Canon's amazing budget zoom lens...further review of the 55-250mm lens

I have had the 55-250mm IS II lens from Canon for almost a year, and I have to say it is an amazing lens, especially for the price of the lens. I love it so much that my wife (who bought me mine) had to go out and buy herself the newer STM version. The lens is the one that spends the most time on my camera, along with the amazing 50mm f1.8 lens. I won't get into all the technical details about the lens, I will leave that more gear orientated sites and reviewers. This will be just my general opinions of this amazing lens. Take into account that I am also using this lens on a budget DSLR camera, the Canon T5.



















The lens could be a little faster at a max aperture of f4 and a little sharper wide open but it is nice and sharp at anything over f5.6. The lens doesn't have a constant aperture when wide open, meaning that it is at f4 at 55mm and stops down to 5.6 at 250mm. This means if you are using this for video you should start at aperture f5.6 to avoid the exposure dropping down as you zoom in.  It is not a lens that one would use for sports or moving objects but it is great for just about everything else. The Image Stabilization (IS) is amazing for such a inexpensive lens, that I would have no problem using this lens for portraits, which I have done with it. One downside of this lens is that the Image Stabilization is loud with an audible clicking sound that could be heard on the video if you are not using an external microphone. For video I would recommend upgrading to the newer STM version that has a lot quieter image stabilization.

I have used this lens for landscapes, 

wildlife,

macro, 

portraits, 

                              

                                     

and artistic shots.

                         

All and all Canon's 55-250mm lens for EF-S cameras is an amazing lens, definitely don't let the "cheap" price tag on it scare you away. The lens' quality and the quality of the pictures you will get with it make the lens feel like it should be way more expensive. It is a lens that I would highly recommend to anyone with a Canon crop sensor camera who is looking for a good zoom lens.