I have the Canon 40D and 28-135 kit lens. I am considering the 70-200 F4 IS and a 2X etender. I also need a good wide angle zoom to make up my collection pretty much complete for now. I have looked at the 17-55 IS, the 17-85 and the 24-70. Could someone give me some insight on these lenses please? I'm leaning toward the 17-55 for the IS and the f2.8 but hear it has some problems with dust. I do a lot of nature shots primarily which i hope to use my 70-200 for but occasionally want to do portriats as well so i think i need the f2.8 for that. All replies will be helpful. Thanks,,,,Tom

24-70 is not wide angle on a 40D - speaking with a total lack of experience of these lenses )) I would go for the 17-55 if budget is no problem.

You could consider the Tamron version if money is a significant factor

http://www.fredmiranda.com/reviews/showproduct.php?product=308&sort=7&cat=43&page=1

Keep in mind that the 40D will only autofocus with lenses that have a maximum aperture of f/5.6 or wider. That means that the 70-200/4 with 2x TC can only be used as a manual focus lens.

(Unless of course you use a non-reporting TC so the camera doesn't know the effective maximum aperture is f/8. But then AF will need a lot of light and even then it will struggle to find focus.)

Tentacle wrote:
Keep in mind that the 40D will only autofocus with lenses that have a maximum aperture of f/5.6 or wider. That means that the 70-200/4 with 2x TC can only be used as a manual focus lens.

(Unless of course you use a non-reporting TC so the camera doesn't know the effective maximum aperture is f/8. But then AF will need a lot of light and even then it will struggle to find focus.)

Or stick to the 1.4x converter (which most feel gives better quality anyway

I upgraded from a 20D + 17-85mm to a 40D + 28-135. I decided not to keep the 17-85 because it has quite a lot of barrel distortion at the wide end and chromatic aberration at the tele end, even though the zoom range is ideal. (Nothing's perfect...)

So now I have the same situation - 40D and 28-135 kit lens, along with the Canon 10-22mm EF-S, which is a great lens and which handles wide angle shots that the 28-135 can't get. The 10-22mm lens is worth considering if you take landscapes (including urban landscapes).

But... with the 10-22 and the 28-135, I'm swapping lenses much more than when I used the 20D + 17-85. 28mm is not very wide on a 1.6 crop camera -- it's effectively 45mm at the wide end. So I'm probably going to get the 17-55 f/2.8 as my walkaround lens (once I sell the 20D). .The dust issue is very hard to judge. Many owners say they have no problem in typical outdoor use; others swear that dust gets in even though they take all their photos in a hernetically sealed clean room. As a previous post suggested, it's expensive. But the f/2.8, 17- 55 range and IS are all very appealing and it gets very good reviews, even from people who complain about dust. So that's they way I intend to go, if that's any help

At the tele end, I have a Canon 70-300mm DO lens. It doesn't get a lot of use, especially since the 28-135 covers a piece of the medium tele range. So you may want to keep track of how often you use the extreme tele end of the 28-135 to see whether you really need a 70-200.

Mike

Thanks so much for the info. I have decided like you, to go with the 17-55 F2.8 and the 70-200 F4 IS since i do a lot of nature shots. Although the 28-135 is a good lens, it dosen't give me quite enough zoom for my needs. I am going to keep it though, just in case i need it.

Thanks for your reply Paul. I am going to stick with the 1.4 extender,,,,,,didn't think of the AF factor on the 2X.

Tom, great choices re: 70-200 f4L IS and the 17-55 f2.8 IS. The former tolerates the 1.4 TC
quite well and you can stack converters (say a Canon and a Kenko etc) and maintain
AF as only one reports. The IQ is very good in decent light. I've had all the wide zooms
and the 17-55 should have a red ring around it...it's that good, well except for the limiting
EFS part. That's a fine kit for the 40D if you don't shoot long often. The only thing I'd
suggest is possibly adding a fast prime for indoor available light in a favorite FL. The
85 f1.8 stands out in this regard. Happy Shooting...Will

Thanks Will for the reply. I don't shoot really long most of the time, but i would like to be at around 300 mm on the long end when i photograph birds, which i do a lot of. I had the 70-300 mm last year and the long end seemed a little soft, but it did give me the reach i was happy with. Do you think the 70-200 f4 IS will be a good choice along with the 1.4 extender, should give me around 280 mm i think?
Thanks,
Tom

Not a boid, but 70-200 f4L IS with Kenko 1.4x DG wide open. You'll love it!

Here ya go, same set-up 30D wide open, bit of a crop...

Thanks so much for the pictures, they are awesome. Can't wait to get my lens.