85 1.8 or 100L 2.8 macro

o.o

You should have a look at the EF-S 60 macro

100l has fairly slow focus speed. Otherwise it's a wonderful lens.

I say the 85mm - unless you have the intention of doing macro work of course.

Aren't there two versions of the 100mm? One with IS and one without? That would also be a big factor in deciding, because the prices vary drastically.

There are two 100mm macro lenses available, but the OP specifically states the L model that has IS as one of his/her two choices. Other than the IS, the grade of glass used in the optics is different between the two, the number of elements/groups is different (so the optical formulation is different), the diaphragms are different, the MFD is different, and nine years of lens design advancements are between them. As much as they're called "the same lens" just with or without IS, they really aren't the same lens after all. That's not to say that the non-L model isn't a great lens; it's consistently rated as one of Canon's better performing lenses. They're just manufactured very differently.

As for choosing between the macro and 85mm f/1.8, it kinda' depends on the specific user. Only one will do macro, and only one goes down to f/1.8. So they may have different applications for each person.

I had been thinking about selling my 100L since I already have that focal covered with the 70-200 and 24-105. Then I saw the pics taken by "MAC" in this thread http://forums.dpreview​.com …rum=1029&messag​e=37339348 Now I don't whether to keep it or sell it.

I think he is shooting these on a FF