dSLR Dad

Well, I guess you could say better late than never.  Canon has finally filled one of the largest holes in their consumer lens lineup.  The Canon EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 Image Stabilized (IS) Zoom Lens offers dSLR Dads an option for an everyday, ‘walk-around’ vacation lens.  What is somewhat perplexing, is that this is built upon Canon’s entry-level EF-S lens platform.  This means that Canon will be speaking highly of ‘value’ when it describing the features of this lens.  Value, in this case, both for the consumer and Canon’s business case.  The highlights of this lens include:

• 18-200mm focal range is a 35mm equivalent of 29-320mm.  Making sure that you have the proper focal length for any situation, without having to worry about changing lenses.
• Optical Image Stabilization (IS) good for 4-stops of hand-holding shutter speed reduction according to Canon.
• Minimum focusing distance of 1.5 feet (0.45 meters), at all zoom setting means that your kid will still be in focus when they run right up to you.
• A front element that does not rotate when zooming, keeping your polarizer filter in it’s proper position.

The Low lights:

• All 18-200mm lenses will need to compromise quality at some areas of the focal range.  Make sure that this lens’ optical limitations match up with your style of photography.
• Uses the same conventional AF micro-motor (DC) as the kit lens, not Canon’s USM technology.  This lens will still be a very good AF performer, but it’s definitely not silent.  A somewhat perplexing design choice for a lens at this price point.
• An incredibly narrow, cheap feeling focus ring that also rotates annoyingly when autofocus is active.
• An all plastic body like the current entry-level EF-S lenses.  It’s a decent quality plastic, but plastic nonetheless.
• It possesses a fair amount of zoom creep when pointing down.  Not uncommon for a lens in this class.  Canon has incorporated a zoom lock at 18mm for when you walk around, but that is one more switch for a dSLR Dad to worry about.

The Canon EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 Image Stabilized (IS) Zoom Lens is available now at Amazon.com

and B&H Photo.

Reviews

Digital Photography Review - Recommended (with reservations)

this lens has to be accepted for what it is: a general purpose solution which allows the photographer not to worry about fiddling around changing lenses when out traveling, but which makes inevitable optical compromises to achieve this goal. Those seeking the ultimate in technical image quality will need to look elsewhere, but as an overall package it’s likely as good as any other DSLR superzoom out there. So for users looking for the convenience of such a lens, it’s a perfectly good choice.

Popular Photography Magazine - Complete Review

In the past two years, the 11X IS superzoom has become the ideal general-purpose lens — certainly for shooters whose cameras don’t have on-board shake reduction. This Canon fits the mold. Very light and compact, it’s a gracious and adaptable traveling companion. Impressively sharp, it’s also an obvious choice for handheld low-light pictures, including event and theater work. Its real fortes, however, are close-up macro subjects, distant wildlife, and almost everything in between. Sports? Go for it!

Photozone - Two out of Five Stars, “sub-average in the true sense”

Note: This is Photozone’s first lens test with the 15-Megapixel EOS 50D, which replaced their 350D / Rebel XT.

Canon had a somewhat weird timing regarding the release of their EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS. It is extremely difficult to design such a lens to start with and more so under low-cost requirements. Combine these side conditions with the rather extreme quality requirements of a high resolution APS-C DSLR a la EOS 50D (@ 15mp) and this sounds like trouble. Here: the Canon lens has a weak spot at its 18mm setting - the border resolution is soft and heavy vignetting, extreme barrel distortion and CA problems don’t help either. The situation improves significantly from 24mm onwards but the sex-appeal of an all-round/travel lens is a usable performance throughout the range. The situation would have been different a couple of years ago when the sensor requirements were lower but combined with the 50D the lens is somewhat outdated straight from the start. Better look elsewhere unless you still intend to use an older generation DSLR for a while.

SLR Gear (Imaging Resource) – Review

To sum up, the Canon 18-200mm ƒ/3.5-5.6 IS offers slightly better performance than we’re accustomed to seeing with vacation lenses, with image stabilization thrown into a very portable form factor. Users who seek optical perfection shouldn’t flock to this lens, but when used stopped down by one or two stops, it’ll give fairly impressive results. On its own, it’s a decent lens, but users considering replacing a kit 18-55mm IS lens with this model should consider the EF-S 55-250mm IS if they’re not adverse to switching lenses, and have room for it in their bag. Between the two-lens combination there’s as much and more range covered, and the optical performance between the two lenses exceeds that of the 18-200mm IS. But if you absolutely can only bring one lens, then you won’t be let down by the 18-200mm ƒ/3.5-5.6 IS.

Press Release

NEW EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS LENS

LAKE SUCCESS, N.Y., August 26, 2008 – Canon has answered the call from advanced amateur photographers looking for a solid all-around lens with the introduction of the new EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS zoom lens. With an incredible focal length range equivalent to 29-320mm in the 35mm format, the new EF-S 18-200mm lens will make an excellent addition to any camera bag, and it gives shooters a great lens to capture both standard as well as telephoto images. The new lens features Canon’s built in Optical Image Stabilization system which gives the equivalent effect of a shutter speed roughly 4 steps faster, for better image clarity, even in shaky shooting conditions. With a minimum focusing distance of 0.45m/1.5 ft. at all zoom settings, this new lens should prove to be ideal for those situations where swapping lenses isn’t an option. An ideal complement to the EOS 50D SLR camera and all other EF-S compatible EOS SLR cameras, the EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS lens is scheduled to be in stores this October at an estimated selling price of $699.00*.

About Canon U.S.A., Inc.
Canon U.S.A., Inc. delivers consumer, business-to-business, and industrial imaging solutions. Its parent company, Canon Inc. (NYSE:CAJ), a top patent holder of technology, ranked third overall in the U.S. in 2007†, with global revenues of $39.3 billion, is listed as one of Fortune’s Most Admired Companies in America and is on the 2007 BusinessWeek list of “Top 100 Brands.” To keep apprised of the latest news from Canon U.S.A., sign up for the Company’s RSS news feed by visiting www.usa.canon.com/pressroom.

# # #
All referenced product names, and other marks, are trademarks of their respective owners.
Specifications and availability are subject to change without notice.
*Pricing subject to change at any time. Actual prices are determined by individual dealers and may vary.

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This entry was posted on Monday, November 17th, 2008 at 6:00 am and is filed under Camera Lens. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.