Canon Introduces New EF 50MM F/1.8 STM Lens

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#41
"the new Canon EF 50mm f/1.8mm STM lens features an optimized lens placement and Super Spectra Coating (SSC), translating into less ghosting and flaring than the previous model, while at the same time helping to enhance light transmission and optimize color reproduction accuracy. The new lens features a seven blade circular aperture, improved from the predecessor’s five blade non-circular aperture, helping to deliver a more visually appealing blurring effect"

Well, if Canon doesn't come up with a new 50 f1.4 soon, I may need to pick this up, if only to re-live my first lens, Nifty-Fity :)
 
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#44
This is very positive by Canon.

The fact that they released a better nifty fifty and kept the price at $125 USD is excellent.

Had it been $200 or around there, that would not have been good, especially given zero improvements in optical quality at least based on the charts. Real tests in the coming months will tell the truth though. Hard to imagine that there isn't even a new coating on some of the lenses after all these years since the previous model. Whether this will lead to any noticeable difference, who knows. While I'm not betting the IQ is better, I still remain hopeful or open that it might be a tiny bit better.

To me the AF is not the big deal here. The real metal mount is. Yeah, I know - nothing wrong with the plastic one - but it just looks and feels cheap. It is awkward having that thing in your bag next to an L lens. Metal is better. Also, the overall exterior aesthetics of the lens looks higher quality than the previous, even if it is mostly the same in reality.

To the person who wondered about a protective filter - I would not add any kind of protective filter to this. Any protective filter, with optical quality high enough to avoid noticeably degrading the IQ of this lens will cost about 1/2 the price of the lens itself at minimum. Not worth it.

Now the big question for new buyers is:

This or the 40mm? 40mm is a better focal length, but the 50mm is 1 stop better.
 
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#47
zlatko said:
AvTvM said:
Yawn. Minimal re-hash of the old formula. 7-bladed iris instead of going straight to 9 blades - how much mor could that have cost? 10 cents or 20?
STM AF is fine for video, liveview and use on mirrorless cameras.
Lens $ USD 115, proprietary lens hood 27 USD ... Likely not available anywhere for months ... How ridiculous. Same old stupid canon. Innovation? Zilch.
Click to expand...

Yes, same old Canon. Nuthin' innovative ever comes from them. And I mean ZILCH.

Well ... except for a few things ...
Highest MP FF DSLR (currently)
World's only 14fps DSLR
World's only 8-15 fisheye zoom
World's only 11-24 zoom
World's only 17T-SE
World's best 24-70/2.8 AF zoom
World's only line of wide-angle primes with IS (24, 28, 35)
World's only 200-400 zoom with built-in 1.4X extender
World's only 24-70/4 zoom with built-in 0.7X macro function
World's best 24T-SE lens with free rotation feature
Two autofocus pancake lenses
f/1.2 AF lenses
1X - 5X macro lens
600/4 lens that is 2.5 lbs. lighter than Nikon's 600/4
500/4 lens that is 1.5 lbs. lighter than Nikon's 500/4
300/2.8 lens that is 1.2 lbs. lighter than Nikon's 300/2.8
DO lenses, including 400/4 (Nikon doesn't make a 400/4)
World's smallest & lightest DSLR
Low light autofocus sensitivity down to EV -3 in a budget FF camera (6D)
Dual pixel AF for video
World's only camera maker with dedicated radio transmitter & radio flash
World's only anti-flicker feature for shooting events in fluorescent light
Options for medium and small RAW files for many years now
User replaceable focusing screens on many models, not just the most expensive
Arguably the *best* ergonomics of any AF camera system

... but never mind that when their cheapest entry level budget lens has a crummy 7 rounded blades instead of 9! Just ridiculous. ;)
Click to expand...

What grieves me is how often Nikon users point at Canon as a company and refer to their photocopier heritage. What amazes me is how Nikon who mostly make cameras and lenses mostly come 2nd place to a company who's primary focus isn't cameras. Canon is a brand whom I have trusted for the last 31 years of shooting. They have a consistency and product evolution which is 2nd to none.
 
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#48
:D

Of course, Canon's sample images shows all the headshots done with a crop camera (80mm perspective), and the rest with a 6D.

Not intended to start a "50mm isn't a portrait lens" war....

Carry on.

:)
 
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#50
K said:
:D

Of course, Canon's sample images shows all the headshots done with a crop camera (80mm perspective), and the rest with a 6D.

Not intended to start a "50mm isn't a portrait lens" war....

Carry on.

:)
Click to expand...
It's always amused me how often I use 50mm on my 24-70. But oddly, when I mount a dedicated 50mm prime on my 5DIII...it doesn't do much for me. Unlike the 35mm f1.4 and 85mm f1.2, which I like very much.
 
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#51
AvTvM said:
Yawn. Minimal re-hash of the old formula. 7-bladed iris instead of going straight to 9 blades - how much mor could that have cost? 10 cents or 20?
STM AF is fine for video, liveview and use on mirrorless cameras.
Lens $ USD 115, proprietary lens hood 27 USD ... Likely not available anywhere for months ... How ridiculous. Same old stupid canon. Innovation? Zilch.
Click to expand...

I was absolutely crushed to learn that this hitherto nonexistent lens will have a 7-bladed aperture instead of 9. The future of my photography depended on those 9 blades in this cheap lens. I mean, isn't it reasonable to expect that this lens will have more aperture blades than it's $400 older sibling, the 50/1.4 (which has eight)? Or it's $1,500 older sibling, the 50/1.2 (which also has eight). All of my photos with the 40mm STM have been failures thanks to the 7-bladed aperture. How can anyone make good pictures with only 7 aperture blades? Surely, this lens a sign that Canon has abandoned its photographic heritage, that they are in full-on crippling mode, that Sony is the future, etc., etc., etc.

But somehow this morning I found a glimmer of hope. It's a 1994 pic by Michael Kenna, one of the most internationally acclaimed fine art photographers. It suggests that ... just maybe ... a decent photo can be made with JUST seven aperture blades ...
http://www.michaelkenna.net/gallery_images/815a8d1.jpg
So ... stay strong out there in Canon-user-land. Don't sell all of your Canon gear like I was about to after hearing of this new nifty fifty. There may still be a glimmer of hope for your photography. ;)
 
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#53
haha.

How much do you think is the cost differntial for Canon wehther they'd put a 5,7,8 or 9-blade iris into an EF 50/1.8? Are we talking 10 cents or a full dollar per lens? It is just so ridiculous that Canon is differentiating on every tiny little thing. And even worse, that they get away with it, thanks to so many uncritical users who are willing to defend and buy every bit of cr*p that Canon serves up. ;D
 
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#54
K said:
This or the 40mm? 40mm is a better focal length, but the 50mm is 1 stop better.
Click to expand...

On a crop I like the 40mm but on ff I think 50mm is a better frame

Either way, it looks like we have choices and at the price, one of each...
 
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#55
CR Forum discussion: "7 aperture blades are useless, Canon is evil for cheating their customers out of a full 9-bladed aperture."

Most actual buyers of a 50/1.8 lens: "Aperture... That's the setting for how much light, right? I think so. What's an aperture blade and why should I care?"

::)
 
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#56
AvTvM said:
How much do you think is the cost differntial for Canon wehther they'd put a 5,7,8 or 9-blade iris into an EF 50/1.8? Are we talking 10 cents or a full dollar per lens?
It is just so ridiculous that Canon is differentiating on every tiny little thing. And even worse, that they get away with it, thanks to so many uncritical users who are willing to defend and buy every bit of cr*p that Canon serves up. ;D
Click to expand...
I'm happy with the bokeh I get from my (700€) 100mm IS F/2.8 Macro L "9 rounded aperture blades", until F/5.6, without asking myself "how much would it cost to have a F/2.5 max aperture instead?".
In a similar way, I consider buying the (130€) 50mm F/1.8 STM "7 rounded blades", which are much better than 5 linear ones, without asking questions.
And I'll tell you a secret: Canon doesn't force me to buy its products, nor to brand loyalty. If the gear interests me, I buy it.
And I'm not buying anything Canon delivers: after this 50mm, I don't have any more items on my (minimalistic?) wish-list, until the 6D Mark II comes out.
 
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#57
Just so we're clear, this lens isn't marketed for shooters who insist on 9 blades. It's marketed for those who are ready to step up from a kit lens. I applaud Canon keeping this lens priced right about where the other one was.
 
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#59
I'm surprised at the low price, although the MTF chart show small optical improvements.

Far superior mechanical, fast and quiet AF, circular diaphragm aperture, metal assembly, minimum focusing distance 0,35 meter, lens hood that fits on the outer edge of the lens and protects the focusing mechanism.

Plenty of reasons to buy it. If I still had my F1.4 USM model (which I have not used in F1.4), I would be tempted by this new STM.

All in all, this new 50mm STM strikes me as a decent update, and will protect Canon of the attack super cheap Yongnuo.
 
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