I'm a professional wedding/portrait photographer and a prime lens shooter. This lens was worth the upgrade from the 1.4. It's quiet and fast! Worth every penny.

Consistent Output; Fast / accurate auto-focus; Nice Bokeh

Heavy

Gary Wolstenholme review the super-bright Canon EF 50mm f/1.2L USM lens.

This lens simply is not sharp at f1.2. I tested using Spydercal, tripod mounted EOS 1DS camera with electronic shutter release at of 1/1000 sec but still not sharp at f1.2. Very sharp at all other apertures but no good at wide open. Defeats the purpose of buying fasdt glass if it cannot be used.

Superior build quality

So far, I am a believer in this lens. It does what I expect it to do wide open, which is deliver dreamy, creamy imagery. Stopped down it is amazingly sharp, colorful and contrasty. It is worth the money in my estimation.

So far; this lens does what I expect it to do; love the bokeh

some CA wide open; price is very high

this lens allows you to enter a whole new world of photography, night photography without flash. i have tried both the 24-70L and the 17-55m and felt very limited once the sun starts to set or moving in doors. IQ is stunning, especially the colors.

-sharp; sharp; sharp ( between 1.4- 2.8) -construction is top notch -bokeh is silky smooth (was never a priority in the past for me; but after seeing the results thats all i think about -superb in low light situations

-price; price; price (will not be buying any new lens soon; but maybe i will not have to with this lens) -attention getter (might be a pro for others

It's bokeh and overall quality is magical. It is not comparable to the 1.4 as it has more depth and a different look. People constantly try to compare, but this is a different beast!

Durable; Nice Bokeh; Strong Construction

Heavy; Slow Focus

This is a really beautiful piece of kit. I read the reviews here and on the various web fora and was obviously worried about the oft mentioned "back focusing" issue, but went ahead and bought one back in October 2009.

In 2006 the range of classic 50 mm Canon lenses, although huge, seemed already a bit outdated. The cheapest model – the EF 50 MM F/1.8 II – although it features the II symbol in its name, is currently a twenty-year-old device. The EF 50 mm f/1.4 USM is just a bit younger but fast coming of age.

high build quality and very solid barrel; very good image quality in the frame centre from f/1.8 aperture upwards; decent image quality at the edge of the APS-C sensor; slight distortion on the smaller sensor; almost invisible coma in the APS-C sensor corner; negligible astigmatism; good work...

weak image quality at the edge of full frame; noticeable chromatic aberration; distortion on full frame could have been lower; high vignetting on full frame; bad price/quality ratio

As to be expected from a Canon L grade lens the EF 50mm f/1.2 USM L has an exceptional build quality thanks to a tightly assembled combination of high quality plastics and metal parts. A sealing against dust and humidity as well as the the very smooth focus ring completes this positive impression.

Canon currently has four 50mm lenses in production, the EF 50/1.8 II, the EF 50/1.4 USM , the EF 50/2.5 Macro and the EF 50/1.2L USM . There are also two others which are no longer current: the EF 50/1.0L and the original EF 50/1.8.