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Review: Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6

This is the kit lens for my camera - most Canon EOS 400D owners will own one of these. It's had some bad reviews, but for the price it isn't terrible. The wide angle end is really the only feature I find useful - better lenses at this focal length cost several hundred pounds.

Good points

• Very inexpensive: difference between 400D with lens and without lens is usually less than £50
• Goes very wide
• Macro performance isn't terrible
• Image quality is okay at f/8, especially if you stay away from the extremes of its focal range

Bad points

• Noisy, slow focusing.
• Front extends and rotates (when zooming and focusing respectively).
• Zoom isn't very smooth.
• The lens sometimes extends of its own accord if left upside down.
• Image quality not good until stopped down to about f/8.0.
• Small aperture - no good with poor light.
• Bad barrel distortion at 18mm, pincushion distortion at 55mm

Sample pics

Canon EF 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6
22mm

Canon EF 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6
33mm f/16 3/10sec ISO 100

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