| Customer Reviews Collected from usa.canon.com |
Canon - EF 135mm f/2L USM Telephoto Lens - Black
Average Customer Rating:
4.9
Rating breakdown 39 reviews
5 Stars
36
4 Stars
3
3 Stars
0
2 Stars
0
1 Star
0
100%of customers recommend this product.
(
35 out of
35)
Customer Reviews for Canon - EF 135mm f/2L USM Telephoto Lens - Black
Customer Rating
5
Not too flexible but incredible when you need exac
on May 13, 2012
Posted by: Swiss Frank
In terms of image quality this is as good as Canon gets, and really about as good as Mamiya 7 even.
First bokeh: bokeh comes from aperture size, not f-stop. The 200/2.8, 135/2, and 85/1.2 all have about a 72mm aperture for the light to go in, which basically determines the size of an out-of-focus highlight behind a given subject at a given distance. In other words, if a highlight circle is half your subject's head size with one of these, it will be with the other two too. (In comparison, 50/1.0 only has 50mm aperture and a blurred highlight only half the blur. Think about that: this is twice as blurry as a 50/1.0.) That said, while the 200mm/2.8 puts a nice blur behind your subject, the 135/2, with same subject at same distance, gives the same blur but over twice the area of scene. This means you can pick out your subject in focus against a HUGE wall of bokeh, which is much more impressive. Another way to think of it is 2x blurrier than 135/2.8, such as the L zoom. (The 85mm/1.2 bokeh turns into football shapes off-center, so while it makes killer images the bokeh's lacks the perfection of the 135/2 or 200/2.8.) Yet another way to describe the bokeh is that people are a bit more used to seeing 200/2.8 because the L zooms do that shot. People are NOT used to seeing perfect bokeh on a shot of twice the area, because only this rarely-used lens can get this shot.
As far as image quality: as long as your shutter is high and you're exactly in focus, even at f/2 this is as sharp as lenses get. Even corners are excellent. But its hard not to talk more about bokeh: even when the background is near, it can still be out of focus enough to make your subject really stand out in a 3D look. Its not only beautiful but very very rare as only this lens can do it.
Now the down-sides: with no IS, its not really usable at night. At 135mm you have to be very far from your subject for interiors to work at all. You have to be able to decide the distance from your subject so you may find its too short or long for the few well-lit interior events such as a volleyball game unless you can crawl up and down the bleachers to find your shot.. The main interior shot you could get might be weddings in a large venue where you can control the distance and maybe use some flash.
One note: lens design involves tradeoffs, and taking an already-complicated design and adding another 4-7 elements to get IS will hurt image quality a bit, as well as making it bigger, heavier, a bit more fragile, etc. And even then its not going to be easy to use simply because its a long prime. Please don't think that Canon could have just snapped their fingers and added IS to this while maintaining all its good points.
In summary, this is not a commonly used lens for me (out of like 12 lenses ranging from fisheye zoom to 600mm) but its probably the one I'm most excited to be able to use.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5
One of Canon's Best
on February 14, 2010
Posted by: Anonymous
After owning 10 canon L lenses, the 135mm f2 and the 35mm f1.4 are my favorites on a full-frame body, especially for travel and as walk around lenses. The 135MM has amazing bokeh and contrast, and much better DOF control than the 85mm f1.2 for portraits. Images are consistenly sharper with this zoom than with most of my other lenses, even those with IS, thanks to its wider f stop and faster shooting speeds. Its size and weight are also a great advantage over other L telephotos and zooms. Only minor improvement would be rubber sealing, but even without it I still find it my #1 choice.
Pros: Superior build quality, Super-sharp images, great bokeh, easy focus, size and weight
Cons: no rubber seal
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5
Heads and indoor sports lens supreme!
on August 7, 2009
Posted by: EOS4me
from Los Angeles, CA
If you shoot a FF EOS body for indoor sports or a lot of head shots this is an amazingly useful lens! Fast! Smooth pretty bokeh and shallow DOF are hallmarks of this lens. Stop it down and if you have a tripod this lens can produce images that are as sharp as my old EF 200 1.8L USM, unbelieveable detail and contrast but you have to have a high pixel body or fine grained chrome film to get the best out of it. Fantastic lens built old school Canon which is to say heavy enough to ward off a NYC mugger or an Alaskan grizzly bear. But the image quality is worth the pain to carry, the pain to your wallet and the narrow range of subjects and situations this lens is at its most usefull.
Pros: Super-sharp images, Superior build quality, Fast auto-focus, quiet focus, incredible bokeh
Cons: cost
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5
Great Lens
on March 16, 2012
Posted by: Drathaar
from Lakewood, WA
This is my favorite lens, its the one that stays on my camera when its in the bag. If I need my camera right away, I want this lens on it. I love people shots and this works great. The image quality is amazing, the bokeh smooth as silk. For me, I use this for head and shoulders, then pull out my 300mm f/4L for headshots. I have shot headshots with this lens as well, and you will still get great shots. I use this on a 5D Mark II. Works great for animals too. My dogs have been well photographed with this beauty.
Pros: awesome iq, great bokeh, fast focus
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5
My fave lens
on May 6, 2013
Posted by: HomelessFotoGuy
from Milwaukee,WI
Portraiture is everything to me and I love working the streets with this lens and my 5D3, My only complaint is that Canon choose to use a plastic filter thread on this lens,Extra care must be given to prevent crossthreading. As for weatherproofing, How many folks shoot portraits in the rain? As for IS, I seriously dont believe that the same image IQ could be maintained by adding extra lens elements that IS would require and then pay extra to boot? I believe this lens will go down in history as a classic based on it"s own merits.
Pros: pricepoint
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5
The Best!
on July 7, 2010
Posted by: Mark-E-Mark
from San Deigo, CA
If you like a superb portriat lens, this is it! The best head shots! Super for low light indoors! DOF is the best, not the best for group shots of course unless your 50 feet away!
Great for wedding an kids without being in their face. Its my favorite lens from Canon.
Great for wedding an kids without being in their face. Its my favorite lens from Canon.
Pros: Fast auto-focus, Superior build quality, Super-sharp images
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5
Straight Up Magic
on September 28, 2019
Posted by: matthewdempseyphoto
from Rome, GA
The title says it all on this. The sharpness is just right, the color rendition is amazing, and the contrast is incredible. Autofocus is also very fast, which is great because the combination of that and the bright aperture make it a great choice for indoor sports. I personally use it for both sports and portraits, and it does well at both. Stick it on an APS-C body, and it does well for outdoor sports as well. It looks like a slightly sharper 70-200 2.8 at 200mm. The limiter switch for long focus distances also helps with this, and the extra stop of light means higher shutter speeds to freeze action.
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com
Customer Rating
5
amazing lens
on February 28, 2013
Posted by: rashmedo
from Maryland
Unbelievable lens .. one of the sharpest lenses i have ever touched in my life
Pros: Fast auto-focus, Superior build quality, Super-sharp images
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting usa.canon.com