A professional quality workhorse of a lens. (Canon EF 24-105 mm f/4 L IS USM)

Member Name: BileMonkey

Product:	Canon EF 24-105 mm f/4 L IS USM
Date:	15/07/09 (98 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Superb build quality and excellent optical performance. IS works flawlessly.

Disadvantages: Noticable barrel distortion at 24mm. Just beacuse it's an L lens, don't expect prime sharpness.

Features: Professional quality standard zoom with a constant f4 maximum aperture. Image stabilisation gives around 3 stops leeway from camera shake. Front element does not rotate during focusing so easy use of filters. 77mm front element common across many L lenses allowing easy interchangeability of UV filters and polarisers. Compatible with EF and EF-S lens mounts. Comes with a nice soft lens pouch and the petal shaped hood is included.

Build Quality: Excellent. Typical L lens build. Very solid metal construction, weather sealed and both the zoom and focus rings have a lovely slick action making precision adjustments easy. I haven't had this lens long enough to test longevity but I've never had a failure with an L lens, and I've been using several for the best part of a decade (hence the 5 stars for reliability, but this is expected rather than confirmed).

Optical Performance: Contrast and colour reproduction are superb. Sharpness is very good for a zoom lens in this focal range but cannot match a good prime. On par with the 24-70 f2.8 L stopped down to f 8, but probably around half a stop behind in terms of sharpness at larger apertures. Vignetting is present at 24mm wide open, but not annoyingly so (for me, anyway). This disappears when stopped down and at longer focal lengths.My biggest issue with this lens is distortion, as there is very pronounced barrel distortion at 24mm. Canon DPP software will fix this completely, but images processed in other RAW converters might need a little Photoshop adjustment depending on the subject matter. Chromatic aberration is very well controlled.

Value: Okay, not the cheapest standard zoom lens but can be had for around £800 online and works out around £500 if bought as a kit with the 5D MkII. Only competition is the more expensive 24-70 L, which gives a faster f2.8 maximum aperture but lacks the IS. As far as L lenses go, it's very good value, especially if you get it as part of a kit.

Handling: Solid but not overly heavy, and reasonably short so easy to hand hold and doesn't upset camera balance. IS works beautifully. Focus and zoom rings are a joy to use and allow full time focus over-ride when in AF.

Conclusion: For people shooting weddings and other potentially low-light scenarios you may prefer the 24-70 2.8 L for it's superior light gathering if you're shooting with older camera bodies (the latest gen Canons have mid-ISO performance that makes a 1 stop advantage in glass redundant). That said, if you're shooting weddings you'll almost certainly have a fast 50 or similar in your kitbag anyway. As a standard zoom, the zoom range is more suited to full frame sensors unless you also own an ultra-wide. For shooting versatility though, this lens is pretty much peerless. Exceptionally high build quality and generally excellent optical performance (even wide open), coupled with superb handling and 3-stop IS. Highly recommended.

NOTE: battery life a bit N/A for lenses but I've given it a low score as IS lenses will drain batteries quicker than none-IS ones. This isn't a fault.

Summary: A pretty much perfect standard zoom lens.

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