Reviews for Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Standard & Medium Telephoto Lens

Great lens for indoor pictures

Strengths: Fast f/1.4, USM, light weight, price, and great picture quality

Weakness: Some people said its USM has short life, but not for me so far.

I have used this lens before (borrowed from my friend) and it was a great experience. Now, I have gotten one for my own use and it surely did make my indoor pictures look great.

This lens works really well when you are shooting low light indoor plus flashes are not permitted. Also, it works better than other lens when you are chasing kids/people as this lens has fast focusing speed.

Since this lens is not expensive at all (compares to other lens), people should really consider getting one. So far, I have no issues on this lens with Digital Rebel XT, and I think as for its three hundred dollars price tag and performace, it's hard to beat.

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A phenominal lens for the price

Strengths: Razor sharp, f/1.4, USM (quiet), great bang for the buck

Weakness: Not the fastest AF, but still decent.

This is my only non-L Canon lens and it stacks up quite well to my L lenses. The only thing that tells you that this isn't an L lense is that it doesn't have the excellent build quality of your typical L lens and it's AF can be a tad slow.

However, the photos you take with this lens will give you the impression that they were taken with an L lens. This lens is quite sharp wide open at f/1.4, but stop it down to 1.8 or more and wow, the sharpness is amazing. The bokeh at such wide apertures is also quite pleasing and adds a lot to your photos if you know how to take advantage of it. Being my only lens with an aperture wider than f/2.8, this is my lens of choice when there isn't much light to work with, and it performs admirably. I have a lot of confidence in my camera when this thing is mounted to it.

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Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Standard & Medium Telephoto...

Strengths: Good build quality, big amazing 1.4 aperture,

Weakness: little expensive compare with 50/1.8

I became aware of the 50/1.4 lens through a photo web. After discussing the lens with a couple of good local photographers, I made the decision and bought this lens together with my first D-SLR, Canon 300d.
I have used this lens for more than half a year. This lens is wonderfully sharp and fast. I love the superb picture quality and portability of this lens. In addition, it feels really good and high quality. I like the 50mm perspective, and the freedom of zoom. I also think it is the perfect people lens. Most of the portrait photos I have taken are using this lens. I take more in door portrait than out door, I don't think the 85 mm will fit, that why I chose this one instead of 85/1.8. And this lens has the amazing big 1.4 aperture, it is extremely versatile regarding light, I don't even need to bring a tripod. I've done a lot of handheld low light photography with it, mostly around f/2, where it is really sharp. This big aperture will be far more important than any IS function can help you to catch an uncooperative child. And, it will make a wonderful back ground blur, which will looks nice for portrait photographs.
For anyone who wants or has a Rebel body and desires better photos, the 50/1.4 should be seriously considered. The combination proves the truth of the old saying: spend your hard earned cash on good quality lenses and scrimp on the body. Believe me, when you have a good lens no one will ever know or care whether you took a photo with a Rebel or a 1DS II.
I am still learning how to use this lens and I suppose I will be for some time. The major lesson I've learned so far with the 50/1.4 is to move in close to the subject and when you think you are close enough, move in even closer. You will be very pleased with this lens and the results. And it is not an easy thing to control this big amazing 1.4 aperture perfectly.

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great lens

Strengths: sharpness, fast focus, large apeture, good contrast

Weakness: soft at f/1.4, a little expensive compared to 50 f/1.8 II

I bought this lens to replace a 50 f/1.8 II. This lens is noticably sharper than 50 f/1.8 II at f/1.8 and f/2.8, and is marginally better at f/8.0 and f/20.0 (I only test these 4 apetures). Build quality feels better than 50 f/1.8 II as well - not as good as L glasses but hey you only pay $300 for it! Focus is a lot faster and quieter than 50 f/1.8 II.

Contast of the images is very good. Bokeh is good, but not as good as 85mm f/1.8. On APS cameras, it is a lightweight walkaround and portrait lens. Works good for low light thanks to the large apeture - I won't say great because the AF tends to hesitate sometimes.

My biggest complain is the price. I would hope the price be $210-$230 instead of the current overpriced $310. Furthermore, it is soft wide open. But it is tolerable.

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Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Standard & Medium Telephoto...

Strengths: delivers sharp images, great for all purpose use, high speed lens and quiet.

Weakness: no

This is a must have lens to every EOS owner. It definitely worth the money you invested. This lens is small and fit my EOS digital rebel very well (compared with the 28-135mm lens). The picture is sharp and beautiful.

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Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Standard & Medium Telephoto...

Strengths: Great Bokeh, Good quality built, Good protrait, Ultra sharp picture

Weakness: Price, Easily overexposed. In portrait, you really need to get face in focus, otherwise sometimes it will focus nose instead of the whole face.

This seems to be a little pricy, but when you have it, you will not be disappointed. The bokeh of 1.4 is much much better than the 1.8. For digital lovers, this dearest len will be @ 80 mm. or 65 mm for Mark I, Mark II. making it's even better len for protrait. I definitely recommend this len.

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Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Standard & Medium Telephoto...

Strengths: Fast lens, great for portraits USM works perfectly

Weakness: Autofocus may not work in certain situations (documented in the product manual) -- you can always use manual focus

Great lens for my Digital Rebel. It is also reasonably priced. I got it for about $300 from onecall.com. It also has a rebate now to combine with Digital Rebel purchase (double or triple rebates).

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Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Standard & Medium Telephoto...

Strengths: sharp images, very nice bokeh, fast, light weight, perfect for low light condition and street photos

Weakness: no USM, doesn't come with a hood (costs you an extra $30), a bit soft at wide open (f1.4), focal length is less than perfect on a 1.6 crop DSLR (becomes 80mm)

This is a great lens for street photography at night. It is very light weight and unobtursive, but with only a "micro USM", it may hunt for focus a little, and it is not quiet. Finally, as with many of the Canon "cheap" lenses, it doesn't come with a hood, so prepare to shell out extra for that.

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Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Standard & Medium Telephoto...

Strengths: Crisp focus, beautiful lens for portrait shots, nice bokeh

Weakness: Somewhat narrow view for people used to larger zoom lenses. Autofocus can be a bit jumpy at times, but manual focus options help to overcome this problem.

This is a great walkaround lens for my Canon Digital Rebel, and produces a much sharper picture than the 18-55 kit lens provided with most Rebels. The lens performs well in low light conditions. I upgraded from the 50mm f/1.8 II and have loved the images this lens provides. If you have the extra $300 to spend, this lens is worth it!

I've found this to be one of my favorite portrait lenses, especially with the beautiful bokeh it can create. If you don't already have one, using a lens hood has made this lens perform even better.

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Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Standard & Medium Telephoto...

Strengths: High speed lens, great for indoor use, like the standard 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 lens. Top notch optics and construction

Weakness: Price, surprisingly narrow view if accustomed to using wide angle lens

If you are looking for one great lens to replace the standard 18-55mm lens, this is the one. Picture quality is remarkable, however, if you are accustomed to using wide angle lens, you'll be surprised by how narrow your viewfinder appears. It has been a while since I've used a 50mm lens so be sure to physically test out the lens at a camera store before you invest $300+ for this lens. The lens quality and construction are unsurpassed, and since this is a dedicated Canon product, lens compatibility is assured. The current rebate is a great buy, however, be very careful and comply with all of the fine print. Don't be surprised if Canon rejects your rebate initially. Keep at it and eventually, you'll get your rebate. The rebate processor seems to deny everything the first time as a matter of course.

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My favorite lens

Strengths: Quality, ultra fast, ultra sharp, very compact and light

Weakness: none

This is my favorite lens, perfect for portraits. It's an incredibly fast and sharp lens, and it works amazingly well with my Canon 20D. It's a great complement to my 17-40mm and 70-200mm.

A must have.

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AF Fails after about a year

Strengths: Very sharp, amazing optics for the price.

Weakness: AF motor or gearing fails in about a year with moderate to light use!

First I must say, everything everone is saying about the great optics is infact true. It makes GREAT photos. Even as a novice, I continually receive spontanious compliments on my photos.

After about 9 months the lens began to focus a little off. At first I figured I was just doing something wrong as I had only been using SLRs for 10 months. Over the last six months it has worsened to the point that it fails to even move the lens to the focus point, leaving me with manual only focus (somewhat useless on an XTi).


I am now at 1 year & 4 months, and out of warantee. Canon offered prepaid shipping for them to look at it, and said they MAY extend the warrantee. Otherwise they can send it back for free, or I can pay to have it reapaired.


I would not buy another lens of this type if it only lasts ~1year. From reading, it seems to be due to the non-ring USM, and instead an older USM motor with gearing. (BAD design!) I expect a lens from Canon to last for 10-30 years, not less than the body!


I had been recommending this lens to everyone hands down as the most important lens to have in your bag. But after my experience and the many on the internet identicle, I instead say beware.

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Best non L-Glass lens on the market.

Strengths: Everything.

Weakness: It doesn't have a 24mm twin sister for the same price.

I only wish the same optical quality was found in other wide angle lens from Canon in the same price range.

Not as wide as you would like with a digital SLR, but it produces really good photos. tack-sharp.

Great for portraits..

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Amazing lens

Strengths: Exceptionally clear pics

Weakness: not good for landscapes; very specific focus points; best with an external flash (what isn't, though?)

I have to say this lens gives me results I never imagined getting with a camera. I'm quite an amateur when it comes to photography (it's taken me years just to understand F stops...). This lens, COMBINED WITH an external flash, has given me hundreds of professional-looking pictures. So much so I have a lot of people suggesting I take my hobby to the next level. I haven't really had any problems with it other than you MUST pay attention to your focus point when setting up the shot. It's very easy to take the "perfect" shot of your child's face only to have the focus be on her shirt and the face out of focus. The lens is that sensitive. I've also found that this lens is no good for landscape shots (which I'm sure it's not meant for anyway) as I get a lot of noise.

Knock on wood, I haven't had any of the mechanical problems some people have written here. Let's hope mine lasts a long time. I am absolutely in love with this lens.

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