EF 100mm f/2.8L Is USM Macro Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras, Lens Only, Black

The canon EF 100mm f2.8L IS USM Macro lens is a bit of a monster to be honest. Like most other Canon L series lenses, this lens comes in a little bit heavier than standard EF or EF-S lenses. This is due in part to the excellent build quality (and weather sealing) and also in part to the inclusion of Image stabilization. Like many others, I spent a considerable amount of time trying to determine whether I should get this lens with image stabilization or whether to get the roughly $300 cheaper albeit non L series 100mm Macro lens. Generally the quality of the glass in a L series lens is higher than a standard EF series lens, so that would be a plus. The other big consideration was whether I wanted image stabilization. Now that I've had this lens for about a year I can say with full confidence that spending the extra for IS and the L series is definitely worth it. Controls on this lens are fairly standard across canon's series of lenses, you have a range selector switch, AF/MF switch and an image stabilization On/Off switch. Since this is a prime, there obviously isn't a zoom ring, just a focusing ring, which is nice and wide and has a very smooth motion to it. The Canon 100mm Macro lens is really a multi purpose lens. Although it's main use is for macro photography, you can very readily use this as a portrait lens on a full frame body (on a crop sensor this will be a 160mm lens which is a bit long for portrait photography) with excellent results. For the most part when shooting macro, you would want to shoot on a tripod with rail system and good lighting however since owning this lens I've found the amount of times that I've been out wandering around and happened across something that I wanted to shoot and didn't have my tripod with me to be a lot more than I expected. This is where the image stabilization on this lens comes into play. I've found that with the IS you get around a 2 stop advantage. It also makes taking macro shots by hand actually possible. Macro focusing is an art into itself. This lens allows you to stop all the way down to 2.8, with a beautifully creamy bokeh but a very narrow depth of field (for example, if shooting an insect, you may get the insects head in focus but the body will be out of focus) or go up the scale to allow more of your shot to be in focus. Of course, increasing your f-stop also means increasing your exposure time. Increasing your exposure time means the more likely there will be camera shake whilst taking the picture and as mentioned this is where the image stabilization kicks in for around 2 stops advantage. To get really close shots you can pair this lens with extension tubes. Extension tubes don't have any glass in them and simply create more of a distance from the back of your lens to the actual camera sensor. This effectively "zooms" you in further. Image quality from this lens is phenomenal. Very sharp images with wonderfully creamy boken produced by it's 15 elements. This lens creates the best bokeh I have seen form a lens, including the lenses I own that stop down to f1.4. If you are looking for possibly one of the best macro lenses on the market. you won't be disappointed with this lens. If you are looking for a great portrait lens, you won't be disappointed with this lens and if you are looking for a macro lens that you can use without the need of a tripod, then this is definitely lens you want. Overall the Canon EF 100mm f2.8L IS USM Macro lens is a winner. I'm so glad I paid the extra for the L series and image stabilization. Totally worth it.

I bought this lens a couple of years ago and it’s probably the lens I use the most for all of my work. I was hesitant at first to buy this lens because I already had a 50mm and an 85mm But I took the gamble and I’m glad I did. This lens is super versatile and could handle basically any type of job. The Pros Build Quality - this is not a cheap lens and because of it the build is nice and sturdy. Image Quality - the images that this lens produces are spectacular and you won't be disappointed. Portrait Monster - This is an amazing portrait lens once you start doing portraits with it you’ll fall in love. Macro - With this being a Macro lens you could really get close to your subject and get great detail. Image stabilization - if you’re manually focusing or shooting video you’ll love the image stabilization. I shoot with a cinema camera that doesn't have any sort of stabilization and when I turn off the image stabilization my videos look like they were taken during an earthquake. It really does make a big difference The Cons Because it’s a 100mm prime lens most of the time depending on what you’re shooting you’ll have to step away from your subject especially if you have a cropped sensor. It takes a little getting used too but to me it's no big deal. Not very good in tight places - To that point if you’re in a tight place and you need to get a whole subject and you can’t move back then you’ll definitely need to change lenses. Overall I love this lens. I would definitely recommend it to anyone.

Well...what can I add that others haven't already stated...For what it's worth I'm going to add my two cents... Like many of you, I was at the point I want to get some great macro shots of bees and bugs...While I occasionally can get a good shot using either my 24-105mm f/4L or 70-200mm f/4L lenses, the results are disappointing. Similarly, while I can generally get very good bokeh out of the two lenses above...I often wonder getting more. So I just got my 100mm macro lens Friday and took it for a spin the next day. Here is what I found so far... 1. Size: This lens is tiny and light. It takes a 67mm filter which is the same size as my 70-200mm f/4L zoom but is of course shorter. The outside appears to be made of plastic but you can tell it is high quality worthy of an L lens. The manual focus action is glass smooth as expected. 2. Hood: This lens comes with the ET-73 lens hood which is very long. It practically doubles the length with the hood on. While both the 100mm macro and the 70-200mm has the same diameter (67mm), the two hoods, while almost identical in looks, are not interchangeable. The 70-200mm hood fits very loosely on the 100mm. I was hoping to only carry one hood for both lenses...oh well. 3. Image quality: I keep hearing about how good prime lenses are compared to zoom. They are not kidding. IQ is astoundingly sharp. Color saturation and contrast are much better than my other two lenses and it has less distortion. I'm still having problem closing my jaw...it dropped and stayed dropped. 4. Bokeh: the bokeh, especially at f/2.8 is so dreamy. I'm so happy with it. This makes the lens a great portrait lens. 5. Focus: the lens has 3 focus modes: FULL, 0.5mm-Inf., 0.3mm-0.5mm. I have so far tried only the FULL mode. In this mode, focus speed is slow compared to my two other L lens but very useable. When I get really close to subjects for extreme closeup...the lens has trouble staying in focus...it keeps drifting off. It would be in perfect focus for about half a second then drifts off. This is true in manual focus also. It's not a real big deal but I'm not sure if this is normal. Perhaps I need to switch to 0.3mm-0.5mm. Like many men, I do not read the manual. I'll report later. In short, this is a great addition. Shots of bees that were extremely difficult before, I was able to routinely get on the first day. I highly recommend getting this.

I'm an experienced amateur/prosumer with many years of 35mm and about 6 years of digital photography. I was going to buy Canon's new 5DMK2, but found it too heavy to hold, so bought the newly released T2i instead. I was consistently told by professionals that, on a limited budget, I should put my money into high-quality lenses. I did a lot of research between the apparently similar non "L" f/2.8 100mm macro - Canon's previous version of this lens. I really wasn't sure if I could justify spending nearly double the price. For the extra money, not only are you getting the "L" quality optics, but also Canon's new hybrid image stabilization, which is both horizontal and vertical. For macro photos, this essentially gives you the equivalent of another two stops. I decided to buy the lens and test it out for myself, thinking I could always return it if I wasn't satisfied. Quite honestly, my other other Canon lenses (NOT kit lenses) give exceptional quality, even up to large blow-ups. When I first look at the pictures from the 100mm, I wondered why I paid the extra money.... until I started blowing them up on my monitor - I kept on zooming in, and the image was, as Canon claims, 100% tack sharp. This was exactly what I wanted and had been looking for. As I said, I can't hold a heavy camera, so trying this lens on the T2i, my hands were a little shaky. The new IS system managed to compensate for that, even in low light - truly giving me extra stop equivalency. I actually bought this lens more of a portrait lens, which are often shot soft-focus, but that is not my preference. But I did want macro too, so it is good value in that respect as you are almost getting two-for-one. The USM motor is amazingly quick and silent, and is the same one as on the cheaper model. They say that once you shoot with an "L" lens, there's no turning back, and I now know why. I'm busy selling off old equipment to fund new purchases! I also know why you don't find used "L" lenses on ebay.. because they'll last you a lifetime. The lens comes with a very nice, felt lined hood (to limit reflection) and a soft case, which is only enough protection if you are putting the lens inside a padded camera case. I bought it during one of Canon's rebate promotions, which are quite frequent as long as you keep checking, so it was $200 less than list price. If you can get this lens for anything under or up to $1000, you'll be very happy that you did.

I'm writing this review as a hobbyist rather than professional photographer (that is, that sells photographs for a living). In my opinion, I would say this lens deserves a spot in your kit if you're looking to jump into the world of macro, but would also like the lens to do double duty for other types of shooting you do. As a relatively new photographer, I have primarily shooting portraits at social get-togethers. I found the Canon 135mm f/2.0L to be the cream-of-the-crop, but had two slight drawbacks - it was a bit long indoors depending on location and without IS (image stabilization) it was tough to get focused shots at such a long focal length. The general rule of 1/focal length meant shooting at 1/160, which can be tough in low light to get a properly exposed picture. The 100mm nicely fit with a shorter focal length and Canon's new Hybrid-IS system. The IS system is audible in more quiet environments, but is by no means loud enough to get in the way of taking your pictures. The IS also enables you to handhold shots indoors, which was great for me to take pictures in the evening or night time where indoor lighting is poor. I found the 100mm to still be an excellent portrait lens - nice and sharp, although I would still choose my 135mm if I had enough room and enough light. Other reviews show the 100mm to be sharp even wide-open on a full-frame (and a drool-worthy MTF chart to go along with it). It's nice to know it's there when you need it, although I find that in most of my portrait shots, the corners are part of a blurred background. And for the bread-and-better of macro, I found the 100mm is a great focal length that allows you to get close to the tiny subjects you'd like to photograph. Although the IS does help with handholding shots, I found it's be less helpful on the macro end. As a new macro photographer, I also was surprised at how narrow the DOF was at the macro scale. Shooting at f/2.8 means part of an ant's head may be in-focus, but parts of its antennae might be out-of-focus. Shooting at more narrow apertures help expand the DOF, but that also means having to compensate with better lighting or a longer shutter. For the latter, the IS does help, but I'd imagine would be even better just to shoot with a tripod (which I've yet to purchase and try out). However, shooting slightly larger subjects, like flowers, is definitely in this lens' sweet spot even handheld. I've posted some examples in the sample images. Overall, a great lens to start experimenting with macro, and that also does double-duty as a great portrait lens with IS that helps with lower light conditions. If you don't need the IS or the L designation, the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM Lens for Canon SLR Cameras can be had for just similar image quality (from what I've read online) for about half the price, which may be a better starting point.

This lens is the best "L" lens you can buy for the money because of the following reasons: 1. It's under $1000 (I got mine for $899) Money is important, and the more you can save, the better. Tell me a lens of this quality for the same price. 2. It's super sharp! This lens is tack sharp! Just look at the photos in Flickr and here in Amazon. They are amazing, crisp, and vivid. My experience with shooting with this lens is phenomenal. It has taken my photography to a higher level (coming from 24-105mm L). If you want proof look at my Flickr account: "markserrano" (I can't put the exact URL as Amazon might remove it automatically). 3. It's f/2.8L! Lower aperture means, less ISO noise. Wedding photographers often tout to shoot at f/2.8 or lower. Shooting at nights and dimmed lights was far better than my usual f4 24-105mm L lens. Better here means it's really sharp and less noise! I'm using 6D (so far the king of low lights). So the combination is really great. 4. You can do REAL macro. Hands-down this is the main feature of this camera! You can really examine the hairs and antenna eyes from little insects and plants as well. The texture of the micro world is alive! 5. You can do REAL portraits. This is a bonus of this camera. WIth extreme bokeh, you can not ask for more. You can easily isolate your subject from the background. Again look at Flickr to see the sample shots. I think the only downside is this thing is super sharp for portraits. You want something less sharp and softer (I think if you're creative you can make your shots less sharp). 6. Lighter than my 24-105mm L! Lighter is always better. 7. Sharper than my 24-105mm L at the same focal length (100mm)! I've performed some tests and I can confidently claim the 100mm is the clear winner. No doubt. 8. IS is great! I've got numerous, excellent macro shots handheld alone! There are numerous times where a tripod isn't feasible really. It's not an option. IS is a must for handheld shots, plus it's good for portrait shots. Cons: * Focuses slower than 24-105mm L. Don't expect to capture fast moving objects! * It can't zoom. Duh! * The build feels less sturdy (plasticky feeling?) than my 24-105mm L Final recommendation: This is the best of the best! Legendary and mythical! If you don't believe, go to my Flickr account. Look for "markserrano" and check my shots (note: I'm not a professional photographer but I don't think I have a bad taste when it comes to composition).

I had been considering this lens for some time and finally decided to purchase it after doing some research online, reading reviews on Amazon, [...], and various other reviews. I wanted a lens that would work for macro photography as well as portraits, which this lens satisfies both needs well and helps to justify it's cost. I thought about the 135Lf/2 and the regular 100 f/2.8 macro, but decided having one lens would be better. I currently own a 17-40L f/4, 70-200L f/4, 24-70L f/2.8 and can attest that this lens fits very nicely to my collection. There are numerous reviews for this lens, so I will focus comments on concerns I had when originally thinking about this lens. First, I read some initial concerns about the plastic material used on this lens compared to the what you would expect with standards L lenses. Owning three other L lenses and renting others, I am not disappointed in the material or build quality of this lens. It is a high-grade plastic and I think Canon decided to switch materials to reduce the weight of the lens, which I prefer as it gives good balance on my 5D mark I with battery grip. I'm pretty sure, if I remove the battery grip, the weight balance would be fine. Second, what I was concerned about was the focusing speed. I know for macro photography, it wouldn't be a big concern; but for portraits I wanted something that focused fast. This lens focuses just fine provided you have your focus switch on the correct setting. There are three settings, full autofocusing (which allows your lens to travel the full distance), focusing between 0.3 to 0.5 for macro/close ups and 0.5 to infinity for everything else. I don't find myself using the full setting at all, I switch between the two modes depending on what I need and the focusing is as fast as my other L lenses. Now, if I had another prime L lens to compare with, then I might be able to see a difference in autofocusing speeds. This lens doesn't come with a tripod collar, which I am not as concerned about right now. I do want to buy one in the future. The concern is how much Canon charges for the tripod collar. The Tripod Mount (Ring D) costs about $200! I find it difficult to believe that the collar costs almost 1/4 of what I paid for this lens. Regarding the IS, I was pleasantly surprised that the IS does work very well, as others have noted. I think I will be make much more use of it when I upgrade to a newer body with video. So to sum up things, this lens is an awesome option for those who are looking for a macro/portrait L lens with IS; you'll get the color/sharpness and pop you come to expect with L lenses.

I bought this lens a week ago before spending several days hiking and camping on California's Big Sur coast. I own a Canon 7D and bought this for macro and telephoto purposes, and for the most part I am extremely impressed. Some of the macro shots that I got were unreal (I'll post some in the next few days). Amazing sharpness, detail, and beautiful bokeh. The only lens I've used that comes close is my 24-70 f/2.8L, which has a "macro" setting (but only .29X). The lens is large, but after using the 24-70L for the last three years as my primary "walk-around" lens, it feels light. The construction feels very solid, but keep in mind that it's made of hard plastic, not metal. Probably not as durable as some "L" lenses, but every bit as weather resistant and a lot lighter. And, now that Amazon has dropped its price (it started at around $1050 in November and is now down to about $884), I can say that its a great buy. Most "L" lenses cost well over $1000, and I don't begrudge paying a bit more for increased durability, image stabilization, and sharper optics. If you're not willing to shell out quite this much cash, Canon makes a "non-L" 100mm macro without the IS, and Amazon sells it right now for about $540. By the way, it looks like Canon is discontinuing that lens (its been recently removed from the Canon USA website), so act fast if you want that model. Also, the Image Stabilization seems to work well, but I can't comment too much on it because I've only used one other IS lens. It certainly helps but isn't a 100% cure-all - you will probably still want to use a tripod at times. The reason for the 4 star rating relates to some trouble I've had focusing on the telephoto end. I tried using the lens for some star photography and the pictures came out really blurry. I set the lens to manual focus, turned off the image stabilizer, and turned the focus ring to infinity before doing the time exposure and was pretty disappointed with the results. I then decided to try and see if the lens would focus on the stars, which (surprisingly) it actually did! I noticed that the focus ring was slightly before infinity. So, I tried the time exposure at that setting. Better, but still blurry. I know that its not my 7D because I then used my 24-70L and got amazing pictures. When I returned home yesterday I tested it again, and realized that the lens simply doesn't focus at infinity, but will focus on distant objects a little before the ' mark on the ring. Does anyone have any information about this? I'm wondering if I have a defective copy or if there's something about this lens that I don't know (I'd like to figure out if its defective before my 30 day amazon guarantee runs out). If I can figure this issue out, I'll update this review and change my rating to 5 starts instead of 4.