Canon RF 50mm f/1.8

Pros

• Excellent value for the price
• Extremely compact and lightweight, ideal for travel or jacket-pocket setups
• Produces pleasing bokeh and background separation for portraits
• Significant improvement in low-light performance compared to kit zoom lenses
• Sharp image quality, especially when stopped down

Cons

• Lacks internal image stabilization (IS)
• Autofocus motors are noticeably noisy
• Can be soft when shooting wide open at f/1.8
• Prone to focus hunting in some conditions

Caveats

• On APS-C (crop) sensor bodies, the focal length behaves like 80mm, which many find too tight for general indoor use
• Sharpness is best at f/2.8 or higher rather than at the maximum f/1.8 aperture
• Lack of IS may require keeping shutter speeds higher (e.g., 1/400s) to avoid blur
• Not recommended for video due to the audible autofocus motor

Best for

• Portrait photography
• Budget-conscious beginners moving beyond kit lenses
• Street photography with a minimal, discrete setup
• Low-light still photography

Avoid if

• You primarily shoot video and need silent autofocus
• You require built-in image stabilization for handheld shooting
• You frequently shoot in tight indoor spaces on a crop-sensor camera