If I say there are 4 billion stars in the Milky Way, everyone accepts that. If I say the paint is wet, everyone checks for themselves. I’m not sure which path people are going to take with this statement: The Canon 24-70mm II is the best standard-range zoom ever made. By any manufacturer. Ever. It’s not close.

It’s also the most expensive 24-70 f/2.8 zoom made, but there’s a reason for that. Resolution is as good as most prime lenses throughout the zoom range. Distortion is low. Focusing is very quick and accurate.

If you need the absolute best, then this is what you need. That being said, there are a lot of very good choices in this range: Canon 24-105mm f/4L IS, Canon 24-70mm f/2.8, and the Tamron 24-70mm f/2.8 VC. All of them are very, very good. They just aren’t quite as good as this one.

January, 2013