Canon EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Standard Zoom Lens Review

I've had the Sigma AF 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 DC OS lens for several months and found it to give sharper images with my 40D than the Tamron 18-250mm (non-IS/OS) which it replaced. Then along comes Canon with their own superzoom "travel lens" so I bought one to see how it compares to the Sigma.My tests show mixed results regarding image quality.With both lenses wide open the Sigma wins at the wide end from 18-24mm, especially away from the center, while the Canon wins at the 135-200mm long end, also especially away from the center.Further, the Sigma is f6.3 wide open at 200mm while the Canon is f5.6.This is only a small difference, but it does give the Canon even more advantage at 200mm where shutter speed needs to be the highest.

Both lenses auto-focus accurately (no front or back focus) although the Sigma is slower to lock focus in low light and is a little noisier in getting there. Their IS/OS are equally effective at about 3 stops of compensation.Build quality, size and weight are about the same and both use the same 72mm filter size.Sigma includes a lens hood while Canon wants to sell you one.

In summary, the Canon is slightly better for me due to the faster and quieter low-light focus and improved telephoto image quality.The trade-off is poorer image quality than the Sigma for wide angle shots, even after stopping down.Finally, the Canon lens costs about $200 more than the Sigma at this time.





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Digital Camera Labels: Canon EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Standard Zoom Lens for Canon DSLR Cameras,Canon,18-200mm Len