Guide
A guide to camera lenses: questions and answers
by David Lee
Canon Lens Simulator: From image to lens
17.4.2020
Translation: machine translated
Tell me what kind of photo you want and I'll tell you which lens you need. That's the idea behind Canon's lens simulator. The simplicity is tempting - and also a little deceptive, because it doesn't work completely without background knowledge.
Beginners in particular can make a lot of mistakes when buying a lens. In the worst case scenario, they order something that doesn't fit their camera at all. This is a particular risk with Canon, as Canon has four different camera systems.
The four camera systems from Canon
A brief overview of the four camera systems:
- Mirror reflex cameras with full-frame sensors. The matching lenses are labelled EF.
- Mirror reflex cameras with smaller APS-C sensors. The lenses for this are called EF-S.
- Mirrorless cameras with full-frame sensors. Lens designation: RF.
- Mirrorless cameras with smaller APS-C sensors. Lens designation: EF-M.
The systems are partially compatible with each other:
- Lenses for SLR cameras can be connected to mirrorless cameras with an adapter - the reverse is not possible.
- Lenses for large sensors can also be attached to cameras for small sensors. However, the image section is then smaller. The reverse is not possible with Canon.
Despite this partial compatibility, it is almost always best to look for lenses that have been designed for your system.
Filter specifications - or simulate an image
There's more to making the right decision. Can I get close enough with the lens to take macro shots? Can I bring a distant animal into the picture? Is the lens suitable for portraits? Can I capture the entire mountain?
Digitec Galaxus does try to prevent users from making bad purchases: By providing information such as sensor compatibility, tooltip explanations of certain specifications or by allowing you to filter by lens mount. But the matter is and remains complicated. You can't avoid reading a lot and acquiring background knowledge.
Canon takes a different approach with the lens simulator. The idea: you choose which image you want according to various criteria and the simulator shows you the suitable lenses. You should find the right model in an intuitive way, without long technical explanations.
How the simulator works
The start is clear: you select the area of application, for example portrait or macro. You are then shown a typical image that changes depending on the settings. With portraits, for example, you can clearly see how the background becomes more or less blurred depending on the aperture. And you will immediately notice that very blurred backgrounds can only be achieved with certain lenses. The models with which the selected combination of focal length and aperture is possible are shown below.
An "A" indicates that the lens can be used, but only with an adapter. A number means that there are several suitable lenses with this focal length (or, in the case of zooms, the focal length range) - clicking on it displays them individually.
To ensure that you only see the lenses that you can use, select your camera system in the drop-down menu at the top right. In the mobile view, the menu is below the focal length and aperture controls.
For EOS R and DSLR full format, you can switch the cropping to APS-C by pressing a button next to the image. This has no effect on the lenses displayed because, as explained above, you cannot attach APS-C lenses to full-frame cameras. However, some Canon full-frame cameras can crop the image section to APS-C, so you may want to know what this looks like.
Disadvantages and intentional limitations
The blur range depends not only on the focal length and the aperture, but also on the distances between the camera, the main subject and the background. This is different for every photo. The images in the simulator are therefore not universally valid, but are to be understood as examples. They give an approximate impression.
Each lens produces a slightly different bokeh: the blurred areas look different depending on the number and shape of the aperture blades. Click on the info icon to see which lens was used to take the example photo. It may look slightly different with a different lens. One simulator that takes everything into account is the DOF simulator by Michael Bemowski. However, it's pretty nerdy and not ideal for beginners.
In my opinion, the biggest flaw of the simulator is that you can't make a selection based on your price expectations. You only find out the price of a lens when you click through to the range on sale in the shop. An approximate range like this would be useful for filtering. The only hint for those who know: The models with the red ring and an "L" in the name are premium lenses and are correspondingly expensive.
Canon does not develop such a tool specifically so that you can buy a Sigma lens later. This is why lenses from third-party manufacturers do not appear in this simulator. To find them, select the appropriate lens mount in the shop, for example "Canon EF" and then the brand - for example Sigma. But we also have our own interests: As the simulator has been customised for us, it only leads to suppliers from our shop. You'll have to look for better offers from the competition yourself.
Conclusion: Good for an uncomplicated start
The Canon lens simulator provides a quick overview of which Canon lenses are available for your application. However, it should not be the only basis for a purchase. Find out more about your shortlist. And don't forget that third-party lenses can also be an alternative - these remain invisible in the simulator.
David Lee
Senior Editor
David.Lee@digitecgalaxus.chMy interest in IT and writing landed me in tech journalism early on (2000). I want to know how we can use technology without being used. Outside of the office, I’m a keen musician who makes up for lacking talent with excessive enthusiasm.
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