Dslr Camera Lenses Review

Olympus Zuiko 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 ED Lens for Olympus Digital SLR Cameras

2009-12-17T15:07:00.001-08:00

... I've had this lens for a couple of months now and I can say that I'm pretty happy in some respects and not so happy in others.

Over all it is a nice lens FOR THE PRICE. That is the crux of the matter. If you can't afford something better then this will do in a pinch. It's not a bad lens.

However, If you are a birder then I don't think that you will be happy in the long run.

Here's the thing. When people say that this lens is slow to focus they mean that often (though not always) it has to go through a long procedure of spiraling its barrel (external barrel) from one end to the other. It hunts and pecks its way until finally it finds a focus. That usually means that your beautiful shot of that cardinal is GONE!

I'm often confused as to why sometimes it focuses quickly and other times it has to go through this frustrating procedure. I think that it comes down to this... when you see the perfect "money shot" in front of you it purposely chooses this moment to mess with your head!

One other thing that really bothers me is that, as I said, it has an external focus barrel. This means that if you use a polarizing filter you have to twist the filter AFTER EVERY TIME YOU FOCUS since the filter thread twists during focusing.

Lastly, don't think that this is going to get you as close as you want for birding. No matter what, you will always wish that it was three times closer!

Having said all that, for most other uses, including taking shots of your daughter on the soccer field, you will be relatively happy.

Cheers! ...
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Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Lens for Canon EOS SLR Cameras

2009-12-16T14:27:00.001-08:00

... My stock lens had been a Sigma 18-200 and I was getting excellent results with it until I added a Canon 100-200mm zoom. The difference in quality between the two lenses was very noticable so I tried the 24-105mm and love it. It is heavier than the Sigma, but the results are very good. Autofocus is fast and locks on very well, the f/4 lets in lots of light even on the top end and is very functional across a wide range of photo uses. If I was putting together a lens/camera body combination for the first time, this is the combination I would go with. ...
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Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM Lens for Canon SLR Cameras

2009-12-15T14:43:00.001-08:00

... Its a great macro lens, good quality and great pictures can be taken with it, but its now up to $600 on amazon (currently at least) while on B&H photo the exact same lens is $490. Certainly a lens worth having though! ...
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Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM Standard Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras

2009-12-14T14:31:00.001-08:00

... It's hard to believe everything they say about the quality and performance of Canon L series lenses, however, once you have tried one of this caliber it's hard to go back to anything else. This glass lives up to all of those expectations and really spoils you. The image quality, color, contrast and image depth are stunning. I use this for portraiture and also for photographing my oil paintings. Technically, you shouldn't use a lens like this to shoot paintings because it shouldn't be able to take pictures as sharp as a prime---however---the sharpness is simply amazing. As for weight it's not a problem---the 2.8 is worth it. Built tough. I highly recommend this lens! ...
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Phoenix 650-2600mm Telephoto Lens with Mount for Canon EOS 30D 20D 5D Digital Rebel XT XTI & Film SLR Cameras

2009-12-13T13:16:00.001-08:00

... Before I received it, I was very skeptical; quality! usability, value! All these questions were lingering in my mind. Then I received it. At first impression, I was elated! The build quality was not bad at all, it reminded me of Canon's big lenses, though much less fancy.

What struck me as odd, was not the external zooming or focusing design rather than the short end of the zooming tube left to support the weight of the lens at ful zoom range.

I could understand the designer's point of view from an engineering perspective, what I could not understand was that a 2" extra length in the internally moving tube beyond the maximum zooming range would have added enough stability to render the lens far superior than its cuurent pathetic configuration, yet nobody gave this thought a rat's tail end.

It is made in China, yet the add stated that it was made in Japan. It appears that, though some chinese products are equal to the Japanese when under strict engineering and manufacturing tolerances, left to their own whims, they try to cut corners that cannot possibly be cut from an American end user's perspective, rendering the whole thing a fiasco.

Fortunately, this is not a total fiasco, but I sure hope that somebody out there is reading these letters right now! Only 2" of extra aluminum tubing would do the job just fine.

Another aspect, albeit, this time strictly esoteric; the lens is so bland! When you hold a German or a Japanese Lens, apart from the instantly evident signs of high quality, you will notice that it has had a lot of thought when the general looks were being considered.

This one is lacking luster, which when added, would not really add any extra cost. Just placing some fancy tags and inscriptions with multi color zooming lines scheme would make a world of a difference to the appearence and the seeming quality. Again, I hope someone is reading these letters right now!

Now to usability: If you think you could use this lens for anything other than mounted on extremely steady tripod for long to very long exposure shots, you will have wasted your time and money. This lens could only be practical for nature, some wild life, and landscape, where quick shots are not even part of your prepearation, much less your consideration.

Quality wise, well, for the price and the market for which it is intended, it is a very good tool, all you need is a good knowledge of its capability and limitations, and a super heavy tripod as well as super majestic targets to shhot it with this lens. The rest is superflowous.

Conclusion: You are not a pro, you have $300 to spare, you enjoy photography and are willing to go distances for good shots, and you are not thinking of selling your products to photo agencies! If these conditions meet you half way, buy the darn thing, it is the only lens out there capable of doing what a hunting rifle is capable ofPhotographic Lenses: Photographers Guide to Characteristics, Quality, Use and Design; bringing you the head of a trophy from a quarter mile away! ...
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Nikon 50mm f/1.4D AF Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

2009-12-10T15:07:00.001-08:00

... I have just started working with this lens, and I am already amazed by it's capabilities with my D300.
Well made, solid, and of course very fast allowing you to take good low light photos without flash. Focusing speed is not bad at all.
Though ideal for portraits, I am happy with the results for other subjects too. Could not notice any vignetting or distortion -just perfect photos.
The focus ring at the edge of the lens rotates, but I quickly used to not touching it when holding the camera. And what I most like about this prime, is that it makes carrying around my D300 much easier than with the Zoom lens I have.
I am looking forward to shooting various subjects with this lens during our upcoming vacation. ...
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Nikon 35mm f/1.8G AF-S DX Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

2009-12-09T14:30:00.001-08:00

... I picked this lens yesterday, and am so far very impressed with it. Indoor night shots came out great, I'm planning on testing it outdoors today.

It definitely has a plasticy feel to it, but build quality feels decent for a lens in this price range. On my D80, it focuses extremely fast. So far I'm very happy with it, it certainly makes a nice addition to the other lens that I already had.

If you're having trouble finding this lens online, check your local dealer. The local shop in my small town had several available at MSRP, while most of the big online stores don't have any, and others are charging much more than MSRP. ...
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Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras

2009-12-08T14:47:00.001-08:00

... It is the best lens I ever had. The image stabilizer is really good and obtains a great definition. 100% recommendable for anyone. It is better to pay a little bit more by an original product. ...
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Pentax DA 55-300mm f/4-5.8 ED Lens for Pentax and Samsung Digital SLR Cameras

2009-12-07T14:31:00.001-08:00

... I originally purchased the DA 50-200mm lens as a compact companion to the kit 18-55mm AL II, but since I wanted something with a little more reach, I decided to add the DA 55-300mm to my collection and am glad I did! This lens produces superior images throughout its focal range, even wide open at 300mm, hand held. It is definitely a better match for the resolving power of the K20D sensor than the 50-200mm, and although the lens is a little bulky, especially when zoomed out fully, it's surprisingly lighter than it looks. This lens, together with the 18-55 AL II, covers an impressive focal range, and takes great pictures, at an affordable price. ...
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Sigma 10-20mm f/4-5.6 EX DC HSM Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

2009-12-05T14:21:00.001-08:00

... Sometimes I am really pleased with the bright color repro and it generally produces sharp images. But I'm going to wait and see before I render an updated verdict. I ran a lot of sharpness test images:
at 10mm f/8 was best
at 13mm f/5.6-f/11
at 17mm f/11 and most all was very good
at 20mm f8-f/11 ...
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Tamron AF 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 Di LD Macro Zoom Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras

2009-12-04T14:52:00.001-08:00

... Tamron AF 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 Di LD Macro Zoom Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras
Arrived quickly, and great quality! ...
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Sigma 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 DG IF Macro Aspherical Lens for Canon SLR Cameras

2009-12-03T15:08:00.001-08:00

... I have had this lens twice. I am a semi-pro photographer that doesn't have $1000 to spend on a lens. So after much research I went with the sigma. The first one I had worked flawlessly, but I broke it... re-ordered it and I still have my second one. I've had it for about 2 years. over 5,000 pictures or more and I can't tell the difference between it and a Canon L lens I use from work. I will say the ONLY con of this lens is that it is not built as well as the Canon L lens and the zooming isn't as smooth... but.. I don't plan on changing over any time soon. I am looking for the image quality and relatively sturdy lens. Sigma pulls this off great. Other than a little bit of a stiff zoom the lens is perfect. image quality as I said is just as good as the Canon L series, trust me I know. I have taken over 40,000 pictures. There isn't any difference.. and if there is it isn't worth double the price for a canon L series. Sigma is awesome. keep it up. ...
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Nikon 10.5mm f/2.8G ED AF DX Fisheye Nikkor Lens

2009-12-02T14:27:00.001-08:00

... I bought a Tokina 10-17 mm and started shooting with it. I liked it but I felt it was not sharp enough and I heard about the colour aberrations.
Therefore I went to bring it back to B&H and I upgraded with the Nikkor 10.5
This is absolutetly more sharp and fast. The only two things that I found bad are:
1) the lens is much more difficult to keep clean than the Tokina's one;
2) why the hell Nikon decided to produce expensive lenses like the Wideangle 12-24 mm and this Fisheye in crappy plastic?! For keeping down their weight? Fck the weight issue and give me some old time, long lasting great metal body lenses!!!! ...
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Canon EF 100-300mm f/4.5-5.6 USM Telephoto Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras

2009-12-01T14:43:00.001-08:00

... This is not a lens for anyone shooting events indoors.
It MAY be great for those of you who don't mind using flash, but I really try not to (preference here). So, others like it and keep in mind the type of photography you do and take it for a test drive - returned. ...
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Nikon 24mm f/2.8D AF Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

2009-11-30T14:32:00.001-08:00

... I was quite surprised of the close focusing capability of the lens on my Fuji S3 Pro, as well as the relative lack of distortion. The product was delivered on time at a good price. ...
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Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG Medium Telephoto Macro Lens for Canon SLR Cameras

2009-11-27T14:53:00.001-08:00

... I bought this lens for macro work after I saw the photos of a member of my camera club made with the same lens. I wasn't disappointed. Photos are sharp & clear. ...
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Canon EF 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 DO IS USM Lens for Canon EOS Cameras

2009-11-26T15:07:00.001-08:00

... I purchased this lens because I do a lot of candids and 200mm is just not good enough. I also recently purchased a 5D MkII, so any praise I may have for the lens may be partly due to this camera. When I read some reviews of this lens, I was worried that it was weird. I will mostly address these issues. Is it heavy? No. I use a monopod and hand carry a 100-400 lens without problems. This lens is only 52 mm at the front,so it has amazing reach for its size. Does the zoom feel heavy? No. The zoom needs some resistance, since the front of the lens would extend by itself if it was too light on the zoom control. This is the same issue you have with the Sigma 18-200, another great all purpose lens for candid shots. Both lenses have a lock button that keeps the lens from extending when you not taking pictures.
Lastly and most importantly does the diffraction type lens cause any problems? No. I have literaly seen no problems with lack of sharpness or unusual flare. I think you would have to shoot tripod test scenes to reveal this. Using a monopod in real life conditions,the issue does not appear to exist. Admitedly with back ligthting you can get some fogginess and flare,but this is just like other lenses. I think some ot the reviwers who are critical spend too much time bench testing. When I am doing candid,or travel photography,especially with a full frame camera,this may become my main lens. ...
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Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-4.5 DC IF Macro Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras

2009-11-24T14:43:00.001-08:00

... Great item at a great price. Much better price than a Nikon lens would cost. For anyone who is not a highly paid professional, why would you spend the $$ for a Nikon lens? This item is great and performs without issue. Sigma is a great brand. ...
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Sigma 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 DC Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras

2009-11-23T14:31:00.001-08:00

... Reading reviews is a crap shoot. You know nothing about the reviewer or the use of the product. That said, I am assuming you are not a struggling professional trying to shoot a high quality, tight-budget job. You are a user looking for one lens to carry to cover a wide range of service.

I'm a pro. I have a many bodies and L lenses to use.

I carry an XSI with THIS Sigma 18-200mm non OS lens just about everywhere I go. It is a great vacation tool, where most pix are shown in a digital frame or are never going to be more than 4x6.

Yes, the MTF is not great (simply: contrast across the lens), there is some chromatic fringing and watch out! the lens hood will cause vignetting and shadows with a flash at wide angle. I've been using this lens since it was released in early '05.

It's a $300 lens. Does it compare to a $1500 L lens? Yeah - very badly. So what? The first rule of photography is get the picture. Missing the shot while changing lenses is not photography. Is this the preferred lens in my arsenal? No. But for general non-client, daylight, non-sports shooting, it's the one I'll probably be using. I prefer the non-optical stabilzed version - less complexity.

To help you weigh this review: I use five professional (5D, 1D) and several prosumer (40D, 50D, XTI, XSI) bodies and nine L lenses, plus a slew of others.

Photo tip: night shooting of foreground against backround (done a lot with this lens!): typical situation: girl on beach in front of sunset. Manually set exposure to flash shutter speed, aperature & ISO to get background. Turn flash on to expose and meter foreground. You'll get some great "how did you do that?" pix. All the MTF, abberetion and linearity issues will mean nothing, because you got a picture no one else could and th L doesn't really add anything, because you want depth of field here.

Thanks for reading my review. ...
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Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG Medium Telephoto Macro Lens for Nikon SLR Cameras

2009-11-22T13:16:00.001-08:00

Olympus 50mm f/2.0 Telephoto Macro ED Lens for E1, E300 & E500 Digital SLR Cameras

2009-11-19T15:07:00.001-08:00

... I think everything has already been said in the other reviews. This lens is incredibly sharp, even at f/2.0. I've been pairing it with my Olympus E-520 and I am well satisfied with the combination

This lens is incredible for macro as well as portraits. A little footwork is required for portraits, depending on how tight you want the cropping on the portraits. I've been able to take great macro shots of butterflies and other little critters as well as flowers.

Before I purchased it, I was concerned with what other online reviews had said about the focusing ring. As you are probably familiar, there is not direct mechanical connection between the focusing ring and the actual lens elements (it's motor driven and electronically controlled), however, compared to the kit lenses (14-42mm and 40-140mm), this focus ring is incredibly smooth.

It does make a bit of motor noise when you're going from infinity to up close. Low-light autofocus is a little slow, but I think that's the case for most camera/lens combinations.

This lens feels very solid and the lens mount is made of metal. It feels great putting this lens on. The connection feels precise and sturdy.

what else can I say... I am well satisfied with this lens :) ...
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Tamron AF 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 XR Di LD Aspherical (IF) Macro Ultra Zoom Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras

2009-11-18T14:27:00.001-08:00

... I bought this lens as a good walk-about lens. It certainly does meet that criteria as it is incredibly light and compact (altho it zooms WAY out). It has a great range except I need to go purchase a wide angle - but has generally done well in meeting most needs and I love the telephoto ability. However most of my shots are just not very sharp. I would say it is all the lens except some of them ARE sharp. I finally decided that it just focuses a bit too slow or off in some cases - especially in telephoto action shots. I take a bunch of RAW burst mode but very few will actually work out. I have been able to take pretty decent photos at inside performances of the performers on stage but I have switched to manual focus. The lens also has unbelievable "creep". I ALWAYS put the lock on it when I carry it around otherwise the lens would be permanently at full telephoto. I haven't done much still photo work with it but if you are aiming downward creep will definitely come into play in that situation as well. I don't have any problems with the build or quality or feel of the lens. I love the light weight and nice range but am not satisfied with many of the resulting photos. ...
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Nikon 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G ED AF-S DX Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

2009-11-17T14:43:00.001-08:00

... Nikon produces great glass and this is no exception but forget about FX sensored cameras or similar pricing in regards to Canons version of this lens. ...
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Lensbaby Macro Kit (AMACK)

2009-11-16T14:31:00.001-08:00

... I had the Lensbaby Composer for a week before getting the macro kit. The Composer... Awesome. The Composer with the macro lens(s) is just unreal. You can expect crystal clear images with the 4x from 10"-16", the 10x lens will get you excellent shots from ~5-10 inches. Plus you can stack the two to get clear images from a couple inches. I'm absolutely thrilled. ...
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Opteka Close-Up Set (+1, +2, and +4) with 10x Macro Lens for Canon EOS Rebel XS, XSi, XTi, XT, 50D, 40D, 30D, 20D, 5D, 1Ds and Mark II SLR Digital Camera

2009-11-15T13:16:00.001-08:00

... I bought these so I could get more into macro photography, and they do great! I can get really close to the subject and take amazing photos. And the price was right. The carrying pouch holds and protects all four lens and is very handy. ...
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