Canon

see also:

• Canon USA

• my notes:

  • Canon 1D Mark III

  • my lens tests 3 - Canon vs Olympus

  • lenses for the Canon dSLRs:

    • standard lenses and main zoom lenses

    • super wide lenses for Canon digital

    • super tele

    • portrait lens

    • macro

    • image stabiliser

    • perspective control lenses

  • remote control of cameras

  • flash technology

• online reviews:

  • http://www.fredmiranda.com/reviews/ 

  • http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/lenses/canon_lenses.shtml 

  • http://www.kenrockwell.com/canon/lenses/ 

  • http://www.photo.net/equipment/canon/ 

  • LensPlay.com EF lenses for Canon

  • Bob Atkin's Canon/Nikon website

  • Bob Atkin's lens recommendations for APS-C Canon cameras

  • Canon EF lens resolution comparison tests (move mouse over arrow to compare charts):

    • www.the-digital-picture.com

• other links:

  • Canon Australia's listing of lenses with RRP's

  • photonotes Canon lenses

  • http://www.eflens.com/ - list of EF lenses including third party with links

  • photonotes Canon EOS flash faq

  • 580EX II flash issues:

    • http://shimworld.wordpress.com/2008/02/28/speedlite-580ex-ii-hotshoe-fix/ 

  • Canon EXIF image tags

A few points worth noting:

• lenses:

  • see also: http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=86975 for Canon lens faq's.

  • EF-S lenses:

    • can only be used on APS-C cameras and not on APS-H or full frame cameras

    • still no 100mm image stabilised macro lens with wide aperture for portraiture as well as macro work.

  • current EF lenses are not optimised in either focal range or optical quality for digital SLRs, let alone the APS-C cameras

    • see my lens tests 3 - Canon vs Olympus

  • most of the L series telephotos are white which may be good if you are an extrovert pro at sports events, but not so good if you don't want to scare everyone around you and draw attention to yourself. Furthermore, you may not be allowed into sports events with one of these unless you have a pro photographer's permit pass for the event.

  • EF tele-extenders are only compatible with certain lenses

    • mainly the white L zooms and the telephotos of 135mm or more excluding the 135mm soft focus lens.

    • you can use it on the TSE 90mm and 45mm lens as well as the MP E65 f/2.8 1-5x macro lens.

    • they reduce the lens drive speed for AF - 1.4x reduces it by 50-67% while 2x reduces it by 75%.

    • using a tele-extender results in an effective reduced aperture (1 stop for 1.4x and 2 stops for 2x), in addition to allowing less light in, this may decrease the efficiency of the AF system, particularly if the resultant maximum aperture is less than f/5.6. The Canon body will report the effective aperture of the Canon combination BUT not if you stack two tele-converters.

    • The 1.4x tele-extender has a significantly protrusive front element which will hit against the rear element of most other lenses.

    • see http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=41922 for compatibility tables.

    • If you mount a Sigma Tele Converter 1.4X EX or 2x EX to a lens that is not listed in the compatibility tables it may damage the teleconverter as well as the lens.

    • if you plan to use an EF tele-extender with a non-EOS lens such as a telescope or MF lens as you get a "connection error" message and the camera will refuse to take the photo, but fortunately there are 2 possible hacks to get around this:

      • put tape over the autofocus contacts between the camera and the teleconverter

      • if using a T adapter to the telescope, use a special T-ring that includes "fake" electrical contacts

        • see http://www.kwtelescope.com:80/FotoSharp_page.htm 

• auto-focus:

  • For hand-held non-action photography, you are best to just use the centre AF point as the 49 AF points in the 1DMark III tend to mostly select objects other than your subject if there are other objects in the central field of view which are closer, and more contrasty than your subject which can be really frustrating.

• the 10fps mode of the Canon 1DIII is only available at shutter speeds 1/500th sec or faster.

• the faster x-sync mode of 1/300th sec is only available on Canon EX speedlights while studio lights may need 1/60th sec.

• custom WB on Canon 1D Mark III is quite cumbersome to set.

• using non-EOS lenses on Canon dSLRs:

  • http://www.16-9.net/lens_tests/compatible.html 

  • you can buy adapters to fit legacy manual focus lenses to be used in stop down mode BUT:

    • for AF confirm to work (centre AF point only), you need an adapter with AF-confirm EOS circuit connectors on it

      • the OM version I bought from China on Ebay had the circuit connector fall off within 2 days of mild use so had to glue it back on.

      • also at: enjoyyourcamera.com 

      • Nikon G adapter also allows aperture control of Nikon G lenses which don't have aperture rings.

    • Canon FD lenses require a special adapter with optical elements which will impact image quality so FD lenses are not an ideal option.

    • Olympus OM lenses

    • Contax lenses on EOS 

    • Photonotes - using manual lenses on Canon EOS cameras

  • manual focus will be very difficult to achieve accurately unless either:

    • use a split-prism focus screen

    • camera has a live preview with 10x live magnification (eg. Canon 1D Mark III)

History of Canon digital SLRs:

• 1987:

  • EF 135mm f/2.8 soft focus lens introduced

• 1996:

  • EF 135mm f/2L introduced

• 1999:

  • new IS line of Canon EF L series lenses introduced

• 2000:

  • D30: 3mp 3fps x8jpgs

• 2001:

  • 1D: 4mp cropped 8fps x 21jpgs

• 2002:

  • 1Ds: 11mp full frame 3fps x 10jpg

  • D60: 6mp 3fps x 8jpgs

• 2003:

  • 300D or Rebel: 6mp 2.5fps x 4jpgs

  • 10D: 6mp 3fps x 9 jpgs

• 2004:

  • 20D: 8mp 5fps x 23jpgs

  • 1D Mark II: 8mp full frame  8.5fps x 40jpgs

  • 1Ds Mark II: 16.6mp full frame 4fps x 32jpgs

    • unfortunately, even the Canon L series lenses do not have sufficient resolution to match this sensor, the situation will only be worse when Canon bring out a 22mp version in 2008
      • see http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/digital-view.shtml

• 2005:

  • 350D or Rebel XT: 8mp 2.8fps x 14jpg

  • 20Da - special astrophotography version of 20D allowing limited live preview and less IR blocking

  • 1D Mark IIN: 8mp full frame 8.5fps x 40jpgs

  • 5D: 12.7mp full frame 3fps x 60jpgs

  • Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM - 3 stop IS

  • Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM - 3 stop IS

• 2006:

  • 30D: 8mp upgrade to the 20D

  • 400D or Rebel XTi: 10mp with dust protection at last

  • Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM - compatible with e-TTL II flash;

    • http://www.wlcastleman.com/equip/reviews/85mm/index.htm 

    • AF twice as fast as the older Mark I version but not as fast as the f/1.8 version (no longer made)

    • "This lens weighs 2.4 times more, costs 6.2 times more and focuses only about 1/2 as fast as the EF 85mm f/1.8 lens. The greater weight and significantly slower autofocus function than the f/1.8 lens may make it a challenging tool for some action/performance photography applications such as basketball (but may be OK for gymnastics)"

    • a great portrait and wedding lens, not so good for moving toddlers, animals.

    • much better for astrophotography than the 50mm f/1.2 (flatter fields and sharper edge to edge)

  • Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM

• 2007:

  • 1D Mark III:
    • 1.3x crop sensor; 10mp; 10fps x 110frames burst; up to 6400ISO; 19 cross pt AF with 26 assist pts; 14bit; 3" LCD with live preview; sensor cleaner; 63 zone metering; 300,000 cycle shutter;
  • Canon EF 50mm f/1.2L USM
    • much faster AF than the 85mm f/1.2 but some miss-focus. Not as sharp as the 85mm or a 50mm macro.
    • bokeh, isolation of subject and flat field not as good as the 85mm f/1.2
    • http://www.kenrockwell.com/canon/lenses/50mm-f12.htm 
  • Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 IS USM
  • Canon 1Ds Mark III:
    • 21mp, 5fps, full frame with live preview, 3" LCD, 14bit. $US7999.
    • will be interesting to see how well their current lenses deliver enough resolution to match the sensor, it may be a case of more pixels and megabytes storage but no more detail until they come out with more higher resolution lenses as I suspect they have started with the new 14mm L II lens. 
      • see comments http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/canon3-2007.shtml 
    • strangely, they did not include ISO 6400 as they did with the 1DMIII.
    • pity they didn't have a 1.3x crop 10mp mode at 10fps to give it the versatility of being a 1DMIII as well but I guess a 1.3x crop on this sensor would end up as 16mp and that would be too much data to process at 10fps.
  • Canon EF 14mm f/2.8L II USM
    • 114deg; improved resolution; close focus only 0.20m though, circular aperture. $US2199.
  • Canon 40D:
    • substantial upgrade to the 30D with features derived from the 1D Mark III but I feel it's feature set comes up short when compared with its direct competitors, the Nikon D300 and Olympus E3, although Canon users won't mind.
    • Canon's APS-C range had become quite antiquated and this camera will put it back in the forefront of this range - just a pity the EF-S lenses tend not to be ideal and it's not well suited to the EF or TSE lenses.
    • 10mp, 6.5fps, APS-C with live preview and one touch AF, 9 AF pts, 3" LCD, 14bit
    • will be available with a new kit 28-135mm f3.5-5.6 IS USM zoom?
• 2008:
  • Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS & Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS kit lenses:
    • 1st EF-S lenses to have "4 stop" IS in a simpler analogue IS design
    • circular aperture
    • at last it seems APS-C buyers will have some reasonable kit lenses.
    • 18-55mm equates to 29-88mm.
    • 55-250mm equates to 88-400mm lens.
    • http://www.dpreview.com/news/0708/07082007canonefs18-55and55-250.asp 
  • Canon EF 200mm f/2L IS USM 
    • 2.5kg; close focus 1.9m; circular aperture; $US5999 RRP
  • Canon EF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM
    • 4.5kg (lighter than the 600mm f/4 which is 5.4kg); $US11,999 RRRP
  • Canon 450D:
    • 12mp, 14bit, 3.5fps, 3" LCD with Live preview with slow contrast-detection AF, sensor cleaning, spot metering at last, 475g w/o batt.
    • SD cards not CF cards & new batteries will effect existing Canon users wanting an upgrade.
    • new kit lens EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 with IS (29-88mm) which at last matches the Olympus kit lens in range, aperture and IS but will it have the build, optical quality and compact size of the Olympus with no rotating front element?
    • http://www.dpreview.com:80/news/0801/08012403canoneos450d.asp 
  • Canon 24mm f/1.4L II
    • perhaps this might have the resolution to match the new 21mp full frame sensors.
  • Canon 50D:
    • a 15mp update on the 10mp 40D but same real resolution as the expense of larger files and less dynamic range
    • spatial resolution is similar to 40mp on a full frame - unfortunately Canon don't make lenses of this resolution to match the sensor.
    • apart from this, its a good camera
  • Canon 5D MII:
    • 21mp full frame semi-pro with live preview and sensor dust reduction making it a significant upgrade to the original 5D.
    • you will need the best prime lenses to make use of the 21mp sensor, but otherwise, this is likely to be the way to go if you have the money and don't need the features of the 1DMIII.
• 2009:
  • Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L tilt shift - see here
  • Canon TS-E 24mm f/3.5 II L tilt shift - see here
  • Canon 100mm f/2.8 macro hybrid IS L lens - see here
  • Canon 7D:
    • APS-C 18mp 8fps body with movie capability - see here
  • Carl Zeiss 18mm f/3.5 MF lens - see here
  • Canon 1D Mark IV
• 2010:
  • Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II:
    • new version adds 1 flourite + a 5th UD lens for less CA, better contrast; closer focus to 1.2m (was 1.4m), "4 stops" IS; - see here
  • Canon 550D - Rebel version of the 7D; 18mp 3.7fps, HD video
  • Carl Zeiss Distagon T* 35mm f/1.4 
  • Canon 60D  - 18mp, 5fps, HD video, articulated screen
  • Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM - an "affordable" L lens
  • version III of 1.4x and 2x teleconverters - better AF accuracy
  • version II of 300mm f/2.8L IS, 400mm f/2.8L IS, 500mm f/4L IS and 600mm f/4L IS lenses
  • Canon EF 8-15mm f/4 L USM - 1st fisheye to give both circular and full frame images, weatherproof
• 2011:
• Canon 200-400mm f/4 ISL with built-in 1.4x telextender to give switchable 280-560mm f/5.6 lens
• Canon 600D dSLR - 18mp, 3.7fps, 9pt AF, tilt-swivel LCD, built-in wireless TTL flash control, 1080p HD movie at 30, 25 or 24fps with manual control and 3-10x crop zoom function; $US900 with kit lens
• Canon 1100D entry level dSLR - 12mp, 3fps, 9pt AF, 720p HD movie at 30fp or 25fps, $US600 with kit lens

Canon APS-C lens outfit:

• using EF-S lenses primarily:
  • standard lenses and main zooms:

    • Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM:

      •  645g; 77mm filter; 27-88mm; closest focus 0.35m

    • Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM:

      •  645g; 67mm filter; 27-136mm; closest focus 0.35m; a bit slow and only medium quality;

    • Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS:

      • introduced 2007

  • super wide:

    • Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5:

      • equiv. to 16-35mm, this has reasonable build quality and minimal aberrations with good resolution. Not dust proof. 385g; 77mm filter; 63-107deg; 

      • for the 1.6x crop, it is more useful wide angle than EF 17-55, EF-S 17-85, EF 17-40 but could be sharper and more weatherproof.

      • said to be better than the Nikon 12-24mm, the Tamron 11-18mm, and the Sigma 10-20mm

      • less distortion at 10mm than a Canon 16-35mm L on a full frame.

      • http://www.kenrockwell.com/canon/1022.htm 

  • portrait lens:
    • Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM is a good solution here
  • macro:
    • Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM:
      • 335g; inner focusing; 52mm filter; closest focus 0.2m; 0.20-1.28x mag with EF-12 II;
    • Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 macro USM 
    • Canon MP-E65mm f/2.8 1-5x macro
      • minimum focus 0.24m but MF only
      • can be very difficult to use
  • super tele:
    • no EF-S lenses see EF below

Canon APS-H lens outfit:

• ie. for Canon 1D series dSLRs with 1.3x crop
• standard lenses and main zooms:

  • Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 IS USM:

    • 31-137mm; 

    • introduced in 2005

    • more distortion, vignetting than the 24-70mm but more contrast, and lighter & with the IS makes it a better general purpose lens to carry around

    • seems a bit soft to me

    • 0.23x macro;

    • $A2000

    •  http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/lenses/28-105.shtml 

  • Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM:

    • RRP $A2700 great lens but no IS and its heavy. Its wide aperture makes it better for sports.

• super wide:

  • Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM:

    • 21-46mm on 1.3x crop; 82mm filter allows polas without vignetting;  weatherproofed; av. street price $US1600;

    • better image quality than the EF 17-40mm f/4L, but at 24-35mm, neither of these comes close to a EF 24-70mm f/2.8L

    • http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/lenses/16-35.shtml 

    • http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/lenses/canon-17-40.shtml 

• portrait lens:
  • various options but perhaps most cost effective are:
    • 85mm f/1.8
    • 100mm f/2.8 macro
    • 135mm f/2.0 although getting a bit too long
• macro:
  • Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 macro USM $A999 could double as the portrait lens - or the new IS version.
  • Canon TS-E 90mm f/2.8 tilt-shift allows changing plane of focus for close up subjects
  • Canon MP-E65mm f/2.8 1-5x macro $A1750 
    • minimum focus 0.24m but MF only
• super tele:
  • see under full frame

Canon full frame lens outfit:

• standard lenses and main zooms:

  • Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 IS USM:

    • introduced in 2005

    • more distortion, vignetting than the 24-70mm but more contrast, and lighter & with the IS makes it a better general purpose lens to carry around

    • 0.23x macro; 670g; 77mm filter;

    •  http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/lenses/28-105.shtml 

  • Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM:

    • RRP $A2700 great lens but no IS and its heavy. Its wide aperture makes it better for sports and background blurring.

• super wide:

  • Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM:

    • 21-46mm on 1.3x crop; 82mm filter allows polas without vignetting;  weatherproofed;

    • better image quality than the EF 17-40mm f/4L, but at 24-35mm, neither of these comes close to a EF 24-70mm f/2.8L

    • http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/lenses/16-35.shtml 

    • http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/lenses/canon-17-40.shtml 

• portrait lens:
  • various options but perhaps most cost effective are:
    • 85mm f/1.8
    • 100mm f/2.8 macro
    • 135mm f/2.0
• macro:
  • Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 macro USM - could double as the portrait lens
  • Canon MP-E65mm f/2.8 1-5x macro $A1750 
    • minimum focus 0.24m but MF only
• telephoto:

  • 70-200mm f/2.8 IS L:

    • weighing 1.57kg

    • 77mm filter; closest focus 1.4m;

    • http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/lenses/70-200is.shtml 

  • 300mm f/4 IS L:

    • 1.19kg 77mm filter

  • many other options
• basic kit with 77mm filter threads unless specified:
  • Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 IS USM 670g 
  • Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM 635g; NB. 82mm filter though
  • Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 macro USM 600g; NB. 58mm filter
  • 70-200mm f/2.8L IS 1.57kg; 
  • 300mm f/4 IS L 1.19kg;
  • weight: 4.7kg
  • RRP 2007: $A11975 - probably can get for 20% cheaper = $A9580
• extra lenses under $A4000 to consider, but most use a 72mm filter:

  • Canon EF 14mm f/2.8L USM:

    • 560g; rear filter holder; closest focus 0.25m; 18mm on 1.3x crop;

  • Canon EF 24mm f/1.4L II USM:

    • 77mm filter; 31mm on 1.3x crop;

  • Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L USM:

    •  580g; 72mm filter

  • Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM 

    • great portrait lens but very expensive & slow AF is a major problem.

    • 1kg; 72mm filter;

  • 135mm f/2.0L USM:

    • 176mm on 1.3x; 750g; closest focus 0.9m => 0.19x magnification on full frame;

    • 72mm filter

  • 200mm f/2.8 II L USM:

    • 0.77kg;  72mm filter; min. focus 1.5m; 

  • 400mm f/5.6 L (640mm effective):

    • 1.25kg; 77mm filter; but no IS;

Comparison with Olympus kit with IS in camera body:

• see Olympus E digital, remember the 2x crop factor; 

• Olympus ZD lenses appear to be sharper in the centre and very much more sharper in the corner at wide apertures

  • my lens tests 3 - Canon vs Olympus

• Olympus ZD 7-14mm f/4.0 

  • unique 14-28mm equiv. lens;  780g; does not take filters

• Olympus ZD 12-60mm f/2.8-4.0 SWD

  • 24-120mm eq.; 

• Olympus ZD 50-200mm f/2.8-3.5  

  • 1.07kg; 67mm filter; close focus 1.2m;

• Olympus ZD 50mm f/2.0 macro  

  • 300g;

• Olympus ZD 150mm f/2.0

  • 1.61kg; 82mm filter;