Does the 17-40 f/4L make sense?

I currently have a 20D (now a back up) and 5D Mark II (main body) and I use the 24-105 f/4L a TON. Much more than I thought I would initially. It pretty much stays on the camera now. I mainly shoot outdoors (some indoor) on a tripod with occasional motorsports (mainly drag racing but its rare).

I have been thinking of getting something a little wider and I have been eyeballing the 17-40 f/4L for a while now. Is the 7mm going to make that much of a difference on the 5D MkII?

I have a few other lenses in my bag but mainly use the 85mm and 135mm when I take the 24-105 off. Does the 17-40 seem like it would fit with what I have now and the "want" to go a bit wider?

I really want to stay with Canon lenses but could be swayed if there is something out there that is on the same level as far as IQ goes.

Just trying to make sure I am thinking in the right direction and would appreciate any insight anyone would like to provide.

IMO, there is a pretty big difference in that extra 7mm, but it really depends on what you shoot and your personal style.

When you say "outdoors", do you mean nature, landscape, city/urban? Ultra-wide is always fun and useful is many situations, but lots of people find the 24 on a FF to be wide enough. I think it depends on your style. For me, I love the 17 on a FF, but there are many times where I wish that I ALSO had a 24-105.

Should be a good fit. The 17-40 will compliment your existing lenses very well.

Agreed its a good choice. That lens is probably next on my list to buy to give me a good range that fits what I do (see my lenses on the sig)

Laramie wrote in post #14919661
IMO, there is a pretty big difference in that extra 7mm, but it really depends on what you shoot and your personal style.

When you say "outdoors", do you mean nature, landscape, city/urban? Ultra-wide is always fun and useful is many situations, but lots of people find the 24 on a FF to be wide enough. I think it depends on your style. For me, I love the 17 on a FF, but there are many times where I wish that I ALSO had a 24-105.

Yes. I have been leaning more towards landscape when I shot. I still have a ton to learn but I am trying to get lenses in order while I learn. I have run into a few situations that I wish I was little wider. This is one of them:

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com/​photos/tomowensby/7744​182304/

Yup the 17-40 would give you what you wanted. While they are all f/4s, I figured I'd round off my lenses with some prime 2.8s like the 135L and 24/28L later on. You already have those so you are set.

sigma 12-24mm fit on full frame I think... that would complement very well your 24-105! a bit softer than the 17-40 though.

They say the Sigma 15-30mm perform better than the 17-40mm. Center and corners.

Thats good choice, that 7mm on a FF is a huge diff. I had the lens and traded a few days ago for a 35L. I already miss it and i'm getting another one soon .

if youre still on the fence getting the 17-40, you can do some sort of pano shot simulation type of thing where you shoot a frame and then pan to left or right and then shoot another frame....i know its not the same thing but if youre stuck with just 1 lens its an option you can do.....photoshop can merge the shots quite easily nowadays.

oh and to answer your question, the 7mm is a substantial change, can you rent one to see if it goes well with your style??

Of course the 17-40 has some drawbacks but for the quality build and price point you'll be hard pressed to find an equal lens.

^^ what are the drawbacks with the 17-40?

gratchie wrote in post #14921756
^^ what are the drawbacks with the 17-40?

Softness in the extreme corners and barrel distortion. Both more notable on a FF body. Barrel distortion is correctable in post processing. Most all super wide angles will exhibit these characteristics to some degree.

i really liked mine, i found it much more useable than the 16-35 i had

I actually just purchased the 17-40L last week and it will be arriving today. I love my 24-105L also but I just found in some situations its not wide enough. I have heard good things about it!

On the wide end I shoot landscapes/coastal & urban exploring where wide is needed so I sold my 24-105L for a 17-40L & haven't looked back No noticable difference IMO from a build, IQ, etc point of view.