*Image Stabilization *Good focal range *Price *Good optics at f 5.6 - 11 *USM - FT-M - I/R

*EW-78BII sold apart *Some distortion at 28mm (barrel) and 135mm (pin-cushion), normal in prosumer lens.

Hey man... What about Image Stabilization??? It''s a amazing tool in this prosumer lens. It is my lens for all purpose. I may job without fear in low speed in the best f-stop range of this lens: 5.6 - 11. For example: f/7.1, @105mm at 1/15seg, flawless and sharpness. It''s very good in photos without movement and with use of speedlights. The balance control between the flash and available light is nice. Be careful with lens flare...ever use EW-78BII. Logically it''s not a 28-70L f/2.8!!! How many poor mortal can have a L lens. But many people can have a Image Stabilazer... point for Canon! Sincerely, at f/8 or around I can''t see many difference between the 28-135IS and my 28-70L. With the advantage to have more 65mm length. In near future all lens will be Image Stabilazer 3rd or 4th generation. Think very well: The price, the weight, the focal range, good optics ... choose and buy 28-135. You won''t regret... Have good photos.

Customer Service

XXX

Similar Products Used:

28-70L, 20-35L, 50 f/1.4, 70-200L, 100 MACRO USM.

Image Stabilizer works flawlessly on EOS 7. USM with full time manual is fast and smooth.

A bit too heavy. The lens head touches the ground when you mount it on EOS 7 with vertical grip.

IS works flawlessly on EOS Elan 7 and I cannot even tell it is working. I can set 1/30s at 135mm in Tv mode and not worry about camera shake, although I am still not 100% confident when I press the shutter button. I wish I had digital SLR for this lens. USM with FT-M works beautifully. It is quiet, fast, and almost always focus in a blink of second. "IS" takes one second to activate but I have not had any wait-time for IS to engage ''''cause I spend more time composing the frame than IS starts to work.

Customer Service

N/A

Similar Products Used:

Tamron 28-200mm f3.8-5.6 Super II

Evrything that all the others have mentioned

nothing.. bet yet not worth mentioning

If you''re in the market for the type of a zoom lense in this range, you know the only two lenses out there are either this or the 24-135 tamron. To start off I bought the Tamron first, but eventualy i had to sell and get this lens instead, these both lenses are great lenses, i picked canon for more realistic color reproduction, tamron somehow was oversaturated with color which wasn''t the way to go for photographing people, secondly tamron is heavier almost as if it doesn''t balance itself right on the camera being too thick,short,heavy.. and last but not least not so sharp pictures that tamron produced cause of camera shake, quality wise as far as optics they are very similar, honestly i''ve been using canon for over 10 years and this has been the best consumer zoom that i''ve come across in the EF line up, if you''re a EOS owner this is a must have lens, the quality of the images are above average... and yes it is not as sharp as the 28-70L which you won''t be able to distinguish from 4 by 6 prints but the actuall feel of the picture is better compared to the 28-70L meaning it is crispier more contrasty than the L, and for all the 28-70L owners, try it out and see what you have been missing :)

Customer Service

lol what service? 10 years of canon here not even a scratch!

Similar Products Used:

maybe 25 lenses so far from canon, and 24-135 tamron, its a b euatiful lens don''t get me wrong, but whats beauty if you''re not getting any lol

Great lens and the IS is definatly a plus

Canon needs to begin providing a lens hood with the lens as opposed to an accessory we have to purchase separatly.

I have used this lens coupled to the EOS 3 and EOS 7 and with both the lens is very good. This is my first IS lens and was questioning its practicality at the 28-135mm range but after using it and seeing the results i doubt if I ever purchase another Canon lens without IS. I know because I tested the lens against a non-IS lens using the same roll of film and merly swapping lenses after each shot. USM is quiet but I really can''t tell a difference in noise or speed between it and the Tamron 28-200. Primarily used for landscape photography with Kodak Royal Gold 400 and find the results are clear, sharp and distinct, with great color saturation and separation. Any mishaps were caused by the operator - me and not the lens.

Customer Service

No used

Similar Products Used:

Tamron 28-200, Sigma 28-105

Image Stabilization Zoom range

Sharpness

I''ve used this lens as my workhorse for over 3 years. It may look flimsy, but it''s held up well for me. So it''s not the fastest, and it''s certainly not the sharpest, especially at 135mm. The IS more than makes up for the loss of speed, and I don''t mind losing a little sharpness if I can get shots that I never could have gotten with another lens. I use the lens primarily for travel, when I want to roam for a month or so with all my things in one carry-on size bag. Traveling light like this will lead to photo-ops in and of itself. And then you''ve got a 28-135 zoom range. Ever miss a shot or two while changing lenses(the true strength of zoom lenses)? Some people will complain about the sharpness of shots they wouldn''t have gotten anyway. The IS works like a champ. I''ve zoomed to 135mm and shot at 1/15 and gotten useable results, enlarged to 8"x12". Admittedly, it''s not the best lens when sharpness really matters or when you need to freeze the action. But if you''re roaming the streets in search of the deciscive moment, or just in need of a great all-in-one lens, you''d do well to grab one of these.

Customer Service

Haven''t needed it!!!

Similar Products Used:

Tamron 28-200(once upon a time), Canon 28-70/2.8 and 70-200/2.8, among others.

Good zoom range, obviously the IS (why else pay big bucks for it?), OK image quality, fairly sharp stopped down. Good build quality considering the complexity of the piece.

Slow, bad flare in certain situations, shade not included, and probably nothing else for the price and rank.

I would like to add my two cents on the issue of "flimsy build". I had this lens on a New Jersey beach in October of 2001. A wave came too close and touched my camera . The camera was not totally drenched but ended up in about two inches of water for a second. Water got inside under the front element, and with water came sand. Grains of sand behind the front element, in the zoom and focusing rings. It hurt to hear the crunchy sound of sand when zooming in and out. AF quit for a wihle, the resumed. The lens still worked. After a while the sand got out of the system and the rings became smooth again. Water on the front element dried but a few pieces sand still remain. To make it short. I never sent it in, and the lens is still fully functional, never any poblems. I shot a ton of film with it and I bet the sand inside does make the image quality any worse than originally designed. Since then I bought a 28-70 zoom and the 28-135 is retired in an equipment closet. (Since the I bought a leica M6 TTL, and now all of my Canons enjoy vacation but it is a different story). Back to the Canon zoom: I have little use for it now, I do not want to spend money on CLA and I do not want to sell it for nothing. But if I have to use it will probably work as on day one. Oh yes, it was on EOS 3 with a BP-E2 booster on that beach. The camera suffered no damage at all. Of all the parties involved in all that beach experience I was the only one to sustain most damage - emotional, the kind that does not count anyway. Since than I only take an underwater Canon P&S to beaches.

Customer Service

Never needed yet.

Similar Products Used:

Canon EF 28-70 2.8 70-200 2.8, primes, Nikon 35-70 2.8, and all other current 2.8 zooms, numerous primes, telephotos. Not similar but for the sake of argument: Mamiya 645 with 4 or 5 leneses. Hass

IS works! Optical quality pretty good (no, it''s not an L lens, but it''s the best Canon consumer zoom).

Maximum aperture not great, heavy.

This lens is an absolute boon for travel photography or landscapes without a tripod. Sure, the maximum aperture isn''t too great, so it can be difficult to freeze motion, but that''s not what I want this lens for (indeed, it''s too short for most of that sort of thing - cue the 70-200 f2.8). What it does do is allow me to use slow film (Velvia) and small apertures even in poor light whilst handholding - something I can''t do with my faster max aperture primes. It''s nonsense to say this lens is flimsy - sure, it''s not as solid as an L lens, but it''s actually pretty tough and robust. It is quite big and heavy, though. Optically, again it''s no L lens, but it''s actually pretty good, and at f11 the quality is superb. And you can use f11 because of the IS. 3 stops worth of stabilisation is how I would rate it, and the relatively low price of this lens makes it a true bargain

Customer Service

N/A

Similar Products Used:

No other IS lenses, but 24-85, 24-80, 28-105 etc etc

versatile. IS may offer some increased picture opportunities.

relatively flimsy. expensive to repair. marketed as more of a boon than it really is.

Overall, this is a great default lense, particularly during daylight hours where high levels of ambient light give the luxury of higher shutter speeds if action stopping is needed for your subjects. Under these conditions, IS shines in enhancing the sharpness of your images by removing user-input instability, resulting in very sharp images. The lens is, however, of limited value in low light unless you''''re willing to use faster films (ISO 800 or above) because while the IS function negates the shooters shaking and quaking, it does nothing to diminish blur from subject movement, which can be a problem at normal to short tele focal lengths with shutter speeds 1/30 sec or slower. If you primarily shoot landscapes or stills, these are mostly non-issues – for you, this lens is a godsend. Like most Canon consumer level equipment, durability is not a strong suit. The lens is very plasticky and feels less than substantial for its cost; it''''s poorly sealed, as are all Canon consumer lenses, which I''''ve used for more than a decade and all quickly begin accumulating dust on the interior elements despite meticulous care. It may not seem like such a problem, but enough accumulation eventually will result in compromised performance in contrast and resolution. Anyone intending serious outdoor use should consider more robust L-series designs. I dropped my camera/lens combo once (EOS 50E) and chipped the filter threads right off the front of the 28-135, but otherwise it seemed fine, allowing me to continue using it for the next few months, but then the zoom started to hang up and it had to be sent off for repairs to the tune of $178. Optically, the lens is average, with any perceived quality gains over the 28-105 likely being the result of the IS function. Distortion is quite noticeable at the focal length extremes and objectionable with linear subjects. Ultimately, I found IS benefits not significant to continue dealing with the limitations of the Canon EOS system, those being lack of manual/powerless options (for those shooting in cold climates on a budget, batteries are a deal breaker), and shameful durability. I''''ve owned EOS lenses and bodies with have simply had parts break for no reason–the entire front facia of my A2, the lens release button of my Elan II...I''''m not hard on equipment at all, but I expect better. Switched to Nikon and a sturdy tripod, and am

Customer Service

Don''''t expect any favors. Average turn around unless you''''re a member of Canon Professional Services (CPS).

Similar Products Used:

28-105 f/3.5-4.5 EF 35-105 f/3.5-4.5 EF 28-105 f/3.5-4.5 Nikkor 100 f/2 EF 50 f/1.8 EF 50 f/1.8 Nikkor 28-80 f/3.5-5.6 D Nikkor,

I.S. saturation and sharp

front element moves, a bit disconcerting

As a wedding photographer to be able to shoot between 6 to 10 rolls of 36 exposure film without one shot with blurr is a god send. The lens is sharp has good contrast and great saturation overall a great allround people lens.

Customer Service

Had a small tick sound when zooming. repaired by cannon in one week.

Similar Products Used:

tokina ATX pro 28 - 80 tamron 28 - 105 SP

IS, USM, great optics overall

A bit slow at the long end, "bokeh" isn''t as good as a prime lens, limiting its usefulness for fine portraiture. Then again, for fine portraiture, you should be using a prime lens. Or medium format, for that matter.

This is perhaps the best walk-about lens ever. Great range, sharpness ranging from good to excellent, and the stabilization make an unbeatable package. This lens is usable wide-open, but really comes into its own when closed down one stop, producing good sharp slides. The IS really improves the low-light handholdability.

Customer Service

Haven''t used Canon service in a long time, had to send the offending lens in twice to get it repaired properly, though.

Similar Products Used:

Canon EF 28-105 USM, EF35-105 (push-pull), EF 35-70/3.5-4.5, EF 28-70/3.5-4.5; Nikon AF 35-70/3.3-4.5, AF 28-105/3.5-4.5D