Lenses

Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 - Canon's only Ultra-Wide-Angle lens choice for crop body cameras but an excellent performer

Canon EF 17-40mm f/4.0L - Thoughts and impressions of Canon's budget L walkaround lens plus sample images

Canon EF-S 18-55 f/3.5-5.6 IS II - Canon's basic kit lens for lower price APS-C DSLR models

Canon EF 40mm STM f/2.8 pancake - the first of its kind in the EF range and a good performer

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4.0L - a fantastic walkaround lens that is possibly the best L bargain in the Canon lens range

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4.0L IS - one of the best lenses I have ever owned

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro - the budget macro lens with a reputation for superb image quality

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro - Canon's updated 100mm macro lens incorporating IS and an L designation

Canon EF 300mm f/4.0L IS - the EF 300mm L lens for sports and wildlife if your budget doesn't stretch to the f/2.8 version

Canon EF 400mm f/5.6L - the longest Canon lens before the big, expensive ones

Canon EF 1.4x II Extender - a small, light and high quality teleconverter to give you some extra magnification when required

Canon Extension Tubes - a cheap way to increase magnification for macro work

Lighting

Canon ST-E2 Speedlite Transmitter - Canon's IR device for triggering flash units mounted off-camera

Canon 430EX II Speedlite Flash - Canon's mid-range flash unit

Canon 550EX Speedlite Flash - previously Canon's top-of-the-range flash unit

Electra Studio Lighting - a budget studio lighting kit that can deliver surprisingly good results

Support

Giottos MM 9550 Monopod - a budget monopod for those occasions when a tripod isn't suitable

Markins Q3 Ball head - small, light, high-quality ball head capable of supporting big loads

Gitzo GT2541EX Tripod - highly adaptable, high quality, carbon tripod ideal for travelling

Cameras

Canon PowerShot S90 - Canon's compact P&S for those times when you don't want to haul SLR gear around

Accessories

Electra Colour Balance Panel - a cheap version of the popular ExpoDisc for setting custom WB

Sekonic L-308S Flashmate - a convenient light meter that can be used for ambient light or strobe lighting

Lens Impressions

The 85mm f/1.8 is one of those lenses in the Canon range that offers a huge amount of performance for not very much money. In fact, it may be the best value for money lens in the entire Canon EOS line. From what I have read, it is 'easy' (easy being a relative term) for lens makers to manufacture a fixed focal length lens of this particular focal length.

It has been around for some time and because Canon did such a good job originally there has been no need to release new versions.

It's a very easy lens to use (some lenses aren't easy to use), and it focuses quickly and accurately. It would probably be a good purchase for someone who has bought an SLR and 18-55mm kit lens.

It's quite an addictive lens. The first time I used it was on a trip where I wanted to give two lenses a thorough testing, the other being the Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5. After mounting the EF 85mm f/1.8, I didn't want to take it off.

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Sharpness and Resolution

I was completely blown away with the performance of this lens as soon as I started to use it. The detail in the images is incredible, even when doing close-up work with extension tubes.

DXO labs gives it the highest rating for resolution out of any lens they have tested, even compared to some very exotic and expensive lenses including Canon's f/1.2L version lens of the same focal length.

The performance is difficult to believe and the low price makes it an absolute bargain.

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Use

The focal length and the narrow depth of field make for a good portrait lens. It's not a big, white lens and therefore it doesn't attract attention. Despite this, the 85mm provides quite a lot of reach - especially on a crop body camera. This makes it useful for street photography and candid portraits.

It is also good for compressed landscape scenes. The minimum focusing distance isn't very close and so it isn't that useful for close-up work on its own. However, the addition of an extension tube makes all the difference.

An extension tube reduces the minimum focusing distance considerably, and the 85mm is sharp enough to give pretty good results. Along with all its other uses, the 85mm plus an extension tube will provide you with a decent macro lens on a budget.

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Light gathering capabilities

My first ever lens was the FD 50mm f/1.8 that came with my Canon A1 in 1982. For a long time I thought nothing of having an f/1.8 maximum aperture.

After I made the move to a digital SLR and invested in lenses, my maximum aperture became f/4.0 for a long time. When I eventually got back to f/1.8 again it took some getting used to.

My camera is normally set to ISO 200 but when shooting outside in bright conditions and trying to use f/1.8 it is easy to exceed the maximum shutter speed - even 1/8000. Sometimes, there is too much light at f/1.8 even with ISO 100.

Of course, indoors this is a big bonus and means being able to shoot with flash a lot of the time.

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Compared to ...

I can shoot at 85mm with my 70-200mm f/4.0L IS. The image quality is probably better with the zoom lens but maximum aperture is only f/4.0. I get IS with the zoom but this doesn't help with fast moving subjects. Also, the bokeh effect isn't as good.

Both lenses have their advantages and each will be better in certain conditions shooting certain subjects.

I've never used the 85mm F1.2 L lens so can't make a comparison. I'm sure the F1.2 is a fabulous lens but it is a lot more expensive and depth of field at F1.2 is razor thin.

The 85mm f/1.8 has no Image Stabilisation but because of its light gathering ability IS isn't really needed. It is quite easy to shoot at shutter speeds that are fast enough to avoid camera shake.

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Lens Details

Weight: 15 oz; 425 g
Filter Diameter: 58mm
Closest Focusing Distance: 2.8ft; 0.85m
Minimum Aperture: f/22
Supplier: Chia Color Lab, Hat Yai, Thailand
Price: 15,750 Thai Baht
Date Purchased: March 2010
Lens Hood: ET-65III (not included)
Soft Case: LP1014 (not included)

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