New Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS Mk III and 70-200mm f/4 L IS Mk II lenses

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Official announcement today:
https://www.usa.canon.com/internet/portal/us/home/about/newsroom/press-releases/press-release-details/2018/20180607-lens/20180607-lens

Slightly unfortunate typo in the headline on Canon's site:

20019-1528354565-d1cf35122e89b57ade0d3a7a7095100e.png
 
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jonoooo125 said:
Definitely worth the upgrade then
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The F4 is more interesting to me. I had the MK 1 and really liked it a lot. I would have kept it but I switched to Nikon and got a 70-200 2.8 that is much more heavy
 
As far as I can tell they have changed the paint colour and the lens coatings.
I have not seen the layout of the element groups or seen the MTF curves.

If it is just coatings and paint, it does not make for a compelling upgrade from the mk2.

Just have to wait for the reviews I suppose.
 
soupdragon said:
If it is just coatings and paint, it does not make for a compelling upgrade from the mk2.
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So pretty typical for all the "mature" camera brands (and thats not knocking Sony and Fuji, just making an observation). The lenses are likely to be a evolution step from the Mk1 f/4 and MkII f/2.8; but there not likely to be anything revolutionary about them.
 
MK 3 So canon can put all us MK 2 owners on the no longer supported list :( :( :(
 
KIPAX said:
MK 3 So canon can put all us MK 2 owners on the no longer supported list :( :( :(
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Annoying really as the mk2 is a baby compared to others. 135 f2 for instance.
 
ecoleman said:
It least on the f2.8 versions nothing has changed except for coatings so parts shouldn't be a problem.
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It's 10 grams lighter so something changed.
Maybe they are using the same paint thickness as Mitsubishi cars.
 
soupdragon said:
It's 10 grams lighter so something changed.
Maybe they are using the same paint thickness as Mitsubishi cars.
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Maybe, I was going by what the chap said in the video posted above.
It's basically the lens coatings that have been reworked and the paint is a different shade of white.

The f4 version has improved optics and IS
 
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Just wondering if this is an indication that Canon will be sticking to the EF mount when it launched its mirrorless body or bodies.
 
I suspect the f/2.8 version is less about being an improved version that drives upgrade sales, and more about being a design that benefits Canon on the manufacturing side. Perhaps there's also something about it that makes it play better with their future mirrorless line-up (either so the EF versions works better or so Canon can sell two different mount versions with maximum commonality).
 
The F4 gets 5 stop IS, the 2.8 3.5 stops and better compatability with extenders according to a post I have just received.
5 stops is worth having, havent got the 2.8 so cant comment.
Probably more info passes between the new lens(es) and current extenders.
F4 is £1300 so not a massive increase and once the early adopters have cleared the way the price should drop a bit so it looks like a pretty good upgrade for not a lot of money - unusual.
Oh and they have done something to the AF motor(s) too.
 
It will probably also be a firmware change that makes them play better with Mirrorless cameras as well. Will be interesting to see if they release a firmware update for the current models. Some Canon lenses are end user upgradelbe with firmware but I can't remember off the top of my head which ones.
 
With what Sigma has done with their art range on E mount, there is absolutely no reason Canon cant adapt their glass to a top end mirrorless body

I own the 50 and 85 native Arts on Sony and theyre WAY better than they ever performed on my previous canon and nikon cams
 
new and better coatings on 2.8 mkIII. Pricing is pretty much unchanged. Anyone in the market to buy one should be happy with the update. Existing owners need not upgrade.

f/4 is a more interesting refresh. Mine does what I need already so won't change any time soon, but overall the updates are very positive.

People looking at 2nd hand market should be also happy I believe.
 
F/1.4 said:
With what Sigma has done with their art range on E mount, there is absolutely no reason Canon cant adapt their glass to a top end mirrorless body

I own the 50 and 85 native Arts on Sony and theyre WAY better than they ever performed on my previous canon and nikon cams
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I tried my 35mm art on A7III with sigma adapter in the show and yes it worked flawlesly. And so did a few other CANON lenses from their demo kit.

So the solution for Sony is already there.

Obviously some will always complain that these are larger and heavier than native E lenses. Not any more expensive though.
 
LongLensPhotography said:
I tried my 35mm art on A7III with sigma adapter in the show and yes it worked flawlesly. And so did a few other CANON lenses from their demo kit.

So the solution for Sony is already there.

Obviously some will always complain that these are larger and heavier than native E lenses. Not any more expensive though.
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Not every one want to use relatively short focal length lenses where speed of focus is not the primary consideration. If Canon ever do introduce a top end mirrorless body then, if current EF mount lenses require an adaptor to work, people will expect the same speed of acquisition as they had before, especially with long telephoto lenses. Anything else would be a failure in many eyes. It's extremely unlikely that Canon will be bringing out new long primes if they adopt a new mount and I see no reason why they need to adopt a new mount. When you have a 3.5kg 600mm hanging off the front of the body then any size advantages from losing the mirror box is irrelevant.
 
Ploddles said:
It will probably also be a firmware change that makes them play better with Mirrorless cameras as well. Will be interesting to see if they release a firmware update for the current models. Some Canon lenses are end user upgradelbe with firmware but I can't remember off the top of my head which ones.
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I don't think Canon ever officially announced when they started making lenses that could have the firmware upgraded by users, and I don't think there's a list. It's just that every now and then they issue a new firmware update and we discover that it's possible.

I know the 24-105 II has had a firmware upgrade, and so have some EF-M lenses, but the interesting one to me is the 200-400. That was launched in 2013 IIRC, which implies that all new lenses in the last 5 years (at least) probably have this capability. But the 70-200 II was launched in 2010, so it might well not have it.

Can anyone suggest how/why a firmware upgrade might make a lens play better with mirrorless cameras?
 
Canon released a firmware update for the 200-400 in April this year but only for download to a mac. I seem to remember the 300 f2.8 MkII having one shortly after it came out as well.
 
StewartR said:
Can anyone suggest how/why a firmware upgrade might make a lens play better with mirrorless cameras?
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I would imagine (based on my understanding of the camera lens interface) that the lens' control of the AF notor would be different.

Phase detect is a 'calculate new position' command where the lens simply obeys and attains this position as fast as possible, controlling the AF motor acc/decc and speed.
Contrast detect is a 'move and compare' system which would probably move the motor more slowly to allow time to process the comparison.

Moving the AF motor more slowly doesn't neccessarily result in a slower overall time from 'focus request' to 'ready to shoot' as the mirror cycle time has been eliminated from the sequence.
 
jerry12953 said:
I see the mk3 f4 is 120 gm heavier than the mk2.......
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Only 40g heavier. At 780g, the new 70-200/4 L Mk2 is 40g heavier than the Mk1 IS. The non-IS 70-200/4 L is 705g, and a completely different lens (from 1999).

The revamped f4 version has some small and welcome updates, but overall both new f4 and f2.8 versions seem much more like a preparation for mirrorless than a proper upgrade, to ensure optimum performance. The basic optical design of both lenses remains the same (and not much wrong with that) with changes under the hood, while putting a marker down for Sony on pricing.

Canon may be taking their time to get things right with mirrorless, but it sounds promising to me. What we will get I think, is a new full-frame mirrorless camera that comes, in effect, with a free set of your favourite lenses, ie the ones you already own (y) Sony can't play that game, and Nikon with their numerous lens mount modifications over the years, are not as well positioned.
 
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Gaz J said:
Not every one want to use relatively short focal length lenses where speed of focus is not the primary consideration. If Canon ever do introduce a top end mirrorless body then, if current EF mount lenses require an adaptor to work, people will expect the same speed of acquisition as they had before, especially with long telephoto lenses. Anything else would be a failure in many eyes. It's extremely unlikely that Canon will be bringing out new long primes if they adopt a new mount and I see no reason why they need to adopt a new mount. When you have a 3.5kg 600mm hanging off the front of the body then any size advantages from losing the mirror box is irrelevant.
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I'm not sure actually if there would be such an expectation for a prosumer level mirrorless body aimed at 6D / D600 users. You couldn't say these have outstanding focus tracking with any big whites or else. If they behave similar that's a win. {Thats where Sony is now.} After that they can still take long time to bring out all dancing and singing 1-series mirrorless.
 
HoppyUK said:
Only 40g heavier. At 780g, the new 70-200/4 L Mk2 is 40g heavier than the Mk1 IS. The non-IS 70-200/4 L is 705g, and a completely different lens (from 1999).

The revamped f4 version has some small and welcome updates, but overall both new f4 and f2.8 versions seem much more like a preparation for mirrorless than a proper upgrade, to ensure optimum performance. The basic optical design of both lenses remains the same (and not much wrong with that) with changes under the hood, while putting a marker down for Sony on pricing.

Canon may be taking their time to get things right with mirrorless, but it sounds promising to me. What we will get I think, is a new full-frame mirrorless camera that comes, in effect, with a free set of your favourite lenses, ie the ones you already own (y) Sony can't play that game, and Nikon with their numerous lens mount modifications over the years, are not as well positioned.
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Just going on the figures in the article linked to in post no. 9.......
 
Having, for interests sake, got a quote for upgrading my ‘mint’ 2.8 II to the III from a well known supplier, I don’t think I’ll be spending an additional £1200 to gain ASC, a loss in weight of 10g’s and a new paint job, especially as I cover my lenses in protective neoprene! Lol
 
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