Nicest zoom 17-35 or 17-40L in MF

fernanrl · Posted: Tue Sep 09, 2008 8:59 pm Post subject: Nicest zoom 17-35 or 17-40L in MF

Hi all,

Question for you. I would like to know if there is a MF lens that could be rival to a zoom 17-35 or Canon 17-40 L...a nice zoom for my architecture picture taken Very Happy

It may be a silly question but I had to ask...

Thanks,

Fer

bob955i · Joined: 15 Apr 2007 Posts: 2495

The Distagon 21 will destroy either of the two zooms you mention but at a not inconsiderable price - unfortunately it also suffers from "moustache" distortion.

The CZJ Flektogon 2.8/20 won't be quite as sharp as the 17-40L but will be more even across the frame.

The CZJ Flektogon 4/20 won't be quite as sharp either but will have virtually zero distortion.

These are my experiences based on my having a 5D, Flek 2.8/20, Flek 4/20 and EF17-40L.

HTH

Sevo · Expire: 2012-12-03

The Cosina "plastic fantastic" 19-35 in any of its incarnations is quite ok. Not really fit for architecture though, thanks to its complex distortion.

Sevo

koji · Expire: 2012-12-27

How about Tamron 17-35/2.8-4 zoom, it is quite acceptable.
At 17mm it has a simple barrel distorsion, but easy to fix in PP.
In the other range it has almost no distortion, and relatively cheaper.
I paid US$176 for a brand new one in box. Very Happy

fernanrl · Posted: Wed Sep 10, 2008 8:47 am Post subject:

Hi,

Yup, that is something more likely, the tamon 17-35. How is its quality? acceptable meaning...

I already have the CZJ Flektogon 4/20 and I like it very much (apart from having to press the side in order to fix the apperture... Evil or Very Mad

) does that happen to you too with this lens?

Regards,

Fer

gcrimmins · Joined: 31 Mar 2008 Posts: 146 Location: Moscow, Idaho, USA

I use at Canon 17-40 f4 L at work, and have never been impressed with it sharpness. I haven't had a chance to do any tests with it, but for daily shooting it just doesn't seem sharp. I expect there are several wide angles from Zeiss, Leica, Olympus, and Nikon that would be much better than the Canon lens. You might check out the lens tests over at 16:9.
http://www.16-9.net/lens_tests/

--Geoff

orly_andico · Joined: 02 Jul 2008 Posts: 253 Location: Philippines

a good number of 17-40 L have front- or back-focus problems, so people think it's not sharp simply because it's mis-focused.

with the higher-end Canon bodies (and even the upcoming 50D) it's possible to dial in a focus correction (the Pentax K20D can do this, and the K10D can do it with a hack).