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.	. Canon Normal Primes Peter Kun Frary The 46 degree coverage of the 50 mm lens is equivalent to the sweet spot of the human eye. Hence, "normal lens," is the term used to describe this focal range. The natural perspective of this optic makes it the easiest focal length to pre-visualize images with. Like wide angle lenses, nearby objects, i.e., within a couple of feet, appear slightly exaggerated in size. For example, full or upper body images look natural but head and shoulders portraits are unflattering because facial features appear too broad and flat. One of the main reasons to own a 50 mm lens is for available light photography. The fast aperture makes for bright viewfinders, a useful feature if you shoot in dark interiors or twilight. Wide open at F 1.4 or 1.8, images are a little soft, but you can take decent pictures unobtrusively in murky light, something a high-tech zoom or flash can't do. Stopped down a couple of stops, optical quality is hard to beat this side of $1000. Another compelling reason to use a 50 mm lens is size. Normal lenses are small, light and nimble whereas most zooms are big, heavy and dim in comparison. Canon EF 50 1.4 USM The 50mm prime is one of my favorite "walk around" lenses. They often live on my cameras for months due to the excellent image quality, versatility and petite size. The viewfinder is amazingly bright and vivid, especially if you're used to slow zooms. This lens is small (50.5 mm L), light (290 g), boasts an eight-blade diaphragm for elegant bokeh, 58 mm filter threads for easy sharing of filters and good close focusing (45 cm). The front element does not rotate, but the lens changes in length when focusing. The mcro-USM motor is completely silent during AF and allows FT-M, a welcome feature. The focusing ring is large and gripable, but the mechanism feels coarse. Unlike most AF lenses, you must turn the focusing ring considerably to focus from 0.45 meters to infinity, so precise manual focusing is easy, but not as silky or smooth as the good old days.  Unfortunately, Canon dropped the ball and only provided DOF markings for F22. Why bother? AF is peppy but about the same speed as the EF 50 1.8. Oddly, low light AF is not as reliable as my slower zooms or the other 50mm lenses reviewed below (it's fine in normal light). Perhaps the extremely shallow depth of field due to the F1.4 aperture yields less contrast than the slower optics? Agashi Near Iolani Palace • Elan 7E, EF 50 1.4 USM, Fill-in Flash (-1.5) and Portra 160VR This seven-element design is fairly flare resistant and distortion free compared to most zoom lenses, although my EF 24-105 4L IS USM is more contrasty at 50mm/F4. Moreover, it is extremely sharp by F5.6 (Photodo 4.4 MTF). I found it rather soft below F2.8 and terrible wide open. I've heard of folks claiming their 50 1.4 was critically sharp by F2.8, so this lens may be subject to considerable sample variation. It focuses all the way down to 18 inches, but exhibits noticeable barrel distortion in close-up work (this is why they make macro lenses, see the EF 50 2.5 Compact Macro below). It uses the ES-71II hood, a twist-on design with antireflection flocking on the interior. The size and flocking afford the maximum amount of protection possible without vignetting. I strongly recommend use of the hood at all times to protect the front element and to prevent flare. EF 50 1.4 USM • Low Light Specialist At $350, this lens isn't for everyone. However, if you're into available photography, prefer a bright viewfinder and petite optic, the EF 50 1.4 USM may be for you. Agashi at Aloha Tower • Elan 7E, EF 50 1.4 USM, 420EX Speedlite & NPH 400. Scanned on the Canoscan FS4000US. More Images Taken With The EF 50 1.4 USM. Click to enlarge. Canon EF 50 1.8 (MK I) For years this was one of my favorite lenses and is certainly the bargain of the EOS system. It shares many characteristics with the EF 35 2.0: small (42 mm L), light (188 g), 5-blade diaphragm, 52 mm filter threads and focuses close (45 cm). The front element does not rotate, but the lens changes in length when focusing. This front element extension is why AF is a little slower than other AFD lenses such as the EF 24 2.8. Surprisingly, AF is about the same speed as the EF 50 1.4 USM. Unfortunately, the AF motor is nosier than most AFD lenses. Like the EF 50 1.4 USM, this lens has problems snagging focus in low light (my slow zooms do better). The manual focusing ring has a loose gritty feel, the worst I have used. This lens has DOF markings for F11 and 16. In contrast, the EF 50 1.8 MK II lacks a DOF scale and the EF 1.4 USM only sports F22. The six-element design is flare resistant compared to most zoom lenses. Moreover, it is extremely well corrected, sharp and contrasty (Photodo 4.2 MTF). Image quality is in the same ball park as the EF 50 1.4 USM: barrel distortion below 2 meters, critically sharp at F5.6, good at F2.8 and terrible wide open. I've owned two copies of this lens and optical optical was very similar. Agashi at Aiea Heights • Canon EOS A2, EF 50 1.8 (MK I), Reflector & Fujichrome 100 The EF 50 1.8 has been out of production since the early 90s, so it's difficult to find the original ES-65 lens hood. Fortunately, there are three good substitutes that clip-on just like the original: the EW-65 II, ET-65 III and ES 65-III. The EW-65 II is the hood for the EF 35 2.0, so it's on the small side. The ES-65 III is the hood for the TS-E 90 2.8 but fits perfectly and affords excellent protection. It's identical to the original ES-65 but is updated with rayon flocking. The ET-65 III is the hood used for the EF 70-210 USM, EF 100-300 USM, EF 85 1.8 USM and EF 100 2.0 USM. Although it looks too big, I have used the ET-65 III with this lens for years and it gives the maximum amount of protection possible without vignetting, plus it looks cool. EF 50 1.8 (MK I) • 1988 Black Beauty with matching ES-65 III hood • Photographed with EOS 5D and EF 50 2.5 CM. Unfortunately, this wonderful lens was discontinued in 1990 and replaced by the cheaply made EF 50 1.8 MK II. Optically they are identical, but the newer version has a plastic mount rather than metal, lacks a distance window and uses a bogus screw in manual focus adapter on the end of the barrel. Canon probably did this to make a clear distinction between it and the EF 50 1.4 USM. The result is that the old EF 50 1.8 holds its value on the used market, selling for more than a new EF 50 1.8 MK II. Heather's Hair • Canon EOS Elan, EF 50 1.8 (MK I), Elite Chrome (shot wide open) If you wish to buy a MK I used, expect to pay about $100 for one in excellent condition. Mint ones may be a bit more. Here's another image from the EF 50 1.8. Canon EF 50 2.5 Compact Macro This lens is optimized for macro photography and, thus, is able to focus as close as 23 cm (9 inches) and create 1/2 life size (1:2) images. With the Life Size Converter EF it's capable of life size (1:1) images. It looks similar to the EF 50 1.8, but is more beefy at 63 mm L and 280 g. It has a 6-blade diaphragm instead of the 5-blade version common to most of the old AFD prime lenses. The front element does not rotate, but the lens changes in length when focusing. Surprisingly, AF is very peppy and is only slightly slower than the EF 50 1.4 USM. Like the EF 50 1.8, this lens has 52 mm filter threads. The manual focusing ring is smooth turning, a bit loose, but more useable for manual focus than the EF 50 1.4 USM or the EF 50 1.8. Unfortunately, there are DOF markings for F16 and 32 only. Finally, this lens may be stopped down to F32 for maximum depth of field, versus F22 or F16 for most 50 mm optics. 1990 Jose Ramirez 1A • Canon EOS Elan 7E, EF 50 2.5 Compact Macro, Bogan 3001 tripod, 420EX Speedlite triggered by the ST-E2 and bounced off a white panel & Fuji NPH 400 Its nine-element design is one of the most flare resistant I have encountered, better than even the EF 50 1.4 USM and EF 50 1.8. Moreover, it is supremely well corrected for distortion and is sharp and contrasty from edge to edge from macro to infinity (Photodo 4.4 MTF). This lens is ideal for photographing coins, documents and other inanimate objects as there is virtually no distortion in the macro or normal ranges. However, this is not an ideal lens for little critters and flash as the working range is very short (you could use off-camera flash or reflectors). EF 50 2.5 Compact Macro • Use it when you need to get close and be really sharp. There is no official Canon hood for this lens, probably because of the extreme front element extension required for 1:2 or 1:1 reproduction. However, the front element is so far recessed that this is nearly a moot point. If you're not using the macro range, use of a screw-in generic hood is a good idea. The filter threads are 52 mm, making filters and hoods affordable. Wittner MT-70 Metronome • Canon EOS 10D, EF 50 2.5 Compact Macro, Bogan 3001 tripod, 420EX Speedlite triggered by the ST-E2 and bounced off a white panel (-2.0 flash AE comp) Nature photographer John Shaw recommends that if you're going to buy a 50 mm lens, get a macro version. Subsequently, you'll get small F-stops and the ability to focus close if you need it. This lens is about $350 new. I bought a used one in mint condition for $175, a good deal. EOS Elan 7E, Battery Pack BP-300, E-1 Hand Strap & EF 50 1.4 USM • Photographed with EOS 10D, EF 50 2.5 CM (F16), RS-80N3 Remote Switch, Bogan 3001 tripod and 2 white reflectors. The Three Amigos Square Off Each of these three lenses is designed with a different purpose, but all three work nicely for general photography. The EF 50 1.4 USM is the low light specialist, the EF 50 1.8 is the general purpose optic and the EF 50 2.5 Compact Macro is optimized for close-up work. However, build quality and AF speed are similar between the lenses. The EF 50 1.4 USM has marginally faster AF speed but hunts more in low contrast situations (due to less depth of field?). Of course, the larger aperture, silent Micro-USM, large focusing ring, exceptional bokeh and FT-M give the EF 50 1.4 USM distinct advantages over the other two lenses. Nevertheless, stopped down to middle apertures, all three are similar optically--extremely sharp and distortion free. The EF 50 1.4 USM is extremely soft wide open but sharpens up nicely by F2.8. It's sweet spot is F5.6 to F8. The EF 50 1.8 has similar performance although the 50 1.4 is slightly sharper from F2.8 to F4. Amazingly, the EF 50 2.5 Compact Macro is sharp wide open, with a super sweet spot at F5.6. In terms of consistent sharpness throughout the aperture range, the EF 50 2.5 Compact Macro rules, closely followed by the EF 50 1.4 USM and EF 50 1.8 respectively. As I mentioned earlier, all three lenses are virtually flare free compared to zooms. However, in a high flare scenario, e.g., a strong light source just outside the field of view, flare resistance differs between these lenses when shooting wide open. The nine-element EF 50 2.5 Compact Macro displays almost no ghosting and flare, whereas the seven-element EF 50 1.4 USM and six-element EF 50 1.8 have slightly more pronounced ghosting and flare. Fortunately, stopping down a couple of stops controls flare considerably. Lenses with more elements have more reflective surfaces and, hence, more flare and ghosting. However, the design of the EF 50 2.5 Compact Macro is exceptional as it has more elements, yet less flare. I strongly recommend the use of hoods with all lenses to help control flare. All three lenses have little or no distortion at normal distances. Once you get inside the macro range, e.g., 45 cm, both the EF 50 1.8 and EF 50 1.4 USM exhibit considerable barrel distortion, the EF 50 1.4 USM more so than the EF 50 1.8. However, barrel distortion is only apparent with straight lines and isn't noticeable with most natural objects, e.g., rocks and flowers. In contrast, the EF 50 2.5 Compact Macro is flat and distortion free from edge to edge. Although each lens has small strengths and weaknesses, all three 50s are so good--head and shoulders above most zooms in image quality--you can't go wrong with any of them. Now, if I could only get an EF 50 1.0L USM my 50s collection would be complete! 1/5/2002 • Updated 5/10/2006 ©Copyright 2002-2006 by Peter Kun Frary • All Rights Reserved
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