Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM

Almost everything that i have read from the review on this site regarding this lens are right. And finally after just barrowing my friend's lens once in a while for more than a year every time i need it. And after PRAYING about it, i decided to buy myself on my birthday as my gift to myself. And man what a great way to be BLESSED.

I shoot a wedding last weekend, i took a tight shot of the couple at f/ 2.8,1/60 with iso 800 @ 200mm IS on with my 30D, inside an 18th century church with two 500 watts light set up, one on each side, around 20 ft from the couple, the shot was tact sharp, the colors are brillant and the contrast is just great. All the shots that i took were done with out flash and yet so clean. The pictures gives the feeling of the of the mood of the moment. Its like going back on the time machine. And WOW AF is so FAST and so QUIET. Zooming is EXCELLENT and the weigth is heavy??? if you dont know the timing, rhythm and how to hold the lens properly. The Price is just fine for this AWESOME LENS.

Honestly the lens is heavy if youre already tired. So for me i make sure that i have a good sleep before a big shoot.

Canon EF 28-135 IS USM
Canon EF-S 17-85 IS USM

Canon Service in the Philippines is PERFECT!

Great zoom lens. Very useful even if its a heavy piece to lug around.

This lens is very sharp, focuses very fast and silent, and with IS it is possible to use it handheld in almost any situation. Colour rendition is very pleasing. Even though I often use primes I don't want to be without this one. When you need a medium-tele zoom and don't have time to change lenses this one is the best to get.

I set the value rating to 4, as it is an expensive lens for most of us. Still, if you can afford one, it is very good value indeed.

It is heavy.

I previously owned the non-IS version of this lens for several years. It is said the non-IS is sharper, but even though I never did an actual test I find the results very similar. Both lenses are superb, but IS is a BIG advantage for handholding and shooting still or slow-moving objects. Especially if you're like me, a thin woman with spaghetti arms :)

Never used.

This lens shines in daylight photos in clarity, color reproduction/accuracy, sharpness, auto focus times, everything lets just say. The lens also works well in dark settings, and produces reasonable and usable images all the way up to 1/15th f/2.8 @ ISO1600 for me. The IS kicks in and keeps shots perfect all the way down to what I've found to be reasonable for me, 1/6th of a second.

Sharpness: This lens is tack sharp, both indoors and out, be it in the light or in the dark! It is well worth its hefty price tag and is a lens to be carried at all times. If it was shorter, it would be my permanent walk-around lens. The precision in which the auto focus locks on and focuses in daylight is none like I've seen before. In darker situations, it tends to hunt on my 350D, but thats understandable that the body is probably the equipment at fault.

Image Stabilization: I couldn't live without it. I was questioning myself if the IS was really necessary and I have to say it was worth every single cent I spent on it. If it wasn't for the IS, I wouldn't have been able to take photos this past night of an important ceremony. I was stressing the camera and lens @ 1/45th sec, f/2.8 @ ISO 1600, and without that, I would have had many toss out photos. If you think twice about it, honestly, you're foolish to choose anything but the IS version.

Color reproduction: This lens is quite accurate in transmitting colors to the sensor. The colors I see on the subject are what show up on the screen after taking the photo. I know a lot depends on monitor calibration, but I do say, this lens is much more accurate than my non L glass lenses.

Zoom Range: For a lens this size, the zoom range is quite long. 70-200mm is a nice lens to carry around on an outing, family picnic, vacation tour, anything where you'll be moving a lot. The 70mm end works well for portraits and an occasional group shot(if you have room.) The 200mm end, on the other hand, provides a zoom end which is easily in reach with just a simple twist of the zoom collar.

Zoom collar tightness: I find it hard to hold the lens and body with two hands, and adjust the zoom at the same time, while keeping the subject in the frame. It takes a twist and a half to get the collar and zoom moving towards the tele end. Coming back wide is much easier. Not sure if thats how its supposed to be.

That would have to be my only nit pick. Everything else about the lens is perfect. It could quite possibly be that I just got a tight rotating unit.

Canon 75-300mm F/4-5.6 (yuck! stay away!)
Canon 28-135mm F/3.5-5.6 IS

No use yet, don't plan on using them either. (at least I hope I wont have to.

This should really be an easy review to write as this lens is faultless.
I finally bought this lens after borrowing one a couple of years ago.

SIZE & WEIGHT: If you think this lens is going to be small and lightweight then you're a fool. It's a metal bodied 70-200 lens with IS and an aperture of f2.8. It's going to be large & heavy no matter what. I hate tripods but I still find the lens perfectly hand holdable. However I'm quite a large man (6ft 3", 14.5 stone). A smaller person may struggle with it after a while. It's mainly the f2.8 that makes it so heavy due to the large elements. If you think you'll struggle you may be better off with the f4.0 version.

BUILD: Impossible to fault. Built like a tank. Water resistant and dust proof. Very high quality finish and super smooth zoom and focus rings. Could not be better in any way in my opnion.

AF: The autofocus is nothing short of amazing. Extremely silent & fast for a telephoto zoom lens. Its real strength is in its ability to track moving objects. Select all of your focusing points and let the camera & lens do the work for you. If you keep your subject in the viewfinder it will not lose focus. I tested it with seagulls in high winds and it was sensational. No consumer lens could possibly come close to matching it. This is what makes the difference between getting the shot and missing the shot especially if you're a wildlife or sports photographer. That's why the pros always get the shots that the amateurs miss out on!

IS: The Image Stabilisation does exactly what it says it. Handheld shots at 200mm at 1/30sec are relatively simple. Without IS this lens could be awkward to use at its longest setting without a tripod, especially in poor light. Don't be tempted to save money and get the non-IS version! The system is virtually silent and has two different modes, general and panning mode. IS is not a gimmick.

IMAGE QUALITY: This is entirely as expected. Very good indeed and probably unbeatable on a lens of this type. The only thing I will say is that if you intend to buy this lens for the image quality alone then although it is certainly superior to all other telephotos I don't personally feel it is worth £1100 better than, say, a £150 75-300mm Canon consumer zoom. Don't get me wrong, the quality is amazing but the quality of Canon's consumer zoom telephotos is also very good these days. If you want the best possible quality then this lens is what you need but be prepared to pay for it. Personally I see the superior autofocus, wide f2.8 aperture and IS far bigger advantages over the consumer lenses than the image quality. The image quality is just a good bonus for me.

OTHER: A good bonus with this lens is that you can use it with Canon's 2x extender and retain full AF and IS capability. A recommended combination.

To sum up, this lens is impossible to fault. If you want one and can justify the cost and can handle its size and weight then you shouldn't hesitate to buy one.

Build quality
Autofocus speed and accuracy
Image Stabilisation
Fast f2.8 aperture
Image quality
Retains AF and IS with Canon 2x extender

Impossible to fault in any aspect

Canon 75-300mm
Canon 75-300mm IS
Canon 100 - 400mm f5.6 IS

Not yet needed

This lense is fast. The delay on moving subjects is almost undetectable!!! It rarely or never has misfocused on moving subjects! The pics look clean. There isn't a need to sharpen, everything is crisp! The lense is heavy. But the weight is worth it. We also have a 28-135 IS Canon 3.5 lense and this lense is overall alot easier to use. Meaning its speed can make up for your miss focusing whereas the other lense can't.

SPEED
CLARITY
F STOP
VERSITLE

WEIGHT

NONE

Don't NEED