Renegades lenses information page

Fred Miranda's lenses reviews page

Nikon lens terminology and what type lenses fit which bodies

Discusses many Nikon lenses, both new and old

Sort of a guide to choosing (a smaller number of) Nikon lenses

A little old, but 913 lenses listed!!

Minolta lenses specifications from the "Fotografie" site

Canon EOS lens FAQ

dpreview forum : Nikon lenses / Canon lenses

Canon lenses

Nikon lenses / Nikon lenses FAQ

Sigma lenses

Tamron lenses

Forum members opinions

Review guidelines (sort of!)

Your name/member ID (optional, but it would be nice)
Lens name (of course!)
Camera used with it
Any tests you have done or personal opinion or comparison
- speed of focusing
- softness
- bokeh (for people who know what the darn thing is )
- feel in hand (quality)
- type of photography you do with it/type of photographer you are
- etc.
anything that can help, don't be affraid to write too much or too little

Canon 100-400mm L - CoolGeorge (original post)

I really need to get a 500d close up lens so that I don't have to stand 5-6 feet away for my flower subjects.  I am really well pleased with the results though.  That lens produces a really nice bokeh as far as I am concerned.  I was well pleased with the dof as well.  You would think that 400 mm at 5 feet would make the dof really small but these seem quite acceptable.

Tamron 28-75mm XR DI - Mary Warner (original post)

I would put my Tamron 28-75 XR DI up against any Canon lens, including the 50 f1.8 prime I own. The Tamron is wonderfully sharp, focuses fast and has good contrast. It's on my camera 90% of the time (and it is not loose on the mount, either). Camera : Canon 10D

Tamron 28-300mm XR - Mary Warner (original post)

Now, the Tamron 28-300 XR is definitely not as sharp or as fast to focus as my Canon 70-200 f4 L, but it's a lot lighter and shorter and sometimes, I [could] take only one lens and no tripod, it gave me almost all the coverage I needed. Camera : Canon 10D

Tamron 180 f3.5 Di 1:1 Macro - Art Cole

This lens takes sharp images and I really like clutch AF/Manual switch. The tripod collar is weak but it meets my needs. Also like its compact size and weight. I would highly recommend this glass.

Minolta lenses general info - Blaine Byers(leicaIIIf)

For anyone stockpiling lenses for the upcoming Minolta 7D DSLR, here is a useful link with specifications for about 90 Minolta AF lenses and teleconverters. According to the news any Minolta AF lens will work on the 7D. This link lists both current and discontinued AF lenses. http://www.nefkom.net/miho/foto/minolta/lenses.html

Nikon 80-400VR - Jim Hunt (JimHunt) (original post)

Contrary to previous posts, the VR does not slow the AF down enough to notice. Can't wait for a chance at some birds in flight. Borderline too heavy for long periods of use. 80mm (120mm with multiplier) is really too long for anything except specialized uses. 400mm (600mm with multiplier) with VR is great for a lot of uses, though. I took the tripod mount off. If I'm going to use a tripod I have to turn off the VR, so I might as well use the Sigma 50-500.

Various Canon lenses - Steve Cutter (SteveAtTahoe)

In order of my favorites:
17-40mm 4.0L USM; Dream lens. Excellent quality, a bit soft all over (very little though), cleans right up with a little USM, on the 10D comes to 27mm-64mm. A slow lens, needs light to work. Fast AF, but misses near 17mm, (not the lens fault). Some say its large, but I think it’s just right on the camera, well balanced. Can shoot wide open. A bit pricey, but maybe Canon’s best WA. Color jumps out more than any other lens. It’s on my camera most of the time. (put a UV filter on 1st thing, It has a big front lens, easy to touch)
200mm 2.8L USM; Next to the 17-40mm this is my favorite lens. Excellent quality. Fast AF. Fast lens, shoots in low light. Can shoot wide open. Long compared to the other lenses, but not to large on the camera. Easy to carry around. A bit pricey but tack sharp and comes to 320mm on the 10D.
85mm 1.8 USM; A fun lens to shoot with, frames well for close up work (portraits). (its small), tack sharp, fast AF, low light, can shoot wide open, nice bokeh, good quality built, but things are a bit loose.
35mm 2.0; Great focal length for a P&S, comes to 56mm on the 10D. I don't seem to use this focal length much. Small in size, sharp good in low light, low quality, things loose but great for the price.
50mm 1.8; Good focal length on 10D for close-ups. Misses focus 20% of the time. Low light lens. Tack sharp when focus locks correctly. Can shoot wide open. Nice bokeh. Cheep quality. Cheep price. Small in size. Has no focus markings on lens. All plastic body. If had any moving parts, I am sure they would be loose. Good for a camera body cap.
When I say “things loose” it just means the lens has a loose focus ring. Not to worry, it’s just the “L” lenses are tighter.
Except for the 50mm 1.8, I would buy all of them over again. Maybe a 50mm 1.4 USM instead of the 35mm 2.0, not because of the quality of the 35mm 2.0, but the focal length.
I had the Sigma 50-500 (Bigma) for a few days. It back focused, so I sent it back. It was way to heavy for me also. It looked like it was sharp from 50-500, but was not tack sharp and not contrasty (my copy). A slow lens. AF would hunt at times.
I can add some images if anyone wants to see some.