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DPChallenge Forums >> Hardware and Software >> Canon EF 70-200???
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Showing posts 1 - 19 of 19, (reverse)
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06/20/2004 07:05:48 PM · #1
I am thinking of bying a Canon lins EF 70-200. Should I buy it with IS or not. With out it the lins costs about $1000 but $1600 with it!
06/20/2004 07:08:23 PM · #2
If you are going to use it exclusively on a tripod or at high shutter speeds (1/400 and more) then I'd get the non-IS to save US$600, but if you are going to hand hold it in low light conditions get the IS. Remember that it's a pretty heavy lens.
06/20/2004 10:33:26 PM · #3
IMO, the IS is worth it. it's pretty amazing, shooting easily 2-3 stops slower in shutter speed than the 1/focal length ROT would indicate. I'm "average" on the steadiness scale, & the IS makes a world of difference for me.
Bottom line, the combination of IS & F/2.8 is awesome.
06/20/2004 11:06:03 PM · #4
I have the IS and I am glad that I got it. No regrets at all.
06/21/2004 12:12:03 AM · #5
I suggest getting the IS version. With it the lens becomes useful in a larger range of situations. Also a bonus is an 8-bladed aperture, which gives an extremely smooth bokeh... no crazy pentagons floating in the background :)

From personal experience, I've shot handheld @ 1/25 sec with this lens at 200mm and with the 1.4x teleconverter. Sharp as a tack! :)
06/21/2004 12:21:20 AM · #6
FWIW, according to Canon's lens spec sheet, both the IS & non-IS versions have an 8-bladed diaphragm.
06/21/2004 12:32:57 AM · #7
Actually, I thought the IS version had a circular aperture (which is different from the non-IS version). See this Canon Tech Report, specifically Fig. 3 "Comparison of circular apertures in the EF70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM and EF70-200mm f/2.8L USM". Unfortunately, it is somehwat hard to discern on the low-res web version; the printed version was probably more obvious.

Regardless, I also enthusiastically say "get the IS version!"

Message edited by author 2004-06-21 00:34:24.
06/21/2004 12:43:37 AM · #8
AHA! The ol' curved aperture blades trick! Now it makes sense why there's general agreement that the IS version has a small edge in bokeh... doubly glad I hung the bucks for the IS version.
06/21/2004 08:45:19 AM · #9
Also worth noting is that if you are shooting people in low light, IS doesn't really help a whole lot - the backgrounds might well be sharp but the people will still be a blur. IS is great for mostly static subjects though.
06/21/2004 09:38:46 AM · #10
IS or not really depends on what you are shooting. If you are shooting sports or subjects that are in motion a lot of the time the IS isn’t going to do you much good because the motion blur will ruin your pictures at longer shutter speeds despite what the IS is doing for you. If you shoot a lot of static subjects in lower light situations then the IS can make a substantial difference.

Greg
06/21/2004 09:48:38 AM · #11
All three versions of the 70-200 have 8 blade apertures. The IS version does have the circular aperture but to be honest I haven’t really seen any difference when looking at side by side comparisons. The IS is a very nice feature but aside from making the lens significantly more expensive it makes the lens heavier, slightly larger and yields slightly more CA and slightly less sharpness. The IS version does give a little better maximum magnification though (0.17x vs 0.16x).

Greg

Originally posted by audioaltima:

I suggest getting the IS version. With it the lens becomes useful in a larger range of situations. Also a bonus is an 8-bladed aperture, which gives an extremely smooth bokeh... no crazy pentagons floating in the background :)

From personal experience, I've shot handheld @ 1/25 sec with this lens at 200mm and with the 1.4x teleconverter. Sharp as a tack! :)
06/21/2004 10:10:31 AM · #12
Originally posted by Gordon:

Also worth noting is that if you are shooting people in low light, IS doesn't really help a whole lot - the backgrounds might well be sharp but the people will still be a blur. IS is great for mostly static subjects though.


Do you mean because the people are in motion?
06/21/2004 10:56:28 AM · #13
Paraphrasing user reviews on Fred Miranda:

70-200/4 owners: It isn't a f/2.8
70-200/2.8 non-IS owners: It doesn't have IS
70-200/2.8 IS owners: This lens kicks ass :-D

Unfortunately I couldn't afford the IS version, so I bought the 70-200/2.8 non-IS. For the huge majority of my use (sports shooting) it works flawlessly, and as many have mentioned, IS is most useful for static objects. Although 1 dimensional IS is quite cool. :-)
06/21/2004 11:14:47 AM · #14
Originally posted by richterrell:

Originally posted by Gordon:

Also worth noting is that if you are shooting people in low light, IS doesn't really help a whole lot - the backgrounds might well be sharp but the people will still be a blur. IS is great for mostly static subjects though.


Do you mean because the people are in motion?


Yup. To stop motion you'll need a reasonably fast shutter speed (which varies obviously with the speed of the action, your distance from the action and the relative direction of the motion)

IS is great if you are shooting in a realtively dark location, to remove the effects of camera shake at lower speeds than can normally be handheld, but if you are shooting say a basketball game in a darkish gym, or shooting highschool sports at an evening game, IS will not help you much, other than giving you crisp backgrounds with lots of blurry people.

Only a couple of things can help in those situations, higher ISO or faster (i.e., larger max aperture) lenses - though if you are at f2.8 there isn't really anywhere to go without buying a 200mm f1.8 prime or something.
06/21/2004 11:23:01 AM · #15
Originally posted by Gordon:

Originally posted by richterrell:

Originally posted by Gordon:

Also worth noting is that if you are shooting people in low light, IS doesn't really help a whole lot - the backgrounds might well be sharp but the people will still be a blur. IS is great for mostly static subjects though.


Do you mean because the people are in motion?


Yup. To stop motion you'll need a reasonably fast shutter speed (which varies obviously with the speed of the action, your distance from the action and the relative direction of the motion)

IS is great if you are shooting in a realtively dark location, to remove the effects of camera shake at lower speeds than can normally be handheld, but if you are shooting say a basketball game in a darkish gym, or shooting highschool sports at an evening game, IS will not help you much, other than giving you crisp backgrounds with lots of blurry people.

Only a couple of things can help in those situations, higher ISO or faster (i.e., larger max aperture) lenses - though if you are at f2.8 there isn't really anywhere to go without buying a 200mm f1.8 prime or something.


That all makes sense. I think I just wanted to clarify that IS could still help you out if you are shooting portraits (where your subject is deliberately trying to stay as still as possible) in low light, which I believe you just did above.
06/21/2004 11:25:38 AM · #16
Originally posted by richterrell:


That all makes sense. I think I just wanted to clarify that IS could still help you out if you are shooting portraits (where your subject is deliberately trying to stay as still as possible) in low light, which I believe you just did above.


Yup - it should help in that situation, if camera/ lens shake is causing most of the blur.
06/21/2004 01:29:14 PM · #17
Originally posted by dadas115:

All three versions of the 70-200 have 8 blade apertures. The IS version does have the circular aperture but to be honest I haven’t really seen any difference when looking at side by side comparisons. The IS is a very nice feature but aside from making the lens significantly more expensive it makes the lens heavier, slightly larger and yields slightly more CA and slightly less sharpness. The IS version does give a little better maximum magnification though (0.17x vs 0.16x).

Greg

Originally posted by audioaltima:

I suggest getting the IS version. With it the lens becomes useful in a larger range of situations. Also a bonus is an 8-bladed aperture, which gives an extremely smooth bokeh... no crazy pentagons floating in the background :)

From personal experience, I've shot handheld @ 1/25 sec with this lens at 200mm and with the 1.4x teleconverter. Sharp as a tack! :)


D'oh! My apologies... :)
06/21/2004 05:16:50 PM · #18
Just hope that this doesn't happen if you get the IS version...

//www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=10296
06/21/2004 06:14:49 PM · #19
Originally posted by Gordon:

Just hope that this doesn't happen if you get the IS version...

//www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=10296


I would cry for days :(
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