Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens Review

Because of its super long focal length zoom range, the Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens has a super long list of uses. The 28-300 L is the best Canon do-everything-with-one-lens lens available.

Think of all the subjects you can find that need a focal length between 28mm and 300mm. landscapes, group pictures, portraits, outdoors sports, zoo animals (and shots of your kids while you are there), wildlife, flowers (.3x magnification is great for a non-dedicated macro lens), sunsets ... Carrying and changing between multiple lenses to get your shot is not necessary with this lens. And less dust on the sensor is a great side benefit. The Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens covers most of the most commonly used focal lengths in a single lens.

As this is a Canon L Series Lens, it should have no problem holding up to professional use. It is very solidly built. Moving parts have a high quality look and feel to them. As it often is, weight is the downside to this quality. At .6 lbs heavier than a Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS Lens and .7 lbs heavier than a Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS Lens, the Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens reaches the heavyweight class in my personal opinion (3.7 lbs). It is not huge in size, but definitely feels substantial in your hand.

Canon 28-300 Lens Size Comparison

Surrounding the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS USM Lens above (center) is the Canon 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens retracted and zoomed out to 300mm.

As made obvious in the above picture, the Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens is a push/pull zoom. I personally am not a big fan of this design. I find it hard to keep the lens stable and on my eye and on my subject as I push and pull. Loosening the zoom friction rings helps, but this allows the lens to extend and smack on the end of its travel when it is hanging. Some people love push/pull zoom, some don't. You will need to make your own decision on this matter. I did find the tension ring to work better on this lens than I did on the very similarly sized and designed Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS Lens. I kept adjusting the zoom tension on the 100-400 when manually focusing the lens. I am either getting better at it - or the Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens has a better design. The longer I use the 28-300, the easier I find the push-pull zoom feature to use.

Another feature that Canon has gotten better at over the years is IS (Image Stabilization). It is an excellent feature that I am happy has found a home on the Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens. Canon advertises being able to handhold at 3 f-stops less than with a non-IS lens. That is a really nice feature on a slower lens such as this. Mode 1 and 2 (panning mode) IS are available.

The IS version on this lens is tripod-sensing. The Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens knows that a tripod is being used when vibrations go below a certain level. Keep IS turned on when mounting the 28-300 on a tripod to take advantage of this secondary IS mode - reducing mirror slap, shutter and tripod vibrations.

The Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens is a variable aperture zoom lens going from f/3.5 at 28mm to f/4 somewhere around 50mm to f/4.5 near 55mm to f/5 around 70mm to f/5.6 approximately 115mm. Slightly annoying to me is that AV and M modes gives two clicks for f/5 at 70mm.

Wide open, the Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens shows decent center sharpness throughout the focal length range - Stopping the lens down improves center sharpness a small amount. Full frame corners are soft - especially from 50-85mm and again beyond 200mm. The corners become much sharper when the lens is stopped down a stop or so with 300mm needing 2 stops for good full frame corner sharpness. Please note: The ISO 12233 resolution chart samples for this lens at 28mm are smaller than normal because this lens does not focus closely enough to fill the frame with the chart at this focal length.

Distortion varied throughout the Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens' zoom range. At 28mm, there is noticeable barrel distortion even on a 1.3x FOVCF body. Distortion was decent at 35mm but pincushion distortion showed up at 50mm until gradually disappearing at around 135mm.

The Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens showed CA at its widest angle focal lengths up to about 50mm and again at 300mm in the full frame corners. Some vignetting was apparent in this focal length range as well - widest (less than 35mm) and longest focal lengths are the worst - and is noticeable on a 1.3x FOVCF body. Color, contrast and bokeh (background blur quality) are all very good.

Fast and quiet focusing is one of the 28-300 L's best features. Ring USM (Ultrasonic Motor) performs very well - including in the all-important accuracy category.

Along with many of Canon's other L-Zooms, the Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens has a 77mm filter size. Like many of the newer L-Zooms, the 28-300 IS is weather sealed. Unfortunately, and unlike most of Canon's other white L-Zooms, the 28-300 IS is not compatible with the Canon EF 1.4x Extender or the Canon EF 2x Extender.

When purchased from a reputable retailer, the Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens comes with a nice Canon lens case, a removable tripod collar and a lens hood. This one-size-fits-all-mm lens hood is a compromise but worth using.

If the weight and the price are not too much for you, the Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens makes a fine option when ... You can (or want) to take only one lens with you. You are not able to change lenses fast enough to catch a subject that needs the full focal length range. Environmental issues (dust, salt water spray ...) prevent you from changing lenses. Or you just want the convenience of a single lens for all of your needs. Otherwise, you can expect to get somewhat better image quality with the lighter (not combined) and much faster Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM Lens or Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Lens and the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS USM Lens combination.

With its huge range of available focal lengths, the Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens is going to get pictures for you that you might not otherwise have captured with any other set of shorter focal length range lenses - because of the effort/time required to carry/change lenses. Travel photography is an excellent use for the 28-300 L as you often do not know what will be encountered on a trip to somewhere new to you.

Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens Sample Pictures ...

Rent the Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens (Using these links supports this site)
Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens at LensRentals.com
Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens at LensProToGo (Price includes round trip shipping)
* If out of stock, ask the rental company if they can accommodate your need.

More Canon EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 L IS USM Lens Reviews & Information
Canon Press Release
Canon Camera Museum Technical Report
FredMiranda.com
Luminous-Landscape.com
Photo.net Preview

Using this link to make your purchase supports this site