New Canon Lenses - 24-70mm f4L IS and 35mm f2 IS

Rumour has it that Canon will be introducing the EF 24-70mm f4L IS and the EF 35mm f2 IS lenses in the next few days.  The 35mm f2 IS, like the 24mm f2.8 IS and the 28mm f2.8 IS before it, replaces its ancient predecessor,  the EF 35mm f2 that uses the Arc form motor.  The introduction of the 35mm f2 IS is easy to understand, but many people will no doubt wonder, why a 24-70mm f4 IS when the 24-105mm f4 IS already exists?

I owned the 24-105mm f4L IS for a few months, and while it was a very good lens, the distortion at the wide end should not be this bad for an L lens, in my opinion, and it's not exactly the sharpest lens in town.  I think it makes sense if Canon can make the 24-70mm f4L IS lighter but with the same optical quality as the more expensive 24-70mm f2.8L II, and sell it at the same price as the 24-105mm f4L. It would be a great lens for full frame.  The 24-70mm f2.8L IS is a stellar lens, optically.

More interesting is the 35mm f2 IS.  I also owned the non-IS version for a little while and liked it a lot.  I even did a comparison of it against the 35mm f1.4L, here.  Again, the price of the new lens is a bit ridiculous at about $900, more than twice that of the lens it replaces.  Hopefully, over time, the prices will come down and settle down to around $500 to $600.

Downtown Tower - NEX-5N & Rodenstock Rodagon-WA 60mm f4.