Lens Suggestions Needed

[Kayaker72]

I often pay attention to gear that people get a little emotional about. They use words like "love,' "excited," or "magic." I have seen some people that get excited about the 35 f/2 IS. Looking at the charts, I would tend to say the sharpness is pretty equal between the three lenses of that generation (24 f/2.8 IS, 28 f/2.8 IS, and 35 f/2 IS). The 35 f/2 IS may have a slight advantage, but it is slight. More important, start comparing the 28 f/2.8 IS to other "sharp" lenses, and it really holds its own. As a quick example, here is it against the TS-E 24 II. So, I would actually consider it to be sharp. But looking at OLAF, the tang/Sag lines are closer on the 35 f/2 IS, which usually means smoother bokeh/rendering which probably does more to explain the emotion I have hard over the years than sharpness.

So, I'd tend to agree in that I'd get the 35 f/2 IS, if possible. That said, I've always heard the 24 f/2.8 IS and 28 f/2.8 IS were very good lenses. Looking at the charts, they are plenty sharp, especially in the center. I would think you could take some excellent photos with any of them.