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Archive 2015 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank

  
 
J.A.D.
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


I am considering (still) a replacement for my 24-105 mm f/4 L IS (primarily its 24 mm range) and I am looking at the 24 mm focal length as an overall guiding factor. I generally shoot landscapes and general purpose stuff, and I am not a pro. I'm looking at alternatives to the 24-105, because I have never been particularly happy with that lens at 24 mm.

How would you rank the following lenses at 24 mm compared with the 24-105, both considering each lens' largest aperture as well as stopped down to f/8 or so? I am not currently interested in the 24 mm TS-E or 24mm f/1.4 L II.

24-70 mm f/4 L IS
16-35 mm f/4 L IS
24 mm f/2.8 IS
24-70 mm f/2.8 L II

Would the 24 mm F/2.8 IS prime have the best image quality overall, or does the 24-70 mm f/2.8 L II edge it out?

How does the 16-35 f/4 stack up against the 24-70 f/4 at 24 mm?

For the zooms, what is the weakest focal length of each lens?

Thanks in advance for any input.



May 01, 2015 at 09:27 PM
Gunzorro
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


I love my 24-105L, so I'm sorry to hear you don't like yours.

I have the 24 IS as well and can heartily recommend it. It probably has the best image quality compared to any of the zooms, at least by a small margin. I haven't compared it to all those selections you listed, but I did find it compared favorably to the much lauded 24 TSE II, which is one of my favorite lenses.

The 24 IS is also the cheapest investment to try to reach your goal. If it doesn't work, you probably need a higher resolution body, multi-shot composite image, or medium format.



May 01, 2015 at 09:35 PM
gdanmitchell
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


You can have endless hours of entertainment comparing lenses here: http://www.slrgear.com/reviews/index.php



May 01, 2015 at 10:27 PM
Schlotkins
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


The 24-70 f4L is sharper than the 16-35 f4L at 24mm and 35mm f8. At least with my copies.


May 01, 2015 at 11:04 PM
Schlotkins
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


Here's the crops at 24. The 24-70 f4L is the middle, 16-35 f4L is left (sony is right):

Center at 24mm:

http://chrisgs.smugmug.com/Other/lens-pictures/i-qprw7fg/0/O/24mm%20center.jpg



Middle at 24mm

http://chrisgs.smugmug.com/Other/lens-pictures/i-wQkvxpG/0/O/24%20middle.jpg


edge at 24mm

http://chrisgs.smugmug.com/Other/lens-pictures/i-7rzShPP/0/O/24mm%20corner.jpg



May 01, 2015 at 11:06 PM
diverhank
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


I replaced my 24-105mm with a 24-70 mm f/2.8 L II. The latter is sharper overall. At 24mm FL, there's very little distortion compared to the 24-105mm. I did not miss the IS at all.


May 02, 2015 at 12:23 PM
dgdg
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


Compare the coma too, if it matters to you.


May 02, 2015 at 12:48 PM
mmurph
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


A few thoughts.

Roger at Lens Rentals had this to say about the 24-70 2.8 II in his review of that lens:

"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.


Canon 24-70 2.8 II Review

The 24-70 2.8 version I & II is the one lens that I used to replace almost all of my primes for the last 15 years. As long as you don't mind lugging the weight, or need a faster aperture than 2.8. As a pro, I always had the 24-70 and 70-200 in my kit.


Roger also has a more recent comparison of the new Sigma 24 1.4 Art to the Canon and Nikon 24 mm 1.4s. The review is interesting, but so is this partial summary:


"In many cases, though, the old rule that the best 24mm f/1.4 is a 35mm f/1.4 and a few steps backwards is often true."


Sigma 24 1.4 Art Review


ETA: Here is Roger's review of the Canon 24 IS and 28 IS lenses when they came out, and compared to the previous 24 and 28. Some MTF numbers at least to compare, but mostly wide open:

http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2012/06/the-other-canon-primes-why-did-they-do-that



May 02, 2015 at 01:59 PM
J.A.D.
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


Thanks for the info so far.

I imagine that many of you are rolling your eyes at my query, but with all the choices and overlap of focal ranges, it's difficult to assess options--particularly at the 24mm range, which I find I use the most for landscapes.

Would an appropriate ranking for the image quality of the lenses in question (at 24mm) be the following?

24-70 mm f/2.8L II
24 mm f/2.8 IS
24-70 mm f/4L IS
16-35 mm f/4L IS
24-105 mm f/4L IS ?

It seems that the opinions on the 24-70 f/.8L II are consistent with everything that I have read about it. My preference would be to get the 24-70 f/2.8L II, but its weight and lack of IS are deterrents. Nevertheless, it just seems to be so darned good.

As for the 24 IS prime, from what I have read, opinions/reviews conflict with one another, and it doesn't seem to be a particularly popular lens. This lens is the most appealing from a weight standpoint (and I find that my shaky hands prefer the IS), but the lackluster reviews are strange. Most of the reviews knock it for its price (upon release, which did seem absurdly high). I haven't found many current reviews that review it at its more reasonable price point to see if the issue people had was mostly one of value. It does seem that the vignetting is significant with the lens as well.

I would have expected the 16-35 f/4L to have bested the 24-70 f/4L at 24mm simply because it is in the middle of the focal range for the lens. It seems to have garnered many admirers while the 24-70 f/4L hasn't seemed to have many champions (perhaps due to the reduced sharpness at 50mm).

I have also read that many people think the 24-105 is just as good as the 24-70 f4L except at 24mm (while better than the 24-70 at 50mm). Yet, the 24-105 seems to be a popular punching bag. I find the lens to be okay; I am just not thrilled with its performance at 24mm and 90-105mm.



May 02, 2015 at 03:14 PM
gdanmitchell
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


This isn't exactly the answer to the OP's question, but It I think it might be relevant enough. Something I wrote a while ago: CANON 24-70MM F/2.8 L II VS. 24-70MM F/4L IS VS. 24-105MM F/4 L IS (AND MORE?)


May 02, 2015 at 04:15 PM
johnctharp
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


When you say 'all purpose', you generally imply use at larger apertures; when you say 'landscapes', you generally imply use at narrower apertures.

All of the lenses you list perform differently in relation to each other as their apertures are closed down, and likely have further differences when considering close focus (all purpose) and infinity focus (landscapes).

In other words, what may be good for one use may not be as good for the other. For example, of the four lenses in your list, the 24-70/4L performs the best across the field at 24mm and f/11 in terms of sharpness, while the 16-35/4L performs much better in terms of distortion (almost none) and CA, as measured by DxOMark.

And with that said, since no one else has mentioned it: whether shooting wide-open or stopped down, you'll be hard pressed to identify differences between any of the listed lenses at 24mm once corrections have been applied. The bigger differences will be in actual use of each lens in terms of focal length range, max aperture, and availability of IS- and weight.



May 03, 2015 at 01:41 AM
UCSB
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


I own the 24-70 II, 16-35 4 IS, 24 2.8 IS and the 24-105. I don't shoot by focal length, but pick the lens for the task. So I don't spend a lot of time wondering if my 24-70 II is sharper than the 16-35 4 IS at 24. The 24-70 II and 16-35 4 IS are very sharp and the most flexible lenses to use depending on what you are trying to do. The 24 2.8 IS more of a specialty lens for when you want to travel light or use on smaller Canon bodies. It isn't sharper in my use than the two zooms and may be less sharp. I would pick the zoom that you feel has the focal range that you would use the most. When in doubt get the 24-70 II.


May 04, 2015 at 03:46 PM
jcolwell
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


I agree with Bill (UCSB). I own the same 24mm-ish lenses (plus the TS-E II), and I chose according to the task, too. The only extra thing that I'll mention is that my 24/2.8 IS is at least as sharp as the three zooms that cover the same focal length. I posted comparisons of my 24/3.5L II and 24/2.8 IS in a Gunzorro (Jim) thread, last year,

24mm EF 24/2.8 IS vs TS-E 24/3.5L II
[OP] https://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/1270343/
[my shots] https://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/1270343/1#12104421



May 04, 2015 at 04:12 PM
Gunzorro
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Canon 24 mm focal length rank


mmurph wrote:
A few thoughts.

Roger at Lens Rentals had this to say about the 24-70 2.8 II in his review of that lens:

"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


Canon 24-70 2.8 II Review

The 24-70 2.8 version I & II is the one lens that I used to replace almost all of my primes for the last 15 years. As long as you don't mind lugging the weight, or need a faster aperture than 2.8. As a pro, I always had the 24-70 and 70-200 in my kit.

Roger also has a more recent comparison of the new Sigma 24 1.4 Art to the Canon and Nikon 24 mm 1.4s. The review is interesting, but so is this partial summary:


"In many cases, though, the old rule that the best 24mm f/1.4 is a 35mm f/1.4 and a few steps backwards is often true."


Sigma 24 1.4 Art Review

ETA: Here is Roger's review of the Canon 24 IS and 28 IS lenses when they came out, and compared to the previous 24 and 28. Some MTF numbers at least to compare, but mostly wide open:

http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2012/06/the-other-canon-primes-why-did-they-do-that
...Show more

I know the subject of the OP is the performance of 24mm focal length, but from my experience, I'll take exception regarding some remarks about the original 24-70/2.8L vs. the v. II.

1) the original has slightly better IQ at 70mm
2) the original has better (smoother) bokeh at 70mm
3) the original has closer focusing, especially valued at 70mm

These are minor points, but worth stating. I think Roger may have even mentioned some of these points IIRC, but it may have been different reviews.

There is no question that the new version is optically a better lens, and more robustly engineered. As always, it is a matter of price vs. improvements. For now, I've kept my original, which I had Canon adjust to a very sharp sample. But since getting the 24-105L IS a few years ago, I seldom use the 24-70!


May 05, 2015 at 01:19 AM





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