Canon 50mm f1.8 II

Yes folks, I couldn't resist. After purchasing a Sigma 18-125mm f3.5-5.6 and the Sigma 50-500mm f4-6.3 last summer (see here for my photo gallery with these lenses), I needed to buy and try the 50mm f1.8 Canon prime. I've read some very good testreports about it and this lens is recommended by a lot of professional photographers. So here are some testshots using my Canon 10D a my new Canon 50mm f1.8 lens. For 85 euro, quite a bargain, if you ask me...

This is the ideal lens for low light scenes and where a small DOF is needed (so great for portraits).

Above: the lens is quite small, so I ordered the optional ES-62 lens sunshade and adapter to make it look bigger... (just kidding). It also keeps the lens artefacts away with outdoor photography.

Lens Tests

Caroline makes a excellent testsubject! The lighting in our house is set very dim (it's even hard to read a book) but it makes our living room very cosy and warm, so ideal for this low-light test.

Following pictures were shot @ f1.8 and about 1/60sec (ISO400). These would be impossible to do this at f4.5 (like most lenses)

Caroline (8 1/2 month pregant) in the kitchen, making my favorite dish: macaroni!!

Although the lens is very fast (how much lower that 1.8 can you get!), for very detailed crops, I'd recommend a higher f setting if possible. You'll get razorsharp images!

In general, photo's made at f1.8 are sharp enough, especially if you resize them for web usage like here.

For example, this is a 100% crop at f1.8 (1/120sec) and ISO 400 from the kitchen books from the photo above... (a smooth image, but not that sharp in full resolution)

And below: a 100% crop set at f3.5 (1/45sec) ISO 400: razorsharp!!!!

Our cat Bonnie with my Sigma 18-125mm: 50mm at f4.5 (1/60sec) ISO 400: where is she?

Our cat Bonnie: 50mm at f1.8 (1/60sec) ISO 400: clearly visible indeed...

Conclusion: this lens is a bargain. You'll have a lot of fun shooting in low light conditions. Also for portraits this lens is a winner, due to the small DOF you'll draw the attention to your subject. If you need tacksharp images, I'd recommend using this lens at f3.5 if possible. It's like having a Canon L-type lens!