Canon EF 20-35mm f/2.8 L

Fills an important niche Fast ultra-wide zooms are really expensive. This one ain't. It's built like a tank and my copy is silky smooth. The focal range of this lens is perfect for candids & street photography without much distortion and it's fast. It's useful for landscapes but sometimes I want to go wider than 20mm and so I also bought the Rokinon 16mm f2.8. If you want one lens to do everything, you have to spend a lot more. The 17-40 f4 and 17-35 f2.8 are more affordable replacements but the 17-35 isn't as sharp (I've heard) and the f4 isn't as fast, forcing you to use higher ISOs. A cheaper option is the 20-35 f3.5-4.5 USM which I also have, and it is comparably sharp but not as fast. That's its only downfall. If you don't need f2.8, get the USM version. It's fantastic for the prices they're going for in 2017. Every lens has its purpose and for me this lens is perfect for landscapes and light painting particularly when I want f2.8, like shooting <30 second exposures of the sky, and for street and candids. Read full review

Exceptional lens for the current cost--get a good copy though! The Canon EF 20-35mm f/2.8L USM is still an excellent lens even though copies are now 20 years old and older. If you can find a good copy, you're golden. Mine is in exceptional shape cosmetically and the glass performs solidly--no fungus or dust, it's obvious the lens was cared for. There does appear to be something causing a very tiny light refraction when you look inside the lens in the light though. One thing I've noticed with the lens is that it doesn't care for high ISO on my Canon 6D. Shooting hand held in low light, even at High ISO with enough shutter speed yields less than exceptional results from my perspective. The lens is very unforgiving on a full frame camera with imperfect technique. Also, wide open the corners are a bit softer than I would expect from Canon L glass. Where it shines is with landscapes, at between f/9 and f/16, tripod mounted, mirror locked up on the 2s timer so that camera shake is absolutely non-existent. Overall, I am pleased with the lens especially since it was relatively inexpensive for what you receive now that new L glass is well over $1500 for comparable wide zooms. If you find a good copy and learn its strengths and limitations, you won't be sorry. Just don't break it because they cannot be fixed!Read full review

Great Old "L" Lens with Lot of Value Canon EF 20-35mm f/2.8 L is old Canon "L" lens for all Canon EOS cameras cropped or full frame. This is old version of 16-35mm f/2.8 L lens. You get very sharp images from this lens and colors are lovely with good contrast. Only question is whether 20mm is wide enough for you which is plenty wide for me on my 6D. I use this lens when I want lot of background with my subject. I mostly shoot people so this works very well for me, but many people also use 24-70mm 2.8. So you only gain 4mm wider compared to 8mm on a 16mm-35mm lens. As for price, I got it for around $200 so it was a no brainier for me. I prefer this lens over 35mm f2 lens and don't want to pay 3-4 times the cost for a lens that I would use only in certain situations. Cost will vary depending on the condition of the lens. My lens had af-mf switch broken but I almost never use mf so no big deal. I doubt you will be able to find one in mint cond. Still, I love old bargain quality lens with wear as long as glass elements are clean and does the job. ^_^Read full review