In december 2012 I decided to venture into full-frame photography and RAW videography by getting myself a Canon 5D Mark III camera and the Canon EF 35mm f2 IS USM lens. This combination has since been the only focal length that I had been using for three years for most of my videos and photographs. It was such a pleasure to use this lens on this camera that I was having trouble letting go. Last month it was finally done. I sold both the camera and the lens to get myself a Blackmagic Design Cinema Camera 2.5K MFT. But that’s another story.

The Canon EF 35mm f2 IS USM lens features a full-frame image circle at a focal length of 35mm. The maximum aperture of f2 in combination with Canon’s IS image stabilization was one of the first in this category. Tamron has now made two f1.8 lenses with VC vibration control, and I really appreciate that. Having a prime lens is one of the best decisions you can make when taking photography and videography seriously. It gives an astonishing image quality, superb color rendering and forces you to think ahead. You can still zoom, but you have to walk! I think the image stabilization is more than a nice gimmick on such a lens. It enables you to get really great low-light shots in combination with the maximum aperture and is the most crucial thing for capturing stunning video sequences.

Specifications

  • 10 elements in 8 groups lens construction
  • 63° diagonal angle of view
  • 0.79 feet or 0.24 meter minimum focusing distance
  • 67mm filter size
  • 11.8 ounces or 335 grams weight

Sample gallery

Here are a few shots that I have taken with this lens that I would like to share.