Canon EF 70-200mm 1:2.8 L IS II USM review
For the past 10 years the Canon EF 70-200mm 1:2.8 L IS has been the work horse for professional and advanced amateur photographers. It was known to be fast and incredibly sharp. Over the past decade this lens has been hugely acclaimed the world over as one of Canon’s best lens solutions.
In March 2010 the Canon EF 70-200mm 1:2.8 L IS II USM was launched. The new Telephoto Zoom lens has been redesigned to offer improved performance and an overall ease of use. The time taken in the research and development of this lens shows in all aspects and makes this lens well worth considering whether you are taking your photography to the next level, or just looking to update your equipment.
COMPATABILITY
This lens is compatible with all Canon EOS film and digital camera bodies. Obviously there is no effect on a full frame camera on the effective focal length. And the lens produces remarkably clear, crisp images even at the largest apertures.
If however, you have an APS-C sensor the sharpness of the lens is very slightly compromised. This is due to the fact that in all smaller sensors the inherent magnification causes an increase in the effective focal length to 112-320mm. This in turn does lead to a slight softening of your images. However if you take into account the combination of lowered noise at higher ISO’s inherent in these bodies and the speed of this lens your low light shooting is going to be a pleasure. Gone are the fears of a slight hand shake destroying your perfect shot.
Canon, equally, has taken the time to work out the auto focusing bugs that a fair number of lenses experienced when using extenders. As a result a 2x converter can be easily used and the lens successfully converted on the camera body.
DIMENSIONS
The Mark II of this lens weighs in at 180 grams more than the original and is slightly larger. The aperture runs from 2.8 to 23 with a circular diaphragm consisting of 8 blades. The circular diaphragm allows for beautiful bokehs.
LENS CONSTRUCTION
The new design consists of an element array of 23 elements in 19 groups. The build has increased the ultra-low dispersion (UD) elements from 4 to 5 and includes a fluorite element which has been placed in the middle of the lens path. This fluorite element works to cut down on chromatic aberration dramatically and has beautiful results.
The press release from Canon boasts that this build design gives you the ‘high-resolution, high-contrast optical capability’, what this means for you after all the marketing speak is that at 100% views or crops the aberration is virtually non-existent. It is only at significant magnification that a slight aberration may be visible.
The images are exquisitely sharp – and if you, like me, think there is no comparison between using a zoom lens and a fixed focal lens on sharpness, you are in for a huge surprise. Most of the reviews and online opinion of this lens seem to concur that this lens delivers crisp, clear, razor sharp and perfectly coloured images.
The 70 – 200 uses a superbly fast and very quiet ultrasonic autofocus motor along with optical image stabilisation which makes the lens perfect for low light shooting keeping the image pin sharp. Canon asserts that these build factors give you the equivalent of 4 f-stops of compensation. The focusing at low light is beautifully fast and accurate.
The overall design of the lens from a functionality point of view has been simplified. The focusing ring has been made larger and feels more robust when working with it. Canon has taken the time to ensure the lens is suitable for most conditions and this version is resistant to dust and moisture, giving you more peace of mind in more challenging environments.
The minimum focusing distance has been dropped to 1.2m at all zoom settings. This means being able to get in close to your subject, even in restricted spaces.
In addition this lens works very well with to supply distance information for ETTL (Effective through the lens) metering for your flash set up.
The function buttons on the side to adjust between focusing modes are easy to access and to use. There are a number of focusing modes built in. There 2 modes of image stabilisation – the first mode is specifically for stationary objects and the second for moving objects. Additionally you can decide whether to set your minimum focus from 1.2m to infinity or 2.5m to infinity which is helpful when using this lens for wildlife shots.
There is a tripod mount available for this lens, and as with most larger lenses it is far better to use the lens mount than the camera mount. The image stabilisation in the build however means that this can also effectively be used with a monopod with very little of that pesky blur.
PRICING
The question of pricing is a contentious one. This lens weighs in at a hefty 2500 dollars (US) however, shopping around may get you a bargain of about 300 dollars (US) less. Most discussions though reveal that the build quality and image quality are worth paying this price. Because of the versatility of this lens it is suitable in most environments and for most types of shots.
PROS AND CONS
Because of the rapid increase in the pixel density that most digital camera manufacturers are producing, the importance of your lens quality is so much easier to scrutinise. Most photographers agree in the age old belief that when you are considering additions and upgrades to your kit, you should consider quality lenses before upgrading your body. This is becoming a more important truism than ever before.
I fully believe that the pros to purchasing this lens far outweigh the cons. However please keep in mind that if weight or lens size is a major factor in your decision making process this lens is fairly large, heavy and bulky. But if that is no problem and the clarity of your images is your priority, this lens is a brilliant, well built, excellently designed lens that will give you many years of photographic bliss.
