EF 28-70mm f/3.5-4.5 I and II

I'm looking into purchasing one of the old EF 28-70mm f/3.5-4.5 lenses. I notice that Canon changed the lens in June 1988. The mark1 version was sold starting in Nov 1987. These are available quite cheap and get good reviews especially on the cropped bodies.

I find both models for sale on the used market and I was wondering if anyone knew what was changed from the mark 1 to the mark II. The Canon Camera Museum shows that the mark II was slightly lighter, slightly longer and sold a bit cheaper. They look very similar to each other.

Is the II version much better or is the original good too?

Did you try a search at Photodo ?

Thank you for the suggestion.

Unfortunately they don't list these lenses. The only 28-70mm they list is the f/2.8L.

I was wondering if i could put a quick question out there,
on lens specifications, why are there always 2 f-stop numbers

It's a variable aperture zoom lens. At the wide end, its maximum aperture is f/3.5. On the telephoto end it's f/4.5.

Have you looked it up at http://www.canon.com/c​amera-museum?

theblindspring wrote in post #4583434
I was wondering if i could put a quick question out there,
on lens specifications, why are there always 2 f-stop numbers

Many consumer zoom lenses do not offer a constant maximum aperture. As the focal length increases, the aperture does not change commensurately.

thank you so much

By the way, I can't comment on the sharpness, but Canon's documentation says it has a five-bladed aperture. The EF 28-105 f/3.5-f/4.5 USM II has seven. It will produce nicer bokeh and give silent USM operation with full-time manual focus. The lens you mentioned is driven by an AF-D motor that will be pretty noisy. Unless it's an insanely cheap price, I'd look for a second hand EF 28-105 f/3.5-f/4.5 USM II.

bluebomberx wrote in post #4583467
By the way, I can't comment on the sharpness, but Canon's documentation says it has a five-bladed aperture. The EF 28-105 f/3.5-f/4.5 USM II has seven. It will produce nicer bokeh and give silent USM operation with full-time manual focus. The lens you mentioned is driven by an AF-D motor that will be pretty noisy. Unless it's an insanely cheap price, I'd look for a second hand EF 28-105 f/3.5-f/4.5 USM II.

Is there a direct correlation between the number of aperture blades and the quality of the bokeh?

runninmann wrote in post #4583476
Is there a direct correlation between the number of aperture blades and the quality of the bokeh?

Yes and no. More blades help but it's not the only factor.

bluebomberx wrote in post #4583467
By the way, I can't comment on the sharpness, but Canon's documentation says it has a five-bladed aperture. The EF 28-105 f/3.5-f/4.5 USM II has seven. It will produce nicer bokeh and give silent USM operation with full-time manual focus. The lens you mentioned is driven by an AF-D motor that will be pretty noisy. Unless it's an insanely cheap price, I'd look for a second hand EF 28-105 f/3.5-f/4.5 USM II.

Usually they sell for less than $100.00. B&H has the mark II in stock for $74 and about $20 for the hood. There is a mark I for sale locally. With AFD focusing it is going to be noisy, I know that. If the aperture is fully open, the number of blades won't affect the bokeh. There are other factors that effect bokeh anyway such as the use of aspherics.

The Canon Museum only shows a small change between them (size, weight) but doesn't describe the reason for the update. Photozone gives the mark II a very good review.

I was hoping that maybe someone here has had these and could shed some light on if the mark I is also as good. Did Canon only change the cosmetics a little, or was is more. Since they look almost identical, I suspect it is a bigger change.

I already have a 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 but this one looks to be quite a bit smaller and lighter. The 28-70 is only slightly faster in aperture since the 28-135 is f/4.5 from 48-60mm and f/5 from 61-80mm so that isn't very important. The 28-70 might be quite a bit sharper from the MTF ratings but in practice that might be lost due to camera shake since it is not IS. Mostly it is light and small and reputed to be very good.

Since it is less than $100 to risk, perhaps I should just buy it but I hate to do this twice.

macroimage wrote in post #4583526
Did Canon only change the cosmetics a little, or was is more.

Honestly, they're both cheap kit lenses. They're not worth overanalyzing. Buy on price.

Thanks,

I'll just buy it then. If I don't like it, I can always sell it.

bluebomberx wrote in post #4583467
By the way, I can't comment on the sharpness, but Canon's documentation says it has a five-bladed aperture. The EF 28-105 f/3.5-f/4.5 USM II has seven. It will produce nicer bokeh and give silent USM operation with full-time manual focus. The lens you mentioned is driven by an AF-D motor that will be pretty noisy. Unless it's an insanely cheap price, I'd look for a second hand EF 28-105 f/3.5-f/4.5 USM II.

You can get the first version for under $100 normally. It's a great lens. I never had any issues with the bokeh from either of mine. You would definately prefer this lens over the 28-105 f4.5-5.6 you say you have. It will be night and day.

The Canon 28-70mm f3.5-4.5 has a little bit of a "cult" status in that it is supposedly the sharpest Canon EF consumer zoom lens ever produced.

It is a little noisy and the front element rotates and retracts inwards, but it is a very sharp lens for the money.

Here are some favourable reviews:

https://www.opticallim​its.com …45-ii-test-report--review

http://www.phototestce​nter.com/html/canon_28​-70.html

http://www.pbase.com/e​d1994/lenstest