Canon 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM Christmas Deals!
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Canon 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM Christmas Deals!.
Product: Canon 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM Amazon Price: Too low to display Availability: In Stock |
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Prospective buyers of a macro lens for a Canon EOS system can't invent a better first choice than this 100mm Macro. The extra length over a 50mm macro gives considerable better working distance (station between lens and subject) in the field, and EOS-compatible lenses by other manufacturers match poorly with accessories and are nowhere advance as exciting.
Compared with the earlier Micro motor 100mm Macro that Canon made (which I also absorb), the USM lens focuses *very* hastily. The USM lens also can come by a tripod collar (by consume of a minute plastic adapter) --I recommend you grasp the collar with the lens, as adjusting to a vertical composition with a tripod means repositioning everything. The front element is not recessed in the USM model, which makes lens cleaning easier. And execute quality is improved--the earlier model was prone to its switches breaking (could fix it yourself with the ordered allotment, but really annoying) and eventually the Micro motor gearing gave out (no pain so far with the USM ring motor) . The USM model will work with Canon's 2x teleconverter by interposing a 12mm extension tube, allowing 2x magnification with lots of working distance.
I will quibble with another reviewer--Canon does design sharper lenses (notably their 90mm tilt-shift lens, which is a better choice for studio product photography), and sharpness compared with the earlier model is virtually the same. But this is unexcited one of the sharpest lenses you can engage, and ergonomically a immense improvement over its predecessor.
If you are building up a space of lenses for outdoor/nature photography and you do occasional macrophotography, this might be the first or second lens to occupy. If you work significantly at magnifications greater than 1:1, reflect the Canon 65mm 1x-5x Macro zoom (which I can push to a decent 10x with the teleconverter) .
This is the lens I leave on my camera for general purpose consume. At non-macro focus distances, it is a very rapid lens in a convenient short-telephoto length. The images are enchanting out to the corners. This is one of those large Canon lenses that probably deserves an L-series rating but is available without the red stripe and exorbitant cost.
Tested in an astrophotography context (point sources on shaded backgrounds - gracious for revealing aberration and coma), I have found that this lens is reasonably captivating at f/4 and completely enchanting by f/5.6. For daylight terrestrial photography, the slight aberrations caused by the wide-open f/2.8 aperture are hardy noticeable and by f/4 the images are exquisitely bright.
There is a lot of glass in this lens - it is heavy. I highly recommend buying the tripod collar as it allows you to place the camera and lens to a tripod or ballhead with great better balance.
Also, if you understanding on using the macro functionality, sustain in mind that the effective f-stop of the lens goes arrangement up when you're focusing at very finish range. At 15cm from the front surface, it performs as though it were an f/9. You'll either want a lot of light or a very right subject and a valid tripod (another reason to recall the hideously overpriced tripod collar) .
The 100 f/2.8 macro is very spirited, even for general shooting, so it works stout for portraits, too. When I'm not using a zoom, this is my walkaround lens for people, relatively tight scenes and even indoor sports. Consider of it as a mammoth lens that also shoots macro than the other blueprint around. Hard to beat that versatility at the note.
But it comes into its believe at terminate distances. If you've never had a macro lens, you'll accelerate around shooting everything in witness because everything looks original from a macro perspective.
Canon has several macro lenses. I catch the 100 mm over shorter lenses because I don't have to glean quite as conclude to that bee or wasp. The 180 mm gives you even more distance from your subject, more background blur and astounding sharpness. But it's grand more expensive and in most cases you'll need a tripod, and I shoot a lot of improptu macros as I'm hiking.
For obscene closeups with larger-than-life images, there's the MP-E 65. It goes up to 5X, compared to the 100mm's 1X, but you lose autofocus with this lens. In fact, you spot your magnification and then depart the camera until the object is in focus! As you bag beyond about 2X, the viewfinder gets fairly sad. If you're doing calm life macro work, it's improbable. I'll probably accept one someday for shooting my mineral colletion.
One thing to sustain in mind with any macro is that because of the cessation distances, you're often in lower light conditions. Althought it's fairly pricey, I'm using the MT-24 EX, which lets you adjust the direction of the twin flashes. The MR-14EX ring light is a couple hundred dollars cheaper but will obtain a slightly flatter image. And you can always consume one of the standard flashes, though the closeness of your subject may cause some exclusive shadows.
