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| EOS M50 with 18-150mm |
In the eight years since Canon introduced the first EOS-M camera they have offered just eight native EF-M lenses one of which, the 18-55mm, has been discontinued in favour of the 15-45mm.
The seven remaining are:
Primes: One is stabilised, two are not.
* 22mm f2 (no IS)
* 28mm f3.5 macro (IS)
* 32mm f1.4 (no IS).
Zooms: All the zooms are stabilised.
* 11-22mm f4-5.6 IS
* 15-45mm f3.5-6.3 IS
* 18-150mm f3.5-6.3 IS
* 55-200mm f4.5-6.3 IS
You could pack all these lenses and a couple of bodies into a medium sized carry bag and head off for photo adventures, but it seems to me that the whole point of the EOS-M system is to offer kit options which are light and compact.
So let us look at some compact options.
Before we get into this let us visit the primes vs zooms discussion.
The main advantage of primes is quality.
A second advantage is that two of the primes have a much wider aperture (smaller f-number) than any of the zooms making them potentially better suited to indoor and low light work, although the lack of a stabiliser works against that, plus the ability to blur backgrounds more than is possible with zooms.
A third advantage of primes is that they are generally but not invariably smaller than zooms.
Another appeal of primes for some users is the spartan, perhaps purist character of the user experience with primes. A part of this is the acquired ability to pre-visualise one’s field of view without having to look through the viewfinder.
The main advantage of zooms is versatility.
For many users the zooms offer “good enough” image quality so their versatility and convenience makes them the popular choice.
The one lens kit
Primes:
* The 22mm f2 is so small that it creates an attractive alternative to any of the fixed single focal length compacts from Leica, Fuji or Ricoh. The lens is sharp right from f2.
Lots of good documentary, travel and street photographers like to use the fixed 35mm (full frame equivalent) focal length for its all round versatility.
* The 32mm f1.4 (full frame equivalent 51mm f2.2) provides a longer “normal” focal length for general, documentary and street photography with the bonus of very high image quality and the widest aperture of any EF-M lens.
* The 28mm f3.5 is a macro lens which really is macro, it can go to 1:1 reproduction and even more, but it is also reported to be a very good general purpose lens and it does have IS.
I have yet to test this lens but will do so in due course. It could be a handy alternative to either the 22mm or the 32mm for general photography as well as close-up work.
Zooms:
* The standard kit 15-45mm zoom can deliver good results if you get a good copy but sample variation is often reported with this lens.
* The most versatile zoom is the 18-150mm which covers a much greater focal length range but is still pleasingly compact as are all the Canon EF-M lenses.
There appear to be fewer reports of sample variation with this lens than the 15-45.
Two lens kits
Primes:
* The 22mm and the 32mm together make a nice compact and very sharp two lens prime kit which some users might find covers all their needs.
Zooms:
* The original two lens kit would have been the 18-55mm with the 55-200mm and for anyone with both these lenses it would still make a good pairing.
In recent years wide angle zooms have become more popular with some users mounting the 11-22mm for much of their work.
* The 11-22mm with the 18-150mm makes arguably the most versatile two lens kit you can put together right now, with good image quality and handling right from very wide angle up to medium telephoto.
In addition the 18-150mm can get in close for a good quality, easy to use semi-macro experience.
Note on the EOS-M6.2
This camera does not offer electronic first curtain shutter. My tests show it can cause image degradation due to shutter shock at some focal lengths and shutter speeds with all the zooms if the mechanical shutter is used.
This should be kept in mind when building a lens kit to be used on the M6.2.
What’s missing ?
There have been numerous complaints over the years about the limited number of native EF-M lenses. Having used the system for a while I take the view that there are really only two “must-do” lenses which need to be added to the catalogue to satisfy most enthusiast users.
The first is an enthusiast level standard zoom with a higher level of specification and build quality than the 15-45mm.
This could be something like an 18-60mm f3.5-4.5 or thereabout, with good close-up capability.
The second is a tele zoom going out to 300mm or something close to that.
This could be a 60-300mm f4.5-8 or similar.
I don’t know whether either of these proposed zooms could be made to fit inside Canon’s self imposed 61mm barrel diameter which is used for all the EF-M lenses to date.
I totally understand the desire to keep these lenses compact but there is nothing sacred about 61mm.
These two proposed lenses could be added to the 11-22mm for a comprehensive, do-everything three lens kit.
Dream on……………