Used Canon EF 50mm f/2.5 Compact Autofocus Macro Lens

2013-08-13T21:00:00

Love the lens. Difficult to use in autofocus. Best results are when you manually focus instead. Glad I purchased it.

Thomas P.

2013-05-13T21:00:00

This is an awesome lens for macro photography. I mostly use it to shoot miniature models at a local game shop, and delivers fantastic results every time. It focuses a little slow for capturing fast moving bugs, but otherwise perfect lens.

T.Mottl

2013-04-01T21:00:00

This lens is to be my "go to" lens for all of my close up work. Sharpest lens I have ever owned. Haven't used the auto-focus on it because I shoot manual on the close ups. You certainly can't go wrong if your lens is as good as mine. Great lens.

LM

2013-02-05T19:00:00

This was my first non L series lens but after reading other reviews, I decided to give it a try. The other reviews are right. It's very nice. The picture quality is good. I'm also glad I bought it from Adorama because if you're not happy with a lens that you buy from them, you can return it (within 30 days).

Nick N.

2013-01-03T19:00:00

I love shooting insects which are in short supply in winter where we live. So I have been shooting snowflakes on my dogs nose. Once srping srrives I plan to shoot insects and anything else that I find fascinating.

redlocks

2012-06-03T21:00:00

Lens takes excellent shots of insects. Good depth of field, easy to use. Autofocus is great. Can be used for everyday family pictures if you don't have a standard 55 mm lens.

GARY L.

2012-05-13T21:00:00

This lens is on my 5D most of the time. It's extremely sharp and the contrast is excellent. You can't beat it for the price, but I wouldn't drop it. These days no lens is as tough as those made thirty years ago.

CW

2012-01-15T19:00:00

Lens was given as a christmas gift but did not fit it made for a very unhappy daughter. we called and they said it would fit but it had manf defect so after sending things back so on and so forth we finally got a lens that worked

unhappy

2011-12-27T19:00:00

I bought this lens to photograph custom car parts and touch-up detail work on my cars to present on my website. I had forgotten that my Wife had bought me a Canon 60 mm f/2.8 USM macro the previous Christmas! The 50 mm f/2.5 performed very well. Though somewhat slow to focus it was not a problem for what I was using it for. After using the 60 mm Macro and experiencing it's very rapid, accurate and quiet auto focusing I decided to trade the 50mm Macro in . Again, no problem quality wise with the 50mm f/2.5 Macro , especially if you manual focus your macro shots and can live with the 1:2 magnification and the protruding lens barrel. It takes great photos! Five stars for Adorama service!

Gary A.

2011-12-18T19:00:00

An excellent quality-built lens with an affordable low economic price. Sharp as a tack!!

LLOYD H.

2011-12-11T19:00:00

In low light loses focus speed. That's one of the biggest problems in this lens. But in good lighting conditions the color definition is impeccable.

cuadra

2011-10-09T21:00:00

I'm doing tests in different environments to see where I feel the most comfortable using this lens. I use it for some of my photography home-works. Surprisingly, I can focus on objects pretty far (example: 10 meters away). It is nice to see the focal length measures written directly on the zooming tube. It is nice that the lens is small and lightweight. Though the focus ring feels a little narrow. The magnification scale, the distance scale and the depth-of-field scale are a little confusing (too many numbers in a small area). Plus this lens has no image stabilizer so a tripod is necessary to use it.

Tweedip

2011-10-02T21:00:00

Sharp as a tack and great image quality. Autofocus is noisy, but reasonably fast. I have been extremely happy with the lens.

HEATHER M.

2011-09-07T21:00:00

Normally, I shoot with this baby wide open and up close. Anything I want to shoot macro, this puppy can handle at a 1:2 ratio. It's super lightweight and is my secondary lens. LOVE this lens, however, the autofocus is painfully slow and if you get in real close you need to manually focus. But I guess an F2.5 compact macro at such a great price point had to have a downfall.

CHARMAINE M.

2011-09-03T21:00:00

Great macro shots plus good shooting at 2.5 for shallow depht of field effects.

JOSEPH R.

2011-09-03T21:00:00

Good value in a 50mm. At its best when used withe matched life size converter.

Too l.

2011-03-13T21:00:00

Works great right out of the box. I photograph the jewlery that my wife and I create in our shop, with this lens sharp clear pictures are no problem.

PAUL S.

2010-06-26T21:00:00

I do a lot of outdoor photography and find this lens to give clear sharp photos every time. The focus is sufficiently fast when in auto mode but can be a bit slow in manual. Like all macro lenses the depth of field is shallow but this is no problem if attention is paid to the focal plain.

Jack

2010-04-24T21:00:00

This lens is a good, dependable lens. If you want a basic macro lens, this will do just great. However, it is not a "distance macro" lens- that is, if you want to shoot skittish insects from a few feet away this is not the lens. But even with only 1.5X magnification this lens does very well at close distances. To give you an idea, at its closest focal distance (9" or so?), the frame on my 50D is filled width-wise by approximately 1.8 quarters (25 cent coins). That is, it can fill a frame with less than 2 US quarter coins worth of width- not too shabby for a lens at this price. The image quality is great. AF is somewhat slow and noisy. Overall I am quite satisfied by this lens. PROs: •Great image quality •Fills a frame with less than two US quarter coins worth of space •Good price CONs: •Have to be pretty close to subjects to get macro •Slow AF

Christian S.

2010-03-10T19:00:00

I've had this lens for a few weeks now, and for less than 300 dollars its an amazing lens. Weighs hardly anything, has great image quality, and is compact, and decently rugged for the size and price. The only problem are the sloowwww auto focusing. Other than that, this is an excellent, sharp, good quality Canon lens. I highly recommend it.

wyatt

2009-10-19T21:00:00

A lot of folks on forums will tell you not to get this lens, get the 100f2.8, no get the 100L IS. Well, if this the the only macro you can afford, the get it and discover a whole new world. Sure, it is only 1:2, but on an APS sensor, it doesn't matter that much. I love mine, and use if for a general walkaround fast lens sometimes too.

ROBERT A.

2009-06-04T21:00:00

I have had the opportunity to use this lens and Canon's 60 mm Macro for a week and while the 50mm is OK I was not impressed. Because it has an extending front element, and uses Canon's standard autofocus system, it takes an age to focus, whining all the way. Most disappointing was that I had understood that this was a 1:1 macro, and in fact the markings on the front lens barrel indicate this. What I didn't know was that you had to come up with another $250 for a lens extender (with optics) to do this. I would seriously look at spending just an additional $100 in the first place and buy the Canon 60mm 2.8 Macro, which has interior focussing optics, and focusses instantly and silently with Canon's ultrasonic focussing right down to a true 1:1. The additional focal length is also a plus, and it is one of the highest rated Canon lenses with a 9.4 Bob Atkins rating (compared to 9.0 for the 50mm.

ROGER W.

2009-02-27T19:00:00

I bought the lens as a gift for my wife, she love the close up shots, flower, rocks etc. I now love this lens as well. great for portraits and close ups. It easy to use.. I think the auto focus is a bit slow, but I can find no real fault with the lens. It does every thing I expected it to do and more.. I great addition to my lens case

Johnny C.

2008-08-05T21:00:00

It didn't take long before I was getting great results from this lens. It has met my expectations. Good value for the money.

SALVATORE G.

2008-05-20T21:00:00

It's a good walk around lens and very practical for portraits in a cropped sensor camera (Canon 40D)

Luis

2008-01-23T19:00:00

I use this lens to shoot artwork 2-d and3-d and get small details. I like how quickly it focuses and the sharpness of the glass. It could be faster but for the price it is very good.

ACCOUNTING D.

2007-10-07T21:00:00

I write and photograph "How To" books on a myraid of subjects. Everything from Automotive Electrical Repairs to Cookbooks. I've used it on one Annual Report to shoot the company's products and executives. I'm very satisfied with this lens. I use manual focus about 75% of the time in the studio and only use AF on portraits. It allows you to shoot mundane things and make them beautiful!

Strongspeed

2007-09-26T21:00:00

Doing "How-To" articles and books, plus instruction sheets and guides for manufactures, requires really close-up photography. This is the perfect lens for me. On my Rebel XT the 50MM becomes 80MM which is perfect. I also love it for portraits.

Strongspeed

2007-06-07T21:00:00

I've learned already in my Nikon times with a real keeper Micro Nikkor 55mm f2.8, how smart to have a compact micro lens.I bought this as a replacement since I'm a Canonian. Small package, high performance, many ways to use at a low price. Probably based on the good old, simple and ever succesful Tessar lens design. A good backup for several lenses, more versatile than a normal lens, so I have no need for those for 28 years. On the crop camera it's a great portrait lens. I use it very succesfully for product, nature or any close up situation and even for architectural or fine art. Tack sharp, great contrast and color, easy to focus even manually, although it's not a USM and the focusing ring is a bit small for bigger hands. The integrated lens shade makes cleaning a bit difficult, but effectively protects the lens from damage or dirt and eliminates the need of additional lens hood until you don't need filters. An extention tube and good quality tele converter can make it a real outstanding performer. Hard to imagine a better glass in that size and price. If you like basics, this is one great budget lens you can't be without.

Laszlo

2007-03-17T21:00:00

This is a very sharp lens for most everything. But.. It requires an additional "Life Size" adapter for shooting 1:1 reproduction, which doesn't allow focusing to infinity. You find yourself having to remove the adapter to shoot larger objects such as butterflies, then remounting it to shoot other insects. It's focus is archaic, making it slow for other uses. If you're into shooting insects, keep looking. The adapter is more expensive than the lens, and you could purchase a "true" 1:1 macro lens for less.

Tom