LOL...not that it's the final price, but, is there something that the merchants know that we don't....
http://www.cameracanada.com/eNet-cart/Product.asp?pid=2751B002&type=
The page will take a moment to load, this an online Canadian Merchant.
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LOL...not that it's the final price, but, is there something that the merchants know that we don't....
http://www.cameracanada.com/eNet-cart/Product.asp?pid=2751B002&type=
The page will take a moment to load, this an online Canadian Merchant.
The first thing they say, in BOLD, is "Please Note: The price has not been released by Canon yet. We will add the correct price to our website once we are given official pricing from Canon Canada."
Also, keep in mind, Canada has some wacky prices for lenses. Canon 85mm f/1.8 is $567, or $517 after instant rebate on that site. Adorama has the lens for US$379, which is $405 Canadian according to Google's conversion, so even if their price WAS accurate, it's not what you're likely going to pay in the US.
MRSP of the f/2.8L IS is $1999 on Canon website, B&H sells it for $1799, and the MSRP of the f/2.8L IS II is $2499 on Canon, so I guess B&H and other retailers will have it for $2299. At $2300 I think it's fair!
However, when the EF 100/2.8L macro IS was released, Canon USA gave it an MSRP of $1049, and that's exactly how much it sold for. Only recently has the price decreased to about $949 in some places. Given this information, I think it is entirely likely that the same situation will occur for the EF 70-200/2.8L IS II. It will probably debut at the MSRP, then about 4-8 months later, it will drop by $100-200.
I will likely try to sell my copy of the Mark I, but not because I plan to buy the Mark II. As it is fairly new and the warranty has not expired, I expect to be able to get a good amount of money for it, given the high pricing of the Mark II. That is, of course, depending on whether retailers run out of stock on the Mark I as the Mark II becomes available.
So now the question has to be raised - Is the upgrade truly worth it? And does the ~$600 price difference make it a worthy upgrade to the already hugely popular EF 70-200 f/2.8 L IS?
For me, right off the bat, no.
But for many, professionals and amateurs alike, this lens has a great feature set to offer and based on the current MTF charts, promises better image quality as well. Although Bryan's review is yet to come, I can guarantee that there will be a good deal of people waiting to get there hands on the 70-200 f/2.8 L IS II, most notably photojournalists, sports photographers and wedding and portrait photographers.
As an owner of the the
70-200 f/2.8 L IS, I can't justify spending another $800-900 CAN on the
new model - I suppose it is a matter of priorities - If I had the funds available (student!) to purchase the 70-200 f/2.8 L IS II, I would most likely invest in a 5D Mark II or 1D Mark III. However, for example, a seasoned sports photographer using the 1D Mark IV and EF 400 f/2.8 L IS can appreciate (and justify) the extra cost of the 70-200 f/2.8 L IS II, and the upgrade, from a commercial standpoint, can prove to be well worth it.
I'm very impressed with the image quality I get from my 70-200 2.8 L IS, and although many comment on the lens as being soft wide open, real life images seem more than useably sharp, especially when I do my part right. For me, I think that it will take a while for me to consider the upgrade to the 70-200 2.8 L IS II. As my shooting conditions, viewing mediums (prints, web, screens), clients and subject matter become more demanding, this upgrade may be well worth it. But at the moment, I am more than happy with the 70-200 2.8 L IS as it is.
Just my $0.02, based on my shooting experience.
Quote:
Originally Posted by elmo_2006
If I didn`t already know the release price (CanonRumours), I would have not sleeped tonight. [;)]
Think about it - At $3500, an extra $500 gets you the highly corrected, built-like-a-rocket-ship, stunningly sharp EF 300mm f/2.8 L IS.
Sorry, I couldn't say built like a tank - The L zooms are built like tanks. The supertelephoto lenses - Now that's a different story.
Quote:
Originally Posted by wickerprints
I agree. Your post made me curious to look over some of the recent pricing of new lenses. I started a post on it here:
http://community.the-digital-picture.com/forums/p/3208/26432.aspx
If the recent trend for a 10% drop holds true, then we should see the price drop to $2,250. Then again, if the price behaves more like the 24mm f/1.4 II or the 70-200 f/4 L IS, then it wont get below $2,420.