EF 35mm f/2

Technical Details

-EF mount; wide-angle lens
-Compact and lightweight
-35mm focal length
-f/2 maximum aperture
-Overall linear extension system with Autofocus drive
See more technical details

 "Love This Lens!" 2010-07-24
By stephanie
I just got this lens a couple days ago, and so far I love the results I'm getting. I have a Canon Digital Rebel T1i and was upgrading my lens from the kit lens, and a 50mm f/1.8. Being that I don't have a full frame camera, I love that this lens is giving me a 56mm perspective. I don't see myself taking this lens off my camera anytime soon. Upgrading from the lenses I did, the quality of my pictures seem better with this 35mm lens. It has great bokeh with the f/2, and the sound of it focusing isn't that bad. Definitely not any louder then my plastic fantastic 50mm f/1.8. The construction seems good and sturdy.

If you're contemplating buying this lens, and you're on a budget...just stop and buy this one!


 "Lovely" 2010-02-11
By SEN
I began my photo adventures with a Canon 50mm 1.4 on a 30D, followed by a Canon 10-22 and a Canon 70-200 f4, all of them great, but I felt I was missing the "normal" focal length (50mm on 35mm film or digital full frame); the options were a zoom that covered the range (such as Tamron AF 17-50mm F/2.8 XR Di-II LD SP ZL Aspherical (IF) Zoom Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras), the Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Lens for Canon DSLR Cameras, which was way out of my budget, a prime such as this Canon 35mm f2 or wilder options such as the Zeiss Ikon 35mm f/2 Distagon T* ZE Manual Focus Standard Lens for Canon EOS SLR Cameras or the Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L USM Wide Angle Lens for Canon SLR Cameras both for a considerable price. After much thought I got this lens and love it: It's physically small, the autofocus is not USM so it buzzes a little (but nothing to worry about, it's not a huge noise or anything like that) but works very well and you can get good shots wide open at f2; By the time I had finally made up my mind its price went from about $260 to $320... But it's still worth it. Some alternatives from Sigma looked interesting but they have a bad reputation for quality control and I just couldn't take the risk... It's unfortunate they haven't thought of offering an international warranty (I checked locally).

I also got the Canon EW65II Lens Hood for Canon EF 28mm f/2.8 & EF 35mm f/2 SLR Lenses, which snaps into place and can be mounted in a reversible manner, and will also get a transparent/UV filter for protection (it's always better to shoot without filters unless they are for special effects such as a polarizer, but it gives me greater peace of mind and I try to take it off if possible). If you're still on the fence I would highly recommend it.


 "Good Image Quality - Frustrating Auto Focus" 2010-02-10
By Ryan E. Duncan (Milwaukee, WI United States)
I bought this lens because I wanted a good, fast prime lens for indoor use on my 50D. I also own the EF 50mm f/1.4 which I love, but indoors I find it less useful due to the crop frame sensor of the 50D.

I knew I wanted something in the wide angle range (due to the 1.6x crop frame of the camera) so I looked at the EF 28mm f/1.8 USM and the EF 35mm f/2.0. Based on reviews here at Amazon as well as outside websites I decided to go with the 35mm f/2.0 because the 28mm seems to have consistently negative reviews. I was also able to pick up this 35mm for about $130 less than the 28mm so it seemed to be a better investment.

I have now had the 35mm for about 1 month and taken over 300 photos with it on my camera. All in all I am happy with the lens and it has been on my camera nearly the whole time I have owned it. The images are sharp and the color is good. This is a fast lens and you can get some great bokeh when you open it up wide which is nice when you want to get creative with your photos.

However, I am more than frustrated with the auto focusing with this lens. It does not seem to want to focus on the subject of the frame, many images end up out of focus if I let the camera do all of the work. When left to its own devices, many times this lens will not produce images that are in focus, or at east not what you wanted in focus.

The only way I can get the great photos that this lens is capable of is when I take control of the focusing points and select exactly what I want in focus for each shot. This is not overly difficult and I am used to it because I am generally selecting the desired auto focus point for each shot, but this lens seems to be abnormally challenged at focusing on the desired subject on its own.

This has been a major disappointment because unfortunately I know that when someone else (who is not familiar with how to use the camera) picks it up it is 50/50 whether the photo turns out, especially in low light situations.

I feel that this is a problem if you are looking at this lens to be a good all around indoor prime for candids and family shots and especially if you want to be in some of the photos.

This is a good lens if you are familiar with how to use the auto focus selectivity features of your camera. The image quality is good, similar to the 50mm f/1.4, and definately better than any kit lens you may have, but don't expect to put this lens on your camera and never have to learn how to really use it on your camera.


 "Versatile - Even Indoor Portraits" 2010-01-21
By Heidi (Arkansas)
I love this lens. It's excellent for small spaces, like indoor shots. It also has a low enough f stop to let in lots of light which is also, important for in-door with no flash. Great for snapshots but also portraits. Professionals as well as amateurs will love this lens.


 "My first dip into the "Prime" pool." 2010-01-13
By Lrn2Go (Oklahoma City, Ok)
This product has a good number of excellent reviews that give you a general idea of what is good about this lens... so I'll be brief.

Reasons I love it:
* Very quick to focus
* Sharp
* Useful in full body portraits to head-shots (on a 1.6x DSLR like a Rebel/450D)
* Great low-light lens (I use it all the time in clubs)
* Very light weight
* Useful focus window (unlike the Rebel XSI/XS/T1i's kit 18-55mm IS lens)
* "EF" (Useful on full frame, and "crop" frame sensor camera's... so I'll be keeping it as I upgrade)
* Solid build quality (metal lens mount, light, but has a good "solid" heft to it)
* About equivalent to a 50mm lens on a full frame sensor or 35mm format camera.
* Good "carry around" lens (Light, unobtrusive, small, good focal length, very useful aperature)
* Shallow depth of field at f/2, great for soft backgrounds

Things that I noticed (which bring it down to "great" and not "amazing"):
* My lens tends to over-expose images from what the meter says (add a little -EV and you're golden. On the plus side of this, you get a brighter picture in the dark than you were expecting)
* Focus ring is very thin and "plastic-y" (works good though)
* No manual over-ride when in AF mode (not that big a deal)
* Colors are a little muted for my taste (bumping the saturation up, or post processing clears this right up)
* f/2 is shallow... very shallow (good focus is a must at this aperture)
* Background "Bokeh" reflects 5 sides of the aperture blades
* AF is noisy (in comparison to HSM lenses)

At it's price, I have no problem recommending it to anybody who's thinking about buying one. It's an EXCELLENT lens for the money, and much better build quality than the Canon 50mm f/1.8 "fantastic plastic" (as can be seen in the increase in cost, however). It produces better pictures, BY FAR, than the Canon EF-S 18-55mm IS f/3.5-5.6 at an equivalent 35mm length.

Yes, you should just buy it and be pleased!


Read more Canon EF 35mm f/2 Wide Angle Lens for Canon SLR Cameras

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B+W 52mm UVA (Ultra Violet) Haze MRC Filter #010
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