Canon EF 24-105L VS EF-S 15-85

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So I am about to order a 7D and need a walkabout lens to accompany the body.

Which of these two lenses should I go for?

EF 24-105L at £565
EF-S 15-85 at £406


I am assuming the 24-105L would be better?

I will be using the lens for a bit of everything, typically just walking around London taking pictures of anything and everything.

Opinions will be greatly apprecaited!
 
Having owned all three, the 15-85.
 
I think the pros and cons of the 24-105 and 15-85 have been discussed many times with opinion divided but perhaps a few more favouring the 15-85.

I have a 7D and the 15-85 is my general purpose lens. I did have a 24-105 but sold it to buy the 15-85 and I am much happier with it. One of the main reasons is that the wide end of the 24-105 on a crop sensor is not very wide at all and I found myself often having to swap the 24-105 with my 10-22 which I found very annoying. Granted it had more reach however to me the extra width is more important and anyway a 15-85 focal length range is very useful range. The 15-85 also has better image stabilization than the 24-105.
 
As Neil says, 24mm is a bit too wide on a crop body for a walkabout lens.
I currently use a 17-85 on my 50D but a 15-85 is next on my shopping list. :thumbs:
 
I have to agree, the 15-85 has proven a lot better for me on my crop cameras.
ive had 3 copies of the 24-105 over the years, all on crop cameras and all were good copies of the lens but left me feeling a bit cold.
Before i got wider than 24mm i used to dismiss those who said 24mm was too long for a wide end on a crop, but after trying a 17-50 i immediately saw what they mean.

Forget IQ and the L factor for a min, and concentrate on the shots you wont get with the 24-105L. 15mm-24mm is huge. even 15-17mm makes a difference. I live and work in central London and believe me, you will much prefer a wider lens as a walk about if you intend to shoot the surroundings.
On the long end there really isn't a lot in it IMO.

The 24-105 is better made, and f/4 is very handy to have, especially at this time of the year 9gloomey days, higher ISO needed etc). Thats where, IMO, the 24-105 beats the 15-85IS but its only one stop, it might not be a big deal.
IQ is pretty similar. Id say both will give you very good, sharp images. The 24-105 may have an edge but id say you will only notice the difference if you put the same shots side by side.

The other advantages the 15-85IS has is its smaller and lighter, and the IS is better. Not only is it one stop better (i believe) its also much quieter. This might make a difference if you intend to shoot hand held video in quiet places using the built in mic. The 24-105 makes a terrible racket on the audio track.

Ive actually got my 24-105 up for sale on here at the moment if your interested, even though ive tried to talk you out of getting one lol.
 
dave_bass5 said:
I have to agree, the 15-85 has proven a lot better for me on my crop cameras.
ive had 3 copies of the 24-105 over the years, all on crop cameras and all were good copies of the lens but left me feeling a bit cold.
Before i got wider than 24mm i used to dismiss those who said 24mm was too long for a wide end on a crop, but after trying a 17-50 i immediately saw what they mean.

Forget IQ and the L factor for a min, and concentrate on the shots you wont get with the 24-105L. 15mm-24mm is huge. even 15-17mm makes a difference. I live and work in central London and believe me, you will much prefer a wider lens as a walk about if you intend to shoot the surroundings.
On the long end there really isn't a lot in it IMO.

The 24-105 is better made, and f/4 is very handy to have, especially at this time of the year 9gloomey days, higher ISO needed etc). Thats where, IMO, the 24-105 beats the 15-85IS but its only one stop, it might not be a big deal.
IQ is pretty similar. Id say both will give you very good, sharp images. The 24-105 may have an edge but id say you will only notice the difference if you put the same shots side by side.

The other advantages the 15-85IS has is its smaller and lighter, and the IS is better. Not only is it one stop better (i believe) its also much quieter. This might make a difference if you intend to shoot hand held video in quiet places using the built in mic. The 24-105 makes a terrible racket on the audio track.

Ive actually got my 24-105 up for sale on here at the moment if your interested, even though ive tried to talk you out of getting one lol.
Click to expand...

Thanks Dave. Think I'm sold on getting the 15-85 now :)
 
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