Official: EF-S 15-85 mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM

Bakewell wrote in post #9068968
Another review just posted...

http://www.the-digital-picture.com …6-IS-USM-Lens-Review.aspx

If anything, this one makes the decision between 15-85 and 17-55 even more difficult. Good thing I don't have the $ to spend now anyway, I'd never make up my mind!

stsva wrote in post #9069472
If anything, this one makes the decision between 15-85 and 17-55 even more difficult. Good thing I don't have the $ to spend now anyway, I'd never make up my mind!

Tell me about it. I had all but made my mind up on the 17-55, but this once again puts me in a holding pattern.

Wow, what a review!! Going toe-to-toe with the great 17-55 is a great complement. The I.Q. between the two are basically the same. The 15-85 is cheaper. I guess the choice of 17-55 or 15-85 comes down to what type of photos you usually take.

Bakewell wrote in post #9068968
Another review just posted...

http://www.the-digital-picture.com …6-IS-USM-Lens-Review.aspx

-snip-
The general purpose lens field is a crowded one, but the Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM Lens stands out from that crowd by, as I said at the beginning of this review, offering top-tier image quality over an excellent general purpose focal length range in a nicely-sized/weighted/built body with great AF and an excellent implementation of Image Stabilization at a for-what-you-get great price. This is not a cheap lens, but I think it is a great value for what you get.

This is exactly how I feel about this lens. It's worth every penny. People saying it's overpriced have obviously not had the chance to actually use it. In my opinion, it's an amazing bargain and to be honest, my 17-55 hasn't come out of the bag since I got it. That says a lot, because I'm about as big a 17-55 fanboy as possible.

I completely agree, I think its worth every penny even though I pay more here in japan, just got the lens hood for 3800 yen - $42, will play with this tonight after work.

Jethro790 wrote in post #9070654
-snip-
The general purpose lens field is a crowded one, but the Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM Lens stands out from that crowd by, as I said at the beginning of this review, offering top-tier image quality over an excellent general purpose focal length range in a nicely-sized/weighted/built body with great AF and an excellent implementation of Image Stabilization at a for-what-you-get great price. This is not a cheap lens, but I think it is a great value for what you get.

This is exactly how I feel about this lens. It's worth every penny. People saying it's overpriced have obviously not had the chance to actually use it. In my opinion, it's an amazing bargain and to be honest, my 17-55 hasn't come out of the bag since I got it. That says a lot, because I'm about as big a 17-55 fanboy as possible.

Indeed! I'm glad to see TDP agreeing with us

review says it all really

Heres a size comparison..

My 30D looks huge o_o

Right, Thanks for this thread guys. I was just in a bit of doubt about going for the 15-85 or the 17-40 (same price). I was leaning towards the L. But now, I think I can go with the 15-85. Pros seem to outweigh the cons. I think I'll have to wait till I can the 70-200mm f2.8 to add that L lens (which means a loooong wait )

KenjiS wrote in post #9071340
Heres a size comparison..

My 30D looks huge o_o

I have the battery grip on my 500d/kiss x3 /T1i which makes a huge differance

preveen wrote in post #9071409
Right, Thanks for this thread guys. I was just in a bit of doubt about going for the 15-85 or the 17-40 (same price). I was leaning towards the L. But now, I think I can go with the 15-85. Pros seem to outweigh the cons. I think I'll have to wait till I can the 70-200mm f2.8 to add that L lens (which means a loooong wait )

Get the 15-85 . The 17-40 was never meant to be a standard zoom lens on a crop camera.

I decided to get the 15-85 IS, and it arrived yesterday. I looked at the 17-55 IS, but didn't like the build quality, and don't really need f/2.8. I also looked at getting another 17-40, but I wanted a lens with IS which I have found to be very useful. I was thinking about getting another 24-105 IS and 10-22, but I'm trying to limit my lens collection this time around (I switched over to Nikon for a while, so now I'm rebuilding my Canon lens collection). My copy doesn't show the flare problem that the one I tried at the camera store did, so they must have had a defective copy. This lens seems to control lens flare pretty well from the quick test shots I done with the lens, and it's nice and sharp! There is a bit of CA though, but it's easy to fix.

I've owned allot of different lenses over the years including L series lenses, and Nikon "Gold Ring" lenses, and I am pretty impressed with the build quality of the 15-85 IS, nice and solid, and feels great paired up with my 7D. I had the 18-135 IS lens too (I bought the 7D kit) and that lens wasn't to bad either, but I wanted a USM lens.

While this lens isn't a L series lens, the picture quality is as good as some of the L lenses I've owned, The only thing that worries me a bit is the amount of Vignetting! But my 24-105 IS showed vignetting on my 5D MkII, and I usually shoot stopped down (I shoot landscapes and stuff like that) so it shouldn't be to much of a issue for my what I will be using the lens for. I'm still waiting for the lens hood to arrive.

Bokeh samples!

35L vs 15-85. Ok, framing will obviously be different due to the focal length. But this demonstrates the bokeh of the 15-85, which is very good for a zoom lens! The distance to the Christmas ornament was approximately 4 feet, suspended in the air.

35L, 35mm, f/1.4, 1/50s, ISO 200

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musicmancol1 wrote in post #9071449
I have the battery grip on my 500d/kiss x3 /T1i which makes a huge differance

Indeed it does - which is why I don't use one

gcogger wrote in post #9071786
Indeed it does - which is why I don't use one

use the cam or the grip? dont you like the grip or dont you like the cam?