Sample Photos – Canon EF 55-200mm, F4.5-5.6 USM II Lens - Test Shots

Vintage Lens Review – Canon EF 55-200mm, F4.5-5.6 USM II Lens

I like old lenses and have a keen interest in them simply because

they are better made and are much easier on my wallet. From my previous posts you may have understood my philosophy of doing more with less. Be it shooting with old Pentax K mount, M42 lenses or even using the camera on my mobile/cell phone.

Today I am going to review a Neo Vintage Canon Auto Focus lens that was made for EF mount Film SLRs that is still relevant today. The lens is the Canon EF 55-200, F4.5-5.6 II USM lens. I purchased this lens from EBay for INR 5800 with shipping (Less than $100) which according to me was a bargain considering the features it offered. Let me list the Pros and Cons of this lens. 

 

+Pros+

1.  Great Condition
Considering my copy of the lens was made sometime in late 90s to Early 2000s its in great shape. no scratches on the lens elements, no fungus fogging, softness and the like. Thumbs up to the previous owner.

2. Good Zoom Reach

I wanted a lens that would complement my 18-55mm kit lens but did not want to spend too much. I now have a zoom range of 18mm to 200mm between these two lenses.

3. Silent and Precise Autofocus
This lens has a USM (Ultra Sonic Motor), which translates in a silent focusing motor and no transformers like noise when focusing as on my 18-55mm kit lens. Moreover, I was pleasantly surprised with the speed that this lens focuses. This lens puts my modern kit lens to shame.

4. Full Frame Compatibility
This is an EF lens which unlike my EF-S kit lens, can be mounted on full frame cameras if needed.

-Cons-

 1. Slow Aperture Lens
This lens has a widest aperture of F4.5 at 55mm and a widest aperture of F5.6 at 200mm which makes the lens slow and not too good for extremely low light photography

2. No Image Stabilization
This lens has no Image Stabilization (IS) that is present on newer lenses. This surely would assist with hand-held lowlight photography on a slow lens like this one. The only option would be to bump up the ISO to compensate for my shaky hands.

3. No Dedicated Manual Focus Ring
Even though a manual focus option is available, there is no Manual focus ring available on this lens. If you need to manually focus you have to twist and turn the front of the lens. I understand the Auto focus is fast and super silent, but I would have preferred a ring as well. This is not a big con as after I put on a UV filter for protecting the lens, it gives me some room for manual focus , but again not as comfortable as a dedicated focus ring.

4. Plastic Construction
This lens looks good and feels good, but it is all plastic (including the mount) which tells you that it was probably offered as a kit lens option. It also feels very light to hold (may not be a con for you)


Conclusion :

Well, do I regret buying this lens? Absolutely not. It complements my 18-55mm Kit lens and between the two lenses gives me an effective range from 18mm to 200mm (28.8mm – 320mm on my APS-C sensor DSLR) which is very good. At the price its perfect. So if you want a decent zoom lens and are a little shortchanged for brand new Canon lenses out there, give some of these older EF lenses a try.


As Always, Happy Shooting!!!

Keepin' it Real,
Dee Kay Dee ;)

Some Pics taken at Mumbai.

Even though I am from Mumbai I seldom see it as one should. Today I and my wife went to the Gateway of India, took a boat ride and spent some time looking at things in this great city that mundane weekdays make us miss. Some pictures for you to see and enjoy as well.

 

As Always, Happy Shooting!!!

Keepin' it Real,
Dee Kay Dee ;)

The Best Camera Is The One You Have !!!

On 19th Jan. 2014, I went to the park and was planned on the spur of the moment to take my Niece and Nephew to the park. As you rightly may have guessed, I missed taking my DSLR along.

All I had with me was my cellphone. It has a quite capable 8 Mega Pixel camera, however I had never used for any serious photography.

My nephew and I both have a deep interest in macro photography. He kept saying that if I had carried my DSLR we would have some awesome photos of the flowers that were there.


Turns out, you do not need the most expensive camera gear to take beautiful photos. Yes the sensor on my Phone shooter is nothing in comparison to my Canon DSLR, however I was quite impressed with the results. Pictures on this post are samples of the images taken

 All I can say is that creativity lies in the person who stands behind the most expensive gear and lens or a simple camera phone that you may have with you. All that matters is that you use whatever you have with you in the most creative of ways.

If you own a point and shoot or maybe a simple camera phone, you may own a professional grade camera or a downright obscenely cheap camera, just remember to use it as a tool to best depict your creativity.

As Always, Happy Shooting!!!

Keepin' it Real,
Dee Kay Dee ;)