Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens, Black, Compatible with Canon EOS DSLR Cameras

Product overview

Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM: What to Know

This is the lens that changes what a DSLR can do indoors, and the reason is the same as it is in the mirrorless range: f/1.8 gathers several times the light of a kit zoom and produces genuine background separation. Canon publishes the angle of view precisely, 40 degrees horizontal, 27 vertical and 46 diagonal, and the effective focal length on both formats, which is unusually clear. On a Rebel or 90D it behaves like an 80mm, which is a flattering portrait length; on a 6D or 5D it is a normal lens.

The optical and mechanical details are modest and well chosen. Six elements in five groups, a minimum focusing distance of 1.15 feet, which is 0.35 metres, and a maximum magnification of 0.21x. The STM stepping motor delivers near-silent continuous Movie Servo AF for video as well as smooth autofocus for stills, which is the main upgrade over the older f/1.8 II that this replaced. Canon positions it for portraits, action and night photography.

The omission to plan around is stabilisation: Canon lists none, and EF-mount DSLR bodies do not have in-body stabilisation either, so there is no safety net. In practice an f/1.8 aperture lets you use a fast enough shutter speed that it rarely matters for static subjects, but it does mean this is not a lens for handheld video without a gimbal.

Worth noting if you are comparing prices: this lens is also sold as a Renewed unit under separate ASINs at a lower price. The listing here is the standard new one. For a lens this inexpensive, the saving on a renewed copy is usually not worth giving up the warranty.

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