Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

So, you just got your Canon SLR, and want to go beyond the kit lens. There is no better choice than the Canon 50 mm f/1.8 II. I have owned it for two years. I own higher-end lenses (70-200 f/4 L and 100 mm f/2.8 macro), but end up using this lens more often than any other. On a 1.6 crop body (like the Rebel series) the lens is a great portrait length. The lens is sharp enough that I cannot on a Rebel XS (12 mp) I go to pixelation before seeing effects of loss of sharpness from the lens on test photos. The biggest upgrade from the kit lens is the huge gain in speed. This lens is very sharp at f/2.0 or 2.2, and with normal indoor light you will be able to shoot flashless at ISO400 comfortably. This was the lens I trusted for the birth of our first son, and I couldn't be more happy with the images it captured. Even in the low light of the hospital room I was able to catch those first eyes-open moments without a flash. This lens is very light (maybe a little cheap feeling), which is nice when you are just carrying a camera to family outings or traveling. Really, a Rebel series with this lens is not that much larger than a quality point-and-shoot, but you have much more creative flexability and get much better shots.