New Canon EF200mm

Canon has issued a press release introducing its Canon EF200mm f/2L IS USM at PMA 20. The lens is claimed to be significantly lighter (2520g/5.5 lbs. vs. 3000g/6.6 lbs.) than its predecessor, the renowned EF200mm f/1.8L USM lens, while adding OIS and a weather-resistant design. It has a close-focus setting of 1.9 m/6.2 feet and a circular aperture system that enhances its background blur rendition at wide apertures.

The new Canon EF200mm f/2L IS USM is scheduled to be available in April at an estimated retail price of $6,000...and if you think that's not much, Canon has also introduced the new Canon EF800mm f/5.6L IS USM scheduled to be available in May for an estimated retail price of $12,000.

Birth of A Canon Lens

Here's a virtual tour of the Canon lens plant. The tour takes us through the entire process of producing a Canon EF 500mm f4 IS USM telephoto lens, starting from the raw materials used to make the glass to its final hand assembly. Thanks for the link Ralph!

Canon Virtual Tour

Prime Lens?

I've been mulling the purchase of a prime lens for quite a while. All I have are Canon zoom lenses, and while they're the reasonably fast (2.8) L lenses, I'd like to have faster glass in my bag. Hence the interest in the new Canon EF 50 mm F1.2L USM lens, which is by all accounts a truly excellent piece of glass, and is also expensive.

Prime lenses usually produce very good image quality even when wide open, and this is an important consideration when one uses high resolution DSLRs like the Canon 1D Mark II or the Canon 1Ds Mark II. The question then becomes whether to buy the Canon EF 50 mm F1.2L USM lens ($1200) or the Canon Wide Angle EF 28mm f/1.8 USM Autofocus Lens ($380)....or do I go for the Sigma Super Wide Angle 20mm f/1.8 EX? Yes, I know...to hardcore Canonphiles this sounds blasphemous, but I'm hearing that this particular Sigma lens is a worthwhile alternative, and it's about $410. What other excuse do I need to have to visit my favorite New York store?

When photographing in the monasteries of Bhutan last November, I was hampered by the low light and the maximum aperture of 2.8 of my zoom lenses. A prime lens with an aperture of 1.2 or even 1.8 would've provided me with the needed extra stop(s), and I wouldn't have had to increase my ISO to 400 (or higher) to compensate.