( 26 reviews )
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Posted: 07-06-2009
I was very happy with the performance of this lens on my Rebel XSI. It was great for night shots in Venice! With a small sensor camera like the Rebel, I only wish this lens came in a 24mm variety so that I could take better pictures of our plates across the table at dinner. The 24mm f1.4 is amazing, but out of my price range. Anyway, the lens was great and then suddenly after about 9 months the focus locked up. It wouldn't auto or manual focus. The focus ring was just locked in place. It was under warranty, so I had it repaired for about $25 in shipping/handling all together. Hopefully it will work well for a while longer.
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Posted: 07-04-2009
I just got this lens today so my review is based on just a couple of hours usage. The lens performs great in low light conditions - both indoors and outdoors. Some people have complained that the bokeh is not smooth - I don't agree - the bokeh is smooth enough for me and looks very pleasing. I'm stunned by the performance of this tiny beast. Only dislike is the build - the focus ring is not that smooth and has a very cheap feel. My Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM and Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS USM have a much better build.
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Posted: 06-29-2009
Not long ago, I bought the Canon EF 28mm f/1.8 lens to have a fast, roughly standard-length lens for my Rebel XSi (standard taking into account the camera's 1.6x crop factor, that is). That lens turned out to be a little wider than I wanted, which would have been okay if it didn't also have terrible problems with chromatic aberration and edge softness. So I decided after a while to give the EF 35mm f/2 a try. Build quality is toward the low end of Canon's scale; not as nice as the EF 28mm f/1.8, but not as cheap as the EF 50mm f/1.8 II. It does, at least, have a metal mount and a distance window. Since it doesn't have USM, it is rather noisy when autofocusing compared to the 28, and full-time manual focus is not available. But at least the focus ring spins freely in auto-focus mode (unlike the 50 f/1.8 II), so you don't have to worry about damaging the motor by turning it accidentally. Picture quality is quite good; wide open, the center is decently sharp, and the edges not too bad at all; stopped down to f/4, it's even better. If you're looking for a roughly standard-length lens for an APS-C Canon camera without paying the premium price of an L-series lens, and you need something faster than f/2.8, I think this is the one to get.
