Sharpest lenses?

Sorry if I missed this in my search, but what are the sharpest lenses in your opinions?

Obviously, the 50mm 1.8 especially for the money; but what else?

my vote goes for the 300mm f/2.8 L IS, 35mm f/1.4 L, 85mm f/1.2 L, 180mm f/3.5 Macro L, hence why i spent the time purchasing them lol, i have heard good reviews for the 135mm f/2 L.

My sharpest lens is the 300 F/2.8L IS with the 180L macro shooting up the ranks very fast, maybe even sharper, but still getting used to it. I hear the 200 F/1.8L is out of this world sharp

i would agree with you calicokat, im unsure which is sharper the 300 or the 180, i think wide open they are about the same, but stopped down i think the 300 trumps it. Have you noticed a good increase of resolution with the 300 when you stop it down to 3.2? i was using it the other day and i was quite suprised how just 1/3 stop down would increase resolution.

I have a Sigma 50mm f/2.8 Macro that is wicked sharp. It's at least as sharp as my 300mm f/4L IS and can give my 135mm f/2L a run for its money. They're all so sharp I wouldn't be able to tell the difference between them unless I examine very closely... The Sigma is probably the sharpest <$250 lens out there. If you want L-class sharpness for consumer-grade money, this is the lens to have.

baybud wrote in post #2052305
i would agree with you calicokat, im unsure which is sharper the 300 or the 180, i think wide open they are about the same, but stopped down i think the 300 trumps it. Have you noticed a good increase of resolution with the 300 when you stop it down to 3.2? i was using it the other day and i was quite suprised how just 1/3 stop down would increase resolution.

I was using it at F/5.6 the other day and it was wow. I will try the F/3.2 thing though

From what I've seen on this forum I would say the 17-55 looks fantastic.

See the image archive thread.

curiousgeorge wrote in post #2052342
From what I've seen on this forum I would say the 17-55 looks fantastic.

See the image archive thread.

I agree, the 17-55 is very sharp

lol, so basically anytihng with a red line going around the end of it?

AGENT 99 wrote in post #2052494
lol, so basically anytihng with a red line going around the end of it?

Thats one way to put it, but most lenses are very sharp around F/8

Amongst the few lenses I've tried, the 300mm f/4L IS is currently in the lead. The 135mm f/2L is extremely impressive too though...it stays sharp even at wide open. I think it is the combination of its rendition of bokeh (plus super shallow DOF), sharpness and speed at f/2 that make it a low-light beastie. Assuming the focal length is right for you, I'd highly recommend it.

AGENT 99 wrote in post #2052494
lol, so basically anytihng with a red line going around the end of it?

Not if you stuck a rubber band around a kit lens. But yes, as calicokat has mentioned, most lenses sharpen up nicely when stopped down to f/5.6 or f/8. With wide angle lenses that start off a little soft wide open, I wouldn't be overly concerned since I would probably be stopping the lens down anyway for my purposes (eg. landscapes/ interiors).

With a tele lens, I feel that the performance has to be excellent straight from wide open. After all, the use of such long lenses for wildlife and sports means also the need for faster shutter speeds.

avoid the red stripe, low budget sigmas (which are generally sold by wolf/ritz as part of the quantaray - run away and don't look back)

the 85mm 1.8 is very sharp and i'll also give a strong agreement for the 135L

calicokat wrote in post #2052326
I was using it at F/5.6 the other day and it was wow. I will try the F/3.2 thing though

lol yes the 5.6 wow is quite a turn on lol :O

AGENT 99 wrote in post #2052494
lol, so basically anytihng with a red line going around the end of it?

lol maybe not the 14L "although in truth i have never used it, it may be better than it's reviews lol"