Canon 70-300mm IS or 70-200mm F4 L ?

[CraigF]

Looking to pick peoples brains on this choice.
Do i go for the 70-300mm IS or the 70-200mm F4 L.

Ive read a lot of pros and cons for both but i seem to be edging for the 70-300mm IS.

Anyone who has first hand experience of both if you could let me know your thoughts i would be gratefull.

[Moos3h]

I have experience of both and can happily say that either are fabulous, fabulous lenses.

It's going to depend on what you need. The L will be slightly sharper, and is f4 constant vs. f5.6 (i think?)

That said, IS is very useful if shooting without a tripod - but won't help moving subjects.

Tricky choice, but I went L in the end and was pretty happy, but I think on reflection the extra reach and IS swings the balance towards the 70-300 IS for me.

Cheers,
James

[CraigF]

Cheers James.
That seems to be the general thinking on both of them.
I guess it would be nice to have a piece or 2 of L Glass but i think the 70-300mm IS will win this battle.

[Moos3h]

Craig...another thing is, what price have you seen it for? And lastly, what body is it mounting to?

I think that I'm going to grab the 70-300mm again, as now I have the 5D, the loss of the crop factor makes the 70-200 f4L feel a little short...

Cheers,
James

[CraigF]

It will be for a 40D.
Havent looked at prices as yet m8.

[Jelster]

I have the 70-300 IS, and it's almost permanently fitted to my 350D. It can be a bit slow and not at its sharpest when fully extended, other than that it's fine.

I just get a little frustrated having to run at ISO800 as it's f5.6 at the long end although I'm sort of getting used to it. Unfortunately it's too slow to work with a x2 converter (so I understand).

Focus speed is reasonable, but make sure you keep it clean, as I find that as the lens get a little dirty (exposure to the elements for long periods of time) the focus slows right down.

These were all done on said lens:

http://195.177.193.138/gallery/data/1461/redhead.jpg

http://195.177.193.138/gallery/data/1461/harris22.jpg

http://195.177.193.138/gallery/data/1469/IMG_9138_a.jpg

http://195.177.193.138/gallery/data/1469/IMG_9340_a.jpg

HTH

Steve

.

[dazzajl]

Would be the 70-200 for me every time. it's just a brilliant bit of glass and one of the best value lenses canon have ever turned out.

If possible, it would be great to compare a cropped shot from the 200 with a shot at 300 from the other. would be fairly hard to argue with that. :D