Product ReviewsCanon EF 300mm f/2.8 II IS L USM Lens

Personal Review Test of the Canon 300mm f2.8 L USM Non IS and the 2x Extender

Hello Ebay photographers! I have purchased my Canon 300mm f2.8 lens with the 2x teleconverter about 2 weeks ago. I would like to say it is an amazing lens right off the bad. The quality is very good. The build quality is excellent. The 2x teleconverter is fun to play with but I will not use it too much because it degrades the quality of this wonderful lens as well s looses 2 stops of light. For an extra $100, it is something nice to have and to use during daytime shooting. I will probably buy a 1.4 teleconverter for this lens in the future.

As for the lens itself, the reason why I gave it 4 out of 5 stars is because it is not a sharp as I would have hoped for. Yes, it is in focus about 60 - 75% of the time when I am shooting my sports (obviously sports you will tend to get more out of focus images anyway than portraits because the players are moving around very fast and in front of you) but I know it needs additional sharpening in Lightroom. That is the factor why I gave it 4 stars. For a prime lens like this I was expecting high expectations. I shoot high school sports most of the time and I do not sharpen my images because I only get paid for one hour of editing time at home so it does not pay to sharpen the images. Most of my time is spending shorting out the images for the schools. However, for my private sports, I will definitely will sharpen my images. This should solve the problem. Also, I will optimize my 5D Mark II with its custom functions setting to do micro adjustments for this lens. Many of the higher end bodies will have this feature and I am sure this will really bring out the full potential that I want from this prime lens.

Additional observation that I have noticed is that at f2.8, you really have to me spot on your subject to have it sharp and in focus. I need to shoot f2.8 a lot because I am dealing with very bad lighting on the football, baseball, and softball fields. Because of its shallow depth of field, f2.8 can really make it hard to keep the player sharp because they are moving so rapidly. I have not tried f4 or f5.6 yet for sports but I know the depth of field will be better. I can say one thing, at f2.8 for close up images, the shallow depth of field is amazing. I can see such a huge difference between the 70-200mm f2.8 at 200mm and the 300mm f2.8. A professional can spot the difference. 5 out of 5 for that!

Also, I thing the focusing speed may be slower because this lens is 23 years old (dating it with the code on the bottom of the lens). I tend to loose some really good action images because it was out of focus. However, I do not thing the age is the case because I am using a Canon 5D Mark II and a 60D with this lens. I think the focusing & tracking speed has to do with the bodies. I love my 5D Mark II for my weddings and that is why I have that body so I am probably not getting the full potential for this lens. When I purchase the Canon 7D Mark II, I think the tracking and focus speed of this lens will go away. This lens is in such pristine condition that I know the previous owner took very good care of it. That is why I bought this one at a higher price because the other lenses I saw were really beat up badly and I had a feeling something worse would be wrong with it. There was absolutely no scratches on this lens at all! The tripod mount had some wear on it but I can care less about that.

As a positive side note, if you need a 400mm lens but can not afford the price for one, this lens will really do the job. With my crop sensor camera, I get a 480mm (300x1.6=480). You are talking about thousands of dollars difference! You can always use a full frame and crop in tighter to get the distance but I would rather save the time and fill up my frame with the crop camera than constantly cropping every image tight in.

Overall, I am happy with this lens because the way how I can get images very far away and for its low light capabilities. Like I said earlier, I will test it out more with micro adjustments as well as with a faster camera body to handle this monster of a lens. The best personal part about this lens is that you will be noticed on the football field. Most of the photographers at the high school games have the Rebels with the kit lenses or a lens like the 18-300mm and think they can get the same quality of images. When you walk onto the field with this lens, the parents will take you seriously; especially if you have a 70-200mm f2.8 on a second body.

I hope that you found this review helpful.Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: dan_812

Much Improved over the previous version

Had the previous IS version for 15 years until the focus mechanism died and it can't be repaired - parts no longer avail. the mk II is lighter, focusses faster and seems brighter and a tad sharper. Expensive lens but it's a lens I rely on for my work every week.Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: montereypark

Best Lens Made

This is the best lens made. Sharp, fast, quiet, light, perfect for many sports, indoor and out. Expensive, but a Rolls Royce of lenses should cost a lot.

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: uscamerapro

Great Lens

Great lens. Very sharp, fast focusing. A bit heavy, but manageable. Works well with 1.4x and 2x teleconverters.

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: msell99k

Amazingly sharp, Great telephoto lens

This is amazingly sharp, and fast fixed telephoto lens. With image stabilizer technology even hand held shots were sharp. A great lens.

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: skymallus

Legendry Lens !!!

Super sharp , Super Fast , great colors , I could not believe the images it came from it ...

Great lens

This lens is even better first version. Great sharpness. Great color and contrast.

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: brngckn

Very happy with my purchase

Import tax expensive. Check it out before importing. Excellent purchase in pristine condition.

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: hiro_hiro_1986

nice lens

well taken care of lens

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: dougthebiker

Outstanding service

The lens was in impeccable shape.

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: uscamerapro