait - YES YES YES.
    One sad thing I've noticed other camera users with poor lenses [100-400 zoom] for example slag off the weight of my lens - these saddo's ought to try one for themselves, their crap zoom would join plenty of others for sale on ebay - the IQ of this lens is so much better than any zoom lens on this planet.
    I have one suggestion for Canon to improve the lens - make it an F2 and drop the price :-))

    reviewed August 22nd, 2008
  • Canon EF 135mm f/2L USM

    10 out of 10 points and recommended
    IQ-IQ - Bokeh - Very competitive Price
    Nothing obvious

    The Sharpest Lens available for Eos cameras IMO
    A Bargain, very competively priced
    If you own an EOS Camera - It's a no Brainer, Buy one
    Fantastic IQ & Bokeh

    reviewed August 22nd, 2008 (purchased for $650)
  • Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM

    2 out of 10 points and not recommended
    None
    Abysmal IQ - used by so called Pro's, HA HA

    The worst Canon Lens I've ever Owned, even worse than the 18-55 'Standard lens that comes free with most Eos bodies.
    The only positive thing I have to say about this lens, is I managed to sell it easily on ebay and only lost £400UK pounds on the thing.
    Buy a sigma 400mm prime for £90UK pounds on ebay if money is tight or a Canon400 F2,8 IS if you have plenty of the greenstuff, both of these lenses make the canon 100-400 zoom look abysmal in comparison for IQ, sharpness on this lens doesn't exist.
    This is not a 'L' series lens but a 'HELL' series lens
    Just avoid it at all costs

    reviewed August 22nd, 2008
  • Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM

    2 out of 10 points and not recommended
    It's a Zoom
    Poor IQ - expensive - Very Very overated

    I was expecting so much from this lens, everyone I'd spoken to rated it highly, possibly I had a bad one, But I can only comment on my lens, it was very poor for IQ - Sharpness was non existant, and the weight was excessive, in comparison to my excellent but old canon 70-300EF which cost only 10% of the 70-200 IS L.
    I quickly sold the lens, and bought 2 primes with the proceeds - 135 F2 and 200 F2.8, both of which restored my faith in the Canon lenses.
    Clearly the 70-200 F2.8 'L' doesn't deserve the 'L' moniker IMO - buy a normal EF70-300 and save yourself a lot of greenstuff, or spend the money you save on either or both of the 135F2 & 200 F2.8 'L's' which have real IQ in them

    reviewed August 22nd, 2008
  • Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III

    6 out of 10 points and recommended
    Cheap - The only Canon Zoom I'd use, good focal range
    At the price - None whatsoever

    I'm not a Zoom lens fan But appreciate that a good zoom is worth having in the bag - However having had to sell both the 70-200 F2.8 IS L and the 100-400 IS L because of their poor IQ.
    I bought my 75-300EF off a friend who had owned it for a few years so I had seen photo's taken with this lens before it's purchase. IQ is acceptable for a zoom. In fact I use this lens for Holidays and hiking. It's light weight and long focal range are it's plus points. Compared to my Primes this lens is slow, but hey it's usable at full aperture and I'm more than happy to use it.
    For all important shoot's I use 'L' seies primes 135 F2, 200 F2.8 and 400 F2.8 IS which are head and shoulders above all zoom lenses even Canon 'Hell' series zooms.
    This 75-300 is a great lens provided you don't expect top IQ. and a bargain if you can buy one at £40UK pounds the price I paid.
    Well worth checking one out !!

    reviewed August 22nd, 2008 (purchased for $75)
  • Canon EF 200mm f/2.8L II USM

    10 out of 10 points and recommended
    Great IQ - Great Price - Great Lens
    Absolutely None

    A fabulous and underated lens well deserving of the 'L' tag the IQ and Bokeh are wonderful I always leave it fitted to one of my camera bodies
    Not quite as sharp as the 135 F2 but it's longer focal length suits me more often than my 135, but not as often as my 400F2.8 IS which is the other lens always fitted to a body.
    I bought this lens after selling my 70-200 IS 'Hell' seies zoom.
    This IQ from this lens makes the 70-200 zooms IQ look distinctly secondrate.
    Thouroughly recomended - if you need this focal length just buy one you won't regret it.

    reviewed August 22nd, 2008 (purchased for $400)
  • Canon EF 400mm f/5.6L USM

    10 out of 10 points and recommended
    Light, Sharp, Great IQ
    Cost compared to Sigma 400F5.6 which is its equal for 1/7th of the price

    I loved this lens I owned it for 4 years, the only reason I sold it was my mate was selling his Sigma 400 F5.6 which I knew was as good as my canon, we had done some serious comparisons between the 2 lenses.
    I bought his sigma for £90 [A steal] and sold my canon for £580 on ebay. I put the surplus £490 into the kitty to buy a Canon 400 F2.8 IS L. Which I've recently bought. so Now I own the ultimate Canon 400, for Action and Wildlife. and a Fantastic Sigma 400 for my Hiking & Skiing Hol's
    But back to the canon 400F5.6 lens - I would thoroughly recommend it. But for the cheapskates out there buy the Sigma, you won't regret that either.

    reviewed September 5th, 2008 (purchased for $650)
  • Canon EF 200mm f/2L IS USM

    10 out of 10 points and recommended
    IQ - Speed - Bokeh
    None so-far

    I had to have this lens - my most used lens before i bought this was the canon 200F2.8 L. which itself is a fantastic piece of glass, but the extra stop of this lens is what I desired, it allows this lens to produce WOW WOW WOW images. People who see shots taken with it are stunned & always mention the clarity and stand out nature of the subject, even hardened shooters. Images viewed at pixel level on a monitor are the sharpest I've seen, and beat my other super sharp lens the 135 F2 L.
    Using this lens has made me yearn for Canon to make a 400mm F2 L the 400 F2.8 I have is great but I could do more if only I had an extra stop on that super lens too.
    For uses of the sad 70-200mm 'Hell' zoom don't ever compare your images against this lens or the 200 F2.8. coz they'll blow you away, that is assuming you ain't blind.
    Thank you Canon - your best l;ens sofar :-))))))
    >
    As for the handling well I'm used to the 400 F2.8 L IS - so I could use this lens all day without a sweat.
    To anyone who uses a 200mm lens frequently then you need to beg, borrow or steal one of these NOW!!
    >
    Oh almost forgot as another plus - this lens is also brilliant with a Canon 1.4X convertor, - and will save you having to buy the awkward length [at least for my photographic shots] of 300mm.

    reviewed November 11th, 2008 (purchased for $4,500)
  • Sigma 500mm f/4.5 EX DG HSM APO

    8 out of 10 points and recommended
    Excellent sharpness at full aperture - Cheap as chips
    I have the earlier APO version which has manual focus nad Naff 'Camo' paintjob

    I bought my lens used from a charity shop - it's the earlier APO version which has the 'Camo' paintjob and manual focus. IQ is fantastic at full aperture and the sliding lens hood makes the lens easier to store and use.
    Compared to my Canon 400 F2.8 IS L. this lens is very small and compact.
    I now have 2 sigma super teles and would recommend either. The other a 400 F5.6 APO is also excellent and a fraction of the cost of the similar Quality & aperture Canon lens.
    Well worth checking out if you can find one used for a good price.

    reviewed November 20th, 2008 (purchased for $30)
  • Tokina 17mm f/3.5 AT-X 17 AF PRO Aspherical

    9 out of 10 points and recommended
    Crisp sharp lens - very nice indeed
    None

    A fabulous prime W/A lens - perfect as a walk around lens.
    Super sharp - which to me is what matters in a lens, a fuzzy blurred zoom lens shot is completely useless, this very reasonbly priced prime shows up zooms for what they are - a TOTAL WASTE OF YOUR TIME.

    reviewed November 22nd, 2008 (purchased for $75)
  • Tamron 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 SP AF

    8 out of 10 points and recommended
    Cheap lens - nice 'n sharp wide open
    The Brand Name

    I was given this lens by a friend over a year ago, being a Tamron I never found a reason to use it, however I recently give it a try when I had to do some Bug shots- To say I was pleasantly surprised is an understatement, this lens is damn sharp - plenty good enough for my amount of macro useage, and the colours were crisp and true. What else can anyone ask from a lens.
    Well done Tamron.
    My only whinge the black paint job is very flaky and with the small amount of use this lens has had it looks fairly battered. So I would say its a good lens for amateur use, but I believe Pro's would hate to see their kit look so used after so little careful usage.

    reviewed November 24th, 2008
  • Canon 1.4X Extender EF II

    10 out of 10 points and recommended
    Killer piece of kit for use with 'L' primes - You must have one
    None whatsoever

    Used with 'L' series primes this convertor works fantastically well, IQ and sharpness lose nothing from the standard lens.
    >
    A no brainer - just buy one if you use 'L' series primes
    >
    Doesn't work well with 'Hell' ZOOMs but hey Zooms are for snappers only, this convertor merely magnifies their shortcomings

    reviewed December 1st, 2008 (purchased for $250)
  • Canon 2X Extender EF II

    9 out of 10 points and recommended
    Makes my 400 F2.8 into a 800mm lens
    I tried 3 different examples before finding one that worked well with my lens

    Works well with 400 F2.8 IS though I had to try out 3 different examples of the convertor to get one to work well with my lens.
    Well worth the effort though since I now have a 800mm f5.6 IS lens which gives great results.
    and whem stacked with a 1.4X convertor the results at 1120mm F8, ain't shabby either:-))
    >
    Thoughroughly recommended.
    >
    Forget using this 2x convertor with an 'L' zoom though the results are abysmal, this convertor really demands a top lens for it to work properly - NO zoom can meet this requirement.

    reviewed December 1st, 2008
  • Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS USM

    8 out of 10 points and recommended
    slow focussing

    I'm slightly dis-appointed with this lens, the slow focussing takes a lot of getting use to, and the slow F4 Aperture doesn't do the lens any favours either.
    IMO this lens ought to be a F2.8. It works well on Full frame and cut down sensors.
    The lens is sharp enough and the IS works well, but in comparison with My 'Money' lens the 400 F2.8 IS. this lens doesn't do it for me:-((
    IQ is similar to the 400 & 1.4x convertor though the 400 & convertor focusses faster - much faster.
    Handling is OK and the extra length again does the lens no favours compared to 400 & 1.4x convertor.
    Having said that If you only have the 600 you'd be happy enough, you simply wouldn't know what you're missing, by not having the 400 F2.8
    >
    Come on Canon this lens is a missed opportunity it really ought to have been an F2.8
    >
    So to anyone thinking of getting this lens - I suggest you buy the 400 F2.8 and the excellent 1.4X convertor.

    reviewed December 13th, 2008 (purchased for $5,000)
  • Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM

    10 out of 10 points and recommended
    Cost - Cost - Cost - Oh did I mention the VFM this lens has
    Only missing the red 'L' ring

    What a very pleasant surprise this lens turned out to be!!
    Sharp - Great IQ - Great Bokeh - Very fast focussing, and it's small and light. It easliy focusses on a downhill ski racer. I use to use a 135 F2 'L' when shooting Skiers, but it's usually too long a focal length when fitted on a 40D. The 85mm cured that problem and at a bargain price. I normally use it at F2.8, and at that aperture it's 'L' prime sharp.
    Not much else to be said really.
    >
    A real surprise - a lens bargain that every canon owner should have in their bag.
    >
    A good1st prime lens for all 'Zoom owners' to upgrade too.
    >
    Only minor niggle I had to pay extra for a lenshood:-( but when you think of the new lens price it's still an outstanding bargain - well done Canon:-))

    reviewed March 10th, 2009 (purchased for $280)