Another lens review made possible by my partner Camex….this tim I had the pleasure of shooting with the Canon 17-40mm F/4 L wide angle zoom lens. And to be short it totally rocks! Of course I planned for the perfect situation so I could really test it under the right circumstances and with the right purposes. In my opinion this lens is perfect for events …the only thing left was to find that event and of course I did; Fashionchick Redesign Launch Event
STREET PHOTOGRAPHY
Being a street photographer I just had to take this lens on a spin on the streets of course and I really delivers interesting results. A very important advantage of this lens is of course the wide angle that makes it easily for you to capture the context in which your subject will be shot. Think more like ‘story-telling’.
(click for large image)
EVENT
Shooting on the streets with this lens is nice, but to really experience the advantage of the focal length I took this lens with me to Fashionchick Redesign Launch Event. And this lens really delivers. The focal length is just perfect of these kind of event.
TECHNICAL PART
Of course the technical part is also important. The barrel is nicely build and it’s great that the lens zooms within the barrel, so it doesn’t extents. Also the lens is quite lightweight and it’s weatherproof!
Of the aperture of 4.0 isn’t really fast, but when shooting with a wide angle lens the aperture isn’t that important because most part will be in focus. Of course an aperture of 2.8 would be better, but when shooting at events you still need a flash.
The focus is good ..not perfect (missed some shots during the event due to ghosting) and delivers sharp enough photos (comparable with the Canon 24-105mm f4 L) .
DOWNSIDES
A downside of this lens is the distortion …it’s quite obvious when shot at 17mm and also at 40mm, something I really did not expected. (See pics below) Another downside is the lack of the image stabilizer and the awfully large lens-hood.
CONCLUSION
I really want to purchase this lens because it’s very practical for events, delivers good quality photos, lightweight and not too expensive. Still having doubts though, because of the Canon 24-105mm I reviewed before (click here to read it).
Also curious about this lens? Take it out for a spin at Camex in Arnhem or visit their site www.camex.nl.