I currently own the 28-105..I own a number of prime lenses..28 2.8, 50 1.6 MK I, 100 2, and 70-200 4L....I was hoping to buy the 28-70L but it is cost prohibitive for me. Is the 28-135MM IS that much bettere of a lens than the 28-105 as an all purpose travel lens or should I scrimpt and save to buy the 28-70 in companion with the 70-200??

HELP!

-- Chuck Lipton (chuxter31@adelphia.net), March 16, 2002

Answers

The 28-135 IS is a great travel lens. I usually travel with a 28- 135 IS, 70-200/4L, plus an EF 50/1.4. However, I'm not sure it would be worth the upgrade from a 28-105 if you are currently happy with your 28-105. Yes, the 28-135 IS is considered to be sharper than the 28-105, but the additional advantage is the inclusion of IS which allows you to handhold even if you are stopped down or handholding in low light with longer shutter speeds. The quality of the images it produces is excellent. However, I personally would hold out for a few more months to see what else Canon has coming down the pipeline unless you have a pressing need right now. I would really love to upgrade my 28-135 IS to an L version IS. There was rumor that Canon was looking to bring out a 24-105/2.8L IS or something like that. That would be a worthwhile upgrade for me because I would enjoy having L-caliber build quality (like the solid feel of the 70-200/4L), non-telescoping zoom, the larger constant max aperture, in addition to the latest generation of IS (faster activation/stabilization and panning mode). Plus, it may cause the current 28-70/2.8L to drop in price a bit or Canon may put out some attractive rebates that would make it a little more affordable. In the mean time, I'll be saving up.

-- Peter Phan (pphan01@hotmail.com), March 16, 2002.

I own both the EF28-105 USM and the EF28-135 IS USM. They are virtually identical in terms of image quality. Perhaps the EF28-135 IS USM is slightly sharper at 28mm, but it also exhibts more distortion and is prone to zoom creep. Like Peter said, the main advantage is the IS feature (and a great advantage at that). It is also much larger and heavier. Nevertheless, it is my choice when I travel.

-- Puppy Face (doggieface@aol.com), March 16, 2002.

http://www.stevedunn.ca/photos/writings/eflenses.html

The 28-135 is a better all-purpose travel lens than the 28-105 if you don't mind the extra size and weight - it's better optically, has IS, and the longer range helps.

-- Steve Dunn (steved@ussinc.com), March 18, 2002.

steve is right. if you don't mind the extra size and weight, 28-135 IS is an excellent lens, especially the IS. having the IS can help you stop down the apperture to get sharp picture. its known that most lenses are sharpest when stopped down 1 or 2 stops in apperture. and this IS is equivalent to 2 stops of shutter speed. also the range 28 to 135mm is good as a all purpose travel lens.

a second thought i would give is get rid of your 28-105 and go for a 1.4x T/C. you already have 28, 50 and 100mm lenses which covers the wide angle to medium telephoto lenses. these lenses will have better optics than the 28-105 or 28-135 lens (someone please correct me if i am wrong. i don't own any of these fixed focal length lenses). so you will have a coverage from 28mm to 280mm f/5.6. which will be a better travel kit.

-- sajeev (chack74@yahoo.co.in), March 19, 2002.

I get the sense that sajeev dosent do much traveling. do not take the single lens(plus teleconverter?)advice. by the time that decisive moment occurs, you would be busy trying to attach that teleconverter while your moment fades away. your 28-105+ 70-200 should cover almost all of the situations you encounter in your travels. If your looking to bring only 1 lens then the 28-135is is certainly worth consideration. By the way you may want to consider selling that 28mm to upgrade to a wider 20mmf2.8 since you already have some overlap.

-- joe cap (joemocap@yahoo.com), March 21, 2002.