I am debating whether to keep the Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L USM lens. My main reason for choosing the lens was the f/2.8 (and, of course, the “L” glass). I sparingly use flash and wanted a lens more suited to this shooting preference.
On Friday and Saturday evenings, I took the lens out at dusk for some difficult shooting. The picture here is of my daughter, goofing off through her parents’ bedroom window. I had to adjust this image quite a bit, using Apple’s iPhoto to change the brightness, contrast, and exposure.
My daughter is perfectly focused, even behind the mesh screen (I didn’t use software sharpening). The lens and camera passed a crucial test. I shot upward to the window, at dusk, and with no problem of camera shake. My daughter’s pupils are quite big from looking out into the near darkness, which is indicator of the amount of light.
Clearly, the old adage of “you get what you pay for” applies to this beautiful Canon “L” lens. Camera shake, particularly in low light, had been my biggest concern. But the len’s terrific balance combined with its other attributes and those of the Canon 20D dSLR show my concern to be unfounded; so far. This image was shot at f/2.8, 1/125 sec. and ISO 800.