Reviews for Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens

Canon 70-200mm F/4.0L IS USM

Strengths: Light weight and very sharp image

Weakness: Not F/2.8 and eat battery a lot

I was going to buy 70-200MM with F2.8, but the lens is really heavy and expensive. I care about weight more than anything else. I am a wedding photographer and I am woman, so I don't wan to carry the heavy lens for few hours. However, the previes 70-200MM with F4 didn't have a IS, so there was nothing I want to buy. When I Canon has new lens which is light weight and with F4, I bought the lens right away. I was still thinking that the lens has F2.8, but when I started useing this lens, I realized that I can go 1/30 with handhold because of IS and light weight. I want recomend this lens to everybody especially woman photographers!

100% of readers found this review helpful. Did you find it helpful or unhelpful?

70-200 f/4

Strengths: size, weight, IS, f4 across entire zoom range

Weakness: not f2.8

I received this wonderful lens for Christmas and have been taking animal and aquarium pictures with it this past week. The results are just beautiful! The lens is easy and confortable to hold by hand, even for extended periods of time. We also have the 100-400 IS f4.5-5.6, but I find that lens too heavy and long to hold comfortably in my hands for extended periods of time. The 70-200 f/4 is just right for my smaller, older hands, and the IS allows me to get beautiful photos that would otherwise be impossible for me without a tripod. The contrast it captures is excellent, even in very challenging light conditions. The lens also works well with my kenko 1.4 teleconvertor. I'm sure glad Santa thought I was good this past year!

100% of readers found this review helpful. Did you find it helpful or unhelpful?

Canon 70-200mm with Image Stabilization

Strengths: Incredible color, contrast, and resolution with the added benefit of image stabilization.

Weakness: It would be nice to have the 2.4 f stop but, for me, it's not worth the extra cost and weight.

I had the non-image stabilized verrsion of this lens but sold it because I couldn't shoot without a tripod at 200 mm at anything less than 1/250. I can now go down to 1/30 with no problem. Fantastic lens. One more reason to stay in the Canon camp.

100% of readers found this review helpful. Did you find it helpful or unhelpful?

Wow says it all

Strengths: IS is amazing, best of all canon lens. Fast Focus, Great Colors, Sharp!

Weakness: Bit Bulky with the hood attached. Price.

If you like the zoom range then don't hesitate to get this lens. Its worth the upgrade over the regular 70-200 f4 even though its a lot more money. The IS is simply awesome.

100% of readers found this review helpful. Did you find it helpful or unhelpful?

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS lens

Strengths: Light, compact, image stabilization

Weakness: 2x price comparte the non is version

i was use the non is version for half year then upgrade to this lens. it's a zoom lens. the is funtion is very helpful. and this one is a lot lighter than the f2.8 it's much easy to carry around.

100% of readers found this review helpful. Did you find it helpful or unhelpful?

Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS USM

Strengths: Image Quality, Compact, Light, Image Stabilization, Share 67mm filters

Weakness: Cost, IS Noise

I had been looking to get the non-IS version of this lens but decided to spring for the one with Image Stabilization. If you're looking at this lens you've already done your research on Canon L lens build and image quality so I'll stick with the other intangibles. (especially for those who're going to buy this sight unseen)
The lens isn't really white - more of a dull metallic off-white/grey so it doesn't stand out as much as you'd think. The black rubber focussing and zoom rings are quite wide and take up most of the "white" space. The lens is a little longer at first sight but not as wide, so all in all it is not bulky. It sits VERY WELL in my hand (coupled with a EOS 30D). I also get to share the 67mm filters with my Tamron 28-75 f/2.8 and EF-S 17-85 IS.
The Image Stabilization motor on this lens is noisy. Unlike the 17-85 IS (and to some extent the 70-300mm IS - which I returned for this lens) you can clearly hear the IS working. I choose to use this as a 'feature' to provide audio verification of IS. (turn IS off when not needed)
The lens is in the same price range as the 70-200mm f/2.8L USM (so that may be another decision point), but for me, the lighter, Image Stabilized lens won out over the faster, bulkier, Non-IS lens.

100% of readers found this review helpful. Did you find it helpful or unhelpful?

70-200 mm F4 IS

Strengths: Image Stabilization feature, small size, excellent image quality, very fast focus

Weakness: Cost

I have 70-200mm F4 non-IS lens for more than one year. It was my best image quality lens. I used it for portrait photography with excellent result. One downsize is that you have to use high ISO in order to obtain decent shutter speed for in door situation without flash. I just obtained the IS lens last week. From the outside appearance, it is very similar to the non-IS lens. I have done some comparison for these two lens. Image quality for IS lens is slightly better at 200 mm end, and the non-IS lens has slightly sharper image at 135 mm - 70mm. The best feature is the image stablization. I am able to get sharp image with 1/20 Sec 90% of time. Compared with non-IS lens, there is 3 stop advantage at 200mm and 2 stop advantage at 70mm. Image quality from both lens are excellent. With Nikon 5T close-up filter, you can get decent quality macro photos. It is also excellent outdoor portrait lens. It is highly recommended.

100% of readers found this review helpful. Did you find it helpful or unhelpful?

Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS USM

Strengths: 4-Stop IS. Sharpness wide open edge to edge over entire zoom range.

Weakness: None.

The 70-200 f/4L non-IS was my favorite for 2 years and I was reluctant to let it go but decided that I need IS. I am happy to report that the latest generation IS indeed works. I get sharp pictures 8 out of 10 times at 1/20 sec at 200mm (=4 stops for my 20D), and even a few at 1/8 sec (> 5 stops).
What I didn’t anticipate is the outstanding image quality even compared to my non-IS, which was razor sharp except at the longest end. The IS is stunningly sharp wide open, from corner to corner, from 70mm right through 200mm. At 70 and 105 mm, it is as sharp wide open as my 24-105 f/4L is at 5.6, but easily beats that lens in the corners.
Even the non-IS’s superb build quality was improved upon due to dust/moisture resistance. This seems to make the focus and especially zoom rings even more solidly smooth. Finally the price is reasonable to me considering that it is as if you had four prime lenses combined into one body.

93% of readers found this review helpful. Did you find it helpful or unhelpful?

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS lens

Strengths: Light, compact, image stabilization, exceptional quality.

Weakness: Filter size of 67mm different from usual 77mm of many canon zooms.

I bought this new 70-200mm f/4L IS lens to take the place of my much heavier and larger 70-200mm f/2.8 IS L lens when I want to lighten up my load when hiking in the field. On my 1Ds Mk II, I find the quality of this smaller lens to be similar to its larger brother and I don't have a problem giving up a few f stops to save weight and size. I'll still keep the 2.8 for low light applications like inside a church when flash is not permitted or for indoor and/or nighttime sports.

75% of readers found this review helpful. Did you find it helpful or unhelpful?

The most useful zoom gets better

Strengths: Image Stabalization (IS), sharpness, contrast, color rendition, light weight

Weakness: price a little bit high, white color

70-200mm covers the most useful range of photography in my opinion. Previously, there were three versions of 70-200mm zooms from Canon: F4, F2.8 and F2.8 IS. In order to get the IS, many people had no choice but to get the F2.8 IS, despite being nearly twice as heavy and three time more expensive. Within weeks after getting my F4 zoom, I traded it for the F2.8 IS because I found myself constantly struggling to keep up with shutter speed of 1/200 second or more at the long end.
Now the new F4 IS zoom weighs about the same as the F4 with almost the identical physical dimension. The IS enables me to shoot as slow as 1/30 second. I found it as least as sharp as my F2.8 IS. It is such a joy to use the new lens after years of lugging around the heavier and bulkier F2.8 IS. The F4, which is too slow for most indoor sports, is perfect for outdoor sports, casual shootings in parks and schools, parties and vacations, portrait and landscape. $500 price premium over the non-IS F4 version is hard to forget initially, but it is worthwhile in my opinion. For $500 more, you can get the F2.8 IS. It is always debatable as to which IS version to buy. There is no good answer unless you purchase both IS lenses.

67% of readers found this review helpful. Did you find it helpful or unhelpful?

IS works !!

Strengths: 1. Less weight than other 3 versions 2. IS (4 stops) 3. Weather-sealed 4. Sharp

Weakness: 1. No tripod ring 2. Different filter size means you need to buy more filters. 3. Expensive

This is my first white lens from Canon and I am very satisfied with it. The weight is light, the color is beautiful and real, and the sharpness is amazing.

This 4th 70-200mm in the Canon series (other three are f/2.8IS, f/2.8, and f/4) is the most updated one. The long-waited IS feature with f/4 is now available at about five hundred dollars more with just a little bit more added weight to the 70-200mm f/4.

Upon testing, I found the IS feature really works well. I can now shoot 200mm with 1/50 or less easily (without tripod). If it doesn't have IS, I am sure all my pictures will look blurry.

The new lens also features weather-seal, which prevents dust and water coming into the lens. When you pair it with the same featured body, you will have a fully-sealed gear.

50% of readers found this review helpful. Did you find it helpful or unhelpful?

Pros and Cons of Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM Telephoto Zoom Lens

PROS:Image stabilizer, Quiet auto-focus mechanism. CONS:Large dimensions. REVIEW:Designed for the Canon EOS line of SLR cameras, the EF 70-200mm Telephoto Zoom lens incorporates a four-stop image stabilizer with two distinct modes that allow for crisp, perfect freeze-frames while holding the camera steady or even taking a picture while panning horizontally. Focusing with the lens can either be...

Read Full Review

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L USM

The Canon EF 70-200mm f/4.0 L USM Lens is a solid build but light in weight (705 grams) “L” Lens, as compare to Canon EF 70-200 f/2.8 L Lens, and Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS II USM Lens.Canon EF 70-200mm f/4.0 L USM Lens combines professional design with optical quality. Canon EF 70-200mm f/4.0 L USM Lens has 8-blade aperture , which opens at constant f/4 at all focal length ranges,...

Read Full Review

Best Telephoto Zoom Lens

Bestcovery experts have rated the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras as a best pick for the Best Telephoto Zoom Lens. Bestcovery's experts recommend the best products and services for a particular need based on extensive research and evaluations. Click below to see Bestcovery's full review of this product.

Read Full Review

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4.0L IS USM

Testseek.com has collected 14 expert reviews for Canon EF 70-200mm f/4.0L IS USM and the average expert rating is 88 of 100. The average score reflects the expert community’s view on this product. Click below and use Testseek.com to see all ratings, product awards and conclusions.

Read Full Review