Product ReviewsCanon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Lens EXCELLENT IMAGE STABILIZER Digital EOS 70

Decent lower priced alternative to the L glass

It is a bit noisy when using the image stabilization, but it works as advertised. Paired with the 6D I consider it slow to focus. I am not trying to shoot sports or other very fast activities, so there's no real heartache about it, but it's worth noting. i used to own the non IS version of the 75-300, and I like the bit of latitude in low light situations that the IS offers. Decently sharp images even at 4.0. Good value.Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: gulfcoastcamera

Soft Image at Large Aperture

The lens is not that good. At large aperture, the image is not sharp. You get want you paid for. Also the USM focus is very noise. I wish I had stayed with STM which might be cheaper too.

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: new | Sold by: thepixelhub

Not perfect, but GREAT lens for the money

I bought the EF 70-300 f/4.0-5.6 IS USM zoom lens because I was looking for the extra length that my EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM wasn't delivering for things like sports and wildlife and when subjects were out of reach.

I had originally considered the EF 70-200mm f/4L USM lens but opted for the significantly less expensive 70-300mm lens because I had heard good reviews about the lens and decided to try and save some money in the process of expanding my opportunities.

This lens has sharpness to be appreciated! When shooting wildlife (birds, squirrels, frogs, turtles, etc...) the extra reach is very handy and everything turns out very nicely. Neatly blurred backgrounds provide a good smooth canvas for clear subjects that really stand out. Image stabilizer system may be a tad noisy (noticeable, at least) but what it lacks in silence, it makes up for in competence as I was able to hand hold even slow shutter speeds of around 1/10th sec even at full 300mm zoom!

There are, however, a few things I wish this lens did have that it does not. The front of the lens rotates during focus and extends when zooming, and the Micro-USM system does NOT allow full-time manual focus, and the lens lacks a distance scale. The more expensive L-series lens does have all these features, along with others I didn't bother listing, but lacks image stabilization. Finally, the lens does display some pincushion distortion, although, depending on how your shots are edited, you might never notice.

There may be some things that this lens is not PERFECT for, but for the small bit it lacks, it easily makes up for. VERY NICE for the money!Read full review...

Upgrade your lens kit with a good quality-price relation!

I bought this product because, when I bought my Canon 550D, I just bought the 18-55mm camera kit, and as I'm a sports photographer for excellence, I needed a lens that could capture nicelly what happens in a long distance, specially, motion pictures. As this one is a 70-300mm tele-lens, it could capture pictures in a considered long-distance.
I really appreciate the fact of having an Image Stabilizer, with 2 different modes: 1-axe mode (vertical axe) and 2-axe mode (horizontal and vertical axes), which ables you to chose the best one to capture your in-motion picture. The supreme image quality is also very appealing.
This lens also has an UltraSonic Motor, by instance, it isn't very quick focusing the picture, taking 1 to 3 seconds depending on the object. It's also very noisy when doing the focusing process. Another aspect to consideer is the energy consumption, which is well explained for the type of lens itself.
In overall, it's a great tele-lens, being a nice alternative for the Canon L series, which are much more expensive. This product should be considered by amateur such as by professional photographers!Read full review...

The best Canon zoom lens for under $1000

A great lens for around $470 Brand New...and one i recommend 100% for the Advanced Amature it has the best of both worlds a good price and really good Picture quality plus 3-stop image stabilizer with 2 modes (its not a $1200+ Canon L) but its a good solid lens from Canon

Is it right for YOU??.... well thats a hard question but here are some key facts and situations that may help you decide...

Pros..
really Good picture quality,A Great image stabilizer,USM motor,good build quality and almost 30% faster focus than previous 75-300 is lens

Cons.. no full-time manul focus,filter ring rotates,in really low light focusing is difficult

Compared to..??

canon EF-s 55-250mm (is)...
this is a great lens and a good anature zoom lens and for less than $230 New it is a good compromize if you dont want to spend $450 but it is missing Advanced(IS) A little less picture quality,Build quality a lot lower

Canon EF 70-300/4-5.6DO{IS}...$1200+
This lens has a little better picture quality(especially in corners),Smaller size,Faster focus and a little better on build quality.. But it cost $1200+ and it's still not "canon L status" and i personally don't see a $700+ difference

Canon EF 70-200 F4(L) Non (IS)....$1200+
Well this is not really fair since this is a (L)series lens and the picture quality is far superior,Focus is also way faster,Build Quality is also Superior and weather resistant,and the fact that you have F4 throughout the zoom range... But there is a Huge sacrifice and yes it is Huge unless you carry a tripod everywhere unless you are in good daylight This Lens DOES NOT HAVE (IS) a image stabilizer so keep that in mind so while this lens will hands down beat a 70-300(is) in picture quality it wont fair well in lower light while being hand held (no tripod) This is a huge weakness and seriously should be thought over

I think the 70-300(is) will be the best lens for amatures and semi-pros in the $1000 and under range and is more well rounded then the other 3 lenses that i used as a example above. If you are a serious pro then Go for the (L)series lens ($1200+)but for most of us amatures and semi-pros that do ocassional wildlife,Zoo,Park and vacation photography I recommend this lens for you for 3 reasons... Image stabilizer,pric and Really good overall quality..Read full review...

It is the lens I was looking for.

This lens is a perfect mate to my 24-104mm lens as it give a smooth transition from 24 all the way to 300 mm of crisp, sharp images. I have found it easy to focus manually with my EOS R, and thus more stable for HDR imaging.Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: motorbeacon1

A sturdy, versatile & user-friendly lens for capturing the moment.

I wanted a quick and easy telephoto for fleeting wildlife shots. This lens gives good quality images at a reasonable price. Way less bulk and weight than a "L" series while in thick bush and de-fogs far quicker after drastic temp changes. The image stabilization feature is great for hand-held or monopod use. The auto-focus motor is a bit noisy for a quiet forest, but I tend to focus manually when there are multiple objects in-frame anyway, so not a huge issue. All-in-all, pleased with this purchase.Read full review...

Great image quality but USM motor is audible

This is my first experience with a USM lens. It was really amazing to work with. The image quality is great, it's very fast to autofocus - faster than the EF-S lenses I have. I wanted to upgrade from replace my ancient 70-300mm EF without image stabilization because it was slow to autofocus) - This lens is several steps up in all areas. Can't wait to use it for birds and other wildlife.

My only negative is that the image stabilizer motor definitely makes an audible noise - so it's a drawback for video work. Hence the 4-stars instead of 5. Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: daninmich

Good quality, Great Value

Great value, love the image stabilizer feature on the lens. Lens does "wind out" out to full length when carrying, so you need to put on the lock feature to prevent this.

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: photobaba

Great lens - best in this price range!

Great lens and does everything I wanted it to do.

Excellent sharpness, contrast and color even at 300mm.
Focus is a little slow so it's not the best for fast moving subjects. My copy of this lens does a nice job at 300mm though I have read reviews that said it was a bit soft at 300mm.

If you need the range of this lens this is probably the best lens you can buy without going to a $1,300 lens.

The size is a little bit long especially with a lens hood but the weight is light.

One last thing to mention on my copy of this lens is that I ended up getting slightly better results without the filter and hood on the lens. My guess is that when the lens is fully extended with the hood on, it may actually pull the end of the lens downward distorting slightly. Keep in mind these are my first impressions with using this lens, more use may prove that impression to be wrong.
Also, my first use showed no difference with or without the hood on the lens in regard to flare in the pictures.Read full review...

I would recommend to any started to medium range photographer!

Not an L series quality! Great base camera for outdoor sports and outdoor activity. Noisy, picture does get blurry when you see at a 100% magnification taken at hand held and it is sorta slow to focus. I love the size, the feel of it versatility of this lens!

I bought this product because I was looking for an inexpensive, long range with IS functionality for outdoor shooting.

Like I said earlier, it does not compare to an L series lens. If you are looking for great fidelity at a 100% then this is not a lens for you.Read full review...