Cheap and Sharp

Flimsy (but so what / didn't cost anything)

Cheap and Sharp. My first lens which spoiled me for future purchases. Left me spending much more on other lenses trying to capture sharp images with other focal lengths. The price/performance might be unmatched if you think about it. I think easily the best sub $100 lens on the planet.

Super Sharp Fast Focus Large Max. Aperture Very Cheap Canon Customer Service Very light

Tacky Build Quality Focus ring on the end of the lens Focus ring spins during autofocus

If you don't have a 50mm Prime then buy this! At £80 it's cheaper than my P & S! Yet, this lens offers unbelievable image quality, especially when stopped down to f/22. I use 50 speed Velvia most of the time and the f/1.8 max aperture allows me to take 1/2000 sec. action shots! Superb! Qualtiy of construction is a bit tacky and the focus ring is too close to the end of the lens (when trying to focus quickly, fingers get on UV filter all too easily). Taken some great landscapes with it - recent enlargement to 20" by 30" shows superb detail.

Customer Service

Havn't used it yet - but Canon have been excellent in the past with other products.

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Canon 35-70mm F/3.5-4.5 Canon 80-200mm F/4.5-5.6

F1.8!!!! Great colors beautiful contrast. Under $100.

Focus ring could be better and F32 would be better but I am not complaining.

I cannot say enough about this lense. It has all of the features that one would want and is as sharp as a tack for under $100. It has taken some of my favorite pictures.

Customer Service

Not needed.

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Soon to purchase the Canon 28mm F2.8 and a Tamron 70-300mm F4-5.6 1:2 macro, great lense as well.

sharp, fast lens

plastic construction, reputation for being fragile. Focus ring is a little inconvenient; it's right on the end of the lens.

great lens - it's sharp, fast, and light. I shoot with this lens on my Rebel 2000 when I'm not shooting portraits and want a longer lens - it's not much heavier or bigger than a point-and-shoot.

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Canon FD 50/1.8, Canon EF 28-105 USM

Sharp! Light. VERY cheap.

Focussing ring, no big deal.

Excellent excellent lens even when you forget about the low low price, and when you factor that in this lens is just amazing. I opted for this over the 28-90mm zoom that came in a kit with my camera and I'm glad I did. It's ultra sharp, it's light, it's just great. I am well and truly hooked on primes. After reading reviews on this site I was a little worried about the build quality, some people made it out as though this lens would fall apart in my hand. It's very very light and it's plastic. But to me it really doesn't feel any less solid than the consumer zooms I've played with. The focussing ring is a little bit cheapo but who cares. This is a GREAT lens at an incredible price, just buy it.

Customer Service

Haven't needed it.

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This is my first Canon prime but I've used quite a few of their zooms.

Sharp, Fast Aperature and light weight

Built quality is not great, but no at the price I paid, it''''''''s not a major issue for me. I have no doubts that it will survive through my day to day abuse.

This lens is light, fast and sharp. I always have a camera on me and the Elan 7E/30 + 28mm-105mm USM gets a bit heavy and f3.5 is not always fast enough, even when shooting mostly on iso 400 B&W. When I got the lens it had bits of plastics in the elements (manufacturing defect), they exchanged it right away and for the price paid and the quality of the images you get, there is nothing to complain about.

Customer Service

I have not had a reason to use them so far.

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Never used a 50mm in the past Canon 28-105mm USM f3.5 Other Canon EF lenses

Very sharp, very good. Nothing extraordinary. Took some very beautiful portraits of my girlfriend with it. Now missing it''s operational presence.

Focusing motor is very loud. Light, flimsy build leaves a bit to be desired.

I used mine with good results until it broke a couple of weeks ago. I was using it in cold weather (20 degress) and then took it inside. Imagine my surprise when I lifted it (attached to the Elan 7 body) and watched, to my horror, and the ENTIRE FRONT ELEMENT AND FOCUSING MECHANISM CAME OUT OF THE BARREL LIKE GREASED LIGHTNING. I can only assume that either the metal rings inside the barrel or the front element fixtures contracted from the cold and thus became loose. The only thing that actually broke was the circuitry strip from the mount contacts to the circuits inside the lens. I called Canon and they are most likely going to say the lens was dropped. Generally an unacceptable performance. Would never happen with my other lenses.

Customer Service

Didn''t seem too agreeable. I doubt the technicians back the Canon plant will believe me and repair it under the warranty. I''ll be darned if I buy another one.

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22-55 USM, 28-200 USM. Elan 7, Eos 1.

Great value for the dollar. Can be used on a high percentage of your shots since it is 50mm. Very sharp photos with this lens.

Perhaps the plastic mounting if you we a high end professional user but this has not bothered me at all.

I bought this lens after reading some of the reviews at this site. This has turned out to be my most used lens and it produces excellent pictures. When you consider the low price the value of this lens is outstanding. Everyone should have a 50mm lens in their camera bag.

Customer Service

not needed

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Canon 200L f2.8, Canon 75-300, Canon 28-90

f1.8 for under $100 - can you really argue with that? Canon optics, which are almost always good, if not excellent.

Featherweight lens seems fragile, but probably isn''t. Looks vaguely silly sitting on a big SLR - my EOS 30 (Elan 7E) with the battery pack dwarfs this thing. That''s not much of a weakness, though.

This is a basic lens everyone who shoots on a Canon should own - at least to begin with. For the price, you can''t argue with it. With shipping, mine still came in under $85 - and I wouldn''t be surprised if you can find it cheaper. Even when you ignore the fact that a similar quantity of dirt is more expensive, this is still a very good lens. Wide open, the blur is excellent and subjects are crisper than fresh lettuce. In fact, I have yet to get mine to produce a bad image. Some stuff I shot today of some glassworkers turned out beautifully - the wide aperature allows you to overexpose color film (giving you better colors) without having ridiculously slow shutter speeds. I have yet to try it in black & white, but I imagine I''d get similar, excellent results. Also holds together well for night shots. I was bored the other night and shot some puddle reflections at close to a second or more shutter speed, hand-held, and didn''t have a speck of shake blur. Go buy one right now, if you don''t already have it. And if you don''t get a good one (other reviews have mentioned minor manufacturing defects), just exchange it for another. If you get one that was assembled correctly, you''re buying a great lens for a steal - and that''s an understatement.

Customer Service

Haven''t needed.

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Tamron 28-80

sharp, crisp pictures focuses quickly extremely lightweight

i''ve got no problems with it

as a beginner to photography, I read many different opinions on what kind of first lens to get. after agonizing over whether to get a zoom or a prime, I decided on this 50mm 1.8. and i''m sooooo glad I did. the sharpness and overall image quality is great. excellent lens to learn with and it''s under $100!!! a perfect companion with my elan 7.

Customer Service

Never used

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None