New Voigtlander Color Skopar 28mm f/2.8 (Canon Mount) Starts Shipping Tomorrow (Sep. 13th)

That’s right: The new Voigtlander 28mm f/2.8 starts shipping on September 13th. Price is $625.00/€549.00 and B&H is accepting orders (click here). Nice little pancake lens with high optical quality and no Auto-Focus.

Focal Length 28mm
Aperture Ratio 1:2.8
Smallest Aperture F 22
Lens Construction 6 groups,
7 elements
Picture Angle 74.8°
Aperture Blades 9
Nearest Distance 0,22m
Macro 1:5
Diameter 63.3mm Nikon AI-S
70.0mm Canon EOS
Length 24.5mm Nikon AI-S
27.0mm Canon EOS
Weight 180g Nikon AI-S
230g Canon EOS
Filter Size 52 mm
Colour black
Mount AI-S (CPU intergrated)
Canon EOS
Item Number 19650 Nikon AI-S
19651 Canon EOS
Recommended Retail Price 529,- Euro Nikon
549,- Euro Canon
Optional, not included LH 28N Lenshood

[Review] EF 24mm f/2.8 IS USM and EF 28mm f/2.8 IS USM (and why it is better to have newer lenses for new gear)

ephotozine reviewed Canon’s new EF 24mm f/2.8 IS USM ($850, click here) and EF 28mm f/2.8 IS USM ($800, click here). Both lenses are the second iteration, adding Image Stabilization and USM to its features. They replace some rather old, and affordable, lenses, the EF 24mm f/2.8 ($374, click here) and the EF 28mm f/2.8 ($259, click here). These lenses are somewhat discussed. They have good performance but it is common opinion that the price tag is a little exaggerated. However, all reviews I saw are crediting these lenses having good optical properties and overall performance. These lenses are particularly useful for videographers. ephotozine wanted to have a closer look on both lenses.

Canon EF 24mm f/2.8 IS USM Pros (click here for the review)

  • Good build quality
    Lightweight
    Image Stabilisation
    Excellent sharpness
    Focuses close

Canon EF 28mm f/2.8 IS USM Pros (click here for the review)

  • Good build quality
    Lightweight
    Image Stabilisation
    Outstanding sharpness
    Focuses close

Finally, I want to feature a post by Scott Bourne about how important new glasses are for new DSLRs. The article takes AF performance as an example: if you are not using pro glasses on pro gear you can’t expect that your DSLR will perform as expected. And there is more (emphasis mine):

I spoke with Canon representatives who prefer to remain unnamed and they admitted that the new AF systems on the 5D Mk IIIand 1DX are optimized to work with the newest, fastest glass.

So the thing to know is this. If you expect a remarkable improvement in AF just because you buy a new 5D MK III or 1DX you may be slightly disappointed. You need that fast, new glass too.

Simple, isn’t it? :-) Good that there is a huge Canon lenses August discount program going on (click here)!

EF 24mm f/2.8 IS USM price check: B&H Photo, Adorama, Amazon USA, Amazon Canada, Canon Canada, Canon USA EF 28mm f/2.8 IS USM price check: B&H Photo, Adorama, Amazon USA, Amazon Canada, Canon Canada, Canon USA

Voigtländer 28 mm f/2.8 ColorSkopar SL II N Comes With EF Mount

Voigtländer added a new lens to its SL II line-up, the 28 mm f/2.8 ColorSkopar SL II N (machine translated). The lens comes with a Canon EF mount too (the other is for Nikon) and has manual focus. The price will be around €550/$673.

Focal length 28 mm
Aperture ratio 1:2,8
Minimum aperture F 22
Lens construction 7 elements in
6 groups
Angle 74.8 °
Diaphragm Blades 9
Shortest Distance setting 0.22 m
Macro area 1:5
Max diameter 63.3 mm Nikon AI-S
70.0 mm Canon EOS
Length 24.5 mm Nikon AI-S
27.0 mm Canon EOS
Weight 180 g Nikon AI-S
Canon EOS 230 g
Filter Size 52 mm
Color black
Connection AI-S (CPU integrated)
Canon EOS
Model 19 650 Nikon AI-S
19 651 Canon EOS
Retail price 529, – € Nikon 
549, – € Canon
Optional Accessories LH sunvisor 28N

[Review] EF 24mm f/2.8 USM and EF 28mm f/2.8 USM Shipping And Reviewed

While everyone is talking about the EF 40mm f/2.8 STM ($199, click here), there are two more new prime lens that Canon released this year, the EF 24mm f/2.8 IS USM ($850, click here) and the EF 28mm f/2.8 IS USM ($800, click here). Both lenses are the second iteration, adding Image Stabilization and USM to its features. They replace some rather old, and affordable, lenses, the EF 24mm f/2.8 ($374, click here) and the EF 28mm f/2.8 ($259, click here). These were solid performing, light-weighted and small consumer-grade lenses. The new iterations are considerably more expensive, having a price tag of approximately $850 (24mm) and $800 (28mm). Besides having IS and USM, the new lenses have seven curved aperture blades (compared to five in the previous 28mm and six in the 24mm). So, how do this two, little commented (why?) lens perform? Roger Cicala at lensrentals.com wanted to find it out. Imatest was used. The results are not earth-shattering (these are not L lenses). Nevertheless, the primes have a good performance, proving that they are well suited for different uses. The IS works fine, and optical performance is good. The downside is probably the fact that the price raised by 200-300%, if compared to their predecessors. While the EF 40mm f/2.8 STM is a no-brainer, you will probably carefully think for what you will need the new 24mm and 28mm. Given the price, these are not lenses most of us will buy just to have them. However, there are various settings where these primes might be the right choice, e.g. night photography (f/2.8 and IS). And don’t forget that on an APS-C body, the 28mm has a normal focus length, becoming a ~44mm.

[Rumor] More Canon Mirrorless Speculations

Canon Mirrorless Concept By D. Riesenberg

More Canon Mirrorless newsbits (aka rumors, :-)) have shown up. CR reports that the mirrorless camera will «launch with at least 2 lenses and an EF adaptor. One lens will be a wide angle “kit” lens as well as a telephoto lens». Let’s hope the adapter will also be able to take EF-S lenses (we all hope so!). Moreover, the rumors CR is reporting are saying that Canon’s new primes – the 24mm f/2.8 IS USM, 28mm f/2.8 IS USM and the EF 40mm f/2.8 STM – have been thought to go along well with the upcoming mirrorless camera Canon is working on. Makes sense IMO. No exact information about the camera body: «the camera will use the 14mp CMOS G1 X sensor. A “good” ISO range and “average” video performance. A video focused camera could be “in the future”». The rumors make sense. There is only one thing that continues to baffle me: the supposed date for the announcement, July 24th. In the midst of the summer? Strange day for a new camera announcement.

Price check of the cited gear:
EF 24mm f/2.8 IS USM: B&H Photo, Adorama, Amazon USA, Amazon Canada, Canon Canada, Canon USA EF 28mm f/2.8 IS USM: B&H Photo, Adorama, Amazon USA, Amazon Canada, Canon Canada, Canon USA EF 40mm f/2.8 STM: B&H Photo, Adorama, Amazon USA, Amazon Canada, Canon Canada, Canon USA

[via CR]

Photography and Travel – A personal experience and some tips

Sunset over the Mekong - Don Det, Si Phan Don (4000 Islands), Laos
This is a post I wanted to write since long. Traveling and photography: perfectly complementary. Let me start with some personal experience. Last year I was abroad for three months, traveling South-East Asia on my own. You know, the backpacker thing? My journey went mainly through Laos and Cambodia. I was alone, on a budget (i.e. I wanted the trip to last as long as possible), and I was traveling light. That’s to say that I had a light backpack, just 9 kg (~19.8 lbs). So, the biggest question to solve while organizing the whole thing was if I should carry a DSRL (and lenses) with me, or if I should not. Not as trivial as I thought it was.

 

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