CanonEF-S 55-250mm F4-5.6 is STM

Bought for vacation and I'm so glad that I did. Image stabilizer is easy to use and is very good for the price. I can zoom way in and get great pictures with minimal effort. Build quality is high level and feels good in the hand. Fits perfect in my canon bag that came with my rebel t7.

For the price, owners of APS-C sensor Canon cameras really can't beat this lens. As most reviews mention, you'll need good light to shoot anything that's moving - anything below f/8, you won't get sharp action, and really f/10 is the sweet spot. But as an entry level telephoto, it produces excellent (even outstanding) results. As a bit of a side bonus, it does pretty decent macros all the way out at 250mm.I've been using mine for almost a year now. It's incredibly versatile with it being an 88-400mm equivalent on crop sensors (which is the only place this works - won't match up with a full frame). I use it for long-throw landscapes, wildlife, macros, you name it. Auto focus is fast and nearly silent, as with all the new STM lenses.Cons: Sharp action shots are off the table in anything less than full light. With experience, you can compensate a bit, but it's a tough proposition. Also, barrel creep may be a problem over time. After 10 months, mine will slowly extend out on its own when I walk around with it for a while. That's about the worst thing I can say about this lens.Pros: Excellent sharpness in good light. Fast and easy to use, smooth action. IS will help those with less steady hands. Price is fantastic for what you get. Light. Travels well. Extremely versatile with a lot of reach.

This lens is much better than the older Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4.0-5.6 IS II lens especially on the newer bodies such as the 70D and the 700D. Please be sure to compare the lens you receive with the pictures of the new STM and the old lens so you do not get duped into buying the old lens for the price of the new lens. For example, if you look at the STM version of this lens and look at the first "used" listing by Players Electronics for $265, you can see that the photo they have attached shows the old not the new STM lens. Someone is going to receive the old lens thinking they have received the new lens unless they check carefully. Buyer beware!5-14-14 UpdateI have used this lens for two weeks and am very impressed with the performance. I have even used it for indoor basketball and have gotten clear and focused shots at 250mm. Also some great bird shots. It is sharper than my Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 IS lens which is better in lower light situations. I highly recommend the Canon EF-S 55-250mm F4-5.6 IS STM lens for beginners or advanced shooters who want to travel light.12-30-15 UpdateThis lens is crazy sharp and the best value of any of the Canon lenses I have and I have mostly L lenses.One of the attached photos was taken with a Canon EF 200mm f/2.8LII Lens and the other with a Canon EF-S 55-250mm F4-5.6 IS STM Lens. Can you tell which one was taken with which lens?The photo on the right was taken with a Canon EF 200mm f/2.8LII Lens and the left photo was taken with a Canon EF-S 55-250mm F4-5.6 IS STM Lens. Both were shot at f.5.6 at 280mm (including 1.4 extnder) and 250mm, respectively and both were taken with a Canon 70D. I love both lenses and as you can see, they perform somewhat similarly at the same aperture.

This is such an amazing lens for it's price. It's a great option if you are looking for something with a little more reach than what you get with the kit lens. The quality is just awesome. It takes phenomenal photos far away or if you want to do close up shots of bugs or other things. This lens is great. It's also not too heavy so you can take it everywhere. I recommend it.

The operative words here are "entry-level." If you have a Canon DSLR, chances are it came with the 18-55mm "kit lens," which by itself is a fairly sold kit offering, especially for outdoor photography with ample light. The next logical choice is a telephoto lens to reach out and pull in your subject a bit more. The 55-250mm is a logical choice as it is of the same build quality is the 18-55 kit lens, comes with image stabilization and autofocus, and doesn't break the bank. Canon also deliberately built this lens to pick up where the 18-55mm kit lens left off, so the two together give the user 18-250mm with no overlap, which is where most photography is done. If you're an amateur photographer looking to explore longer focal lengths this is a good starter. It seems also a widely sold lens, so there are a lot of white box and refurbished options saturating the market, so buying a cheap, lightly used 55-250 is easy to do.Be careful not to set your expectations too high - in fact, keep them on par with the 18-55 kit lens. This lens has a relatively limited aperture for its focal range, and what that means is that you'll need ample light for clear shooting, or a stable platform from which to shoot (monopod, tripod, etc.). The IS function helps but can't do all the work. Indoor usage will probably warrant a flash, and I've even had my camera tell me to use a full flash with this lens outdoors on a cloudy day. This is due to its limited aperture, which is fine. The rule of thumb I follow is for telephoto, I do not exceed a f-stop number higher than f/4, and for standard and wider lenses, f/2.8. This lens fits that rule at its widest but as you zoom, it will decrease its aperture and require more light or manual tweaking of shutter/ISO settings.Accessories are relatively cheap too - you owe it to yourself to protect the front with a 58mm filter and/or hood, but be advised that finding the right hood might be difficult because this lens extrudes as you torque it through its zoom range, so finding a hood that will work with that might be tricky.The real benefit of this lens is its value. For what you pay, you get a great entry level plastic telephoto lens on par with kit lenses. This will allow the amateur a way to grow in skill and explore more options. I've used this lens for portrait work in the 100mm range and it worked well with an old Canon 300D. I've even been lucky using this lens on a tripod pointed at a backyard bird bath during sunrise to capture all sorts of birds with pretty good results as far as beginning photography is concerned. Your money can go a long way with this lens.If you can master this lens with an older camera, it will prepare you for moving into more robust equipment. This lens combined with an older camera will give the amateur a lot to learn without spending a wheelbarrow of cash. Keeping your expectations for this lens realistic will help you learn the basics and provide you with the experience to know whether you're ready to step up to a lens of better build quality and performance. It's a great extension to your starter kit and highly recommended for beginners.