Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6L IS USM Lens

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To begin with, this is a very heavy lens. It can be cumbersome. Ill also admit, Im teetering a bit on buyers remorse because it is a very expensive lens but every time I look at the photos Ive taken with it, I know it was worth the money. Would not recommend this lens unless you know youre going to need the variety of lengths. 28-300 is a big range and if you can use lenses with a different range (24-70, 70-200, 100-400), there may be another lens that has a wider aperture/lighter/less expensive and would suit your needs better. I will put this lens on when I dont know what Im going to encounter but if I can limit my shooting range, will use a more targeted lens. I travel a lot and for extended periods of time so this lens will always be in my kit as a very high quality safety lens.

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I bought this about a year and a half ago to use on my 7D and I love it! It is a little pricey and a bit heavy, BUT a great lens. Works fine indoors and out. Im able to stand at one end of the basketball court and get good shots on both ends. Doesnt seem to be a big market for it so not a lot of resell value (Im trying to resell my to pay off some debt) but I do love this lens and would consider it at a later point. And would probably be even better on a full framed camera body.

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Highly recommend. I read every review and watched every video I could find on this lens. I feel the reviews are accurate. If you read and watch them you will know exactly what you are buying. The only down side of this lens that I feel is non debatable is its weight. Yes it is a bit heavy. It doesn’t bother me at 6 180lbs but some might be put off a bit. That said I love every other feature and aspect of this lens and I feel the weight is simply a byproduct of a superb design and build. There is one thing the reviews do not mention and it is of foremost importance and must be considered in todays high tech world. Lenses are part of an imaging system. The system consists mainly of the camera, the lens and the software. Comparing this lens to other sharper lenses means nothing unless you plan to make huge prints. With todays sensors and software the final image product is rarely compromised by a quality lens that is only 99% of some other super sharp zoom. Consider the incredible range of FL and the choice for me was simple. As has been stated in many of the reviews, rent it first if you can to make sure you will be OK with the weight. Youll love the photos.

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The specifics of this lens are probably well known to those who are interested in this review. It is a 15 year old design, and among Canons "smaller" white lenses it is the heaviest and most expensive. An 11x zoom range necessitates numerous optical compromises and they are occasionally visible. All of that being said, when you are carrying only one lens, then this is as good as it gets. The lens certainly lives up to its L designation and it is a far better lens than two other all-in-one lenses, the EF 28-200mm USM (which is a 19 year old design) as well as the EF 28-135mm, which both are discontinued. There is a bit of distortion at the wide end, but that is not a significant drawback for me, as I dont often find structures in the viewfinder when walking around with this lens. What particularly impresses me is the sharpness across the focal range. On a recent walk I captured a neighborhood cat with a 300 mm setting, and I must say the lens is as sharp as a cats whisker! The sharpness is obviously aided by the image stabilization, as the picture was shot at 1/250 second. The street scene is meant to show that at 28 mm you can isolate a subject (here the needles on the bush) when shooting at close distance with a large aperture. I must also mention that autofocus is quite rapid at the long end (at f/5.6) even in light that the camera determines (in Auto ISO) to need ISO 32,000! If you can afford it and are strong enough to carry it, then this is a great lens as long as you respect its inherent (minor) limitations.

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Very nice lens for those times you arent sure what youll run into. Its not as fast as the rest of my glass, but its a fine lens anyway. Quick, silent autofocus, easily adjustable friction control for the slide zoom. Its even positioned so that you can change it with one hand while holding the lens. The IS is good enough that you dont need a tripod even as slow as 1/60 or even a few stops slower. It is heavy, but if youre used to carrying gear on your person it wont be a big deal. Its still lighter than my wildlife telephoto, my wide angle prime and my macro prime which is what Id often carry if I wasnt sure where wed end up. This is much more compact and will even fit in my purse, though admittedly, my purse is kind of large.

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I shoot mostly family events and softball games, specifically candids, so this lens is ideal for me. ---[ CONS ]--- [1] Soft at 28mm wide open. (major) My biggest complaint is its consistently soft at 28mm and f/3.5. Too soft for my taste. The shots look "dreamy". I often forget to zoom out a little or drop the aperture when shooting wide angle and end up disappointed in the results. Ive seen it on the 20D, 5D2, and 7D so its not the camera. Its a bummer because the wide angle is often what I want on a crop factor camera. [2] Weight. (major) Your arm will probably hurt after shooting for a few hours, especially with its push/pull it gets long so your arm is extended holding all that weight. There hasnt been a person yet I let try the lens that didnt immediately say "wow, thats heavy". I read that in the reviews and thought "na, I can handle it". Nope. I must admit I had to take breaks. Its painful to shoot video with extended arms as you look at the video back/screen. Its not for the timid. [3] Cost. (average) $2k+ for a non "fast" lens? Come on canon - make us a 28-300mm f/2.8L! :-) *BUT* ultimately you get what you pay for; Im constantly impressed with the image quality this lens can produce and 300mm is a really fun focal length. [4] Length. (average) Fully extended its awkward to hold at times. Especially at first when you attempt to fine tune the range but eventually I got the hang of it. [5] Slow low-light AF. (average) It hunts in doors, especially at the higher zoom. But to be fair its got quite alot of range to cover. Its quick enuff in the 28-70 range. I do find I cant shoot sports at dusk or indoors with very good results; its not a 70-200mm f/2.8 L replacement for this case. [6] Push/Pull (minor). I wasnt a big fan at first but love it now. Its the right mechanism to control so much range. It allows you to get the zoom VERY quickly. Again, great for candids. [7] Fast range fall off (minor). Id say 50% of the physical range is 28-90 and the last 50% is 90-300. It falls off especially fast from 200-300. I find it hard to get anything in between. It slams to the 300 and its a bit of a trick (at first) to pull it back a little. 300 is so much zoom I find myself often in too close and then needing to fiddle to back off a bit, loosing a second or so which might loose the shot. [8] Min focal distance is a tad too long (minor). I find myself having to physically back away from people when shooting 28mm. I guess Im spoiled by the 24-70. ---[ NEUTRAL ]--- [1] Not inconspicuous. The lens is white and massive so just about everyone will notice you. The pro is people will take you seriously and it can be fun to talk shop. The con is that its harder to blend in so it makes getting some of those more candid shots more difficult. ---[ PROS ]--- [1] Image quality. Is as good as my 24-70mm f/2.8L. Sharpness, color, contrast, etc. Its definitely an L-series. Im consistently impressed at the results coming from this lens. [2] Range. The big feature for this particular lens is that Im ready to shoot anything and I neednt change lenses. The ability to shoot close then zoom in on the action and then back out is a great sense of freedom youve just got to experience if you like to shoot events! Its the do anything lens. [3] Fast AF. AF is L-series fast outdoors with sufficent light. [4] Image stabilization. The IS on this lens is absolutely amazing. At 300mm its like someone grabbed the lens to help stablize it. Indoors its actually amazing as well. At 70mm with my f/2.8L I might have had 1/60 shutter and I may only get 1/20 with the 28-300 BUT with the IS the shot isnt blurry (with a steady hand). Ironically Im seeing less blurry shots indoors than with my 24-70 which doesnt have IS. [5] Bokeh. The blurred backdrop at 300mm is stunning. Its very pro looking. True its not as smooth as the 70-200 f/2.8L but its stunning anyway. [6] Fun. This lens is just fun to shoot! I find myself shooting twice as many shots than with the 24-70mm. The range unlocks so many more shoots I just couldnt get before. [7] Tightening ring. A nice touch; very useful. [8] Rugged. The upside of its weight is its built like a tank so I neednt worry about banging this $2k+ piece of glass against something or scratching it. [9] Switch placement. BTW, I dont find the placement of the switches to be a problem like some other reviews. I think they must be close because you cant put them on the barrel since it moves - unlike the 70-200. [10] Natural candids. An awesome serendipity is that 300mm is enough range that Im seeing very natural looking candids. Im far enuff away from people that Im not in their space so they relax. With the 24-70 Id have to get close enough that itd change their expression slightly. Even if Im zoomed way in at 300mm and my subject sees me Im still physically far enough away that they dont feel threatened (but if they only knew!) :-) This creates *PRICELESS* shots in my opinion. It definitely has that paparazzi quality. Its this last quality that makes the cons worth it to me. Bottomline: I can deal with the cons for the pros. You get what you pay for. Nice work canon! :-) .dsj.

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This lens is very versatile for video shoots with lots of action. I work at Jordan Winery [...] and spend a fair amount of time shooting video of vineyard crews pruning grapevines and harvesting grapes. Theres a lot of movement and this lens helps me get all kinds of different shots fast without changing lenses. Its the best all-purpose lens Canon makes, IMO. Ive researched them all, as has my husband who is a professional photographer. Highly recommended. The only complaint I have is that the collar slips quite often, so if youre shooting video, make sure to get a level to put on your camera or use an iPhone level app -- or just go out and buy the new Canon 5D Mark iii, which has a built-in level.

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After reading all the reviews, I pretty much have no more to say because they have given very precise opinions about this len. I was spending quite a long time on deciding which len to go, 70-200 f/2.8L IS USM or this 28-300mm. They are both amazing lens and everyone hopes to own both if possible. Finally, be true to yourself, what is this len made for? what is the most desirable feature of this len? Then I realized and went for this baby. The only thing you need to think about is why do you need this HUGE RANGE provided by this single len. Because you dont have time to (or are lazy to, just like me) change lens!!! :-) I like to travel and try to bring as fewer gears as possible. In many situations, you just dont have time to change lens to shoot some once in a life time scenes. And if the schedule is tight, frequently changing lens will degrade sightseeing quality. This is the KEY! Make this as your priority concern then decide which lens to go. 24-70 + 70-200 or 28-300 :) FYI. I got another 17-55 f/2.8 IS USM for low light or in-door conditions. Also the 10-22 wide angle len since I am using 40D with the 1.6x factor. One last thing I would like to remind you is that some gears seem not to be compatible with this len. For example, close-up len, extender. So do check before buying. And this len comes with hood and bag. No need to buy separately. Enjoy it !

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This len when take a close up pictures will cause error between lens and camera. (Err 1 commucation lens and camera). Other pictures quality are good and sharp. Lens body not like new there some scuffing. Lens glass clean.

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Great Event photography all-in-one lens, but a little blurry at 300. I use it on monopod only, as it is really heavy, but it is the right way (or on tripod) to take photos anyways.

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