Buy Low Price From Here Now
A unique, compact telephoto lens that gives the choice of razor-sharp images, or with the twist of a ring, two degrees of soft focus. It works by applying "softness over sharpness," using deliberate spherical aberration on top of a sharp "core" image at apertures from f/2.8 thru 5.6; images taken at apertures smaller than f/5.6 are always sharp. Autofocus continues to function, with or without the soft focus in use. This lens is an ideal addition to a portrait or scenic photographers arsenal. A perfect combination with an EOS Digital SLR, with the camera enabling review of soft focus effect on the LCD monitor.
Readmore
Technical Details
- EF mount; telephoto lens- Internal focusing; aspherical lens
- 135mm focal length
- f/2.8 maximum aperture
- Rear focusing system with Autofocus drive
See more technical details
By Luving it (Seaside, CA USA)
Great IQ even wide open at 2.8! Soft focus is fantastic. I only use SF between 0-1, over 1 is too blurry to me. If you believe PS can produce the same effect, good for you. I happen to believe the SF effect from this lens is far more richer and attractive. I use it on both Canon 350D and 40D. The old fashioned AF is in the same league as Tamron and Tokina. I shoot people and flower and everything else that happen to fit into the 135mm view finder. The results are fantastic! Only wish it has better macro capability! The closest focus distance is a bit long in some of the real world applications.
By C. Hunt (Brook Park, Ohio)
Needed a Canon 135mm lens. The choice was the 135mm f/2 L lens or the 135mm f/2.8 lens with soft focus. Can't compare this lens with the L lens optically but weight is a lot less and the price a lot less even more so.
I am able to get very good results wide open at f/2.8. I don't use the soft focus feature. I am pleased with this lens.
By Roger A. Edwards (CT, USA)
This lens was a gift for my wife. She loves it. The pictures are clear and the focal length is great.
By Lam Phung (Orlando, FL)
I am an amateur photographer using this lense on a Canon 40D to take portraits or anything that requires some reach. The lense is light, which I love, since I can carry it with me everyday. The built is solid and more than well enough to hold up with my use- lots of tossing in the bookbag type of handling.
The lense autofocus (AF)is from the older generation of AF by Canon. It makes this cool, sharp, and distinct wirring sound that isn't too lound that I like. All my other Canon lenses are just plain quiet and I do miss that mechanical buzzing of things that actually moves. The manual focus is disable whenever the autofocus is turned on. For my usage, which is casual everyday multipurpose photo snapping that includes some wildlife, candid, low light, and photojournal photography, the autofocus is more than fast enough. For low light situation, I have used this lense indoor during the evening with decent lighting and it performs fine. So far, I have not encountered any flaring or optical aberrations that catch my attention as an amateur photographer.
As for sharpness, contrast and image quality, I find the lense very good. I can't tell the differences between this lense and my 70-200 f/4L IS. Of course, I am not a pixel maniac, so I can't tell the differences if any exist. If you need or want a high performance 135mm lense, then perhaps you should look more into the 135mm f/2L lense that Canon has. That seems to be the most popular choice for people when they talk about 135mm lense. However, if your need is a consumer level 135mm lense, then this lense is the one.
Finally for the highlight of this lense. Its unique, and best feature of soft focus put it in a class of its own. Soft focus allows the photographer to soften an otherwise very sharp image into that glamorous superstar type of shot that looks very good for facial portraits and creative uses. With some side lighting or back lighting, I get to have a lot of fun with glamor photography through the use of soft focus; it is a wonderfully fun lense, and I am so glad to have one. No other Canon lenses on the market can do what this lense does, and I think that other makers such as Nikon don't even have it in their lineup, with the exception of a very few makers such as Pentax. When the soft focus is turned off, it is a sharp, sharp little lense. Of course, I am aware that through graphic programs like Photoshop, one can try to mimic what this lense can do in post processing, but it isn't the same. It will also take some work to imitate the effect.
For its versatility of functionality, creativity, and value in prices. I rate this lense top notch!
By M. Scott (Philadelphia, PA)
I bought this lens based on the reviews that I read here. I shoot weddings in a professional context, and own both L and non-L lenses, including the 50mm 1.4 and the 85mm 1.8 that are in a similar price bracket.
I really wanted this lens to be great, because a light, 135mm 2.8 lens that was sharp would mean that I could hand-hold in situations that I couldn't with a 70-200 f4, or even a 70-200 f2.8. Unfortunately, I can't give it a good review.
I found this lens to be far from sharp, it was not contrasty like the 50mm 1.4 or 85 1.8, and it did not work well with my 40D's white balance - all the photographs taken through this lens looked reddish and too dark. It is light and it is a 2.8, so if you want the focal length for casual shots and if the fact that the image quality is not up to a pro's standards doesn't matter so much to you, then definitely go for it. But if you are purchasing this lens because you think it will produce really good photographs, you're in for a let-down.
If I can get my hands on another version of the lens (in case mine was a defective one), I'll update this review.
Images Product
Buy Canon EF 135mm f/2.8 with Softfocus Telephoto Lens for Canon SLR Cameras Now
