Canon EF Lens Technology
(Wednesday, February 17th, 2010)
The video has just been updated (it was removed by the user for some short time).
YouTube link
(Wednesday, February 17th, 2010)
The video has just been updated (it was removed by the user for some short time).
(Tuesday, January 5th, 2010)
Canon has just presented its newest zoom lens. The 70-200mm range is quite important because at f/2.8 it is one of the most coveted high-quality lenses.

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS II USM
The new features:
This small marvel does not have a price yet, and will only be available in April 2010.
(Sunday, December 27th, 2009)
When you use an expensive SLR camera you are often tempted to purchase a specialty lens like a ultra-wide angle (fish eye) lens.
But, apart from the rare occasions when you really need it, it’s too expensive for you and me. Why not build it yourself? Instructables does the demonstration with a Nikon D90, but it could be done with any other camera.
(Friday, November 20th, 2009)
If you don’t know, you may be interested in this video from Canon.
(Tuesday, September 1st, 2009)
Canon adds to the EOS 7D a set of new lenses that will be attractive to enthusiast, expert and pro photographers:
(Tuesday, June 9th, 2009)
Tamron rewrote its web site. This was the occasion to move the Lens Comparison Tool but it is still useful to compare a 400mm with a 500mm (or a 35mm with a 50mm).
But you can also find a similar tool at Olympus (and it takes into account the specificities of 4/3 sensor format, of course): Perfect Lens finder.
(Wednesday, March 25th, 2009)

Canon EOS 500D / Rebel T1i / Kiss X3
After a second half of 2009 where Nikon has been putting a lot of competitive pressure on Canon, here comes the new Canon dSLR photo camera: Canon EOS 500D (also known as Canon Rebel T1i) and, boy! did they react well.
The Canon EOS 500D is definitely a great step forward where Canon is redefining many features that will be included in entry-level SLR cameras. Essentially, the EOS 500D is including many features that were previously only expected from the models at EOS 50D level or similar mid-range models.
Canon felt the pressure from the Nikon D90; They answer with a camera which has been improved in many different aspects, starting with:
This is so high an expectation, that you feel surprised not to find such features as per-lens micro-adjustments.
You may not be interested in switching to Canon from your current preferred brand, but all this is good news: All SLR cameras are going to be better just because the Canon EOS 500D is obviously an excellent product.
All the features of the Canon EOS 500D.
Also to be noticed: Canon is simultaneously introducing other related products: two photo printers PIXMA Pro9500 Mark II & PIXMA Pro9000 Mark II printing up to A3+ and a compact flash, Speedlite 270EX.
(Wednesday, February 25th, 2009)
According to Canon Rumors (but with a low certainty level):
(Thursday, February 19th, 2009)
I recommend reading a nice little post titled “All lens tests are wrong” that concludes that the only good test for a lens is to use it during a full year.
Not wrong, but I still recommend to also check my list of web sites with photo lens reviews.
(Wednesday, February 18th, 2009)
Today, Canon as well as Sony did announce several new products for this beginning of a recession year (plenty of point-and-shoot cameras). Of course, this is the preparation of the next PMA fair in Las Vegas. But SLR enthusiasts will stay waiting for more. No new SLR body. Only Tilt-Shift lenses in Full Frame ability at Canon. The frontline of reasonably-priced SLR cameras is very quiet.

Canon TS-E 17mm 茠/4L tilt-shift lens
Simultaneously, those who were hoping a revolutionary new large-format photo announcement from Nikon in WPPI failed to hear anything.
(Wednesday, February 11th, 2009)

Sony 70-400mm
Lovers of Sony digital SLR cameras (Alpha 700 et Alpha 900, in particular) were awaiting eagerly to see Chasseur d’Images magazine testing fully the most recent additions to the Sony lens range. So, they will be delighted to discover in the March 2009 issue that the Sony 70-200mm f/2.8 Apo G SSM scores 5 stars on the Alpha 900 as well as the all-new and superb Sony 70-400mm f/4-5.6 Apo G SSM on the Alpha 700. This grey lens even gets the flattering comments of “nice surprise” (”belle surprise“) and of “bargain to get” (”coup 脿 r茅aliser“). On the Alpha 900, about sharpness, CdI tells “this is certainly the best lens in its category” (”c’est assur茅ment le meilleur de sa catgorie“).
Also tested on the Alpha 700 and Alpha 900 are the Sony 16-35mm f/2.8 ZA T* SSM and the Sony 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 G SSM. No score is below 4 stars!
Fifteen other lenses from Canon (on a EOS 5D MkII), Nikon, Olympus and Tamron are tested in detail by Chasseur d’Images. 5 stars are also attributed to the Canon EF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 II USM, to the Olympus Zuiko Digital 9-18mm f/4-5.6 and the Olympus Zuiko Digital 14-54mm f/2.8-3.5 ED II.
(Thursday, December 11th, 2008)
Thanks to Tamron, it is possible to easily compare photo lenses of different focal length and their effect on the size of an image.
(Friday, December 5th, 2008)
DPreview has a good comparison of 4 zoom lenses opening at f/2.8 for SLR cameras:
Since they are one of the most coveted segment of the SLR lens market, it was worth mentionning despite the absence of some serious participants like the Sony SAL-70200G – 70-200mm f/2.8 G-Series offering (originating back into the days of the great white lenses from Minolta) or the Pentax SMC-FA* 80-200mm f/2.8 [IF] ED.
(Wednesday, November 26th, 2008)
It is often difficult but manageable to group lens reviews in order to compare/evaluate a little more than their mere physical characteristics (focal length, aperture/diaphragm, or even number of individual lenses). But how would you evaluate/review optical quality? When I see the difference really impressive between two lenses, I would be prepared to judge from their price, but a cheap wide-angle lens is not always worse than a slightly more expensive one (well… if the price difference is really large, it’s not only an accident and quality explains a lot).
So, where to?
I collected a few web sites appearing quite able to provide this kind of quality reviews/comparisons/evaluations/tests.
| Site | Canon lenses | Nikon lenses | Sony lenses | All the reviews/tests | |
| SLR gear | Canon lens | Nikon lens | Sony, Minolta | Lens reviews | In-depth, but a lot of lenses are still not reviewed (only a mere characteristics list) |
| Photozone | Canon EOS (APS-C) | Nikon (APS-C) | Sony Alpha (APS-C) | All reviews | In-depth reviews. There are few older lenses (it would be useful on the second-hand market). |
| Fred Miranda | Canon | Nikon | All reviews |
Canon, Nikon, that’s all. Tests are done by the users/visitors. So, quality of the reviews is… uneven, at best. |
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| Dyxum | Sony, Minolta |
Sony, Minolta, Konica, only. Tests are done by the users/visitors. So, quality of the reviews is… uneven. |
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| Photodo | All lens reviews | In-depth analysis, but only sorted by date | |||
| dpreview | Lens reviews | Not many reviews yet, but an obvious professionalism | |||
| PopPhoto | Camera lenses | Precision of the analysis stays questionable (never very far from re-writing the characteristics list from the manufacturer) | |||
| lightrules | Lens reviews | A bit confusing to read, but there are systematic images that you can use to make your own opinion | |||
| Optyczne | Canon | Nikkor | Sony | Search engine | Beware, this is in Polish |
| 16-9.net | Lens reviews by date | Many more comparisons than individual reviews | |||
| Bj酶rn R酶rslett | - | Nikon ‘F’ Mount | - | - | Purely qualitative opinions, but coming from a pro-photographer really obsessed with image quality (Nikon-only) |
| Le Monde de la Photo | Tous les tests | Still not many reviews, but very in-depth. In French. | |||
| Pictchallenge | Actualit茅s et tests | The site is nearly impossible to browse (too confusing), but the level of details is definitely interesting for those reading a little French. | |||
| AlphaMountWorld.com | Sony, Minolta |
Reviews for Sony, Minolta, only. Not all lenses, though. Usually no figures, but some samples images and detailed advice. |
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| Photo.net | Canon | Nikon | Sony | All incl. Tamron, Sigma, Pentax, Olympus, Leica, Mamiya | The list is impressive, but many listed lenses only have “Reader comments” and no “review“. |
| NewCameraReview | Sony, Minolta | Reviews for Sony, Minolta, only. But the tests are full of details with many sample images along with the individual tests. | |||
| NaturePixel | Essais objectifs et bo卯tiers (in French) | Only Canon, a few lenses only, but clean pictures, a neat work and a very readable conclusion. | |||
| The-Digital-Picture.com |
Canon zoom lenses Canon lenses Canon EF-S lenses All Canon and Canon-compatible equipment reviews |
Only Canon, but commendable analysis. | |||
| MomentCorporation | Lens Reviews (both AF and manual focus lenses) | Nikon lenses (and less than 10 other lenses). A few accessories and Nikon cameras, too. | |||
| Photography Review | Canon lenses | Nikon lenses | Sony lenses | All lens user reviews | Those are mostly user reviews, so they lack details and precision, but they are worth reading anyway. |
| Kurt Munger | Sony & compatible lenses | Only Sony, but the analysis is very well detailed and the advice is always precise. | |||
| LensPlay reviews (Bob Atkins) | Canon Database | Only for Canon, the web site is a little hard to use. | |||
From here, I invite you to an orgy of lens reviews, lens tests, lens comparisons, lens evaluations. And remember to shoot some photos, too. It’s not only the lens which does the photo. Some are shot by telephones, if the photographer is an artist.
(Sunday, October 19th, 2008)
A broken zoom lens has been the reason for forum user sbv20 to take the lens apart. Down to the smallest part.
Source: FredMiranda forum.
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Canon accessories & lenses