The only thing common among pretty much all of the teenagers I’ve met recently was their addiction to social networking. Some might think that addiction is a harsh word but research proves that the word is apt in this case. 15-19 year olds spend an average of 3 hours per day on social networks like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. And 18% of all media users can’t go a few hours without checking their social network accounts. Sometimes even I tend to behave like that, but the people who are addicted to these sites must have a harder time than we may perceive. In my opinion, the ‘Social Networkholics’ must be told how to enjoy life without constant shots of these platforms.
There’s a life outside the bounds of likes, status updates and picture uploads. Wouldn’t it be better if we can just see the world in its true form and not just through the eyes of soil networks? If we do manage to do that, so much good can come into our lives.
No more comparing ourselves to others
Firstly, we wouldn’t always be comparing ourselves with the bunch of friends that keep announcing their achievements. For once, we’d be able to concentrate on our self.
We’ll become more social in real life
It’s quite ironic how the social networks have made us less social in real life. People have a long list of friends on the social networks, but when it comes to real life socializing, they back off. Some of the perks of using the social media…
Do away with the procrastination
Besides all these things, the best thing that’ll happen is that we’ll procrastinate less. Social networking sites can be quite a time waster if you are not working. Spend a minute on them and before we know it, it has been hours and we’re still there
It’s just that life can be so much better if we don’t let social networks govern our lives, becoming the center of our world. Do give it a thought.
They are fast, low-priced, and can produce some of the most pleasing images in photography.
Low aperture lenses – They are truly the tiny lenses that you can stick in your bag and take anywhere. The lightest Canon EF lenses which give your photo that “butter like” blur in your backgrounds. Lets compare the 50mm f/1.8 II with the Canon EF 50mm F1.4 USM
Left: Canon EF 50mm F1.4 USM Right: Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II
I found very little difference between the f/1.4 and a f/1.8 50mm image quality. I’ve used both for many years but lets drill down into the actual photo quality (pixel peep even).
Do the different lenses translate into better image quality?
All settings being equal, does one lens outperform the other?
Can we justify you spending the difference in price to the 1.4?
All the images are taken handheld at a minimum of 125th shutterspeed. Both lenses are mounted on a Canon 550d Don’t forget if you have a APS-sized sensor (crop sensor) the equivalent angle of coverage of a 50mm is more like 75mm.
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Overview
At around £75-85, the 50mm f/1.8 lens may be one of the most widely hyped compact, high performance standard lens in photography. So it is not a surprise that it feels like a novelty. Reminds me of a plastic cookie cutter . Not to mention the funky noises it makes when focusing, is not easy to nail your focus when shooting wide open.
Pros
Blurring the background in a picture is good
Isolating the subject
Sharp Image
Light
All images are a 1.1 crop of these pages. Same section shown to check quality of lenses
Canon 550d iso100 50mm 1.8 Lens @ 1.8 1.1crop
Canon 550d iso100 50mm 1.8 Lens @4 1.1crop
Canon 550d iso100 50mm 1.8 Lens @2.8 1.1crop
Canon 550d iso 400 50mm 1.8 Lens @1.8
Canon 550d iso 800 50mm 1.8 Lens @2.8
Canon 550d iso 800 50mm 1.8 Lens @4
Canon 550d iso 800 50mm 1.8 Lens @1.8
Canon EF 50mm F1.4 USM
A ultrasonic motor drives auto-focus extremely quickly with near silent focusing system. a full-time manual override makes it possible to adjust focus without leaving AF mode. Sharp foreground objects stand out against a smooth blurred background. It has a great build quality, feels nice, has a smooth focus action,
Pros
Ultrasonic focusing
wide open at f/1.4
with full-time manual focus override
Smooth background blur
Super Spectra coating
All images are a 1.1 crop of these pages. Same section shown to check quality of lenses
Canon 550d iso100 50mm 1.4 Lens @1.4 1.1crop
Canon 550d iso100 50mm 1.4 Lens @1.8 1.1crop
Canon 550d iso100 50mm 1.4 Lens @2.8 1.1crop
Canon 550d iso100 50mm 1.4 Lens @4 1.1crop
Canon 550d iso 400 50mm 1.4 Lens @1.4
Canon 550d iso 400 50mm 1.4 Lens @1.8
Canon 550d iso 400 50mm 1.4 Lens @2.8
Canon 550d iso 400 50mm 1.4 Lens @4
Canon 550d iso 400 50mm 1.4 Lens @4
My Views
I have used both lenses for a good few years and find myself reaching for the 1.4 more frequently. This is mainly due to its better feel and build quality. Both lenses have there place and because i started with the cheap 1.8 moving to the 1.4 and finally the ending on the 1.2. Each lens holds its own place in my setups.. It was difficult to get the camera to focus where I wanted with the 50 f/1.4. I would expect more from the more expensive 50mm f/1.4. We use the 1.2 a lot in our fashion shoots, its actually out today soo I will be doing a separate review on the 1.2 soon.
I did a quick search today to see what these lenses currently retail at. As of 29th December 2014 I found these deals available at UK photography stores, Wilkinson Cameras and Jessops.
Pricing
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Canon EF 50MM F1.8 II £72.00 –Wilkinson Cameras ( Price includes a 20% discount use code: CAN20 at checkout) Offer valid: 25/12/14 to 01/01/15
We’ll become more social in real life
