Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens

Anyone thinking of buying this lens don’t hesitate go for it. It will be a very handy addition to your kit; I use it on my Canon EOS 30D. Although it is classed as an amateur lens its performance and results are excellent. One of the key points, and what we all want from a lens is clear sharp results. Another benefit of the lens is its weight, or rather lack of it, nice and light.
I’ve tried the lens on a live shoot with great results. The IS (Image Stabiliser) really does work. As for price it is a bargain, compared to its big brother the Canon 17-55 IS 2.8 Hundreds of ££££££s less.
It will be a great filler lens, until I can afford the semi pro version.
Negatives. None really. Plastic body? Maybe, but can’t complain for the price.
Overall Great little lens, with a good wide-angle zoom range, that produces nice clear sharp images, at a very affordable price.

This lens just about the same size and weight as the older 18-55mm lens. The coating is different and gives holding the lens a better grip. The performance of this lens is far superior to the old lens, images are sharper and to me have more depth and colour. The IS system works very effectively to reduce camera shake and can also keep the IS going automatically if you are panning. I could not really get better than 3 stops advantage over a non-IS lens, not the Canon quoted 4 stops. This is not really noticeable in real life, so I would not define it as a minus point to the lens. Build quality is good for the price range even though it is a plastic build and mount, this is never going to be a pro lens and it is built to a price. It is however a very good investment if you want a cheap lens kit which covers a large range if you buy with the 55-250mm IS lens.

Overall, top marks to Canon for an excellent lens. For picture quality verus price this lens will be a winner. Just make sure you take care of the original lens and not drop it like I did!

The EF-S 18-55mm USM is the standard kit lens with the EOS 400D. With cropped sensor digital cameras (EOS 400D, 350D, 40D and 30D) this translates into a 35mm equivalent of 29-88mm. This range of focal lengths makes the lens ideal for portraits, architectural shots and, to a lesser extent, landscape photography.

On the positive side, image quality is excellent particularly between 25-45mm and f5.6-f11.0. As with most Canon USM lenses, auto focus is rapid, accurate and virtually silent. This lens scored 77% in a recent ‘What Digital Camera’ test, a score that compares very favourably with many more expensive lenses.

The negatives really need to be to be seen in the context of this lens’ price point. Build quality is certainly not up to the standard of Canon’s L series (obviously) or their mid-range consumer lenses. The plastic mount and lack of ‘torque’ in the zoom betray the budget nature of the lens. However, the money has clearly been spent on the glass which, in my book, is what matters in a starter lens.

As a versatile and very capable budget lens the EF-S 18-55mm takes some beating, I don’t think you’ll regret buying one!

Surprisingly light but responsive, this lens gives good image quality for it's cost - images in good light and all apertures are clear with a very slight warming effect - in darker conditions not quite as good but still acceptable unless you are producing very large prints. Image stabilisation is a boon for those slower, longer exposure handheld shots. Fiddly to focus manually but the AF is quite quick and accurate, even in low light being reasonably accurate. Vignetting is similar to other wider angle non-prime lenses but on price for product not particularly extreme and certainly no drawback for a good general usage. All in all a useful lens for beginners and hobbyists.

I have given this lens a 5 star rating for value for money.
It can take excellent photographs and if you critically test this lens against digital compact cameras, it wins hands down.
An ideal lens to get anyone started, or 95% of anyone else for that matter. The focus is really fast with the Ultrasonic motor and it is very light weight.
It is not a professional lens by any means, but then it does not cost £400 which is the lowest you will have to spend if you have specialist needs in this zoom range.
Most zooms are better in the middle of the range and this lens is very good here.
I have used this lens to A4 size prints and have had several comments that "They are the best photos I have ever seen" so there you are.

The downside is that handling is difficult as the lens is so 'free' that a gust of wind can blow it off focus in manuall focus mode. Also using a polaroid filter, which is esential for high quality landscapes and holidays, is difficult due to the rotation of the lens when focussing.

Summary: - Excellent value for money that will cover 95% of anyones needs. If you want to significantly improve on this lens you need to spend between £350 to £700