Lens canon 28-80 đánh giá năm 2024

Back in September I read a PetaPixel article about old inexpensive Canon lenses that are good performers. These lenses sounded like a cheap way to have some fun. The lens that appealed to me most was the Canon EF 28-80mm f/3.5-5.6 USM. It’s a useful focal length range with ring-type USM. I found a very clean copy on eBay for $75. For the record, this is the good version of the 28-80mm USM. Gold ring, metal mount, focus distance window.

The autofocus is fast, silent, and accurate. The build quality is pretty good too. It’s not an L lens, but it feels more sturdy than the EF-S 18-55mm IS non-STM, EF 50mm f/1.4 USM, and the EF 28-135mm IS USM. The 28-135mm IS USM is larger and feels flimsier and the EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM is larger and heavier. That leaves a niche at those focal lengths for the 28-80mm USM. Small, light, and well-built.

I decided to photograph a car show with this lens today. Usually I go with the 24-105mm since it is versatile and produces fairly good images. The 28-80mm is as sharp as rumored.

The 28-80mm was useful. It was wide enough to fit vehicles into the frame when space was at a premium. The tele end was long enough for me to zoom in on details. The variable aperture didn’t bother me much. I was using f/5.6 or smaller for most photos anyway.

Now for the negatives. This lens was surprisingly flare-prone. I have never used a lens so susceptible to flare before. I use lens hoods on every lens (except the 50mm f/1.8), so I am not used to dealing with lens flare. I have read that older lenses don’t have the anti-reflective coatings we have today. The flare issue became apparent as soon as I started shooting at the car show. Here is one example of the lens flare.

Most of the time I was able to deal with the lens flare by using my hand as a lens hood. It made a big difference in the scene shown above. I did manage to get my finger into the frame. Nothing a little cropping couldn’t fix.

I should clarify that I would have used a lens hood if I could have found one for this lens. Supposedly the hood for the EF-S 18-55mm IS II works on this one. I happened to have one and gave it a try. It didn’t fit. I then tried a generic collapsible rubber lens hood that screws on, but it kept the front element from retracting completely, affecting zooming and focusing.

That brings me to the other issue. I bring a circular polarizer with me in case I need to get rid of reflections on a car. The front element on the EF 28-80mm USM rotates when focusing. That means the polarizer setting will change if the focus changes. I figured I could carefully adjust the polarizer after focusing. However, the construction of the front end of this lens is odd. The front element moves back and forth during zooming, which is normal. However, there is a sheath that moves during focusing as well. With the right combination of zoom and focus settings, the front element can become recessed and impossible to reach. I could not reach the ring on the circular polarizer to adjust it.

My last criticism, and it is minor, is the lack of image stabilization. A lack of IS did not cost me any shots, but there was a shot that required me to do some contortions and I noticed the image was shaky in my viewfinder. IS would’ve helped reduce the vibrations from my twitchy muscles. However, this lens is 20 years old! Canon did not have any IS lenses until right after production ended for this lens in 1995.

I would love to see Canon update the EF 28-80mm. There needs to be a compact, lightweight, well-made, inexpensive zoom lens for full-frame bodies. The 28-135mm feels cheap. I haven’t used the 24-70mm L. It appears to be slightly larger, but the f/4 IS version is twice as heavy as the 28-80mm.

Overall, the EF 28-80mm f/3.5-5.6 USM is a good lens for its current used price. The focal length, size, and weight are just right for walking around town. I had no complaints about autofocus performance and I am pleased with most of the car show photos I took with this lens. Aside from the occasional lens flare, I can recommend this lens at a price of $120 or less. This lens is a good performer, just don’t compare it with an L lens of recent design.