Ok anyone that says the original version of this lens was good needs to get glasses, that’s me being polite.

Finally Canon released -EF-24-70mm-f2.8L-II as a replacement and this version has been design specifically for digital photography unlike its predecessor which was still left over from the film age.

Its not image stabilised, however it is much sharper and lighter. I spoke to the guys at CPS (Canon Professional Services) prior to buying this and was advised that the mark 1 of this lens rated about 4.5 out of 10, with this lens scoring a 9.5 on the same scale.

Obviously this is talk from someone hired to preach company stats but after using this lens I agree. Its fantastic and a great addition to the Canon line up.

There were a few things I questioned about this lens, the image quality is great but I don’t understand why the focal length lock button is limited to 24mm as I feel it would have been a great feature to add onto the other focal lengths.

The other questionable update is the new lens hood, it now comes with a release button, I understand why Canon have added it however I loved the old style of hood. The old style had less moving parts and I can see this new feature breaking after constant use.

I’ve shot a few jobs with this lens now and it was worth the money. I purchased my lens at http://www.digidirect.com.au/camera_lenses/canon/standard