Canon EF 50 mm II f1.8 Lens Review
The Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II lens is one of the most inexpensive Canon lenses, and yet, it is very bright, and very sharp. This fixed focal length, the equivalent of an 80mm lens on the Canon 10D or similar APS-sensor size digital camera (35mm equivalent focal length) lens is a bargain for the price. Perhaps the only drawback is that it is not a USM lens, so, it is definitely noisy when focusing, but, that is a rather minor issue. Focusing is generally fast and accurate. For low light situations, this is an ideal lens. On an APS-sized sensor digital camera, this would also make a good portrait lens.
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 Lens Test Images
From the images below, taken on a Canon 10D, you can see for yourself that even at f/1.8, it is reasonably sharp. From f/4.0 through f/11, its sharpness is outstanding.
Image Quality
100% Crop, 50mm, f/1.8
100% Crop, 50mm, f/2.8
100% Crop, 50mm, f/4.0
100% Crop, 50mm, f/5.6
100% Crop,50mm, f/8.0
100% Crop, 50mm, f/11
100% Crop, 50mm, f/16
100% Crop, 50mm, f/22