I have just received my new Canon EF-S 10-22 ultra-wide angle lens. This is one of Canon's most popular lens and is designed for the "crop sensor" series of DSLR. More on what a crop sensor is later. My first thought after a couple of frames is "Wow, this is really wide, it wraps around my block."
The question of the day is why do I need a 10-22mm wide angle lens. I already have a EF-S 18-55 zoom that came with Canon X1i camera. So what am I going to do with that extra 8mm of width for a wide angle shot. That 8mm is like a football field when I am shooting a landscape in the distance (well maybe not quite a football field, but close).
There is a great need for those of us that shoot landscapes for a wide angle lens. As you might notice in my landscapes I tend to shoot very wide shots with mountains or red rocks in the foreground and the horizon in the distance. I have been shooting most of my landscapes at 18mm with my kit lens on the T1i. That means that I am shooting at 28.8mm in film 35mm size. This is because the T1i is a crop sensor camera with a factor 1.6x.
Now I have to explain the crop sensor stuff. Suffice to say that there are three ratios of crop sensors in the Canon line of cameras; full sensor, 1.3x, and 1.6x. This refers to the ratio of the sensor (the computer chip that sees the image and translates it to digital). The full sensor is the same size as the 35mm camera of years past. The two other ratios are, in effect, a subset of the full sensor and the 35mm film size. For practical purposes this means that the full sensor would see the entire football field, the 1.3x sensor would see inside the 20 yard lines and the 1.6 factor would capture inside the 30 yard lines. Now, you math majors out there do not hold me to the exact proportions, I am just trying to illustrate the concept.
Here is a list showing what Canon cameras have which sensor:
Canon EOS 1Ds, Mark II and II (Full Frame)
Canon EOS 5D and 5D, Mark II (Full Frame)
Canon EOS 1D, Mark III,IV (1.3x Crop Frame)
Canon Digital Rebel, T1i,XSi,XS (1.6x Crop Frame)
Canon EOS 20D,30D,40D,50D,7D (1.6x Crop Frame)
Now what does all this have to do with me wanting, needing, lusting after a 10-22mm wide angle? Now you know that this lens will fit on my camera (whew, that took a long time). You will also know that the 10mm, the widest of the wide angle, is really a 16mm on my camera compared to how it looks on a full frame camera. That is still very good and will capture really ranging views of those red rocks that I am so fond of.
What about the other characteristics of the lens? All the reviews I have read show it to be a very high quality "glass." Canon designates their top-of-the-line lenses with the letter "L" in the description. Although the EF-S 10-22 f/3.5-4.5 does not carry the "L" designation, the use of three aspheric elements and one SD element is a common characteristic of a quality lens. My first first shots with the lens left me with the impression of how clear and sharp it is.
This has quality optical parts and is not a "low-end, consumer type lens". Some pundits have suggested that if it had not been an EF-S type lens, it might have received the "L" designation, but since it will not fit on a pro level DSLR (EOS 5D,1Ds series), Canon did not give it a "professional" L designation. In fact, no EF-S lenses have the "L" designation to date.
EF-S lenses, of course, are designed for use only with APS-C (1.6x) sensor Canon DSLRs and will currently only physically mount on the Digital Rebel series, and EOS 20D,30D,40D,50D 7D. The EF-S design allows the rear element to be closer to the sensor then with EF lenses, improving image quality, especially at the shortest focal lengths. The "S" in EF-S means "short back focus" and now you know why.
There are many technical reasons that this lens is good for wide shots and landscapes. The reviews have shown that it is very sharp and very fast when auto focusing. On the negative side I will note that, if you use this lens when looking at a person up close it will make them look like they are standing in the circus exhibit with the distorted mirrors. It is clearly designed for those shots that are as wide as all outdoors.
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