Canon EF 100 mm f/2.8 Macro USM review - Summary

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Canon EF 100 mm f/2.8 Macro USM

23 October 2009

Arkadiusz Olech

11. Summary

Pros:

excellent image quality in the frame centre and at the frame edge at all apertures,
negligible chromatic aberration,
distortion at practically zero level,
very low coma,
moderate astigmatism,
silent and relatively quick autofocus,
good build quality.

Cons:

autofocus could have been more accurate.

I like testing such lenses very much. The test procedures and the results analysis go smoothly and efficiently. I don’t have to think what went wrong and why, describe all slip-ups in detail, find arguments why a lens is overpriced. Here everything went almost perfectly. For the sum of about 640 $ we get a well-made instrument with excellent optical and mechanical properties which is ideal for macro photography and portraits as well.

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It didn’t break any records like the Tamron 2.8/90 Macro but it fared much better by f/2.8 and f/4.0 and had a significantly lower chromatic aberration than that lens. The Tamron is cheaper but it has neither inner focusing nor an USM motor. The Sigma 2.8/105 Macro is a similar case. It is not equipped with an ultrasonic autofocus and it changes its dimensions on focusing, its image quality is very good and the chromatic aberration – low. It is also cheaper than the Canon. As you see, in the 90-105 mm macro class the choice is wide – each and every of these three lenses can make even a demanding user satisfied with the results. Which lens you decide to buy is only a matter of your personal tastes and your pocket.

Sample Shots:


Camera: Canon 20D Parameters: 100 mm, f/2.8, exp. 1/125 sec., ISO 800 File: JPG, 3504x2336 pix, 2.9 MB	Camera: Canon 20D Parameters: 100 mm, f/2.8, exp. 1/250 sec., ISO 200 File: JPG, 3504x2336 pix, 2.7 MB	Camera: Canon 20D Parameters: 100 mm, f/4.0, exp. 1/200 sec., ISO 400 File: JPG, 3504x2336 pix, 3.2 MB

Camera: Canon 20D Parameters: 100 mm, f/8.0, exp. 1/400 sec., ISO 200 File: JPG, 3504x2336 pix, 2.5 MB	Camera: Canon 20D Parameters: 100 mm, f/7.1, exp. 1/160 sec., ISO 400 File: JPG, 3504x2336 pix, 2.7 MB	Camera: Canon 20D Parameters: 100 mm, f/7.1, exp. 1/200 sec., ISO 800 File: JPG, 3504x2336 pix, 2.9 MB

Camera: Canon 20D Parameters: 100 mm, f/8.0, exp. 1/200 sec., ISO 400 File: JPG, 3504x2336 pix, 3.6 MB	Camera: Canon 20D Parameters: 100 mm, f/2.8, exp. 1/160 sec., ISO 100 File: JPG, 3504x2336 pix, 2.4 MB	Camera: Canon 20D Parameters: 100 mm, f/5.6, exp. 1/40 sec., ISO 100 File: JPG, 3504x2336 pix, 2.4 MB