Canon EF-S 35mm f/2.8 Macro IS STM - Review 2022

Catechism SLR owners in search of a low-cost macro lens are in for a care for. The EF-Due south 35mm f/2.8 Macro IS STM ($349.99), uniform with APS-C sensor cameras, focuses close enough to capture images at full life-size, and includes a built-in low-cal and then the shadow your camera casts when putting the lens right upward to your subject is brightened. It does show a bit of barrel distortion, which is something you lot don't see in premium macro lenses. But as a budget option, it'due south a fine performer, even if it falls shy of existence called Editors' Choice. Our favorite macro lens for Canon cameras is the Tamron SP 90mm f/two.8 Di Macro 1:ane VC USD ($649), and our favorite low-cost prime lens is the Canon EF-South 24mm f/ii.8 STM ($149.99).

Pattern

The EF-S 35mm is small and low-cal. It measures ii.2 by ii.7 inches (Hard disk drive), weighs 6.seven ounces, and supports 49mm front filters. The lens is finished in black, with a polycarbonate barrel, but it does sport a metal mount, which is not always the case with calorie-free, upkeep-friendly models.

Canon EF-S 35mm f/2.8 Macro IS STM : Sample Image

The front chemical element is environs by a white ring that covers and diffuses the calorie-free emitted by dual LEDs. A button on the barrel turns them on with a short press, and toggles between both lights or only the left or right with a long press. Additional short presses toggle between two levels of brightness.

There's a switch to plow the image stabilization system on or off, and another to switch between manual and autofocus. The autofocus system uses an STM motor, which delivers polish, silent focus, a big plus for video when paired with a contempo SLR with Dual PIxel AF like the T7i. The downside is a lack of tactile response when focusing manually. The band turns continuously in either direction, with not a lot of resistance. The motor response is immediate, just it's as well quite sensitive. I found information technology a picayune hard to brand small, minute adjustments, specially at close altitude. This is a lens that is best used with autofocus enabled.

Minimum focus is prepare at 5.1 inches from the image sensor, so yous've just got about 1.5 inches of working distance betwixt lens and subject if you want to focus equally closely equally possible. The lights come in very handy hither—if your camera is casting a shadow, they're strong enough to provide some fill. At the minimum working altitude the lens projects objects onto the prototype sensor at total life-size.

Image stabilization is built in. That'due south a large plus for macro shooting, as yous often have to narrow the aperture to increase depth of field when working close, and shooting a sharp image at a loftier magnification mostly requires a short shutter speed. Videographers volition also benefit, as the IS organization does a good task removing the jittery look that tin plague unstabilized handheld video.

Image Quality

I tested the 35mm Macro with the 24MP EOS 77D. It's merely compatible with APS-C like the 77D, 80D, 7D Mark II, and those in the Rebel serial—it can't be mounted on a total-frame Canon. At f/two.8 it scores ii,275 lines per picture top on the Imatest center-weighted sharpness test, with performance at the edges of the frame that lags just slightly behind the average score. That's improve than the 1,800 lines we want to see at a minimum from a 24MP sensor photographic camera, putting image quality squarely in the very good category.

At f/4 in that location's a very slight drop in resolution, 2,211 lines, and you go a similar two,239-line consequence at f/five.6. Images are a petty crisper at f/viii (2,408 lines), and not far off from that marker at f/11 (2,386 lines). Narrowing the aperture further reduces image fidelity—you lot become 2,132 lines at f/sixteen, ane,601 lines at f/22, and simply 955 lines at f/32. Narrow apertures are used to improve depth of field in macro shots, but if you need to stop down past f/11, you should consider taking multiple exposures and blending them using a focus stacking technique instead.

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At that place is some barrel baloney, well-nigh two percent. That's not something we desire to encounter in a macro lens, as it can make it a pain to utilise for document reproduction. If y'all're just using it for coincidental imaging, you can remove it with software. Peripheral illumination is also correctible via software tools. Corners are noticeably dim (-2EV) when shooting at f/2.8 and right the border of acceptability at f/4 (-1EV). At narrower apertures the frame is evenly illuminated from edge to edge. At press fourth dimension in-camera corrections are non available for the lens, at least not when paired a 7D Marking II.

Conclusions

The Canon EF-S 35mm f/ii.8 Macro IS STM is a solid, low-toll add together-on for owners of APS-C Canon SLRs. Its standard-angle field of view, wide f/ii.8 aperture, and image stabilization go far a strong choice as an everyday lens for photographers who want to shoot in lower low-cal and capture better images than you can get with an entry-level zoom lens. Its macro focusing capability is boosted by integrated lights, which assistance to fill in the shadows yous'll stop up casting when working very close to subjects.

It's non perfect—we don't like to see this much barrel distortion in a macro lens, simply evidently a compromise had to be made in order to keep costs, size, and weight manageable. If you're more serious about getting a dedicated macro, you lot'll want to spend more on our Editors' Choice Tamron SP 90mm f/2.8 Di Macro 1:1 VC USD, a $649 lens that captures some of the sharpest images we've seen. And if you just want a low-cost prime number lens for your Canon, the EF-Southward 24mm f/2.viii STM is a bargain at $150, even though it omits image stabilization.