Canon EF-M 18-55 mm f/ 3.5-5.6 IS STM Lens

This lens is a fairly basic "kit" lens designed for the EOS M line of mirrorless cameras. It is not EF or EF-S mount and will not fit on any Canon DSLR. It is equivalent to the EF-S mount 18-55mm IS STM in many respects, but if you put the two side by side, the EF-M incarnation feels a lot more substantial (despite being physically smaller). Image quality is also superior in the EF-M version. Along with something like an EOS M or EOS M3, this lens is a great low-cost option for a high-quality travel photography setup.

Build quality seems quite nice, and the lens feels good in hand. It feels sturdy, seems to have exterior sheathing of metal or metal composite, and the zoom and focus rings are very smooth turning. The STM focusing technology in this lens allows for continuous AF operation (focus tracking, etc),

Weaknesses:

Image quality is good, but not great. I noticed green (predominant) and purple (less pronounced) fringing in many, if not most, photos. This is easily removed in post-processing with a RAW workflow, but it would be nicer if that weren't necessary. Sharpness is very good in the center, and like most lenses, falls off at the edges.

Vignetting is noticeable at all focal lengths at wider apertures (< f/5.6) but is nearly non-existent at f/8 and beyond. Or you can use the lens correction presets in Photoshop or Lightroom to correct in one easy step.

Comments:

This is part of a longer review I wrote here: http://tightcamera.com/canon-18-55mm/

Sharp lens

Smooth and silent focus ideal for video

Good is

Weaknesses:

Small aperture

Comments:

 sharp and good quality lens as a kit