EF-S 17-85mm f/45.6IS USM or EF28-135mm f/3.5-5.6IS USM

[boomer1959]

Which on for 20D . :? They are suppost to be equal

[CoolToolGuy]

The 'equal' part is that the 17-85 IS on a 20D or Digital Rebel gives the same field of view and zoom ratio as the 28-135 IS does on a full frame or film camera.

The 17-85 IS is too new for many reviews to be out yet. I don't think it will be available until sometime in October.

Stay tuned.

Have Fun,

[Cal Maier]

I don't think it will be available until sometime in October.

We received five EF-S 17-85 IS USM lenses today from Canon Canada, but I've been advised that Canon is in short supply of this model as it is so new. I have taken a few shots with this lens and it appears to be of the quality one would expect from the 28-135 IS, but of course with the FOV crop of 1.6 the lens becomes a 28-135 on the D-Rebel or the 20D.

I'd say if you don't own a 10D, D60 or D30, and you haven't got an EOS film body to mount the lens on, go for the EF-S, I think it's a much more useful focal length for a wallk-around, general photography type lens.
BTW the macro on this lens is not too bad either.

Cal

[boomer1959]

Thanks Rick and Cal I am debating over which one to buy was hoping it would make a nice portrait lens plus other stuff too. Canon dose say it's a good portrait lens. But if I ever upgrade it wont work.What are your thoughts on this?

[Cal Maier]

But if I ever upgrade it wont work.What are your thoughts on this?

Dave,

It appears Canon has now committed to the APS size sensor in all of it's non- type 1 bodies, or so it seems right now. They are producing 3 new EF-S lenses, and I would think we can expect another couple of these lenses in the near future.

Also, I think any new entry level or prosumer models ie. the replacement digital rebel or whatever will replace the 20D will be EF-S type bodies. A hint of what's to come in the APS size sensor can be gotten from Nikon's announcement of the new D2X 12 mp camera that will be based on a c-mos sensor instead of the usual ccd they have in their present models.

Hopefully this will help you with your decision.


Cal

[CoolToolGuy]

Thanks Rick and Cal I am debating over which one to buy was hoping it would make a nice portrait lens plus other stuff too. Canon dose say it's a good portrait lens. But if I ever upgrade it wont work.What are your thoughts on this?

I understand what you are saying, but as long as Canon continues to support the 1.6 crop factor you will be able to sell the lens if you do upgrade to a larger sensor. And I don't think Canon will abandon the APS-sized sensor. It has become a popular size used by several camera manufacturers and it would be difficult for Canon to stop making them - folks would say 'But Ni*on's (or whoever) 300mm lenses are equal to 480mm, what about Canon?'. So I think you will see newer 1.6 bodies with more features that might tend to keep you in the 1.6 camp.

Try them both if you can. The biggest difference will obviously be seen on the wide end. Consider what it gives you to have that on the camera as you 'walkaround'. That is the attraction for me, and that is not lost on Canon. The 28-135 was created with film cameras in mind, and it has a terrific range on a film camera. Now they have created a lens that give the same range on a 1.6 camera. I'm anxious to try one myself.

Have Fun,