relatively fast and extremely reliable, the success rate with this lens is excellent. The outdoor scenic shots are breathtaking. For the money this is the best wide angle lens you can buy.

Compared to the 2.8 's it is way less expensive and easy to carry. The 2.8 to 4.0 gap can easily be covered by changing settings on the XT in most cases.

Also it gives a nice grip when held from the lens and this results in steady shots at high ISO settings. I have used it for nightshots, the shutter speed has to be slow to get the shot, got good and sharp results with the lens.

I have added a 50mm 1.4 prime lens to my collection but the 17-40mm is the one I have on most of the time when going out. ________________________________________________________________

   
I tested it against the 28-135 mm USM IS lens and . . . . ., January 3, 2006
Reviewer: Carlos O. Ruiz "BlenderPilot"

A friend photographer for a local newspaper showed up with one of these, brand new! I tested it against the 28-40 range and the pictures were completely identical in every way, sharpness in every corner, contrast, etc.

Just thought I let you know.
________________________________________________________________

        
Best lens I have ever had, November 25, 2005
Reviewer: T. Pham

This is my first L lens, and I like it very much. This is an ultra wide angle zoom lens which give you a much broader angle of view. I wasn't happy with the kit lens and the 28-135mm IS I had before in the term of wide angle. I later bought 70-200mm f/4 L lens which is on of the great lens that Canon offers for the price.
________________________________________________________________

          
Such A Solid Little Lens , November 12, 2005
Reviewer: Andrew Revels "Morey Revels"

My school owns this lens, and after using it, I realized that I had to have a copy of my own.

I recently purchased a 1d Mark II N and I also got the 17-40 L to go along with it. (Take Into Account The 1d2n has a 1.3x Crop factor, not 1.6x like the 10d, 20d, 300d, etc)

To start off, I've had my share of lenses and this lens stands up among the rest as being one the best. Solid, fluid USM with the ability to manual focus while in autofocus. (full time manual focusing)
(...)

Pros: Size (it's solid, but light compared to the sigma 24-70 2.8), USM, comes w/ lens hood and lens pouch, sharpness, color, contrast, sharp even wide open at f/4, very wide on the 1.3 crop body (as wide as my old 15mm fisheye on my old 1.6 crop body)

Cons: Little pricey, f/4 can be a little tedious in low light

Overall: This is an excellent lens. I love its size and I can feel confident shooting with it wide open.
________________________________________________________________

          
a workhorse lense, November 9, 2005
Reviewer: Conway Liao "Conway L."

with the 1.6X zoom on my rebel xt, this lense is still wide. the pictures are razor sharp, saturation is perfect, nice and compact, canon "L" quality definitely shines here. if you want one of the best lenses for your canon, look no further. the only downside to this lense is that once you go "L" - there is no turning back.
________________________________________________________________

          
 You get what you pay for, October 29, 2005
Reviewer: Gabriel Massip Fons

I've been using this lens for 2 years, always attached to an EOS 10D.

Good build quality, good optical performance. It becomes somewhat short if used as a "all purpouse lens" (even with the 1.6x 10D crop factor).
________________________________________________________________

          
Not for use with Built in Flash, October 26, 2005
Reviewer: David Khachadoorian "alaska computer doctor"

I actually returned this lens because it casts a large shadow when used with the built in flash - going to wait till I can buy an eos with a 1:1 ratio so i dont have to get the low mm lenses to get a full frame

________________________________________________________________

          
buyers read this, August 10, 2005
Reviewer: R. Baroody

I am frankly quite disappointed with the overall experience... coupled with the digital rebel xt, this $650 lens wont give you any more sharpness than the 50mm f/1.8 which runs at about $70. Further, at 17mm (27.2mm equivalent on the xt) the wide angle distortion is very visible...Also between 35-40mm, the lens' transmitted contrast degrades very fast (look at the MTF charts on canon's website). Further, in low light conditions, the f/4 isn't very helpful...The UV filter runs at about $40. This $700 experience isn't very pleasing. You don't get what you pay for at all.

   Back to Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L USM Ultra Wide Angle Zoom Lens for Canon SLR Cameras