CANON EF 35MM F/1.4L II USM

The Mark II edition of Canon’s trusty 35mm f/1.4 is a major upgrade over the original, with high-tech attractions

BIGGER AND HEAVIER THAN CANON’S ORIGINAL 35MM F/1.4 L-SERIES LENS, THE MARK II WAS LAUNCHED FOUR YEARS AGO AT ABOUT TWICE THE PRICE. IT HAS A STURDIER BUILD AND ADDS WEATHER SEALS PLUS FLUORINE COATINGS ON FRONT AND REAR ELEMENTS, WHICH WERE LACKING IN THE ORIGINAL LENS.

THE OPTICAL DESIGN FEATURES 14 ELEMENTS IN 11 GROUPS, INCLUDING UD (ULTRA-LOW DISPERSION) GLASS AND TWO ASPHERICAL ELEMENTS. BIGGER

NEWS IS THAT THIS WAS CANON’S FIRST LENS TO FEATURE BR (BLUE SPECTRUM REFRACTIVE) OPTICS. IT’S BASED ON AN ORGANIC MATERIAL THAT’S ENGINEERED AT A MOLECULAR LEVEL AND INTEGRATED INTO A COMPOUND ELEMENT WITHIN THE LENS. THE EFFECT IS TO REFRACT BLUE LIGHT AND SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCE CHROMATIC ABERRATIONS, THUS ENABLING GREATER SHARPNESS AND CONTRAST IN IMAGES.

AS WELL AS HAVING A FAST APERTURE RATING,

THE LENS HAS A SPEEDY RING-TYPE ULTRASONIC AUTOFOCUS SYSTEM. IT’S NOT AS SILENT AS

THE STEPPING MOTORS IN MANY OF CANON’S

MORE RECENT LENSES, BUT IT’S WHISPER-QUIET NONETHELESS. AS USUAL FOR THIS TYPE OF SYSTEM, AUTOFOCUS COMES COMPLETE WITH FULL-TIME MANUAL OVERRIDE AND A FOCUS DISTANCE SCALE POSITIONED BENEATH A VIEWING WINDOW.

TRUE TO CANON’S CLAIMS, THE LENS DELIVERS SUPERB SHARPNESS AND CONTRAST, EVEN WHEN SHOOTING WIDE OPEN AT F/1.4. HOWEVER, SHARPNESS DROPS OFF TOWARDS THE EDGES AND CORNERS OF THE FRAME A LITTLE MORE THAN WITH THE COMPETING SIGMA AND TAMRON LENSES ON TEST, WHICH ARE ALSO AVAILABLE IN CANON EF MOUNT. LATERAL AND AXIAL COLOUR FRINGING ARE BOTH

VERY MINIMAL, AND THE TINY AMOUNT OF BARREL DISTORTION IS NEGLIGIBLE. OVERALL IT’S A HIGHPERFORMANCE LENS IN ALL RESPECTS.

Right Beauty that’s more than skin deep Far left Aperture f/8 Left Aperture f/1.4 THIS LENS’S MAIN CLAIM TO FAME IS THAT IT’S CANON’S FIRST TO FEATURE BLUE SPECTRUM REFRACTIVE OPTICS, BUT OTHER FACETS OF THE DESIGN ARE ALSO IMPRESSIVE SHARPNESS IS SUPERB ACROSS MOST OF THE IMAGE FRAME, BUT IT DROPS OFF TOWARDS THE EXTREME EDGES AND CORNERS A LITTLE MORE THAN WITH THE SIGMA AND TAMRON LATERAL AND AXIAL CHROMATIC ABERRATIONS ARE VERY MINIMAL AND BOKEH IS GOOD, WITH A SMOOTH TRANSITION BETWEEN FOCUSED AND DEFOCUSED AREAS