 Great travel/ walk around lens. |
| Review Date: October 17, 2009 |
| Reviewer: B. Stubblefield, GA United States |
I was more than a little apprehensive about purchasing this lens before many official reviews came out, but I'm really glad I did. I have an 18-55 kit, 70-300, 60mm f/2.8 Macro, and 50 prime (all great beginner lenses, BTW) but I needed something I could stick on my camera and forget about when going out around town. As a young lady that likes small purses, this is a constant internal struggle- hang my awesome camera around my neck like an "I'm on a project and shouldn't be hit on" necklace, or stuff it in a big camera bag with my other lenses in a "I don't have kids but I might as well cause this looks like a diaper bag" fashion. I deflect male advances either way. It's just a matter of how light I travel when I do it. And if I can leave some highly-stealable stuff at home, I will.
How does it feel?
This seems to have the same feel as my 70-300. Not a plastic-y light feeling like the 18-55, slightly rubber ridges and hefty, but not heavy, weight to it. I wouldn't use this lens to bludgeon enemies, but it doesn't feel as though it came out of a gum ball machine either.
What's the color like?
We compared this lens to the Canon EF 50mm f1.4 USM Standard & Medium Telephoto Lens for Canon SLR Cameras (took identical photos at same focal length, f-stop, settings, etc.) Both lenses were incredibly sharp at the sweet spots and still great at the edges (when taken at F8) but the colors of the 18-135 were much less washed out. We definitely had the white balance settings locked for both photos, but the 18-135 just showed reds, purples, blues, greens, all colors were more vibrant and true.
Now if you want your family photos to look like they came straight from a comic book with crazier-than-life color explosions, you'll have to look to post-processing for that. Weirdo. All I'm saying is that I won't have to change the color balance to cloudy to experience non-prison looking color in family portraits. Nothing kills the vibe of a party photo montage like grayish Alcatraz hues.
Yeah, but I can get this from an 17-85 or the new 15-85, right?
Good point, friend. But the extra focal length after 85mm is really worth it, especially when shooting things across a street or shooting semi-close wildlife. And if the 15-85 is way more expensive and the 17-85 is about the same price, why not go for the longer length? You could make the same argument for the 18-200, but I don't think that the compromised sharpness (and heavy 21 oz weight, vs the 16.1 oz of the 18-135) is worth the extra focal distance. Also, you get the latest version of the image stabilization system with this one.
But there is no USM, and the 17-85 has USM. I MUST HAVE USM ON ALL MY LENSES!
Calm down there, buddy. True, there is no USM on this lens. But having used both the 17-85 and 18-135, the latter is just as fast to autofocus. It may not have the USM, but you wouldn't notice a big difference. The motor is super fast and doesn't autofocus hunt like my 70-300 USM tends to do. You can hear the motor, but it's not as loud as the Canon 70-300 USM motor. Image stabilization is also great- there were plenty of pictures that have been saved with that feature, especially in low light/no flash situations.
Finally, I want to mention the "The Digital Picture" ISO 12233 Crops (google this; I can't provide a link). This test scared the crud out of me, and is making a lot of people spew hate about this lens. It makes this lens look soft compared to some other lenses. When I started shooting, I thought at first that there was a sharpness issue until I realized that my little brother had changed my ISO to 1600. Thanks, little bro! After that was fixed, everything was as sharp as I could hope for. Having done my own sharpness tests, I realized that the ISO 12233 crops weren't telling the whole story. I don't plan on sticking this sucker on a tripod and shooting tiny black and white lines with it all day (I have more interesting subjects, and they are in color!) I've taken hundreds of pictures with this lens and just don't see any image quality or sharpness difference when compared to my other lenses. So chill, people.
In conclusion, if you love the pictures your DSLR gives you, but hate the lens diaper-bag/bookbag look, this is a great choice. It's not going to make you into a magical Ansel Adams photo spouting machine, but no equipment will do that. This lens takes some pretty nice pictures when you stop worrying about 100% crops and start enjoying life. Shoot and be happy.
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Good multipurpose zoom lens for Canon T1i/500D.
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| Review Date: October 3, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Ivan Barakumba, Toronto ON |
Week after buying Canon T1i camera I went to Mt St Helens National Park and realized how much I need extra zoom. So I ordered the new Canon 18-135IS. My first impressions are very positive:
- The build quality is pretty decent.
- The lens is relatively light and feels pretty balanced on the T1i body.
- Front of the lens doesn't turn during auto focus which is a plus if you use a polarized filter.
- AF is quick and very accurate - it easily finds focus even in dark conditions.
- Image Stabilizer supports horizontal and vertical panning.
- I think sharpness is comparable with the kit 18-55IS (looks like corners are a bit softer).
- Zoom range is perfect for vacation/outdoor photography.
- There is no zoom creep (so far).
- Very smooth bokeh (background blurring)
Few cons:
- No zoom lock.
- Doesn't have USM/full-time manual focus - this is the feature I'd expect in the $500 lens.
- Distortions on the wide end (18-24mm)
- More CA than 18-55IS.
P.S. I've spent the last couple of weeks reading endless forum posts and reviews. Here are my notes about the similar/competing products:
1. Canon 55-250IS - My friend got this lens - it's sharp but some shots have bad color saturation/contrast. He also told me that he needs to change lenses too often.
2. Canon 28-135 IS USM - sharp, has full-time manual focus, but the lens is quite big and heavy for T1i and has a zoom creep. 28mm is too much for the wide shots on the x1.6 cameras.
3. Sigma 18-125 OS HSM - good zoom range/color/price, relatively sharp. I almost bought this lens but then I noticed that almost every review mentions the constant background noise produced by the image stabilizer. Sometimes I use the camera for short videos so that was a deal breaker for me.
4. Sigma 18-200 - good zoom range/color/price, but too heavy. Sharpness is very inconsistent. Also not much extra zoom comparing to the 135mm.
Overall I think this lens is a good choice for nonpro photographers looking for a multipurpose zoom lens.
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An awesome affordable lens that creates crisp images
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| Review Date: November 2, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Casp, TN |
I used to own a Sony 12x digital zoom and recently stepped up to a Canon T1i. I liked my Sony because it was light weight, snapped great pictures and offered me the flexibility of an ultra zoom. So, I was hoping to get the same range with a lens for my Canon T1i as well. I travel a lot and like taking close-up as well as landscape pictures with my subjects in the foreground. So, I did not want to be seen as a geek who keeps changing camera lenses often and kills the joy of posing for a photograph. Based on several reviews I read about the kit lens, it didn't seem like the ideal one to buy and it did not have the ideal zoom length as well. So, I just bought the Canon T1i body and plunged into extensive research about the ideal lens that would offer the flexibility of a wide angle and an ultra zoom. The most recommended one seemed to be the Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Lens. However, for a novice photographer, it seemed too much a price to pay. Then I stumbled upon this one and was quite skeptic that it had very few reviews. But, the review by Stubblefield gave me the confidence to try this one out as she seemed to have the same requirements as I did. It turns out that I made a really good decision in going for this lens.
I compared this with the kit lens(18-55mm) one of my friends owned and it is only slightly heavier albeit with a bigger diameter (67mm). But comparisons of shots taken with the 18-55mm and this one at ~30mm reveal how crisp and rich (with nice bokeh) the pictures are with the 18-135mm compared to the 18-55mm which created slightly softer pictures. At the telephoto end, the lens is pretty fast in focusing and there is no difference in image quality compared to the ones taken at 30mm zoom. I was at a concert recently and was having fun snapping close up shots of the performers at 135mm and was amazed at the low light performance of this lens. I was shooting at ISO 1600 but still the images were sharp, had hardly noticeable noise and had excellent details when cropped. Two thumbs up for the Image Stabilization! I am not sure if it was the Canon T1i or the lens that created those awesome pictures but the combination definitely works great. One of my friends shot those close-ups with his Canon 55-250mm IS lens and at 250mm he sure got close. But, the pictures came out shaky because we didn't have our tripods with us. Never mind though, when I cropped my shots taken at 135mm, I was able to get the exact pictures that he shot at 250mm without any shake or loss of image quality. So, I guess I wouldn't wish I had the 55-250mm.
There was some mention about this lens not having the USM. But I would not be concerned with this at all as it does not seem to be any more noisier than the kit lens or the Canon 55-250mm IS lens. Over all, I would highly recommend this lens for novice photographers at least as you wouldn't often find yourself wanting for a wider angle or more zoom (think crop). An excellent walk around lens at an excellent price that produces excellent images. The only other lens I would even consider buying is the Canon 10-22mm f3.5-4.5 to cover the ultra wide angle segment but that can come later though. If you are finding your feet with one of Canon XS/XSi/T1i, then please do yourself a favor and get this lens with the body. You will never find yourself searching for another lens in the near future.. |
Perfect walk around lens
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| Review Date: October 30, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Soumen Karmakar, Portland, OR |
Like many people i was debating whether to go for this lens or the canon 18-200 IS, or the Tamron 18-270 VR on my Canon DSLR. Let me clarify on this point.
Firstly this lens is cheaper (at this time) than the other, almost 150$ difference at retail.
Secondly this lens weighs half at 1 lb than the canon 18-200 at 2 lbs. For canon 450d/xsi or 40/50D this is excellent, as the lens is not too heavy for the body. I have no problems of stability and walking around, and it makes better shots.
Third, there isn't much advantage of 200 over 135 at the telephoto end. you can crop the pictures and for 10/12 mpixels it really doesn't make much a difference.
Lastly, i decided to go with the Canon lens vs Tamron or Sigma (actually both the Tamron and Sigma are good lenses, the Tamron slightly better in some aspects, but it doesn't have a product in the 18-120 range with VR). The sigma 18-125 with OS is slightly heavier at 1.5 lbs.
I was skeptic of not having USM but it doesn't seem a deal breaker to me. Focussing is fast and accurate, and like other review has no zoom creep (yet). There is also no zoom lock button, so i hope there is no lens creep.
Now the picture quality. I found it sharp for most cases, not tack sharp like primes, but compared to kit 18-55 lens very good sharpness. The edges seem a bit soft in low light, but center sharpness is very good. Outdoors or in good light, sharpness throughout. Colors are vibrant and faithful, i wasn't dissapointed.
It is not a professional review, but if you just want an opinion i would highly recommend this lens as an excellent lightweight walkaround lens, ideal for most situations with enough zoom, and sharp enough to make great pictures.
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Hits the sweet spot!!
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| Review Date: November 25, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Pierre Dalumpines, Greater Seattle, WA |
I wanted a versatile, cheap lens that could help me rediscover the magic of photography and also serve double-duty as an all-around lens with similar zoom coverage as a point-and-shoot.
The EF-S 18-135mm IS lens had just come out, but I was somewhat put off by the bad technical review it got from photozone.de considering that it was retailing for almost $600. I kept looking. However, I found it online for about half that, I decided to take a chance, and thus, here are my impressions...
GOOD:
- decent sharpness through much of the zoom and aperture range
- good color reproduction (I am a weirdo who pumps saturation to get "comic book" color as B. Stubblefield puts it)
- less chromatic aberration due to UD element (whatever)
- versatile zoom range of 18-135mm (equivalent to 29-216mm)
- for the price I got it, a great value... at the price you see here, getting iffy but still good
- new generation IS for at least 2 stops of hand-holdability
- good balance and weight (1 lb), goes well with my 40D
- non-rotating front element (means little to me since I only have a UV filter)
- fairly tight tolerances (better than kit, not as good as "L", not that I've ever owned either)
- no zoom creep (will this change with a hood and filters?)
- decently fast focus motor, despite being non-USM (again, whatever)
- wide enough to get everyone in the picture (fix distortion in Canon DP Professional)
BAD: (Intuitively, these are all fixable by spending more money on your lens)
- non-USM focus motor, no manual focus override (spend more money, get USM lens)
- some focus-hunting at wide angle especially low contrast or dim shots - spend more money, use infrared focus assist from a 430EX or use a fast prime lens for your dim shots
- heavy barrel distortion at wide end, which you can fix with DxO ($$) or Canon DP Professional (free) - better fix is buy a true wide angle lens!
- vignetting at large apertures, which you can fix with peripheral illumination correction in Canon DP Professional
- peripheral softness at wide end and large apertures, which you can fix by spending $1200 and buying the Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Lens for Canon EOS SLR Cameras - better fix is stopping down or using the more central portions of your frame for your subjects
- no distance scale (unlike the Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM Standard Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras, which I looked at and was seriously considering)
- you're stuck with EF-S (no compatibility with Canon full frame bodies)
- priced about $80-100 more than what it is worth
I do not have the experience to discern minute differences in sharpness, color fidelity, etc. that people seem to place so much of a premium on. MTF charts and pictures of lines and grids are great, but honestly, I question the real world utility of these things. Maybe that's my ignorance talking. To me, a picture looks good if it evokes the emotional response or thought process that the photographer intended regardless of the technical aspects. Hey, let's take photos of brick walls to assess distortion! Let's spend hours on the internet looking at pictures of gray walls at different apertures and focal lengths to see which lens has the least amount of vignetting! No, thanks.
This lens delivers what I need for a price I was very happy with, and I will be using it to take lots and lots of pictures in the hopes of improving my abilities and and preserve family memories at the same time. If you have the photographic need to place high-detail complex subjects at the corners of your frame, or simply have the cash to blow on L-class lenses, then why are you even reading this? Who am I kidding, I crave L-class glass as much as the next guy! I just can't justify the cost given my current ability level (which is below "beginner" but above "t3h suck").
Are you are a beginner like me? Do you have a limited budget? Do you enjoy being creative to extract the maximum performance from your gear to get around some weaknesses? If so, then buy this lens - chances are you'll be very happy with it. I know I am. Enjoy! |
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