Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM (Thread Mk. II)

^^ Ok time for a new subject!

328iGuy wrote in post #18219546
^^ Ok time for a new subject!

Personally, I haven't tired of seeing that little guy. She's beautiful. I hope Kenji keeps posting so we can see how she grows.

By the way, that's one happy dog. Does she ever stop smiling?

Is that a husky, Kenji? Sweet looking dog!

A question: have any of you had both the f/4 and the f/2.8 IS II? I'm trying to decide between the two. I know about the weight and cost, of course.... trying to determine the actual shooting advantages of an f/2.8 vs f/4. The only f/2.8 lens I have is the 100 Macro IS and I do find it beneficial.

I'll be using it mostly for shots with people in them. I use my 100-400 ii for wildlife.

Any suggestions or comments would be welcome.

328iGuy wrote in post #18219546
^^ Ok time for a new subject!

Why? I'm not tired and she's beautiful

Engagement session in Boerne.

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Phoenixkh wrote in post #18220176
A question: have any of you had both the f/4 and the f/2.8 IS II? I'm trying to decide between the two. I know about the weight and cost, of course.... trying to determine the actual shooting advantages of an f/2.8 vs f/4. The only f/2.8 lens I have is the 100 Macro IS and I do find it beneficial.

I'll be using it mostly for shots with people in them. I use my 100-400 ii for wildlife.

Any suggestions or comments would be welcome.

I have owned both - bought the F4 IS one day during a huge sale with all sorts of ideas how and when I would use it and never did.

Who are the people that use the F2.8
1) wedding and event Pros
2) Sports Pros

Why do they use it
- fexibility when needed for paying jobs

If the above is you:
- you would have either already bought it
- you would rent it when you have a job
- or you are a Prime 35/85 shooter

If you are thinking about owning a F2.8 zoom lens for people, I would first buy the 24-70 F2.8 zoom - ask a wedding or event pro and if they are a 2 camera 2 lens shooter they will tell you that the 24-70 gets 70% of the work - the 70-200 is for when reach is required or when enough space exists and you can use the space to shoot at 135-200mm for posed portraits.

If you own the 100-400 II and you buy the 70-200 F4, you are only really adding a 70-100 F4 lens - which most people would never buy - if that is the case I would say consider buying either the Tamron or Sigma 85mm lens or the Canon or Sigma 24-105 lens.

70-200F4 lenses are odd ball lenses - this has nothing to do with image quality which is excellent - it is just that it is a half pregnant type lens - it isn't a pro racecar and it isn't a minivan (24-105f4) - it is kind of like a Honda Civic SI - a great car sold to a limited market.

wallstreetoneil wrote in post #18220468
I have owned both - bought the F4 IS one day during a huge sale with all sorts of ideas how and when I would use it and never did.

Who are the people that use the F2.8
1) wedding and event Pros
2) Sports Pros

Why do they use it
- fexibility when needed for paying job

If the above is you:
- you would have either already bought it
- you would rent it when you have a job
- or you are a Prime 35/85 shooter

If you are thinking about owning a F2.8 zoom lens for people, I would first buy the 24-70 F2.8 zoom - ask a wedding or event pro and if they are a 2 camera 2 lens shooter they will tell you that the 24-70 gets 70% of the work - the 70-200 is for when reach is required or when enough space exists and you can use the space to shoot at 135-200mm for posed portraits.

If you own the 100-400 II and you buy the 70-200 F4, you are only really buying a 70-100 F4 lens - whick most people would never buy - if that is the case I would say consider buying either the Tamron or Sigma 85mm lens or the Canon or Sigma 24-105 lens.

70-200F4 lenses are odd ball lenses - this has nothing to do with image quality which is excellent - it is just that it is a half pregnant type lens - it isn't a pro racecar and it isn't a minivan (24-105f4) - it is kind of like a Honda Civic SI - a great car sold to a limited market.

Simply you should tell him to go with 70-200 2.8IS II without a doubt, if he got it then he is done, if he went with F4 IS it is a great lens but then he will think about 2.8 one day or another, the question is not about which to get because i can blindly say 2.8 IS II, but the question is about, can he afford it really? it is only about budget affordable, not which one to get according to optical quality and performance.

Buy the 70-200 2.8 II.....You will never need to replace it and you will be glad you bought it.....Only buy the f4 if you are on a budget.

Thank you for your replies. My intended use is for outdoor shots in botanical gardens of my wife and grown children..... stuff like that.

I have a Canon 24-105 even though I thought about the 24-70 f/2.8 ll. I had a 17-55 when I was using a crop camera and I found the lack of range on both ends annoying so I stayed with my original 15-85. The comment about weddings is interesting, though I so seldom shot indoors it might be moot in my case. I'm set for landscapes with my 16-35 f/4 IS.

I just need a more flexible lens for non wildlife shooting. I think the background blur will be better at wider apertures. With the 100-400, I'm usuallly shooting f/7.1 or so to keep the birds in focus. I really don't know if I'll end up at f/2.8 or not with people but I like the results with my 100 IS macro at f/2.8, hence my leaning in the direction of the 70-200 f/2.8 ll. Correct me if I'm wrong (it won't surprise me).... the difference between 70 and 100mm is pretty large when taking photos of people outdoors....I've had several instances when I couldn't back up far enough to get the framing I wanted with my 100-400. I have such limited experience taking photographs of people. I'm under the impression that people tend to look their best at longer focal lengths... another reason I'm staying away from the 24-70 f/2.8... though my thinking might be in error.

I was just going to get a 135 f/2 but our youngest son has worked with lots of professional photographers as an assistant and as was mentioned, the pros all have the 70-200 f/2.8 ll.

The fact that my main camera is a 1D IV does complicate things a bit. It's sort of an oddball sensor though I really like it for wildlife.

Kim,

Hand on heart - this is my most used lens full stop! I use it with the 1.4 ext for the majority of my racing work.

I currently own the F4 and the F2.8 II and since getting the 2.8 the F4 sits in its case unused. That is just me though. It will be entirely up to how you use the lens. If you are shooting mainly portrait at apertures at or higher than F4, I would save the money and the weight and just get the F4. In my case, I needed the extra stop of light for my concert photos and also the ability to get higher shutter speeds for my sports shots.
So the answer to your question is going to be determined by how you shoot. I still love my F4, but the F2.8 II is just as good image quality wise, and with the IS and the wider aperture is now my go to lens in many different situations.

Low light, action shot with the lens at 2.8. This was at 1/200th to stop the action at 2.8 because the light was not good and the ISO was still at 800. But this lens excels in these conditions.

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