just got a used 70-200 f/4L lens - help will be appreciated

hello, as the title says I am in the thrilled mood of holding in my hands my first quality glass. I know that gear doesn't make good photography but since I was looking to reorganize my lenses and this one was affordable I thought it would be a good idea to grab it.

I have already done a quick sharpness test and the results are simply... amazing
During the weekend I will also do a ff/bf test to ensure that its ok with focusing issues

There are some points though that I could use your assistance since I have never owned or used a similar lens, hence being incapable of evaluating or testing it thoroughly.

As I mentioned before sharpness wise it performs great.
The USM feature is very fast indeed.
The lens seems to be in great shape with no marks or scratches and optics seem to be flawless.
The zoom ring though is a little "tight". Should it be rotating very smoothly or it is natural to "feel" the process?
The focus ring rotates smoother than the zoom one. While rotating it you can feel both ends but it rotates more than this. Is this natural?
The focus distance switch predefines a range of focus in order to assist AF in faster focusing?
Is there anything else I should check?
If I want to use a tripod should I attach the lens via a tripod ring or the camera (my camera is a 400d gripped)?

sorry for all this questioning, I am sure some of you can understand me
I will gladly upload some photos, if it is needed.

thanks in advance

I don't own it so I can't comment on the smoothness and stuff, but I can confirm that there is a switch that limits the focus range and increases (even more) the focus speed. The last question depends on your tripod... if you have something sturdy, you don't need to attach it through a ring...

I wouldn't buy a ring, but if you have one (fits some other lenses too), it is useful since flipping to portrait orientation is trivial.

i don't have the non-is version you have, but on mine, i find the zoom ring is tighter than the focus ring
not by a great margin, but noticeable nonetheless

I tried a 70-200mm f/2.8L in a store, and the zoom ring was pretty tight. I don't recall my f/4 IS having a tight zoom ring when I bought it new from B&H.

Oh, and I tried a 24-70L in the store and it had a slightly tight zoom ring as well, so that's probably normal and should loosen up in time.

Enjoy the lens!

egordon99 wrote in post #6540027
I tried a 70-200mm f/2.8L in a store, and the zoom ring was pretty tight. I don't recall my f/4 IS having a tight zoom ring when I bought it new ...

I had the same observation when I bought my 2.8 IS .. in fact I went back to the store to try another one .. but it was the same.
My F4 was definately 'looser', but having said that there was more resistance on the zoom than the focus .. I presume due to the internal mechanics involved.

I never had a tripod ring on my F4 .. and I never really felt that I needed one. Now the 2.8 IS .. that's a totally different story ..

I have your lens.

Everything seems normal! the focus ring is smoother than the zoom and goes a little beyond the end of the scales.

The 70-200 f4L is light enough to be used with your camera on a tripod, but if you want to switch between landscape and portrait orientations a ring can be useful, you can get an el-cheapo tripod ring on ebay and they work as good as the Canon ring. No worries.

Next in your future is a Kengo DG Pro 1.4 teleconverter to make your 70-200 reach almost 300mm

Luigi

what I mean is that during rotation of the ring you can feel both ends but the ring can still be rotated unlike eg the Sigma where it stops.

I am already in search of the Kenko pro 300 dg 1.4x
At first I was looking for a canon one but after reading many threads I was convinced that the kenko ones do not lack anything, compared to the canon extenders.

webrunner5gt wrote in post #6558022
.. I am already in search of the Kenko pro 300 dg 1.4x
At first I was looking for a canon one but after reading many threads I was convinced that the kenko ones do not lack anything, compared to the canon extenders.

I'm convinced it does lack something .. it's not weather resistant.

Not in the same league as the Canon EF 1.4x II Extender

webrunner5gt wrote in post #6558022
what I mean is that during rotation of the ring you can feel both ends but the ring can still be rotated unlike eg the Sigma where it stops.

That is normal with all Canon Ring Type USM. (full time manual focus)

using the tripod ring and a grip means you need an extra tall adapter as you may not clear the pod with the grip [I have rc322 manfroto used vertically and it won't work]

great lens btw

thank you all for your valuable feedback!

I guess I should start enjoying the lens now...