Quote Originally Posted by Kayaker72
I can see some purple fringing, the sea behind the surfers looks odd, and there seems to be a haze/fuzz around bright objects. But that is looking at 100% crops. Are those the areas where the new lenses will be better or are there others? Will they also be sharper?

Hi Brant,


Those are the main areas, yes. The images from any of the L lenses that you mention will be sharper, suffer from less chromatic aberration (purple fringing), and have better color and contrast than images from your current lens.


Looking at your shots, you'll probably want the longest lens possible - that would be the 100-400mm. However, based on the MTF charts, the new 70-300mm L lens seems to be sharpest of the three. It has better IS too, but that's not a big factor at the shutter speeds you're using above. The new 70-300mm L is also not going to be much bigger (physically) than your current 75-300mm (fatter, but not much longer). The 100-400mm is a substantially longer and heavier lens.


The 70-200mm f/4L is a fine lens, especially the IS version which falls within your budget. But for shots like those above, giving up 100mm on the long end is not a great idea. So, my recommendation would be to wait for the reviews of the new 70-300mm L lens, assuming you're not in a rush for a new lens. The focal length is the same as you've got now. Or, if you feel you need the extra reach (if you routinely crop shots as you did above, then you do need as much reach as you can get), the 100-400mm on a 7D is a great combo.


Good luck with your decision!


--John