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Matsu
Veteran Member
 
Join Date: May 2004
 
2012-01-24, 16:57

The 16-35 range is very nearly the ideal ultra-wide focal range, and the VR should be very handy, and the price is not bad, but I'm not convinced after a lot of reading and sample image reviews, that it's better than the 17-35 *once you factor out price.*

If you can find a good post 2006 model, there may have been a very minor, quiet revision there, some of the external markings changed and it seems to have lost a negligible amount of weight. This might be the used bargain to hunt for...?

The centre is stupid sharp, but not the edges. However, that seems to be the case for all of the Canon 16-35L I/II and Nikon 16-35 and 17-35. Sticking to Nikon, photozone measures the 17-35 sharper everywhere than the 16-35 when stopped down to f/4, however other credible reviewers give the 16-35 edges the nod.

Rockwell, who produces better reviews than photos, even has conflicting information on them. His 24mm comparison images clearly show the 17-35 sharper everywhere stopped down to f/8; not quite even on the edges at f/4, but clearly sharper in the center at any aperture, including wide open - for some reason he skips f/5.6 where I suspect the two come even on the edges. However, the flipside comes in his ultrawide review: Finding the 16-35 superior for situations that call for more depth of field hand-held - which has some merit - if you need to be at f/4-f/8 to keep more overall sharpness then f/2.8s won't do anything for you.

All this to say, it's a mixed bag. The 16-35 is cheaper (new) better at 16mm , lighter, and has VR. The 17-35 is better at f/2.8 , has the sharper centre, heavier, no VR. The edges are a toss up.

I'm still really tempted by the 14-24, purely for cheap thrills. It makes high impact images. A tad trendy, but if you feed it a bold subject and some strong architectural lines, it has an ability to make the whole world converge on your subject. Good for clients who want to feel like rock and roll gods or action superheros...

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