Archive for: EF 24-70 f/2.8L II

EF 24-70 f/2.8L IS Exists as a Working Prototype [CR2]

It’s not coming soon
There are plans to release an EF 24-70 f/2.8L IS sometime in the next 18 months. I have confirmed from two sources that the end of 2013 or early 2014 is the earliest we’d see a production model announced.

There are no plans for a non-IS 24-70 f/4L.

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM Zoom Lens $2049 (Save $250)

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Review – EF 24-70 f/2.8L II

Was it worth the wait and cost?
Justin has completed his review of the new Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II and threw some opinion on the matter as well. We both really like the lens, we just have a hard time with the initial price of the lens. We know a lot of you do too. If you want a wait a while for this lens to drop in price or appear on rebate programs, you won’t be disappointed. If you want a lens that’s almost as good, albiet heavier and bulkier, grab yourself a used EF 24-70 f/2.8L.

Availability of the EF 24-70 f/2.8L II is getting better as well, most dealers do have it in stock.

Read the entire review

Buy the Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II Lens
B&H Photo Err! No match for 24-70 f/2.8L II. | Amazon Err! No match for 24-70 f/2.8L II. | Adorama Err! No match for adorama. | Norman Camera $2299

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Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L IS [CR1]

Thinks that make you go…..
I have received two separate communications in regards to an EF 24-70 f/2.8L IS  being in the wild in prototype form. We knew this prototype has existed for quite some time, however we figured the concept was dead with the release of the EF 24-70 f/2.8L II. Canon would bring this lens to market alongside the non-IS version. Canon already does this with the 70-200 f/2.8s & 70-200 f/4s, so it’s possible they bring it to the standard zooms as well.

It’s a bit early to talk about pricing strategy, but the new EF 24-70 f/2.8L II will drop in price over the next 12 months, as you can see by the recent big drops to the EOS 5D Mark III.

This is from a new source, take this with a grain of salt. I’m intrigued as I do know the IS version exists.

The timelines for future lenses seem to all be going into 2013, more on that later.

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EF 24-70 f/2.8L II in Stock at Norman Camera

Quantities are limited
Norman Camera has received limited stock of the EF 24-70 f/2.8L II.

EF 24-70 f/2.8L II at Norman Camera $2299 

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Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II Now in Stock at B&H

Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II
B&H Photo now has stock of the new Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II for $2299. Quantities are limited so act fast. 

Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II at B&H $2299

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Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II Arrived

Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II
I finally got my hands on the Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II. I’ll be using the lens for the weekend and then it’ll be thrown into the rental fleet.

My first impression of the lens is very positive. I love the feel, weight and size of the lens. I actually have an event this weekend that I’ll be shooting, so I can put the lens through the paces in a real world situation. I’ll have it paired with the EOS-1D X, apparently they were born to be together.

Born to be together | Canon EOS-1D X & EF 24-70 f/2.8L II

I still get a lot of people asking why the lens has no IS. I’m of the belief a medium range lens such as this doesn’t require it. This lens is going to be most used in event photography, or portrait and that kind of thing. If you’re looking for a walkaround tourist lens, then the EF 24-105 f/4L IS exists for that purpose. When you see the ISO performance of the EOS-1D X, that’s another reason not to care much about IS. That’s just my opinion!

Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II at: B&H Photo | Adorama | Amazon

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The Raw Data: The EF 24-70 f/2.8L II is the Sharpest Zoom Canon Has Ever Made

From LensRentals.com
Roger over at LensRentals.com ran the new EF 24-70 f/2.8L II through an Imatest session and found it to be a stellar performer as far as resolution goes. 

From Roger
“This is short, sweet, and simple. The resolution absolutely, positively kicks butt and takes names. It is way better than the lens it replaces. It’s better at 70mm than the best Canon zoom I know of, the 70-200 f/2.8 IS II. It’s even better at 24mm than the sharpest 24mm prime we have, the Canon 24 TS-E. In the center, in the corners, it doesn’t care. We only had 5 copies to test, but they were all very similar with little copy-to-copy variation.

Resolution is not everything, of course. But it’s certainly an important thing. Unless the real lens reviewers find some dramatic problems with this lens, I’d have to lean towards worth-the-money on this one. I can’t believe I’m saying that a $2,300 standard zoom is worth the money. But then again, I can’t believe I’m seeing a zoom lens out resolve a $2,000 world-class prime, either.”

As you can see, the new EF 24-70 f/2.8L II is an absolute resolution monster. It really looks like it’s the best zoom Canon has ever made optically. There is a small note that distortion at 24mm is slightly worse than version 1, but that’s what software is for. :)

Read the full review here

Order the Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II at: B&H Photo | Adorama | Amazon

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EF 24-70 f/2.8L II To Start Shipping Tomorrow in the USA & Canada

From B&H Photo & Adorama
Both B&H Photo & Adorama have told us that they expect to begin shipping the new EF 24-70 f/2.8L II on Tuesday, September 11, 2012. Initial stock will be pretty good, however I am not expecting all preorders to be filled.

Preorder the Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II at: B&H Photo | Adorama | Amazon

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The First Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II Review

From ThatNikonGuy
ThatNikonGuy has completed what appears to be the first review of the new Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II lens. It’s a pretty good review as he puts them both through the paces. Lots of sharpness, bokeh and autofocus tests were completed at various focal lengths in the review.

He did notice the lenses differ in focal length at 70mm, this is pretty normal. For example, the EF 70-200 f/4L IS is not as wide at 70mm as the 70-200 f/2.8L IS II, it’s more like 85mm in examples I have seen.

His biggest point at the end of the review is how good do you want your 24-70 to be? For an extra $1000 (compared to buying a used 24-70 version 1), is it worth getting the version 2 when version 1 is so great? I can’t help with that yet, as I have not seen one land in Canada yet. It is good to know that when you have to make this decision, there really is no wrong choice.

Version 2 looks to be a little bit better at everything, autofocus, bokeh, sharpness, a more pleasing warmer image, lighter weight. The big downside is you’ll have to go buy 82mm filters, hopefully you have some already.

The Review

Preorder the Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II at: B&H Photo | Adorama | Amazon

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Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II Has Made its Way To Retailers

From Australia
I have received two reports of people buying the new Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II from retailers in Australia. The lenses are expected to hit Europe and North America by September 13, 2012.

Initial stock is probably already allocated to preorders, but I’m told to expect quantities to be quite good into October.

The first unboxed Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II | Click for Larger | Credit to Barry

Preorder the Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II at: B&H Photo | Adorama | Amazon

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