Recently scored an excellent price on a used but like new 24-70 2.8 Z but sadly i'm not at all impressed with the sharpness. As compared to my 70-200 2.8 v1 it's disappointing. At first glance on the camera display all looks good but when editing on laptop the joy fades!
So it's going to be traded and my question is which option to take-
1-New 24-70 2.8 v1, now on sale for $2k
2-New v2 at approx $2.8k (phew, that is hard to even type!)
3-Used from either B&H or MPB at approx $1600
I've bought used and refurb before and done well but this go round has shaken my confidence a bit. I overpaid for the 70-200 as i bought it new in the last trade in deal vs used for probably about $400 less but OMG is that thing pin sharp.
I'm a hobbyist. Will also be letting my 24-120 and possibly 85 1.8 go as well to help fund this. I do like the idea of internal zoom for the sake of dust/water protection. Don't care about lightness on this lens as the v1 isn't enough to bother me.
The chances of getting an out-of-whack dud lens seem to be greater with used lenses, presumably because the used item has potentially been banged around by the PO. However: you can still get a brand-new lens that's a bit off of perfect. I returned my first new copies of the Z24-70/2.8S and Z14-24/2.8S due to slight but visible decentering an/or tilt. My copy (the second one that I kept) of the Z24-70/2.8S is excellent so I'm not motivated to spend $$$$ on the newer one. Bottom line: ANY lens you buy can be bad; The only protection available to you is to test early and thoroughly before accepting the lens into your arsenal.
