Canon EF-S 17-55 mm F/2.8 IS Lens

Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM User Reviews

Best Walk Around Lense For Cropped Sensors | Rating:
“Started with SLRs way back in the 70s when I was in the navy. My old Yashica checked out over 25 years ago and it was point and click until November 2007 when my wife and I broke down and finally bought a 40D. Since then we have rented L lenses, bought Canon primes and Sigma telephotos and ended up selling everything but a Canon 1.4 50 MM, the Canon 100MM macro and now this lens. We are set and I wish I had not wasted the time and money on all those other lenses. The 3 lenses I mentioned are sharp as a tack (though the 50MM lags behind the other two), sturdy enough for all but mountain climbers, and cover a range for anyone that has no interest in shooting birds at 100+ yards. The 100MM macro and this lens produce the best pictures of any of the lenses I’ve had on this body, including ALL the L lenses. I am not impressed by name/style/reputation. I only go by what I see, and the Canons 100MM macro and this 17-55 are the best.” – by M. Neace

Canon 17-55mm USM IS Lens F2.8 | Rating:
“Superb low light lens, excellent for indoor images without flash, and for portraiture, where shallow depth of field is desirable. It seems to be far more robustly constructed that their kit lenses, and the resultant images are sharp and do everything it says on the box… “ – by coldwaterjohn

Excellent for Travel and Family Photos | Rating:
“I have wanted for years to purchase this lense, and I am sorry I waited so long. The optics are almost L Series quality, and the approximately 28 to 88 35mm equivalency covers the travel and family photos I customarily take. It is relatively expensive, but it can be the only lense you need for travel and family photos. “ – by Albert C. Barclay Jr. “ACB”

The ultimate walk around lens | Rating:
“This is the lens that should be on every crop frame Canon. The focal range of this lens, as in the stock kit lens, is wide enough to capture just about any scene, with just enough reach to grab more distant subjects. This lens is incredibly sharp, maybe not quite as sharp as the 50mm prime, but is amazing for a zoom lens, and the f/2.8 aperture produces amazing background blur for portrait and macro photography.” – by Sean Regan

The ultimate all purpose lens for a 1.6x crop canon | Rating:
“I have to say that without a doubt, this lens is the ultimate all purpose lens for a 1.6x crop body Canon. The image quality is stunning – I have many portraits that look as if they can go into a professional level magazine. It’s simply amazing how razor sharp the images are! The image stabilization, quick focus, and the ease of use are indicative of the sheer quality of this lens.” – by Archer

A great lens to carry if you want to travel light | Rating:
“After I bought my Canon 40D back in 2007, I was looking for ONE single lens that I can take on my travel, as I always want to travel as light as possible. It has to operate in low light condition as I may not always have my tripod. It has to be versatile in its zoom range as I may be shooting landscape in wide angle one day and portrait of my Mom the next. The EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 delivers what I was looking for. IS works extremely well and I’ve made some street shots at night that would not be possible otherwise. I have been using this for 2 years and it’s always the lens I take with me if I’m required to carry only one. “ – by L. Chan “Larry Chan”

AWESOME ALL-AROUND LENS | Rating:
“After a trip to Disney where I took 2 lenses to the park (17-85 f/4-5.6 and 50 f/1.4) so that I could get both my wide angle pictures during the day and really cool night pictures of the castle, I realized how silly it was that I didn’t just have one great lens that I was happy to have on my camera all of the time. Now the only time I take this off my camera is for sporting events when I need my 70-200 f/2.8. Yes, I sometimes wish it could zoom closer than 55 mm but I wouldn’t give up my wide 17 mm range (on a 1.6 crop camera) for anything. I love being able to get the group shots and all of the scene that others cannot at 24 mm. I highly recommend this lens for everyday use and beautiful, natural looking low-light photography! “ – by M. Noel

Canon 18-55 IS vs 17-55 IS | Rating:
“After 14 months with my 18-55 – I picked up the 17-55 and felt free! Faster focus and the sharper and brighter images were immediate. I could even see the extra 1mm at the wide end (though it’s not a determining factor)… Compared to the 18-55, same shot, I can shoot in lower ISOs, I have less need for a flash; I can take advantage of faster shutter speeds, and the fixed 2.8 means I can use my zoom without any difference to my light or speed.” – by J & C

Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Sample Photos

- Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Sample Photos @ CameraLabs
- Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Sample Photos @ WCastleman
- Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Sample Photos @ Photo.net
- Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Sample Photos @ The-digital-picture.com
- Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Sample Photos @ Photographyreview.com
- Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Sample Photos @ Pbase.com
- Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Sample Photos @ Flickr.com
- Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Sample Photos @ Photozone.de
- Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Sample Photos @ Amazon.com

Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM User Manual

- Download Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM User Manual (PDF – 1.4Mb)

Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM Press Release

Amstelveen, The Netherlands, 21 February, 2006: Canon today strengthens its EF-S lens series with the Image Stabilized wide angle EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM. With image quality and construction approaching that of Canon’s renowned professional lenses, the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM becomes the fastest standard focal length zoom for EF–S mount cameras such as the new EOS 30D. Combining constant f/2.8 aperture throughout the zoom range with Canon’s latest 3-stop Image Stabilizer, it delivers outstanding wide angle performance and framing flexibility in low light conditions. Specialist optics such as UD glass and aspherical elements help deliver exceptional clarity, sharpness, contrast and colour accuracy.

EF-S mount

The lens fits exclusively on those EOS cameras with an EF–S lens mount – the new EOS 30D, EOS 350D, and earlier EOS 20D and 300D models. (see appendix ‘Technologies Explained for further information on the EF–S mount). The 1.6x multiplication effect of these cameras’ APS-C size sensor gives the lens an effective focal length of approximately 27-88mm.

Image quality

To improve image clarity over the total image area, two Ultra-Low Dispersion glass (UD) elements are employed to eliminate secondary chromatic aberrations that otherwise reduce sharpness and introduce colour fringing. To ensure crisp, high contrast from one corner of the frame to the other, two aspherical lens elements have been introduced to avoid spherical aberrations that can soften images, especially at wider apertures. In combination with digital EOS CMOS sensor and DIGIC II image processor technologies, the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM delivers image quality surpassing that required for many commercial applications.

Fixed f/2.8 from 17 – 55mm

Superb optical quality with no change in aperture over the full focal length range allows photographers to set exposure at the widest aperture and concentrate on framing, without concern for adjusting shutter speed at longer focal lengths. The lens employs an almost perfectly circular barrel aperture, helping create attractive, even background blur.

Image Stabilizer

The lens features Canon’s latest 3-stop Image Stabilizer (IS) for dramatically reduced image blur caused by camera shake. IS significantly extends scope for shooting in low light conditions without flash, or for gaining depth of field. The 3-stop advantage allows a photographer shooting in low light to use a shutter speed of just 1/15 sec instead of 1/125, with no perceptible increase in image blur.

IS automatically detects when the camera is mounted on a tripod, thus preventing feedback loops between the IS sensor and stabilizer motor vibrations.

(See more information on Image Stabilizer, see appendix ‘Technologies Explained’).

Fast, silent auto-focus

The lens’ USM motor employs ultrasonic frequency vibrations to drive auto focus with speed and near-silent operation. The constant torque motor moves the focus group at high speed, stopping with precision, accuracy and without overshoot the instant the lens arrives at the correct focus point. Photographers can switch to manual focus instantly and at any time simply by moving the manual focus ring without first having to switch out of auto focus mode.

Harmful reflections eliminated

By optimising Super Spectra lens coatings and lens element shaping, Canon’s engineers have been effective in suppressing flare and ghosting – more prone to occur with digital cameras due to reflection off the image sensor. By increasing light absorption, coatings reduce reflections off lens element surfaces to deliver crisp, undistorted images with natural colour balance.

EOS system integration

When used in conjunction with Canon’s range of EX Speedlite flash units and the internal flash of the EOS 350D, EOS 20D and new EOS 30D, the lens passes distance information to the E-TTL II flash algorithm to improve flash exposure metering.

An optional lens hood, made exclusively for the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM, and pouch are available.

In keeping with Canon’s Kyosei philosophy of living in harmony with the environment, the lens features only lead-free glass.
Technologies Explained

EF-S lens mount

The compact APS-C size sensor of select EOS cameras such as the EOS 30D, EOS 20D, EOS 350D and EOS 300D has paved the way for a range of relatively compact and lightweight EF-S mount lenses. These lenses project a smaller image circle than would otherwise be necessary to cover a full frame sensor or a frame of 35mm film. The ‘S’ in the EF‑S nomenclature stands for the term ‘short back focus’. This describes the system that allows for both a smaller image circle and positioning of the rear lens element closer than normal to the camera’s sensor.

Cameras with an EF-S lens mount can accept both EF lenses and EF-S lenses, while EF-S lenses can only fit to cameras with an EF-S lens mount. A white lens mount index differentiates the lens from other EF lenses, which retain their traditional red marking. A rear rubber ring prevents any damage in the event that an inadvertent attempt is made to mount an EF-S lens to a camera with an EF mount.

Image Stabilizer

IS works by using gyro sensors and circuitry to detect and measure unwanted vibrations. Tiny servo motors then create corresponding movement of a correcting lens group perpendicular to the optical axis. This alters the light path, returning the image to its correct position on the sensor or film plane. Unwanted movement is corrected fast enough to suppress effectively the vibrations of moving vehicles and aircraft such as helicopters.

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