27Dec Canon 70-200mm f2.8 L IS was under the tree this year.
I just made it back from the holiday break and under the Christmas tree this year was the Canon 70-200mm f2.8 IS in all of its glory. This was actually a gift I bought for myself with the proceeds from a job I just finished up and the price was surprisingly less then I had expected.
The Canon 70-200mm f2.8 IS used set you back around $2000 which made it a lens I usually rented when needed, but since the release of the updated 70-200mm f2.8 IS mark II the original lens has dropped significantly on the used market. With some over the last month of travel I was able to buy this used copy of the Canon 70-200mm f2.8 IS for a little less then $1250. The lens showed up in good shape with the usual small blemishes and came with a B+W 77mm UV filter.
Over the years I’ve had pretty good luck buying used equipment and if you live in a major urban area, there are photographers selling gear in want adds all the time. If you offer them something low, the worst thing they can do is tell you no. If you aren’t lucky enough to live in a major city and you’re not in a hurry, pretty good. If you aren’t comfortable with ebay, Amazon also has some fairly decent used gear prices.
I have only had a few chances to play around with the updated version of the 70-200mm f2.8 IS, and it’s a beautiful peace of glass, but I don’t think most people would see enough of a difference to justify a $750 price increase. I might have to rent out the mark II and play with both lenses side by side just to see if I can really tell the difference. I think i’m happy just having this as a regular staple in my kit.
December 28th, 2011 at 11:38 am
I bought one used and was very anxious to use it but I find it a little too tele for many video shots on my 60D. Constantly changing lenses which is a pain with that big heavy lens. What do you think?
December 28th, 2011 at 1:10 pm
I normally have enough people around when i’m filming to keep 2 or 3 cameras going. The 70-200mm allows you to plant a camera 15 feet back and shoot mostly closeup shots while the other cameras are getting medium and wide shots. It keeps the camera out of the way and gives you nice shallow depth of field on reaction shots. It’s also nice when you need to film somewhere with out a permit, you can hide out in a car and put a few wireless packs on your actors.
It’s also great for weddings and event coverage.
December 28th, 2011 at 12:06 pm
nothing like a lil “self santa” to get exACTLY whatcha want, yeah?!
December 28th, 2011 at 1:11 pm
It’s the best way to go!
December 28th, 2011 at 9:27 pm
Haha. I’ve been waiting for you to do a new post for a while now, and now I’m jealous… D:
December 29th, 2011 at 12:30 pm
B&H has $400 off http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/buy/Canon/Ntt/SHCA7020028L/N/0
December 29th, 2011 at 9:21 pm
I almost spent the extra on it, but I couldn’t justify the extra $750 for the small difference between the two lenses. But it is a good deal!
January 5th, 2012 at 12:19 pm
There was one under my tree too. 🙂