Personal experience w/Canon 24-70 2.8

its an awesome lens. heavy but awesome! not that sharp at 2.8 but amazing at 4. exellent bookeh as well.
i sold mine because it was too heavy for me

The weight is the killer for me too, as much as I love this lens its one I may eventually sell off but at 2.8 mine is pretty sharp.

It's an alright lens. Meh... I only use it at it f4.0-f11. Fantastic for studio work! - picked it up only for that application. If it wasnt for that, I'd go for the 35L instead or the 50L. I really want that lens.

Oh and my copy is tremendous at f2.8. But primes are way sharper at that aperture - as expected.

I was really thoroughly unimpressed with mine and sold it after 6 months. That being said I might eventually try another copy since it seems such a good lens for weddings. I'll probably buy a Tamron 28-75 first though ...

Andrew_WOT wrote in post #11842217
They all manufactured in Japan, what do you mean by Malaysian built model?
The first letter in the serial number is the factory
U = Utsunomiya, Japan
F = Fukushima, Japan
O = Oita, Japan

Its a joke. If you call a less than reputable dealer they will often tell you that the cheap price that you see advertised is for a Malaysian or Taiwanese version and that you really want the Japanese built one that costs more money. If you balk then they tell you the cheap one is on back order and you never get it at that price, either that or you have to buy filters, extended warranty etc.

I use mine a lot, it is a fine lens.

My favourite lens.

I had one and really liked it. yes, it was heavy....very heavy. I sold it last week and bought a 50mm 1.2 L....after having to send that in for calibration, it seems to be better. I just have to zoom with my feet. I miss it from time to time.

studiodalabama wrote in post #11849392
Its a joke. If you call a less than reputable dealer they will often tell you that the cheap price that you see advertised is for a Malaysian or Taiwanese version and that you really want the Japanese built one that costs more money. If you balk then they tell you the cheap one is on back order and you never get it at that price, either that or you have to buy filters, extended warranty etc.

All Genuine 24-70s are made in Japan, no questions they can fake anything in Hong Kong these days, so beware and buy from reputable authorized dealer only.
Of course the guy behind the counter always has that very special one just for you in the back, anything for your money.

just got mine back from Canon serv., it is better now but not as sharp at 2.8 as it is at 5.6. they told me at canon that these lenses are never as sharp wide open as they are at 5.6+.

tolyD wrote in post #11849491
just got mine back from Canon serv., it is better now but not as sharp at 2.8 as it is at 5.6. they told me at canon that these lenses are never as sharp wide open as they are at 5.6+.

WTH thats with ANY lens..of course its going to be MUCH sharper when its stopped down 2 stops vs wide open

I love my copy. I've used it on a 10D, 40D, 1D2 and 1D3 (no MA). Then again, I take pictures with it. I have not used it to shoot a focus chart or a row of batteries... Is it tack sharp at 100%, probably not! Is it very sharp at practical sizes on the monitor and perfect in print? Yes! As I type this, I am looking at a 24X36 print on my wall that I took with my 24-70 and old 1D2. The picture is very sharp and the colors and contrast are excellent. My 85 1.8 is probably sharper if I were to get critical and start peeping, but critical sharpness is not what this well built constant-aperture colorful contrasty fast zoom is all about. It is what it is. A top-of-the-line convenient range general purpose zoom. It will not make you a better photographer and the pictures it produces are not made magically better due to some photo-chemical reaction that generates awesomeness as light passes through the red ring... Whew!

05Xrunner wrote in post #11849658
WTH thats with ANY lens..of course its going to be MUCH sharper when its stopped down 2 stops vs wide open

yes it is and even with L lens. some ppl might not understand this and expect L to be tack sharp at wide open and thats not the fact.

tolyD wrote in post #11849960
yes it is and even with L lens. some ppl might not understand this and expect L to be tack sharp at wide open and thats not the fact.

It is in print.

I'd put real money on people not being able to tell the difference stop-to-stop at 100% if the crops were on the focal plane, too.