CANON EF 70-200mm F4.0L USM or CANON 17-40MM F4L LENS

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snowman

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Paul Wilson
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Hi am thinking of getting my first L Lens for my 400d but not sure which one. Looking for one that would be good for genral picture taking ie people,landscape,partys etc... but I also like having a zoom. Both are about the same price.:shrug:
Don't want a lens that you would bring out and every knows you are there if you know what I mean;)

Have got a Canon 50mm f1.8 and a Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 APO DG Macro for my 400d just now.

Any help would be great:)
 
snowman said:
Hi am thinking of getting my first L Lens for my 400d but not sure which one. Looking for one that would be good for genral picture taking ie people,landscape,partys etc... but I also like having a zoom. Both are about the same price.:shrug:
Don't want a lens that you would bring out and every knows you are there if you know what I mean;)

Have got a Canon 50mm f1.8 and a Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 APO DG Macro for my 400d just now.

Any help would be great:)
Click to expand...

Then you don't want a 70-200mm, about twice as long, and white, everyone will notice. Besides, it's way too long for parties and landscape. They are totally different lens and for completely different purposes.
 
They are totally different beasts. For completely different jobs.
The 17-40 is primarily for landscapes and scenery, you wouldnt want to do just portraiture with it.
Whereas the 70-200 is useless for wide panoramas, but great for people, sports...

Also RL says the 70-200 is big white and in your face. There is no hiding it. The 17-40 is much more discrete.

If you want a general lens consider the 24-105 F4 L
 
hmm, learn something new everyday

cheers :D
 
They are lenses at each end of the scale. Depends if you need a wide angle or a telephoto. Only you can decide that.
 
Why not look at the 17-85 IS lens. OK it's not L glass, but it would fit into you requirements.

Don't forget the effective crop with the smaller chip. On a Full Frame camera this would be the equivalent of 28mm - 135. A nice range.

The 24 -105 is a very good lens but I wonder if it's going to be a bit short on the wide angle side. 24mm with the crop factor makes it 38mm. Maybe not wide enough? If it's going to be OK then fine choice. Also it'll stand you in good stead if you go to a Full Frame camera in the future

Are you happy with the Sigma. If the answer is yes then maybe go for the 17-40. You can use the Sigma for portraits. ( a bit overkill maybe but should be OK). After all when you are taking portraits people do expect to see a camera pointing at them

Decisions decisions decisions :thinking:
 
Cheers for the ideas.:thumbs:

But forgot to say that I had the standard kit lens 18-55mm so
do you think I should keep the kit lens for the task of parties,people etc.. and maybe ditch the sigma for the 70-200mm L ??
but would this be enough for Aircraft photograph ?
or do I ditch my kit lens for the 17-40mm L and keep the sigma for my aircraft pictures.
:shrug:
About £450 is my limit..
 
I have the 17-40mm L, it's ace. Such a good lens. Best piece of kit i'v ever bought.

I'm never gonna buy a lens that isn't L glass ever again! :D
 
Both these images were taken with a 17-40 lens, although at the wide angle you do need to be careful with the perspective.

NJHA_396.jpg

NJHA_487.jpg
 
Mr Snowman,

Forgive me making judgement but I have to base an opinion on what I see/read.

You have set your budget, decided you want an L class lens and then looked at the available ones within your budget....irrespective of their intended use.

I think you'd be much better served if you decided what focal length you want, set your budget and then see what you can get. Subtle difference but will make your decision much easier to live with after the event.

The 70-200/4 will take nice portraits but is a little short for aircraft...not always but most times and typically people would be using a 100-400 (or the less popular EF28-300) for this discipline.
The 17-40 will do the business at parties but is not a portrait lens and will be lost for aircraft.
There are many lenses out there without an L badge that will give you what you want...sorry, no red ring though.

I personally believe that the EF75-300/4.5 is the worst lens in Canon's line up but it will take better aircraft shots than my EF17-35L, EF28-70L, EF50L, EF85L or TS-E24L...no doubt whatsoever.

I would urge you to decide on the FL you want and then see what you can afford or save. I firmly believe that L's are the dog's dangly bits of Canon's line up but ONLY if you want that focal length.

Bob
 
Snowman

I don't think you are going to get one lens to do everything you want. You'll probably need to look at 2 at least.

Decide what subjects are you priority and work from there. The kit lens that came with your camera is not the best lens in the world, but it may be OK for the time being, so possibly go for a longer lens first then replace the kit lens.

You might not need to go to L quality lenses, the normal ones may be fine for what you want.

Best way is to see if you can try them first.
 
if it helps...

I have 17-40 f/4 L and 70-200 f/2.8 L

17-40 = superb bit of kit, very useable - and spends most of its time on the camera

70-200 is only "ok" for twitching and aircraft, more is better
it's a great lens and if you don't need the length then go for it

I'm looking for something longer for birds and planes, you just gotta get the pixels on the target "pixels per duck" is what matters!
 
Thanks for all the advice:thumbs:

I think I will stick with my Sigma for my Aircraft Pictures as I have taken some Good Photo's with it and only use it when I have time to goto the airport.

What I was really looking for was a lens that would be good for a all round lens to replace my kit lens a good wide to mid range.

What other Lenses do you suggest which are as good as a L Lens but still has good build quality and sharp pictures but is cheaper in price?

I'am so confussed:thinking:

I want it for taking pictures of my nieces and family avents.

Sorry for not being clear on that:)
 
Snowman, I have the Canon 28-135 IS lens, it stays on my camera most of the time, it would be good at parties because you can use the IS function in low light.
CLICK HERE for some of my band photos taken using the 28-135mm lens.
Its alot cheaper, so would leave a few more pennies to go towards a 100-400 for aircraft photography, i also have this lens, and some of my aircraft images can be seen HERE.
These 2 lenses will be great for most things.
Dean:)
 
I'm intending to buy a 40D next year (was going to be this year, but wallet says no), and I'm going to buy with it the 24-105L. I've done loads of research, asked lots of friends with thousands of pounds of equipment, and I've been told that if they were going to buy just one lens, that's the one they'd get.

Not to mention, if you decide later that you want to get the 70-200 and 17-40 instead, you could sell the 24-105 on eBay to help fund them :D
 
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