A general purpose lens that takes sharp pictures.

[Tack Sharp]

Thanks Chris, I appreciate your feed back. I actually went and tested the EF-S 17-55 this morning... It was a great lens. Much sharper than my standard kit lens and it worked great in the store in low light. With concerns to the crop body factor, yes the lower end 17mm was better than the 24 that the EF 24-105 offers but am I going to be disappointed turning down the opportunity of buying an L lens? I mean, you even said it... I

[clemmb]

Thanks Chris, I appreciate your feed back. I actually went and tested the EF-S 17-55 this morning... It was a great lens. Much sharper than my standard kit lens and it worked great in the store in low light. With concerns to the crop body factor, yes the lower end 17mm was better than the 24 that the EF 24-105 offers but am I going to be disappointed turning down the opportunity of buying an L lens? I mean, you even said it... I'm after those Lays chips! (good glass)
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If you go with the 24-105 you may find it not wide enough as was said numerous times above. When I was making this decision with my XTi I looked back at many of my shots and found I rarely went lower than 24mm on my Tamron 17-50. The decision to go with the 24-105 was the right decision for me especially since I have now gone full frame. If you do not think you will ever go FF then I would go with the canon 17-55.


Mark

[Kayaker72]

The optics/glass on the 15-85 and 17-55 is on par with "L" lenses. The primary differences are in build and a red ring. But the build quality of the 15-85 and 17-55 is still very good to excellent.


Btw. I own the 15-85 and highly recommend it. But i agree with others. I

[neuroanatomist]

As Brant (Kayaker72) says, the 17-55mm and 15-85mm are delivering L-series optical quality on APS-C. The build of L lenses is better, no question - tougher and some, including the 24-105mm, are weather-sealed (but then, that

[Chris White]

Thanks Chris, I appreciate your feed back. I actually went and tested the EF-S 17-55 this morning... It was a great lens. Much sharper than my standard kit lens and it worked great in the store in low light. With concerns to the crop body factor, yes the lower end 17mm was better than the 24 that the EF 24-105 offers but am I going to be disappointed turning down the opportunity of buying an L lens? I mean, you even said it... I'm after those Lays chips! (good glass)

It really is hard to stop at one. In full disclosure, I have the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM, EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM and the EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM. The EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM yields the best results on my 50D. On my 5D II it is a different story, (not that you can put EF-S lenses on it) the latter two shine. I have never been as happy in particular with my EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM on my 50D as I have with my EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM lens. As both John (Fast Glass) and John (neuro) point out the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM is very high quality, even if not *quite* L glass. As far as IQ, which is your main concern, the EF-S choices are going to make you happier. I think your main deciding factor is what you want/need more, more reach (EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM) or twice the light across the entire focal range (EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM ). For me, my kids activities put me in the position of needing to be able to shoot in lower light without a flash, so I tend to favor the f/2.8 zooms. In my opinion if you choose the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM you will be very pleased. When I mix images form different cameras in an album there is no noticeable IQ difference. Even I need to think about which camera/lens combination I was using -- which is what I think we are all looking for.


Then you will want more....before you know it you have a set. []

[Tack Sharp]

Again thank you all for your input. I managed to test the EFS 15-85 and the EF 24-105 together yesterday... I desperately wanted the L lens to be great, but alas the EFS 15-85 was considerably sharper. Although in the future I probably will upgrade, I do agree with neuroanatomist (and my wife) in getting the right lens for the right body. I am going to go for the EFS 15-85. Much appreciate all your support and responses.

[Chris White]

I desperately wanted the L lens to be great

The 24-105mm L is great.

As Brant (Kayaker72) says, the 17-55mm and
15-85mm are delivering L-series optical quality on APS-C. The build of L
lenses is better, no question - tougher and some, including the
24-105mm, are weather-sealed (but then, that's only useful with a sealed
body, and the T3i isn't). But if your main concern is IQ, the 24-105mm
isn't your best option for your sensor.

As John and Brant correctly point out, it is not the best option for your T3i. It is like having the world's best hammer when you need a screwdriver, a great hammer is not going to loosen a tight screw without causing unwanted damage. (I know this is a stretched-for analogy, but you see what I mean.)

I'm a big proponent of getting the right lens for your current body.

I do agree with neuroanatomist (and my wife)

Exactly! []


In addition, you put careful thought into your decision. You sought some (hopefully) good advice and then tried each of your choices on your camera and then you made the best choice based on results. And as anyone here will attest to, if your wife is on-board the next lens is closer than you may now think. [:P]


Enjoy the EF-S 15-85mm, although I have not used one, most people who do are very happy with it.


Chris