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Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L USM

Camera Lens Astrophotography •3 replies•211 views
Michal Vokolek avatar
Michal Vokolek avatar
Anybody have experience with this lens? What you mean? Quality? Aberrations? Sharpness? Temperature affections? Alternatives? Positives/negatives? Best practices? Other experiences with this lens in astrophotography use?

Thank you for your replies.

Mike.
Yves-André avatar
Yves-André avatar
I have one ! I bought this f/4 instead of the f/2.8 because of his weight ! When you travel, it is really very important !
Quality , Sharpness excellent ! I use in winter and never experienced any worries.
if I should choose again, I would buy the same one !
Michal Vokolek avatar
Michal Vokolek avatar
Yves-André:
I have one ! I bought this f/4 instead of the f/2.8 because of his weight ! When you travel, it is really very important !
Quality , Sharpness excellent ! I use in winter and never experienced any worries.
if I should choose again, I would buy the same one !

I have same experience with this lens. No aberrations. I using this part of gear with Haida Clear Night filter in front of lens without any problems. BackyardEOS software assisted me in focusing. Classic manual focusing with focus ring is so hard. :-D In winter time i must waiting about 1 hour before focusing because temperature difference compensation.
Thank you for answer.
north.stargazer avatar
north.stargazer avatar
I've owned the f/2.8 version of this lens for many years. When I began taking astro photos last summer, it was one of the first pieces of equipment I grabbed. 
Canon uses premium glass and coatings in their L series lenses and its a fantastic lens just due to the flexibility it gives you. 

I'd say there is a slight amount of chromatic aberration when compared to my prime focus equipment, but the flexibility of going from 70-200mm is worth it IMO.

I already had the f/2.8, but if you're looking to get something new, purely for AP, I think the F4 is perfect. I won't often use mine wide open anyway. Also, if I decide to pair it with a cooled astro camera, I'll be stuck using the larger aperture. 
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