Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4.0-5.6 IS Telephoto Zoom Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras

I took a picture of some airplanes landing and taking off and actually got one with the pilot in full view! The zoom was great for 55-250. I took all photos by holding the camera in my hand and non of the pics were shaky. This lens has the Image Stablization built in and it is well worth the money.

You'll find this lens slow in lower light but that's to be expected. I'm really enjoying the longer reach and nice bokeh. I just purchased a close up lens to add to this lens when I'd like more of a macro look, which is a good option if you'd like to avoid buying a dedicated macro right now.

I am new to DSLR photography having just moved from Canon point-and-shoot in September 2009. I purchased the Canon XSI with kit lens EFS 18-55mm and in the same order I bought the EFS 55-250mm. For the first couple months I used the full auto function and was disappointed in the results because they were not any better than the Canon PowerShot -- not bad but I expected more. Then I bought a DVD beginner course in DSLR photography for the XSI and started using the 'creative modes' and my pictures improved a great deal. I bought two more lenses the Canon EF mm50 1.4 and for some reason the competing EF mm50 1.8.

So for the last few months I have been taking many pictures with all four lenses in series starting with wide aperture and incrementally closing, which of course changes shutter speed and depth of field. Then I would use the shutter priority setting and play around with the white balance and the ISO setting. Then I carefully studied the pictures on my wide screen computer monitor and increased magnification to look more closely at the edges and color. I would try to determine for each lens the affect of aperture, shutter, ISO, white balance on the quality of the pictures.

I have found that I can get good and bad pictures from any of the lenses. However, the EFS 55-250 is probably the most consistent in terms of decent quality -- a little better than the kit lens. And of course it is a telephoto lens. The mm50 1.8 takes very sharp pictures but the mm50 1.4 can really take some beautiful color and the bokeh is wonderful. I like them all!

I guess that as I get more experience I could change my mind and of course there is still the wonderful world of the 'L' lenses.

Very nice addition to the stable of lenses. It really fills the gap between the kit lens and the super telephoto lens. Works well and is nice and light.

Great intro lens with little to no issues. Slightly noisy in AF mode, but a beautiful lens that takes exceptional pictures. Get it now, you won't be displeased.