I must say I love the M system. So small and light. You can go on a hike with the M50 + 15-45 mm kitlens in one pocket, and the 55-200 mm in the other like you are carrying nothing. It's simply amazing. Otherwise an honourable mention would be the manual focusing Samyang 12 mm F2 NCS CS. A great lens for astro photography,
Thanks Chris for your useful reviews and for giving the eos m line here some love. I moved from a 750D to an M6mii only with a little regret - see below 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN. The m bodies and lenses are light, small, and well suited for travel, landscape, and street photography. And your "Sharp enough for 32.5mp?" video series for the m mounts again has been very helpful with my purchase decisions. The 11-22 is my favourite followed by the 18-150 for it's versatility. So far, the mentioned softness has not become a distraction and the ability to get different shots without changing lenses is so useful. I still mount my Sigma 17-50mm f2.8 EX DC HSM (as recommended by your review) with the adapter for when I need a sharp, fast zoom. But the weight and size is a drawback and defeats the purpose of having a small set up. Special mention to the Samyang 12 mm F2 NCS CS and the Canon EF-M 28mm f/3.5 IS STM Macro. Both lenses nicely sharp. I had only a creep of jealousy when Sigma launched the 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN for Sony and if you can use any of your influence with Sigma to say that this lense would be so popular for the many m users, M50's especially, it would almost complete the M lense line for the average user. Any further lens requirements can be adapted for various reasons. I really like this system and have a small hope that Canon sees sense enough to continue the line even though it is not the most profitable or fitting with their future strategy.
Thank you for sharing your knowledge, I use an EOS M100 camera, and all your lens reviews helped me to buy lenses - I am using kit lens EF-M 15-24mm, 22mm, and 50mm with a lens adapter. Your reviews on these lenses enhanced my understanding of the basics of photography/videography etc. Thank you, Christoper
I had a M10 out of curiosity into photography and interchangeable lenses, then I upgraded to M6 II for better auto focus and I absolutely love it! Mostly using the 22mm pancake because it's practical to carry around with me and versatile too. My newest lense is Sigma 30mm, but I really wanted the Canon 32mm. While Sigma is really fast and working flowlesly, colors from Sigma are colder than out of Canon lenses. Another combination I enjoy using on my M6 mark II is EF 50mm with a simple adapter, not the speed booster onr. Superb family portraits out of it! I nearly gave it up when I had the M10, but on the M6 II it's a fast focusing beast of lense! I might upgrade the Sigma 30 to Canon 32. Watching your channel for a few good years now, and I recall you don't particularly like vintage lenses :-) I'd like to mention I'm happy I get use of my father's only lense he ever used on his Zenith, a Helios 44-2, and the idea of taking pictures of my children through the same lense my father took pictures of my childhood, it's kind of sentimental, also fun :-) I really like Canon M system, hopefully it's not dead as they rumour.
I've used the 11-22 on an M6 mk II for a few years as my workhorse camera for real estate. It's so small that I can use a tiny compact tripod and a video gimbal to position the camera in some interesting places to get shots of small rooms that would be impossible with a bigger camera.
I've litterally watched 75% of your videos in the past week, you know, the stress you get before you buy your first camera setup! Anyways, fun to see you on camera!!
Totally agree with your recommendations especially the 2 Canon primes, 22mm & 32mm. The 11-22mm is a favourite of mine and the kit 15-45mm is highly useful. I have 4 M series bodies, one converted to infrared, another full spectrum plus an M5 and a M6 Mk2, I obviously like the system and it makes for a lightweight carry option when I don't want to carry my DSLRs of which I have several which I prefer for stills photography. The reason I mention this is because whilst I consider adapting EF or FD lenses a bit of a faff, they can give you quite serious options because of the lens quality. My number one recommendation would be an EF f4 70-200mm especially if it has a tripod mount - excellent plus vintage Canon FD glass works well because although manual focusing the M series have very good Focus Peaking aides built in. Although because of the economic/supply chain issues it is rumoured that Canon will kill off the M series, these well made little camera bodies will carry on for a good few years yet, nice review :)
Unlike many, I like these cameras and lenses. The 11-22 and 22/2.0 are great little lenses. I never bought the 32/1.4, but I've heard great things about it. With the Sigma 56/1.4 in the mix, one can live in this system for years.
The only EOS-M lens that I have is the kit lens that comes with the M6 ll when I bought the kit set. I never thought the EOS-M would have a future in Canon's long term plan. This is why I only bought EF-S and EF lenses knowing I could use them on the M6 ll with an EOS EFS/EF to EOS M adapter. And of course also work on RF-mount cameras with an EOS EF-S/EF to EOS RF adapter. With availabilities of third party adapters such as Fringer, Monster, Metabones, Megadap, Sigma, etc. these days, it means EF-S and EF lenses can also be used on Sony E-mount, Nikon Z-mount and Fujifilm X-mount and L-mount cameras. Mixing different brands of lenses and cameras have been fun. Indeed, some of these adapters enable adapted lenses to work almost as good as native lenses. I should also add that your reviews on some of the EF-S and EF lenses have been extremely helpful. They are very useful guides on which lenses one should collect before they disappear from the market. So thanks a lot for your work.
I've experimented with all the ef-m lenses. I only use the 16mm Sigma now. I also use the 55-200mm zoom for sporting events. That's it! That's all I need. 2.5 years with the M6 MK II.
I love that 22mm f/2, and it's what sold me on the EOS-M system in the first place- for a brief while it was my only EF-M lens. The Samyang 12mm f/2 lens is a no-brainer for the system, and one of my favorites for astrophotography, giving a roughly 19mm equivalent field of view. Being a wide angle lens, it's very forgiving about focus, so its being a manual lens shouldn't be an impediment for most folks. I've also taken some very good pictures with the Kamlan 50mm f/1.1 lens, another manual bit of glass that's not very expensive. I have the Mark 1 version; there is a Mark 2 out now that I have yet to try. It was, briefly, my fastest lens until I got... The Zhongyi Mitakon Speedmaster 35mm f/0.95. A lens this fast can be a challenge to focus properly, but it can produce stunning pictures. I have had oddly square bokeh... cubes... show up with fine points of light in the background, though, which might be a sensor thing.
i have had the M50 2 1/2 years now, along the way i have collected all the canon efm except the olde kit lens, my two primary reasons for buying the M50 as a first camera (when i turned 50) was for wildlife and to have a small system for when i was out with just a small bag. the most used efm lenses are the 18-150mm and the 32mm, my copy of the 18-150mm is plenty sharp enough and makes for a great single lens general shooter the image stabilization in this lens is very good allowing for 1/6 hand held across the focal range, the 32mm is simply the best efm lens well worth its price. a notable exclusion on efm is the laowa 65mm macro lens, while it is as sharp as its bigger ef 100mm version it is a more dedicated macro lens, the 28mm efm macro lens with its built in light at times can out perform the bigger sharper macro lenses because of that light, it allows you to hold a faster shutter speed so its especially useful if you don't have any other lighting or equipment. when you start adding good light or sped lights to the equation the other dedicated lenses start to take over esp those with 100mm+ focals with adapted lenses one system that is worth a mention aside from the obvious ef ef-s mounts are the vintage M42 lenses, these are about the same size in body as the ef-m lenses though the m42 to eos-m adapter adds an extra length to them they can be had for as little as £30 with some stella performes ike the takumars and pentacons, two of my fav m42 lenses the takumar 55mm ƒ1.8 and pentacon 30mm ƒ1.8, the later being extremely nice for its renders, probably one of the last lenses i would give up which brings me to ask what happened about the M42 lens review you had been planning to do? with the RF crop the one thing that it wont be able to do is compact due to the lens sizes, this is something canon could have had a huge win with by making the actual rf mount on the camera swapable with an efm mount, i think canon is likely to keep the M50 as its been a great entry level camera to which they need to get people like me on board that then go on to either buy into the bigger ff or now rf crop cameras or stay on ef-m body and buy ef lenses its also going to catch people looking for a smaller system. great review i have found what could be a very interesting adapter for ef-m, an m42 to eos-m tilt shift adapter, its in the post atm so i can't say how well it works at the moment
It's actually somewhat said that Canon does not pay more attention to the EF-M lens mount. However, I can fully understand that since developing an extra lens for the inexpensive market place and still turn out a profit can be hard. Additionally you can use the EF(-S) to EF-M adapter and use a ton of regular and specialised Canon and third party lenses.
As I understand it, EF-M is being "set aside" in favor of their RF lens system, I'm not really worried though, with a adapter the entire EF / EF-S range is available if I need them and otherwise I only really need a couple lenses from the EF-M range to do anything I like
Nice review as usual. Your voice is so relaxing to listen to and you always cover all the bases! I have owned M camera bodies since the very first model and currently own 2 M5 bodies. As far as lenses, the 22mm came as a kit lens with my first M body as well as the older 18-55mm. I got the 11-22mm as soon as it was released and it is probably my favorite for travel where architecture and landscape are common when traveling. My other favorite for travel is the Tamron 18-400mm which I use with the EF-EM adapter. Yes it is a bit big but with the 2 bodies and the wide zoom and tele zoom I am covered from 11mm to 400mm! I have 2 other lenses I like on my M cameras, the Canon EF 40mm f/2.8 which I use for food photography reviews when dining out and also the Lensbaby Composer with 35mm optic. Not sure if anyone else has mentioned it but rumors are flying that Canon will discontinue the M line eventually as they roll out new R bodies. The rumored R10 will be a simpler R with an APS-C sensor so some are speculating that it will replace the M. And in a few countries Canon has removed the M6 MkII from it's active list of cameras currently produced. I for one don't care, my M system is usually what I travel with as it is light and easy to have as carry on luggage. I own the R and a few Canon DSLR bodies and a bunch of EF lenses but for me the M fills a purpose.
Thanks for this excellent (as usual) summary. I have been eos M fan ever since I bought the eos M100 and realized that this tiny camera had basically the same image quality as the higher end aps-C canon DLSRs. One cannot stress enough that “small is beautiful” and canon do have a niche market here cheap and extra small yet powerful and fun to use. It is my intention to continue investing in this system despite the apparent lack of interest of canon. I don’t consider there is a real upgrade in image quality between the M100 and M50 or M200 but the M6 MK ii caught my eye… Your reviews of the lenses are extra helpful in helping me make a decision on an eventual upgrade. I understand well that the sensor imposes strong constraints on the lenses resolution power. From your and other people reviews the behaviour of lenses in this respect are pretty unpredictable and the only way to know seems to try them. According to your reviews, the stellar sigma 56 mm F1.4 unexpectedly failed while the cheapo 15-45 mmm kit zoom behaved magnificently So I have a request of a review testing this for the other essential zooms the M system EF-M 55-200mm and the EF-M 11-22 mm (eventually the EF-S 10-16mm stm and the EF-S 55-250 mm stm). Such a review would be super-useful for those of us considering the M6 mkii
best review for lens on the m50 i have seen mate and I have scrolled thrpough alot, very user friendly explanations on each lens for all levels of photographer which i really appreciated also good points on manual focus lens's. keep up awesome work mate CEC x
Hey Christopher, I already bought into the system, with the M100 and M50. Just sold both to get the recently discontinued M6 Mark II. There is somehow no other alternative for me on the market. Small, with those EFM Glas its perfect as my second camera. Love to use the 22mm F2.0 and also the kit lens. The 28mm Macro is also awesome when you really have to get closer. Going to get me with the M6 the 11-22 for some blogging on exhibitions or for other vids. The 15-45 kit lens is actually pretty good, also i do have the Sigma 16mm which is a gem for those talking head shots. Did not know the Tamron. Great overview, thanks for that, have a nice weekend and cheers from Germany.
I've been using the 11-22mm wide angle and the Sigma 30mm prime for more than two years now on an M6. I live the system, it's light, it's fun, it has the tilty screen, you can use a remote. It's great to see our travel foto's improve a lot over the years. The Bokeh of the Sigma is just delicious 🤤. People can keep pushing the R mount, but I went for the EOS-M exactly because it's cute small weight. And intend to stick with it as long as reasonable.
The M system from Canon is awesome and it's pity to see its death. I switched to this system after Samsung killed their NX system in hope that Canon will provide much more stability and I'll not have to switch again. And I was wrong. Will see what is next, but this video from Chris was published at the same time as Canon announced their APS-C camera bodies for the R system. Everyone knows what that means. But anyway, I would like to share my experience with the M system. I started with the M6 body and later switched to M6 II and I have to say I consider it to be a professional camera body with a lot of pro functionality and performance. About lenses, by number 1 for traveling / hiking / city walks or landscape is the 11-22mm zoom. For closeups and macro I love the 28mm f3.5 and I consider it an amazing combination with the M6 II body. For general purpose / random shots or lightweight trip / street combo I love the 22mm f2 pancake which is very small yet sharp and bright. I also have the 55-200 zoom which is nice mostly for landscapes or some basic animal photography. For portraits I have the 56mm f1.4 prime from Sigma which is also very sharp and provides nice subject separation. In past I used fome EF lenses like 50/1.8 or 85/1.8 but I wasn't happy with the ratio of performance and weight + it was needed to use them with an adapter. Nowadays I only use the adapter with Tamron 100-400mm (EF) but it's so large and heavy that I ofter rather take the 55-200 instead. My conclusion - it's been great time using EF-M, it was amazingly balanced combination of weight & size, picture quality and price which I could not find anywhere else. Before I do another switch when this system is definitely dead, I'll maybe try to get another M6 II body and the 32mm f1.4 lens which is still my desire. Any switch for me would only make sense to go fullframe, but there we get to bigger size, it's heavier and more expencive.
I think the whole market is dead for non-professionals, cellular cameras are just amazing now so there is no need to carry around another piece of kit. Canon knows this and you can see them already focussing only on professional photographers (notes by the price).
Canon is shooting themselves in the foot making bulky RF bodies for APS-C sensors when they already have the compact body and lens EF-M system for the APS-C sized sensor.
I would agree with your assessment of the 11-22mm - super lens, as is the 32mm. No IS in it, but I've never missed it. I wouldn't be as tough on the 18-150mm, but it does go soft on the telephoto end, and the lack of a wide aperture can be frustrating. Even so, for a just "heading out" lens, it's great. I sure wish Canon would show the M system more love, since the "basics" of the system are so strong. We shall see if it survives the R revolution, but I love my M gear for hiking. It's hard for me to imagine Canon being able to preserve that size with an R mount.
I have an M50 which I run with the EF-M 32mm F1.4 and an M200 with the EF-M 22 F2. Perfect system for me. But I also own the Viltrox 56mm F1.4. Sigma 16mm F1.4, obviously the kit lens EF-M 15-45mm. A Viltrox adapter for my EF-S 55-250mm and EF 70-300mm. I also have an adapter that allows me to use my old manual Nikon F mount lenses.
Great job on the the EF-M overview! I'm also a fan of the system. I use the M6ii for most of my video work these days (usually attached to an Atomos Ninja V). :)
Hello all! This is the system that got me back into photography and honestly had been a big favorite of mine. I know it’s at end of life essentially, but I think it will be a while yet before I move out of it. Some lenses I use *alot* are Samyang/Rokinon 50mm f1.2 Samyang/Rokinon 12mm f2.0 Laowa 65mm f2.8 2x Macro These are manual focus but honestly they are so fun to shoot with. I use the Canon 22mm as well (best in class). I started a while ago and got the 12mm after watching Chris’ video on it. That lens has aged a bit but honestly it got me to love shooting again. The 50mm in particular, I love the bokeh and dreamy quality of the lens. I know there are newer and better things, but honestly I love the images I get from the original M6 and M6 mark II. Gonna love these until they kick the bucket.
People have been speculating the death of EOS-M and EF-M mount forever. I think the eco system is solid, despite its shortcomings. It is really easy to enter the eco system and... not that expensive as well. The nice thing about EOS-M is that it is compact. Just kind of makes sense as an entry-level or mid-range product.
@@lasselarsen2914 I believe Chris as a review on this lens as well. A manual focus macro lens takes a little care, and a lot of lighting but results are fantastic. Really good product photography I use for my sister’s bakery and my own stuff!
Since it appears that Canon has let the EOS M series go, I've been watching used prices on the M6ii. I've seen it as low as $450 w/ the external EVF. If I can snag one at that price I will, and I'll pick up the 22mm f2, 28mm macro, and 33mm f1.4. I could care less about the 32mp jump over the 24mp sensors, but I like what I've seen from other reviewers regarding noise levels and dynamic range. Plus, the M6ii + 22mm is a jacket-pocket powerhouse.
I have the viltrox 33mm lens and I absolutely love it and definitely recommend it if you want beautiful bokeh. It’s a great portrait lens and works really well for photographing cars which is what I usually do.
CF creates great vids. Only thing that I'd like him do more often is go out and shoot! That's gonna give us more realistic analysis of lens or camera and it'll also add great dimension to his vids. Good luck, man!
I really like your videos, so pleasant and chill and packed full of useful info. Really like the fact that you included lots of 3rd party lens choices. I recently got the Tamron ef-m 18-200mm lens and hope you can do a full review on it someday.
The first efm I borrowed was M5. When you know their quirk and limitations, they work with no slouch. Their button and UI also very intuitive for no-checking scenario, just feel it with your hand for the right setting. Their implementation is my favourite after Nikon and lumix. Sadly we know the priority they get after M50m2 😔
I still love my M cameras and I'm sticking with them. I have to agree that the Canon super zooms are not sharp enough. Even with my failing eyesight, I can tell that the sharpness and contrast with those zooms isn't as good as Micro Four Thirds cameras these days. But the M system is rescued by outstanding primes. The 32mm, the 22mm, the Sigma 56mm and 16mm. And now I'm going to give the manual primes by 7Artisans a spin: 9mm, 12mm, and 35mm. They looks like a good solution for night street photography. The M excels at street, landscape and portrait photography. If you are into shooting sports, motorsports and birds/wildlife, I'd have to recommend the new APS-C cameras by Fujifilm and Canon, or consider making the leap to full frame. APS-C is my sensor size. Just right for travel and the streets.
You are a great reviewer and never been more happy with my setup (most from your review of course) M6mii 22mm f2 (my go to 35mm focal range environment portrait/ wide shots) 50mm f1.8 (serious tight portrait / full frame shots with background separation) 18-135mm stm (general do it all outdoor lens) Godox tt350 if needed ( usually for client work since i prefer natural lighting)
Very interesting, informative and good video, Christopher. In my opinion one of the best comparisons of lenses for Canon Ef-M mount. And the only one which introduces the Tamron 18-200 mm F/3.5-6.3 Di III VC lens. I never heard of that one. And so I tried to find it - and beeing succsessful for 238 Euros in good condtion. That's the best compromise for holiday photography. I' m very thankful to you😀 Christoph from Germany/Rhineland.
I stumbled into the M system when I was looking for an 18-135 for my daughter’s digital Rebel camera. Found the M5 w/ 18-150 on close out for less than the EF-S lens. As you point out, that lens certainly has some limitations, and the quality noticeably drops off past 100mm on my copy. We’ve since moved on to a bag of primes mostly based on Chris Frost recommendations. :-): Samyang 8mm fisheye II-remarkably useful lens, maybe the most fun per dollar of any camera kit I have. They’d sell 10x more if they didn’t call it a fisheye-yeah it is one, but it’s special; Samyang 12mm f/2-roughly 20mm equivalent turned out to be a favorite for me. Very useful indoors and fun for environmental type portraits; EF-M 22mm f/2-you said it all. It’s great; EF 40 f/2.8 pancake. Yeah, it’s EF mount but even with the lens adaptor, it’s still seems to fit the M philosophy well. Beautiful for portraits. Never like this lens much on full frame, but for some reason it works great on M; Samyang 85 f/1.8. This one has taken some practice to learn how to use it well, but wow wow, it’s beautiful! Maybe the best part . . . all this stuff easily fits in an 8 liter sling bag for travel. Nice! OK, the last lens I use on M is the incredible Sigma 18-35 f/1.8. This has been an invaluable 2nd body for event photography paired with 70-200 f/2.8 on full frame.
@@stephenpartridge686 you are right. My comments made it sound like I didn't like it. For what it is, a variable aperture super zoom, it works very well, and it's way smaller than even an EF-S 18-135. I've captured a lot of nice images with it.
Sigma 100-400mm with ef to efm works really well on these smaller cameras, and much cheaper than alternatives. There are mixed reviews but personally I have found it to work great for amateur wildlife, very happy with the results.
I originally bought the abysmal M1, then followed w M3, and the final body I use is the venerable M5. It’s good for what I shoot now which is just portraits. In 2012 I bought the 22m for $70, and then I bought the Canon official efm adapter which was only $40 which I used the new nifty fifty with. I remember a couple years later the M50 finally brought some clout to the series so all lenses and adapter I bought quadrupled in price. I’ll love my m5 till it dies, bc in the early 20-teens it helped me grow my business bc my work always looked authentic, bc phones didn’t have software to make “portrait mode” and ppl weren’t putting themselves through a TT filter, then manually editing, then putting it thru a TT filter again on portrait mode.
Thank you for this informative video. I just picked up a few months ago a second hand Canon EOS M6 as I'm not yet sure to invest on a more expensive camera. I love to travel and only uses my phone to document my trips. However, slightly 4 months of practicing using my kit lens 18-150mm, I was fortunate to be a Getty Images Contributor. May not be something big for others, but for a beginner, I'm very happy to have this milestone at this early time of my photography hobby/career. My concern is that, what's the best budget compatible lens that suits my camera to level up my photos. I recently bought a second hand 50mm and adaptor which I believe gives me more options in choosing lenses. Thank you very much for your help sir. Looking forward to your other videos! :)
Thanks Christopher. Had the smaller standard zoom. Enjoyed using the system. My son has won numerous competitions with the M5. On a lighter note. I think I bought my first Canon when I became a "Canon" in 1999.
Great video! I’ve got a Canon M10 that I’ve paired with the 22mm pancake. Actually great for videos. A little slow for photography at times for me but my main camera is an R5. Is there a more modern Canon M camera that’s as small as the m10?
A typically thorough and sensible wide ranging lens review. I was tempted to go to M system, but ultimately deterred by Canon's apparent lack of love for it's own system- went for 6D Mk II & very happy with it and no present plans to go mirrorless.
Christopher, did you hear that Canon discontinued their m6mkii and will announce 2 mirrorless Apsc RF mount THIS month? The end of the EosM Series is comming. Or not? What do you think?
I got an EOS-M to travel with. I have a Kamlan 50mm f/1.1 but I find the crop a bit too tight. I picked up a TTArtisan 35mm f/1.4 and it works very well with the EOS-M. Manual focus is alright for me. My big camera is a Rebel SL2 and a few autofocus lenses. The eos-m fits in my carry on bag on the plane.
I have the 22mm, love it. Its actually my only EFM lense, as I ditched my kit off my M50. I am seriously considering the macro lense too. Despite having just adding my R7, I will be keeping my M50...I love it too much.
@@barely-thinking Its an F2 lens thats decent for portraits, street photography, and vlogging. Its not super sharp but I find its leaps and bounds over the kit 18-55. Sure its a prime but at 22mm it sits right between the kits range so its really only a matter of taking a couple steps forward or back, but with the benefit of an F2 aperture.
The EF-M 32mm is magical and some pictures are even looking better than reality! As I am slowly migrating to the EOS R system, what would be an RF lens that has similar quality and price? Is the RF 35mm f/1.8 a possible replacement?
I love this system. It’s a shame Canon didn’t take it more seriously. I was looking forward to an m5 mk2, but sold off the whole system and went with the R6. I do miss it when I’m on a long hike though.
@@rhodeisland9096 I disagree. The only thing that makes the M50 standout is its fully articulating screen and better video codec (4K is mostly useless though). It’s really baffling that it took camera manufacturers as long as it has to start putting them on higher end cameras. The design philosophy between the two cameras is also different. They don’t even use the same battery. The M5 feels a bit more robust and sports more customizable buttons and dials. It’s a well designed camera (with the exception of the battery/sd card door). It’s clear that Canon is abandoning the system, and it’s really a shame because I like the compact design philosophy.
@@SunnySoCal Oh i knew. It was barely an update though. I was hoping for something a bit more competitive with the market. No weather sealing. No log. No IBIS. Again, it’s a lovely system, but I just grew out of it.
@@rhodeisland9096 if that were the case, the M6ii would've been called the the M60. The 0 at the end means it is a lower end model than the single digit ones. The M5 is, along with the M6ii, the closest thing to pro-level EF-M bodies we'll ever get. Ppl have been wanting an M5ii since the original came out in 2017, and the M50 is more of an intro to the system. A surprise announcement of an M5ii with weather sealing, DPAF2 and IBIS for like $1300 would honestly make this system relevant again. A guy can dream.
Great review as usual, but you missed the rokinon ef-m 12mm f/2.0.. its an amazing lens.. Also via using an adapter we can utilise a myriad of ef and ef-s lenses from canon and other third party companies..
The kamlan 50mm mark Ii is quite the beast. I have a bunch of ef m lense but my go tos are the 22mm and 30mm sigma. If I had the m6 I'd go for the canon 32mm
I love you Christopher and appreciate your videos about lenses. Ive had a lot of help when choosing which lens to buy for my M50 - specifically the samyang fish eye and efm55-200 :-) God bless you and many greetings from Korea ♡
If you like some good reach on m50 pair it with sigma ef 100-400 contemporary with crop factor you are in super telephoto ranges. I really like my old m50 and never sold it after buying r6 with plethora of rf lenses. And this little macro on efm is absolutely great in my opinion. 55-200 is very good as well. Sigma 16mm is fantastic shame I cannot use it on r6 as its native M mount. Now my 100-500 rf hardly ever leaves the r6 maybe only when using Laowa 100mm f2.8 2x 2z Marco as this lense is mind-blowing.
I have the 22mm the 15-45mm and the 55-200. I don't know if I have an exceptionally good kit lens or a really bad prime but the 22 is nowhere near as sharp as the 15-45. I thought it might be just the image stabilisation so I carried out tests on a tripod with optical charts and the kit lens gave far sharper results.
I have the M5 as the basis for my lighter weight kit, I have the Canon 11-22mm, 15-45mm, 22mm, 32mm and the Sigma 56mm. the best out of these are the 32mm f1.4 and the 56mm f1/4, I did have the 55-200mm but gave it away :-) I also have the Meike 6.5mm Fisheye but I REALLY don't get on with it.
i just got that lens as i had the 100mm ef version, the 65mm is just as sharp as the 100mm and smaller and lighter, chris has a review of those too on his channel
Hello Christopher, thanks for this video, it's so nice and now all is more clearance to me right now, I´a m very beginner do. My camera is a CANON M3 I have the lens 22mm that you show, also the 18-55mm (it's come with the camera) and also I have the lens 50mm, I do videos more that photo. I feel that I need one lens more. I think one lens more for me, for videos can be the Canon EF-M 11-22mm f/4-5.6 IS STM, because my videos are vlogs also. This is correct??? Let me know please Thanks Javi
@@ManesChannel The AF will probably be much better on the Canon, IS too. Hugeness will be the same though. I don't think it's possible to make small 2.8 zooms... look at how gigantic the bright RF L lenses are lol
Thanks for this nice list! I’m here to find my future lens for the original eos m that shoots 3k 10 bit raw video 😊 I am really loving the 15-45mm! Great kit lens. I’m looking at the 22mm f2 or the 11-22mm… ? Bokeh vs very wide view? I need both but can only buy one 😅
I am using the M50 mark II with an EF-S 15-85mm lens. Using large and heavy EF lens on EOS-M body seems kind of clumsy. It is uncomfortable to carry heavy lenses on small camera body and arms. You need an adapter on the body and the weight doesn't decrease much comparing to the EF-S bodies.
Hello Chris! Could you help me (or anyone else in the community) with my dilemma,please? I have the m6 ii and I have the kit 18-150 lens and the ef m 32mm 1.4 lens. I am getting into concert photography (small venues) and am looking for a wider angle lens that can perform well in low light. Out of the Sigma 16mm, Viltrox 23mm, and Canon ef m 22mm, which would you recommend?
Great video!! I love my M50, but it's hard to invest any more into the M6 mkii that I wanted or any other lenses if canon doesn't want to make any more lens or cameras...I'm looking at upgrading to the RP possibly, but keeping my M mount lenses and camera.
Wow! Gotta say this video looks really great. The lighting looks top notch on here, way better than on the [ Upgrading your Fuji kit lens! All my recommendations ] video.
A want an upgraded M50 and a dedicated EVF/LCD button, option to review only on LCD, the custom buttons don't work when reviewing images. Btw the Viltrox primes are great, I have 33mm 1.4 and it produces images similar to fullframe 50mm counterparts
I have the 7Artisans 60mm macro, and it's very nice. I have the Kamlan 50mm f/1.1 II, which makes great images. I have the Sigma 56mm f/1.4 and the Canon 20mm. I have some others, but I don't really like them. I would like to get the 16mm Sigma and the Canon 32mm. I have the Viltrox Speedbooster, which allows me to use my EF glass. That's why I have not bothered to buy those other lenses. The Canon EF glass is better anyway and I get an extra stop of light. I do admit that the big telephoto lenses look strange on that camera.
Really struggled to decide between the M50 Mk2 and the RP when I upgraded my kit at the start of the year. Ended up going for the latter, because of the Full Frame capabilities, along with the fact that the RF system looks as though it'll last longer - I still wonder if I made the right call though, as love the look of the small lenses in the EF-M range. Had I purchased the M50, then I probably would have added the 11-22mm | 18-45mm | 55-250mm, along with some potential prime lenses.
I think you've nailed it. RP isn't that bigger and it still can be compact with the right lens, the opportunity that canon missed with their efm lineup.
He already has a video on recommended EF-S lenses. He did it a while ago, but not much has changed since then. I have the Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8, Canon 17-55mm f/2.8, and Tokina 11-20mm f/2.8. I highly recommend all of them.
I must say I love the M system. So small and light. You can go on a hike with the M50 + 15-45 mm kitlens in one pocket, and the 55-200 mm in the other like you are carrying nothing. It's simply amazing. Otherwise an honourable mention would be the manual focusing Samyang 12 mm F2 NCS CS. A great lens for astro photography,
shame the m system never have a 17 -50 f2.8 lens and ibis, and now discontinued.
Thanks Chris for your useful reviews and for giving the eos m line here some love. I moved from a 750D to an M6mii only with a little regret - see below 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN. The m bodies and lenses are light, small, and well suited for travel, landscape, and street photography. And your "Sharp enough for 32.5mp?" video series for the m mounts again has been very helpful with my purchase decisions.
The 11-22 is my favourite followed by the 18-150 for it's versatility. So far, the mentioned softness has not become a distraction and the ability to get different shots without changing lenses is so useful. I still mount my Sigma 17-50mm f2.8 EX DC HSM (as recommended by your review) with the adapter for when I need a sharp, fast zoom. But the weight and size is a drawback and defeats the purpose of having a small set up. Special mention to the Samyang 12 mm F2 NCS CS and the Canon EF-M 28mm f/3.5 IS STM Macro. Both lenses nicely sharp.
I had only a creep of jealousy when Sigma launched the 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN for Sony and if you can use any of your influence with Sigma to say that this lense would be so popular for the many m users, M50's especially, it would almost complete the M lense line for the average user. Any further lens requirements can be adapted for various reasons. I really like this system and have a small hope that Canon sees sense enough to continue the line even though it is not the most profitable or fitting with their future strategy.
The Sigma 18-50mm F2.8 DC DN would be very nice to have for the m system!
Thank you for sharing your knowledge, I use an EOS M100 camera, and all your lens reviews helped me to buy lenses - I am using kit lens EF-M 15-24mm, 22mm, and 50mm with a lens adapter. Your reviews on these lenses enhanced my understanding of the basics of photography/videography etc. Thank you, Christoper
I had a M10 out of curiosity into photography and interchangeable lenses, then I upgraded to M6 II for better auto focus and I absolutely love it! Mostly using the 22mm pancake because it's practical to carry around with me and versatile too. My newest lense is Sigma 30mm, but I really wanted the Canon 32mm. While Sigma is really fast and working flowlesly, colors from Sigma are colder than out of Canon lenses. Another combination I enjoy using on my M6 mark II is EF 50mm with a simple adapter, not the speed booster onr. Superb family portraits out of it! I nearly gave it up when I had the M10, but on the M6 II it's a fast focusing beast of lense! I might upgrade the Sigma 30 to Canon 32. Watching your channel for a few good years now, and I recall you don't particularly like vintage lenses :-) I'd like to mention I'm happy I get use of my father's only lense he ever used on his Zenith, a Helios 44-2, and the idea of taking pictures of my children through the same lense my father took pictures of my childhood, it's kind of sentimental, also fun :-) I really like Canon M system, hopefully it's not dead as they rumour.
Nice to see Canon making an appearance on the channel again.
I've used the 11-22 on an M6 mk II for a few years as my workhorse camera for real estate. It's so small that I can use a tiny compact tripod and a video gimbal to position the camera in some interesting places to get shots of small rooms that would be impossible with a bigger camera.
I've litterally watched 75% of your videos in the past week, you know, the stress you get before you buy your first camera setup! Anyways, fun to see you on camera!!
Totally agree with your recommendations especially the 2 Canon primes, 22mm & 32mm. The 11-22mm is a favourite of mine and the kit 15-45mm is highly useful. I have 4 M series bodies, one converted to infrared, another full spectrum plus an M5 and a M6 Mk2, I obviously like the system and it makes for a lightweight carry option when I don't want to carry my DSLRs of which I have several which I prefer for stills photography. The reason I mention this is because whilst I consider adapting EF or FD lenses a bit of a faff, they can give you quite serious options because of the lens quality. My number one recommendation would be an EF f4 70-200mm especially if it has a tripod mount - excellent plus vintage Canon FD glass works well because although manual focusing the M series have very good Focus Peaking aides built in.
Although because of the economic/supply chain issues it is rumoured that Canon will kill off the M series, these well made little camera bodies will carry on for a good few years yet, nice review :)
Unlike many, I like these cameras and lenses. The 11-22 and 22/2.0 are great little lenses. I never bought the 32/1.4, but I've heard great things about it. With the Sigma 56/1.4 in the mix, one can live in this system for years.
The only EOS-M lens that I have is the kit lens that comes with the M6 ll when I bought the kit set.
I never thought the EOS-M would have a future in Canon's long term plan. This is why I only bought EF-S and EF lenses knowing I could use them on the M6 ll with an EOS EFS/EF to EOS M adapter. And of course also work on RF-mount cameras with an EOS EF-S/EF to EOS RF adapter.
With availabilities of third party adapters such as Fringer, Monster, Metabones, Megadap, Sigma, etc. these days, it means EF-S and EF lenses can also be used on Sony E-mount, Nikon Z-mount and Fujifilm X-mount and L-mount cameras.
Mixing different brands of lenses and cameras have been fun. Indeed, some of these adapters enable adapted lenses to work almost as good as native lenses.
I should also add that your reviews on some of the EF-S and EF lenses have been extremely helpful. They are very useful guides on which lenses one should collect before they disappear from the market.
So thanks a lot for your work.
What Lenses do you have right now? :)
I've experimented with all the ef-m lenses. I only use the 16mm Sigma now. I also use the 55-200mm zoom for sporting events. That's it! That's all I need. 2.5 years with the M6 MK II.
I love that 22mm f/2, and it's what sold me on the EOS-M system in the first place- for a brief while it was my only EF-M lens.
The Samyang 12mm f/2 lens is a no-brainer for the system, and one of my favorites for astrophotography, giving a roughly 19mm equivalent field of view. Being a wide angle lens, it's very forgiving about focus, so its being a manual lens shouldn't be an impediment for most folks.
I've also taken some very good pictures with the Kamlan 50mm f/1.1 lens, another manual bit of glass that's not very expensive. I have the Mark 1 version; there is a Mark 2 out now that I have yet to try. It was, briefly, my fastest lens until I got...
The Zhongyi Mitakon Speedmaster 35mm f/0.95. A lens this fast can be a challenge to focus properly, but it can produce stunning pictures. I have had oddly square bokeh... cubes... show up with fine points of light in the background, though, which might be a sensor thing.
i have had the M50 2 1/2 years now, along the way i have collected all the canon efm except the olde kit lens, my two primary reasons for buying the M50 as a first camera (when i turned 50) was for wildlife and to have a small system for when i was out with just a small bag.
the most used efm lenses are the 18-150mm and the 32mm, my copy of the 18-150mm is plenty sharp enough and makes for a great single lens general shooter the image stabilization in this lens is very good allowing for 1/6 hand held across the focal range, the 32mm is simply the best efm lens well worth its price.
a notable exclusion on efm is the laowa 65mm macro lens, while it is as sharp as its bigger ef 100mm version it is a more dedicated macro lens, the 28mm efm macro lens with its built in light at times can out perform the bigger sharper macro lenses because of that light, it allows you to hold a faster shutter speed so its especially useful if you don't have any other lighting or equipment. when you start adding good light or sped lights to the equation the other dedicated lenses start to take over esp those with 100mm+ focals
with adapted lenses one system that is worth a mention aside from the obvious ef ef-s mounts are the vintage M42 lenses, these are about the same size in body as the ef-m lenses though the m42 to eos-m adapter adds an extra length to them they can be had for as little as £30 with some stella performes ike the takumars and pentacons, two of my fav m42 lenses the takumar 55mm ƒ1.8 and pentacon 30mm ƒ1.8, the later being extremely nice for its renders, probably one of the last lenses i would give up which brings me to ask what happened about the M42 lens review you had been planning to do?
with the RF crop the one thing that it wont be able to do is compact due to the lens sizes, this is something canon could have had a huge win with by making the actual rf mount on the camera swapable with an efm mount, i think canon is likely to keep the M50 as its been a great entry level camera to which they need to get people like me on board that then go on to either buy into the bigger ff or now rf crop cameras or stay on ef-m body and buy ef lenses
its also going to catch people looking for a smaller system.
great review
i have found what could be a very interesting adapter for ef-m, an m42 to eos-m tilt shift adapter, its in the post atm so i can't say how well it works at the moment
It's actually somewhat said that Canon does not pay more attention to the EF-M lens mount.
However, I can fully understand that since developing an extra lens for the inexpensive market place and still turn out a profit can be hard. Additionally you can use the EF(-S) to EF-M adapter and use a ton of regular and specialised Canon and third party lenses.
As I understand it, EF-M is being "set aside" in favor of their RF lens system, I'm not really worried though, with a adapter the entire EF / EF-S range is available if I need them and otherwise I only really need a couple lenses from the EF-M range to do anything I like
I like the EF-M 11-22mm best, so sharp and great travel lens
can we get the sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 on EF-M 😭
Nice review as usual. Your voice is so relaxing to listen to and you always cover all the bases! I have owned M camera bodies since the very first model and currently own 2 M5 bodies. As far as lenses, the 22mm came as a kit lens with my first M body as well as the older 18-55mm. I got the 11-22mm as soon as it was released and it is probably my favorite for travel where architecture and landscape are common when traveling. My other favorite for travel is the Tamron 18-400mm which I use with the EF-EM adapter. Yes it is a bit big but with the 2 bodies and the wide zoom and tele zoom I am covered from 11mm to 400mm! I have 2 other lenses I like on my M cameras, the Canon EF 40mm f/2.8 which I use for food photography reviews when dining out and also the Lensbaby Composer with 35mm optic.
Not sure if anyone else has mentioned it but rumors are flying that Canon will discontinue the M line eventually as they roll out new R bodies. The rumored R10 will be a simpler R with an APS-C sensor so some are speculating that it will replace the M. And in a few countries Canon has removed the M6 MkII from it's active list of cameras currently produced. I for one don't care, my M system is usually what I travel with as it is light and easy to have as carry on luggage. I own the R and a few Canon DSLR bodies and a bunch of EF lenses but for me the M fills a purpose.
Thanks for this excellent (as usual) summary. I have been eos M fan ever since I bought the eos M100 and realized that this tiny camera had basically the same image quality as the higher end aps-C canon DLSRs. One cannot stress enough that “small is beautiful” and canon do have a niche market here cheap and extra small yet powerful and fun to use. It is my intention to continue investing in this system despite the apparent lack of interest of canon. I don’t consider there is a real upgrade in image quality between the M100 and M50 or M200 but the M6 MK ii caught my eye… Your reviews of the lenses are extra helpful in helping me make a decision on an eventual upgrade. I understand well that the sensor imposes strong constraints on the lenses resolution power. From your and other people reviews the behaviour of lenses in this respect are pretty unpredictable and the only way to know seems to try them. According to your reviews, the stellar sigma 56 mm F1.4 unexpectedly failed while the cheapo 15-45 mmm kit zoom behaved magnificently So I have a request of a review testing this for the other essential zooms the M system EF-M 55-200mm and the EF-M 11-22 mm (eventually the EF-S 10-16mm stm and the EF-S 55-250 mm stm). Such a review would be super-useful for those of us considering the M6 mkii
best review for lens on the m50 i have seen mate and I have scrolled thrpough alot, very user friendly explanations on each lens for all levels of photographer which i really appreciated also good points on manual focus lens's.
keep up awesome work mate
CEC x
Hey Christopher, I already bought into the system, with the M100 and M50. Just sold both to get the recently discontinued M6 Mark II. There is somehow no other alternative for me on the market. Small, with those EFM Glas its perfect as my second camera. Love to use the 22mm F2.0 and also the kit lens. The 28mm Macro is also awesome when you really have to get closer. Going to get me with the M6 the 11-22 for some blogging on exhibitions or for other vids.
The 15-45 kit lens is actually pretty good, also i do have the Sigma 16mm which is a gem for those talking head shots. Did not know the Tamron. Great overview, thanks for that, have a nice weekend and cheers from Germany.
I've been using the 11-22mm wide angle and the Sigma 30mm prime for more than two years now on an M6. I live the system, it's light, it's fun, it has the tilty screen, you can use a remote. It's great to see our travel foto's improve a lot over the years. The Bokeh of the Sigma is just delicious 🤤.
People can keep pushing the R mount, but I went for the EOS-M exactly because it's cute small weight. And intend to stick with it as long as reasonable.
The M system from Canon is awesome and it's pity to see its death. I switched to this system after Samsung killed their NX system in hope that Canon will provide much more stability and I'll not have to switch again. And I was wrong. Will see what is next, but this video from Chris was published at the same time as Canon announced their APS-C camera bodies for the R system. Everyone knows what that means.
But anyway, I would like to share my experience with the M system. I started with the M6 body and later switched to M6 II and I have to say I consider it to be a professional camera body with a lot of pro functionality and performance. About lenses, by number 1 for traveling / hiking / city walks or landscape is the 11-22mm zoom. For closeups and macro I love the 28mm f3.5 and I consider it an amazing combination with the M6 II body. For general purpose / random shots or lightweight trip / street combo I love the 22mm f2 pancake which is very small yet sharp and bright. I also have the 55-200 zoom which is nice mostly for landscapes or some basic animal photography. For portraits I have the 56mm f1.4 prime from Sigma which is also very sharp and provides nice subject separation. In past I used fome EF lenses like 50/1.8 or 85/1.8 but I wasn't happy with the ratio of performance and weight + it was needed to use them with an adapter. Nowadays I only use the adapter with Tamron 100-400mm (EF) but it's so large and heavy that I ofter rather take the 55-200 instead.
My conclusion - it's been great time using EF-M, it was amazingly balanced combination of weight & size, picture quality and price which I could not find anywhere else. Before I do another switch when this system is definitely dead, I'll maybe try to get another M6 II body and the 32mm f1.4 lens which is still my desire. Any switch for me would only make sense to go fullframe, but there we get to bigger size, it's heavier and more expencive.
I think the whole market is dead for non-professionals, cellular cameras are just amazing now so there is no need to carry around another piece of kit. Canon knows this and you can see them already focussing only on professional photographers (notes by the price).
Canon is shooting themselves in the foot making bulky RF bodies for APS-C sensors when they already have the compact body and lens EF-M system for the APS-C sized sensor.
I would agree with your assessment of the 11-22mm - super lens, as is the 32mm. No IS in it, but I've never missed it. I wouldn't be as tough on the 18-150mm, but it does go soft on the telephoto end, and the lack of a wide aperture can be frustrating. Even so, for a just "heading out" lens, it's great.
I sure wish Canon would show the M system more love, since the "basics" of the system are so strong. We shall see if it survives the R revolution, but I love my M gear for hiking. It's hard for me to imagine Canon being able to preserve that size with an R mount.
wonderfully small and light lenses, and you can adapt all the EF and EF-S glass. Such a great system.
I would recomend Laowa 65 mm Macro lens. This lens is one of the best macro lenses ever produced.
I have an M50 which I run with the EF-M 32mm F1.4 and an M200 with the EF-M 22 F2. Perfect system for me. But I also own the Viltrox 56mm F1.4. Sigma 16mm F1.4, obviously the kit lens EF-M 15-45mm. A Viltrox adapter for my EF-S 55-250mm and EF 70-300mm. I also have an adapter that allows me to use my old manual Nikon F mount lenses.
I have the sigma 30mm f/1.4 and I love it. Very sharp and versatile, no complaints.
Great job on the the EF-M overview! I'm also a fan of the system. I use the M6ii for most of my video work these days (usually attached to an Atomos Ninja V). :)
Hello all! This is the system that got me back into photography and honestly had been a big favorite of mine. I know it’s at end of life essentially, but I think it will be a while yet before I move out of it. Some lenses I use *alot* are
Samyang/Rokinon 50mm f1.2
Samyang/Rokinon 12mm f2.0
Laowa 65mm f2.8 2x Macro
These are manual focus but honestly they are so fun to shoot with. I use the Canon 22mm as well (best in class). I started a while ago and got the 12mm after watching Chris’ video on it. That lens has aged a bit but honestly it got me to love shooting again. The 50mm in particular, I love the bokeh and dreamy quality of the lens.
I know there are newer and better things, but honestly I love the images I get from the original M6 and M6 mark II. Gonna love these until they kick the bucket.
Hi there. I am thinking og buying the laowa 65mm f/2.8 2x macro. Can I ask you what is your experience with this lense? 😄
People have been speculating the death of EOS-M and EF-M mount forever.
I think the eco system is solid, despite its shortcomings. It is really easy to enter the eco system and... not that expensive as well. The nice thing about EOS-M is that it is compact. Just kind of makes sense as an entry-level or mid-range product.
@@lasselarsen2914 I believe Chris as a review on this lens as well. A manual focus macro lens takes a little care, and a lot of lighting but results are fantastic. Really good product photography I use for my sister’s bakery and my own stuff!
@@guitaristk thank you for your feedback
Since it appears that Canon has let the EOS M series go, I've been watching used prices on the M6ii. I've seen it as low as $450 w/ the external EVF. If I can snag one at that price I will, and I'll pick up the 22mm f2, 28mm macro, and 33mm f1.4. I could care less about the 32mp jump over the 24mp sensors, but I like what I've seen from other reviewers regarding noise levels and dynamic range. Plus, the M6ii + 22mm is a jacket-pocket powerhouse.
I have the viltrox 33mm lens and I absolutely love it and definitely recommend it if you want beautiful bokeh. It’s a great portrait lens and works really well for photographing cars which is what I usually do.
I love the M50 and got some more lenses for it, even trying filters in the near future.
CF creates great vids. Only thing that I'd like him do more often is go out and shoot! That's gonna give us more realistic analysis of lens or camera and it'll also add great dimension to his vids. Good luck, man!
I really like your videos, so pleasant and chill and packed full of useful info. Really like the fact that you included lots of 3rd party lens choices. I recently got the Tamron ef-m 18-200mm lens and hope you can do a full review on it someday.
The first efm I borrowed was M5. When you know their quirk and limitations, they work with no slouch.
Their button and UI also very intuitive for no-checking scenario, just feel it with your hand for the right setting. Their implementation is my favourite after Nikon and lumix. Sadly we know the priority they get after M50m2 😔
I still love my M cameras and I'm sticking with them. I have to agree that the Canon super zooms are not sharp enough. Even with my failing eyesight, I can tell that the sharpness and contrast with those zooms isn't as good as Micro Four Thirds cameras these days. But the M system is rescued by outstanding primes. The 32mm, the 22mm, the Sigma 56mm and 16mm. And now I'm going to give the manual primes by 7Artisans a spin: 9mm, 12mm, and 35mm. They looks like a good solution for night street photography. The M excels at street, landscape and portrait photography. If you are into shooting sports, motorsports and birds/wildlife, I'd have to recommend the new APS-C cameras by Fujifilm and Canon, or consider making the leap to full frame. APS-C is my sensor size. Just right for travel and the streets.
You are a great reviewer and never been more happy with my setup (most from your review of course)
M6mii
22mm f2 (my go to 35mm focal range environment portrait/ wide shots)
50mm f1.8 (serious tight portrait / full frame shots with background separation)
18-135mm stm (general do it all outdoor lens)
Godox tt350 if needed ( usually for client work since i prefer natural lighting)
Very interesting, informative and good video, Christopher. In my opinion one of the best comparisons of lenses for Canon Ef-M mount.
And the only one which introduces the Tamron 18-200 mm F/3.5-6.3 Di III VC lens. I never heard of that one. And so I tried to find it - and beeing succsessful for 238 Euros in good condtion. That's the best compromise for holiday photography. I' m very thankful to you😀
Christoph from Germany/Rhineland.
I’m Loving the canon EF-S 55-250 on my M6 ii. Thank you for all your great reviews!!
I stumbled into the M system when I was looking for an 18-135 for my daughter’s digital Rebel camera. Found the M5 w/ 18-150 on close out for less than the EF-S lens. As you point out, that lens certainly has some limitations, and the quality noticeably drops off past 100mm on my copy. We’ve since moved on to a bag of primes mostly based on Chris Frost recommendations. :-): Samyang 8mm fisheye II-remarkably useful lens, maybe the most fun per dollar of any camera kit I have. They’d sell 10x more if they didn’t call it a fisheye-yeah it is one, but it’s special; Samyang 12mm f/2-roughly 20mm equivalent turned out to be a favorite for me. Very useful indoors and fun for environmental type portraits; EF-M 22mm f/2-you said it all. It’s great; EF 40 f/2.8 pancake. Yeah, it’s EF mount but even with the lens adaptor, it’s still seems to fit the M philosophy well. Beautiful for portraits. Never like this lens much on full frame, but for some reason it works great on M; Samyang 85 f/1.8. This one has taken some practice to learn how to use it well, but wow wow, it’s beautiful! Maybe the best part . . . all this stuff easily fits in an 8 liter sling bag for travel. Nice! OK, the last lens I use on M is the incredible Sigma 18-35 f/1.8. This has been an invaluable 2nd body for event photography paired with 70-200 f/2.8 on full frame.
The EFm 18-150 is a great little lens, so sharp at the wider end, the bokeh at the tele end is quite distracting though..
@@stephenpartridge686 you are right. My comments made it sound like I didn't like it. For what it is, a variable aperture super zoom, it works very well, and it's way smaller than even an EF-S 18-135. I've captured a lot of nice images with it.
EF-M is just great in so many ways… still, it is funny to realise that ultimately the gear isn’t important, it is almost all about the photographer.
Sigma 100-400mm with ef to efm works really well on these smaller cameras, and much cheaper than alternatives. There are mixed reviews but personally I have found it to work great for amateur wildlife, very happy with the results.
I originally bought the abysmal M1, then followed w M3, and the final body I use is the venerable M5. It’s good for what I shoot now which is just portraits. In 2012 I bought the 22m for $70, and then I bought the Canon official efm adapter which was only $40 which I used the new nifty fifty with. I remember a couple years later the M50 finally brought some clout to the series so all lenses and adapter I bought quadrupled in price. I’ll love my m5 till it dies, bc in the early 20-teens it helped me grow my business bc my work always looked authentic, bc phones didn’t have software to make “portrait mode” and ppl weren’t putting themselves through a TT filter, then manually editing, then putting it thru a TT filter again on portrait mode.
Thank you for this informative video. I just picked up a few months ago a second hand Canon EOS M6 as I'm not yet sure to invest on a more expensive camera. I love to travel and only uses my phone to document my trips. However, slightly 4 months of practicing using my kit lens 18-150mm, I was fortunate to be a Getty Images Contributor. May not be something big for others, but for a beginner, I'm very happy to have this milestone at this early time of my photography hobby/career. My concern is that, what's the best budget compatible lens that suits my camera to level up my photos. I recently bought a second hand 50mm and adaptor which I believe gives me more options in choosing lenses. Thank you very much for your help sir. Looking forward to your other videos! :)
Thanks Christopher. Had the smaller standard zoom. Enjoyed using the system. My son has won numerous competitions with the M5. On a lighter note. I think I bought my first Canon when I became a "Canon" in 1999.
Very helpful and useful information...THANK YOU!!!
Great video! I’ve got a Canon M10 that I’ve paired with the 22mm pancake. Actually great for videos. A little slow for photography at times for me but my main camera is an R5.
Is there a more modern Canon M camera that’s as small as the m10?
the M200 is what you need for that purpose.
I’m using R6 mainly, and M200 with 22mm is perfect super sub-camera for me, always in my pocket!
A typically thorough and sensible wide ranging lens review. I was tempted to go to M system, but ultimately deterred by Canon's apparent lack of love for it's own system- went for 6D Mk II & very happy with it and no present plans to go mirrorless.
Christopher, did you hear that Canon discontinued their m6mkii and will announce 2 mirrorless Apsc RF mount THIS month? The end of the EosM Series is comming. Or not? What do you think?
I got an EOS-M to travel with. I have a Kamlan 50mm f/1.1 but I find the crop a bit too tight. I picked up a TTArtisan 35mm f/1.4 and it works very well with the EOS-M. Manual focus is alright for me. My big camera is a Rebel SL2 and a few autofocus lenses. The eos-m fits in my carry on bag on the plane.
I have the 22mm, love it. Its actually my only EFM lense, as I ditched my kit off my M50. I am seriously considering the macro lense too. Despite having just adding my R7, I will be keeping my M50...I love it too much.
I bought a M50 Mark II as my first camera. Does the 22mm give you a lot better photos than the kit lens? And what is the aperture?
@@barely-thinking
Its an F2 lens thats decent for portraits, street photography, and vlogging. Its not super sharp but I find its leaps and bounds over the kit 18-55. Sure its a prime but at 22mm it sits right between the kits range so its really only a matter of taking a couple steps forward or back, but with the benefit of an F2 aperture.
The EF-M 32mm is magical and some pictures are even looking better than reality! As I am slowly migrating to the EOS R system, what would be an RF lens that has similar quality and price? Is the RF 35mm f/1.8 a possible replacement?
A nice farewell video for the efm system.
I love my little M5 with the EFm lenses, so light and sharp, not the fastest focus though...
Always great to see you post, have a good weekend!
Great video as always!
I do like some of the lenses from the ef-m line, but I eventually went with EF & EF-S lenses & an adapter.
I love this system. It’s a shame Canon didn’t take it more seriously. I was looking forward to an m5 mk2, but sold off the whole system and went with the R6. I do miss it when I’m on a long hike though.
It’s called the M50
@@rhodeisland9096 exactly & i also don’t think he knows they released a mark ii version recently a few months back
@@rhodeisland9096 I disagree. The only thing that makes the M50 standout is its fully articulating screen and better video codec (4K is mostly useless though). It’s really baffling that it took camera manufacturers as long as it has to start putting them on higher end cameras. The design philosophy between the two cameras is also different. They don’t even use the same battery. The M5 feels a bit more robust and sports more customizable buttons and dials. It’s a well designed camera (with the exception of the battery/sd card door). It’s clear that Canon is abandoning the system, and it’s really a shame because I like the compact design philosophy.
@@SunnySoCal Oh i knew. It was barely an update though. I was hoping for something a bit more competitive with the market. No weather sealing. No log. No IBIS. Again, it’s a lovely system, but I just grew out of it.
@@rhodeisland9096 if that were the case, the M6ii would've been called the the M60. The 0 at the end means it is a lower end model than the single digit ones. The M5 is, along with the M6ii, the closest thing to pro-level EF-M bodies we'll ever get. Ppl have been wanting an M5ii since the original came out in 2017, and the M50 is more of an intro to the system. A surprise announcement of an M5ii with weather sealing, DPAF2 and IBIS for like $1300 would honestly make this system relevant again. A guy can dream.
I would like a long distance prime, like 85mm. I really enjoy the 55 -200 and find the long range super useful
Great review as usual, but you missed the rokinon ef-m 12mm f/2.0.. its an amazing lens..
Also via using an adapter we can utilise a myriad of ef and ef-s lenses from canon and other third party companies..
The kamlan 50mm mark Ii is quite the beast. I have a bunch of ef m lense but my go tos are the 22mm and 30mm sigma. If I had the m6 I'd go for the canon 32mm
i love your channel so much! do you have a" sharpest lenses" video for the year of 2021/2022?
I love you Christopher and appreciate your videos about lenses. Ive had a lot of help when choosing which lens to buy for my M50 - specifically the samyang fish eye and efm55-200 :-) God bless you and many greetings from Korea ♡
If you like some good reach on m50 pair it with sigma ef 100-400 contemporary with crop factor you are in super telephoto ranges.
I really like my old m50 and never sold it after buying r6 with plethora of rf lenses.
And this little macro on efm is absolutely great in my opinion.
55-200 is very good as well.
Sigma 16mm is fantastic shame I cannot use it on r6 as its native M mount.
Now my 100-500 rf hardly ever leaves the r6 maybe only when using Laowa 100mm f2.8 2x 2z Marco as this lense is mind-blowing.
Paired with a 100-400 EF/L, the M6 MK II delivers impressively as wildlife kit…
I have the 22mm the 15-45mm and the 55-200. I don't know if I have an exceptionally good kit lens or a really bad prime but the 22 is nowhere near as sharp as the 15-45. I thought it might be just the image stabilisation so I carried out tests on a tripod with optical charts and the kit lens gave far sharper results.
I use .the EF-M- EF-S adapter and often take my M6 Mkii out with a Sigma 100-400 if I want a little more reach from my 5D MkIV
I have the M5 as the basis for my lighter weight kit, I have the Canon 11-22mm, 15-45mm, 22mm, 32mm and the Sigma 56mm. the best out of these are the 32mm f1.4 and the 56mm f1/4, I did have the 55-200mm but gave it away :-) I also have the Meike 6.5mm Fisheye but I REALLY don't get on with it.
First time I see you speaking to the camera instead of voice over, nice.
And what about the laowa 65mm f2.8 macro? I think I would buy a m50 especially for this lens😍
i just got that lens as i had the 100mm ef version, the 65mm is just as sharp as the 100mm and smaller and lighter, chris has a review of those too on his channel
@@messylaura and the 65mm as almost no distorsion and no vignetting (thank you Chris). That's really great to create panoramas.
Hello Christopher, thanks for this video, it's so nice and now all is more clearance to me right now, I´a m very beginner do. My camera is a CANON M3 I have the lens 22mm that you show, also the 18-55mm (it's come with the camera) and also I have the lens 50mm, I do videos more that photo. I feel that I need one lens more. I think one lens more for me, for videos can be the Canon EF-M 11-22mm f/4-5.6 IS STM, because my videos are vlogs also. This is correct??? Let me know please
Thanks
Javi
EF-M love!
I have big eight and some other m lenses. Its very nice system overall.
The 22mm f 2.0 stm pancake actually can handle the 32.5 mpixel from the m6ii quite well… very sharp lens
I wish this mount had an 2.8 zoom lenses with image stabilization.
Best you can do is the EF-S 17-55 2.8 I guess. A fantastic lens, but obviously pretty large for the M-system.
@@mihugong3153 I actually had the sigma 17-50 f2.8. the autofocus was loud, not accurate, the ibis was meh and it was huge with the adapter.
@@ManesChannel The AF will probably be much better on the Canon, IS too. Hugeness will be the same though.
I don't think it's possible to make small 2.8 zooms... look at how gigantic the bright RF L lenses are lol
yeah, I heard the canon is better, the sigma 17-50 size is fine but with the adapter it becomes huge...
@@ManesChannel Yeah totally. No way around that unfortunately. Except sizing up the camera body as well :D
Thanks for this nice list! I’m here to find my future lens for the original eos m that shoots 3k 10 bit raw video 😊
I am really loving the 15-45mm! Great kit lens.
I’m looking at the 22mm f2 or the 11-22mm… ? Bokeh vs very wide view? I need both but can only buy one 😅
I don't know if it's worth it to invest in EF-M mount in 2022 because Canon pretty much has abandoned it
Chris, the samyang 12mm F2 is perfect for astrophotography!
I am using the M50 mark II with an EF-S 15-85mm lens. Using large and heavy EF lens on EOS-M body seems kind of clumsy. It is uncomfortable to carry heavy lenses on small camera body and arms. You need an adapter on the body and the weight doesn't decrease much comparing to the EF-S bodies.
Hello Chris! Could you help me (or anyone else in the community) with my dilemma,please? I have the m6 ii and I have the kit 18-150 lens and the ef m 32mm 1.4 lens. I am getting into concert photography (small venues) and am looking for a wider angle lens that can perform well in low light. Out of the Sigma 16mm, Viltrox 23mm, and Canon ef m 22mm, which would you recommend?
clicked on this video so fast. love your system and presentations
Great video!! I love my M50, but it's hard to invest any more into the M6 mkii that I wanted or any other lenses if canon doesn't want to make any more lens or cameras...I'm looking at upgrading to the RP possibly, but keeping my M mount lenses and camera.
How's the 55-250mm compared to 55-200mm ?
Are there any stabilised prime lenses?
quick general question mate. are your test shots RAW?
what about helios 44?
Can anybody recomend which will be best for lanscape photography?
Good video M systems no more we going to see the new one on 24-5-2022 but that m6 mark2 really good one
Wow! Gotta say this video looks really great. The lighting looks top notch on here, way better than on the [ Upgrading your Fuji kit lens! All my recommendations ] video.
Laowa truly makes perfect MF lenses.
A want an upgraded M50 and a dedicated EVF/LCD button, option to review only on LCD, the custom buttons don't work when reviewing images. Btw the Viltrox primes are great, I have 33mm 1.4 and it produces images similar to fullframe 50mm counterparts
M50 and M6 mark ii with ef-s lenses here.
10-18
18-135 usm
55-250 stm
Look good on camera. Consider it as your review standard video intro
I have the 7Artisans 60mm macro, and it's very nice. I have the Kamlan 50mm f/1.1 II, which makes great images. I have the Sigma 56mm f/1.4 and the Canon 20mm. I have some others, but I don't really like them. I would like to get the 16mm Sigma and the Canon 32mm. I have the Viltrox Speedbooster, which allows me to use my EF glass. That's why I have not bothered to buy those other lenses. The Canon EF glass is better anyway and I get an extra stop of light. I do admit that the big telephoto lenses look strange on that camera.
Excellent, thank you!
im just the casual photgrapher with the m50 and 22mm, my dream set up would be to have the 56mm 1.4 sigma in addition with what I already have :))
Really struggled to decide between the M50 Mk2 and the RP when I upgraded my kit at the start of the year.
Ended up going for the latter, because of the Full Frame capabilities, along with the fact that the RF system looks as though it'll last longer - I still wonder if I made the right call though, as love the look of the small lenses in the EF-M range. Had I purchased the M50, then I probably would have added the 11-22mm | 18-45mm | 55-250mm, along with some potential prime lenses.
I think you've nailed it. RP isn't that bigger and it still can be compact with the right lens, the opportunity that canon missed with their efm lineup.
Hope you'll do EFS
He already has a video on recommended EF-S lenses. He did it a while ago, but not much has changed since then.
I have the Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8, Canon 17-55mm f/2.8, and Tokina 11-20mm f/2.8. I highly recommend all of them.
Thanks for sharing another wonderful video like always 👏👍
I'm saying the mirrorless camera's with the viltrox speed booster + used older EF lenses is budget king.
Inject those canon efm with magic lantern and you're more than good 😆
Hope Viltrox will release the 13mm F1.4 for the EF-M system, but they have not even release the e-mount one