Canon 40mm Pancake 2.8 - bargain?

So guys, don't have time to keep up with latest forum posts around new lenses. Have noticed tho that there is now a 40mm 2.8 pancake. I was very happy with 40mm Voitlander I had as a walkaround prime and wondering if this is a good buy.

Seems I can get for around £110 new via UK ebay and seen many excellent images from it so a good buy maybe? Did read a thread reporting focus issues, i.e. AF turning off. Will have a 10-20 widey and 100-400 on my next safari so looking for something equivalent to a standard 50mm FOV on the 1D Mk II N 1.3 crop.

Any views/thoughts appreciated.

I've been using mine on my 7D and think that it is a genuine bargain. Even more so than the nifty fifty.

It's a truly sharp lens for the price and although it's maybe not the fastest to focus, you can't really go wrong with it for under £120.

Although some people say that it's a strange focal length, I love it. Longer than my Sigma 30mm and wider than my nifty fifty for indoor use, I'm loving it as people and pet portrait lens!

Plus, I'm looking forward to seeing how it'll perform when I upgrade to a 6D in the near future.

Works well on my 5d3. Happy with it.

Cheapie but goodie. It's my body cap.

kin2son wrote in post #16139770
Cheapie but goodie. It's my body cap.

Yep, disappears on my 5d3.


So tempted to buy an Sl1 just to use with my 40mm.

kin2son wrote in post #16139770
Cheapie but goodie. It's my body cap.

Same here on my 50D. I just love being able to grab it and shoot. It produces beautiful shots no matter where it is in it's aperture range and it was dirt cheap can't ask for a better grab and go light setup.

Good to hear the positive comments and backs up the quality shots I've seen.

I may buy one for kicks. Wished they had a 16mm pancake.

Reviews seem to indicate the Canon 40mm is as-sharp-if-not-sharper than the Voigtlander 40mm, albeit one-stop slower and with more vignetting.

And it auto-focuses, unlike the Voigtlander.

The auto-focus issue you refer to was an odd phenomenon where if you basically pushed on the front of the lens (like, say, to collapse it to its shortest length for travel), the AF motor would stop working and you'd have to remount the lens to get it to work again.

It was fixed in a firmware update, and if you were buying the lens today it'd surely have the new firmware already, so I wouldn't worry about it.

//I bought the 40mm when it first came out and never had the issue, so I've never installed the firmware update, but my 40mm is happy as a clam on my 6D

Thanks manfesto. Just checked Canon USA site and seems firmware easy to install if needed. Think I'm going to buy it soon.

It's a great, inexpensive light weight walk around prime lens. I have taken mine on a couple of trips, and will pop the lens on when I want to stroll around with something small. It takes up almost zero room in the camera bag, and it quite cheap (I bought mine refurbished for less than $120).

Had it. Didn't like the focus by wire, heavy vignetting, and the overall image quality didn't appeal to me. Lacked something I guess, even with lens corrections. But then again, I shoot with L primes, and they are worth lugging around.

I have one on my 6D and since I have had it I have stopped carrying any other lenses for general walk around photography. It is amazingly sharp and I personally can't find anything to complain about IQ wise. Buy it you will love it.

The size and portability of this thing is great, but what really amazes me are the images it can deliver. I use it whenever I don't feel like pondering about which lens to bring