Canon EF 70-200 f/2.8L IS Mark II

Rich S wrote in post #11566698
I took this today with a Kenko 2x, with the 70-200mm II . The Canon 2x would be better. I think the most important part is a good lens......Rich

That shot is ridiculously good!

Does any one have samples of shooting with this lens in low light conditions (especially without a flash) such as indoor high school gymnasiums. I got the f4/L IS version, took 5 shots of my kid's soccer game and returned the lens next morning. I'd rather carry one f/2.8 zoom lens than carry several primes with me. Any suggestions/sample pics would be highly appreciated.

Thanks,

Well, with the examples and advice of people like Rich and themadman, I was persuaded to pick up a Kenko 2X, instead of waiting around for the EF III's price to drop (who knows when THAT is? ). I am sure the EF III's performance is much better, but for me, it's not $400+ better (bought the Kenko for $160-something shipped).

With the money I saved, I can use it for more useful/necessary things like a 580EXII or an 85mm MF lens or some other lighting equipment (still deciding between hot lights or strobes..., but that's another thread in itself).

Very poorly lit middle-school gym:

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Thanks Jazzi. I have a Canon 7D too and incidentally have been looking into getting most of the lenses in your signature.

datawiz2012 wrote in post #11569051
Does any one have samples of shooting with this lens in low light conditions (especially without a flash) such as indoor high school gymnasiums. I got the f4/L IS version, took 5 shots of my kid's soccer game and returned the lens next morning. I'd rather carry one f/2.8 zoom lens than carry several primes with me. Any suggestions/sample pics would be highly appreciated.

Thanks,

All these were taken in very low light at ISO 3200 on 5D II (no flash) ... not sure they will help with exactly what you are after, but (especially if you don't mind pushing the 7D's ISO's) I am sure you will struggle to find a better lens for what you are after ...
I also have the Kenko DGX Pro 300 1.4x tele, and coupled with this lens I hardly notice any slow down of AF in reasonable light.

.Koby. wrote in post #11487467

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Love this one! I tried shooting video years ago when I used to play a lot of painball and the issue I had was giving the position away all the time to the other side (when tracking them with video camera)...

datawiz2012 wrote in post #11569465
Thanks Jazzi. I have a Canon 7D too and incidentally have been looking into getting most of the lenses in your signature.

You have to move quickly, the list is always in transition!

For now I'm considering selling the EF-S 10-22 for the EF 17-40. Please somebody, talk me out of it.

Jazzi wrote in post #11572522
For now I'm considering selling the EF-S 10-22 for the EF 17-40. Please somebody, talk me out of it.

That's just a silly move if you don't have an FF or plan to go FF like tomorrow.

17-40 on crop = not as bueno as 17-40 on FF

jwcdds wrote in post #11575080
That's just a silly move if you don't have an FF or plan to go FF like tomorrow.

17-40 on crop = not as bueno as 17-40 on FF

Oh yeah, forgot the most important part. Bought a 5dmii. Expecting delivery on Friday. That apparently changes everything.

Just bought this lens about a week ago. I had the f/4 but returned after a week. I read thousands of threads and the only thing that was stopping me was the weight. I gotta tell yeah it's not bad at all. I actually like the weight of it. It's funny, I overnighted the f/4 back to amazon and then found out it could take 3-5 days for it to credit my card. Since I couldn't wait, I ordered the mark II from b&h using
billmelater. Since I was a first time customer, I got an additional 25 bucks off and special financing. Great deal!! Oh I had the lens overnighted as well

Now, I have to admit, I am a beginner and I probably don't deserve this lens. Reading posts from several months ago, it seemed a lot of people were returning the lens for another one. So here goes my newbie question. How does one determine if they have a problem with their lens? Is there anything one can look besides the obvious in the look of their pics? (yeah If you already can't tell I am an anal sob) lol

Anyway, thanks to all of you that have turned me into a full blown photo junkie, especially with this lens. I hope one day I can take half as good as pics as you guys.

Happy New Years!!!

Christian

Okay, talk me out of this. I'm a relative newb with a newly acquired love to shoot because of the 50mm 1.8 I picked up for Christmas. About 15 months ago, I purchased the T1i body and the 18-55mm and 55-250mm kit lenses that came with it. I am becoming a good shot with all the lenses and am getting really decent IQ.

Two areas though that have been challenging to shoot are my son's indoor track meets and my daugthers horse shows that are held in indoor arenas. The 55-250mm has done okay, but nothing to write home about in IQ. I also enjoy shooting (and photographing) wildlife while hunting.

So I think the 70-200mm 2.8L IS II would be just the ticket for those indoor needs and a big step up for wildlife shots as well.

It's not a huge reach financially for me, but just the thought of laying down $2K+ on a lens is a hard one to wrap my head around so I'm trying to talk myself out of this. The worst thing that could happen is for me to be disappointed in not getting a large enough improvement in IQ, I get disillusioned, sell the camera at 75-85% of original price, and move on with my life. Right?

I finally, this past weekend, had an opportunity to play around with the 70-200mm II I recently ordered from Adorama.

Was in somewhat of a rush, but I'm definitely enjoying the f/2.8 aperture and IS.

[Sorry for the number of pictures posted here; I guess I'm just a bit excited.]

Jazzi wrote in post #11575464
Oh yeah, forgot the most important part. Bought a 5dmii. Expecting delivery on Friday. That apparently changes everything.

In that case, I'd drop the 10-22 like a bad habit.

This is a wonderful thread. I'm a recent and very proud owner of a 70-200mm f/2.8 Mk II
What an amazing lens. Having checked loads of test charts for other lenses, when I saw the results for this one, I just knew I had to have it, nothing else would be good enough. I'm so glad I made that decision.