When I look back a few years at when I shot with the original 5D, I always remember wanting to buy a Canon 35L 1.4 lens to go with it. Yea, I had the 24 1.4L, the magical 50 1.2L (my fave canon lens), the 85 1.2L, and even the 135 F2L. I never did buy the 35 though, and I think it was due to the fact that B&H Photo was out of stock for months at a time. I always seemed to miss the boat when they would get stock in.

Now in 2009, with the 5DMKII, I once again wanted to check out a 35L. But guess what? B&H is still out of stock! No, they have not been out of stock for years, but when this lens IS in stock, it sells out in a matter of days, sometimes hours. It is a lens that many want to get their hands on because it is a fast, semi-wide Canon L prime that gives a true 35mm focal length on full frame, with just over a 50mm focal length on a crop Canon camera... Both popular focal lengths.

This time, I decided SCREW IT! I am going to rent this lens and FINALLY I will get to try it out! So, I hopped on over to an online camera rental shop that rents out lenses and I added it to my cart and hit submit!

It was on its way and I couldn't wait to finally try this lens out!

When it arrived, I immediately slapped it onto the 5DII (see my 5DII review here). Did it live up to my expectations? Did it perform like I always imagined it would? Well, for the most part, YES. It did.

BUILD AND APPEARANCE

The 35L is a huge hunk O’ glass due to its fast 1.4 Aperture. Still, it is smaller than a 24-70 Canon Zoom, but MUCH larger than my little Leica 28 Elmarit. The build quality is good, up to Canon L standards. What are L standards you ask? Well, in case you are not aware, Canon’s L series of lenses are meant to be their professional quality lenses. They all have the red ring near the front of the lens barrel and are all built to last you a lifetime. The best glass and solid build. Period.

An L lens WILL give you sharper images, better color, and even better tone than a non-L piece of glass. You want the best for your Canon? Get an L and don’t look back. Plus, the cool thing is that Canon L glass holds its value much better than the NON-L glass.

Next to my little Leica 28 Elmarit (see review), the Canon 35L looks like a monster, but fear not. On a 5D or 5DII, the 35L fits nicely and has good balance on the camera. It feels good in the hand and is not too heavy. Plus, shooting without the hood takes away its skyscraper look and makes it semi-normal sized. For a DSLR, this is a good size. For my M8, the Elmarit is a good size. Plus, my little Leica is a 2.8 lens, not a fast 1.4 like the Canon.

YOU KNOW YOU WANT AN “L”...BUT THE COST!

Canon has some great prime lenses in their line-up of L glass. The 24 1.4L lens is a GREAT wide-angle lens with a FAST 1.4 aperture. I LOVE the 24L (will review it eventually) and it can be used to create some cool effects with shallow depth of field. The others, like the 50L, 85L, and 135L are also simply amazing lenses that you can be proud to own. They are in a class all of their own in the DSLR world. Nikon cannot even compete with Canon here.

Nikon does not have a current 24 1.4, 50 1.2, or 85 1.2. They have a 50 1.4, but its not pro- grade. Their 85, while having a magic all of its own, is only a 1.4. If you want a Nikon 24 1.4, be prepared to pay as you can only buy it used. Nikon, for some reason, stopped production of their 24 1.4 a few years ago. Now used MINT versions go for BIG BUCKS.

SPEED=$$$. Me, I LOVE FAST GLASS. The faster, the better. If I had the cash, I would buy the new Leica Noctilux F0.95. All I need is a spare $10,000. NOT GONNA HAPPEN, but I can dream, can’t I?

The only drawback to L glass is the price. ALL of the L primes are over $1,000. The 35L is about $1200 and L GLASS varies from $1200 to $1900...Much more reasonable than Leica lenses. But are they worth it? I say YES.

I will admit that the canon lenses are not equal to the good Leica lenses as far as sharpness is concerned. BUT, to me, sharpness is not the holy grail for a good image. I look for character and the way the lens renders the scene (why I love Leica). Many refer to this as the way a lens “draws”. Like an artist with a canvas and brush, every lens will render images a bit differently.

Yea, yea...I can hear many of you now saying this is total BS. A lens is a lens and any lens over $200 is a scam. MANY people really do think this. Many people think a standard canon 85 1.8 lens can create images with the same look as the Canon 85 L 1.2 lens. THIS IS 100% NOT TRUE! Just not gonna happen.

So, by now you are probably ready for the meat and potatoes. You want to know what I think of this lens and you want to see some samples. Well, I have some full-size samples for you as well as some crops at different apertures later on in this review. For now, here are some standard shots I took with the lens. Just click any image below for a larger size.

As you can see, if you downloaded the SCRUBBY shot above, at 1.4 wide open, in the center, the lens is VERY sharp. Hell, its as sharp as I would ever need at 1.4. But remember, sharpness is not everything in an image. Some of the coolest shots I have ever seen were not even sharp. Do not always judge a lens by its sharpness! But the 35L has it if you need it.

Also, you may notice the shots in this review all have the “Canon Look” - Canon cameras will give you more muted colors, but in reality, THIS IS REALITY! When I look at the shots above, they are pretty much just how I remember seeing them. The colors are not all jacked up like Nikon tends to do. They are more mellow and velvety-smooth. The smoothness is due to the sensor in the 5DII. If you have not yet seen my 5DII review, click here for the goods.

C’MON STEVE! SHOW ME THE CROPS!

I promised you some full-size shots and crops and I will deliver, BUT I have to make a confession. I kind of goofed when doing the test shots to test sharpness at all apertures. I accidentally had the 5DII set at ISO 640, so you will not be seeing a 100% accurate depiction of what the lens can do. Instead, you will see how sharp it can be with the 5DII at ISO 640! C’mon, that’s even better!

I do make up for it after these crops with a FULL-SIZE shot at 2.8, ISO 100. This will show you that this lens CAN BE super-sharp and will give you an idea of what to expect out of it. 

On to the test/crop shots. Below is the shot and under it will be the crops at various apertures:

F1.4 - inside oscars mouth

f2.8 - inside oscars mouth

f3.5 - inside oscars mouth

OK, OK!! I will stop here. WHY? Because from 1.4 to F11, this lens is as sharp as a tack through most of the center. At the edges it gets a little soft, but only when used on an FF camera.

Below is a shot that was taken at F2.8, ISO 100, and in good light outside. I took a shot with the 35L at F2.8 and just for fun, my Leica 28 Elmarit on the M8 at 2.8.

Which “rendering” do you prefer? First is the Canon 5DMKII, 35L at 2.8 - click for full size image.

Now, just for comparison and fun, I took a shot with my M8 from *approximately* the same spot. There is a small focal length difference so they will not be exactly the same. The M8 file can also be clicked on for the full size image.

For those who do not want to download two huge files, here are the crops. Keep in mind, the 5DII is more than double the resolution of the Leica M8 (see review here). The smaller crop is the M8 crop and the larger is, of course, the 5DII.

As you can see, the 35L, when stopped down to 2.8, holds its own against the 28 Elmarit, which is wide open at 2.8, IN THE CENTER. In the corners, the 35L gets a little soft, even at 2.8! But, the 35L is being used on a FULL-FRAME camera. The Leica 28 Elmarit is being used on the 1.3 crop M8, which means the outer corners of the lens are not being used. Still, I have seen the Elmarit used on a full frame M7 film camera and the corners were crazy sharp. This test shows that while the 35L can create a nice image stopped down, the Leica wide open still beats it. Guess there is a reason why Leica is so expensive!

100% CROPS FROM THE CANON 5DMKII AND 35L SHOT - 2.8 -LEFT CORNER

100% CROPS FROM THE M8/28 ELMARIT SHOT - 2.8 - LEFT CORNER

Hopefully, the crops above will be helpful. One other thing I want to touch on with this lens is that if you shoot it at its minimum focus distance, up close, AND you are shooting a portrait or straight lines, then expect some barrel distortion as well. Chromatic Aberrations, purple fringing, and flare is very low and in fact, I did not see it in any of the images I took during my time with the 35L. Does this mean it does not exist? No, just that I did not experience it.

Canon knows how to make a great lens and their “L” primes are the best of their stock.

MY THOUGHTS AND CONCLUSIONS ON THE 35L

The Canon 35L lives up to its “L” badge and gives you a super-fast 1.4 aperture for low light or cool, shallow, depth-of-field effects. Stopped down, it is as sharp as can be in the center. Even wide open, it is sharp at your focus point. It does get a little soft at the corners when shot on a full-frame camera like the 5DII (which is almost gone by F8), but this does not take away from the beautiful rendering of this lens.

Is it the best 35mm lens I have ever used? No, that would go to the Leica Summicron, but the Canon is probably the 2nd best. Comparing it to a $2500 Leica lens speaks a great deal about Canons ability to offer a super-high quality 35mm lens at a decent price. Comparing it to a Nikon 35F2, well, there is no comparison. I’ll leave it at that.

If I owned a 5DII, I would love to own the 24L, 35L, 50L, 85L, and 70-200L. That would be a perfect set of lenses and would be all I needed for what I do. Image quality-wise, it doesn't get much better than that setup.

I can think of no other 35mm I would buy over this one for the Canon mount. Even when Zeiss releases their 35 for the EF mount, it will be F2 and not as fast as the L. If you want the best 35mm lens for a Canon EF mount camera, look no further than the 35L 1.4 lens. It’s already a legend, and as stated earlier, usually sold out at most online shops.

When I buy camera gear, my apple computers, or even the oddball things like a telescope, I shop at B&H Photo. They have great pricing, FAST, same-day shipping, and a GREAT return policy. I have been shopping with them for MANY years and never have had an issue. Amazon is my #2 choice for electronics, movies, or just about anything.

To check out the Canon 35L page at B&H, click here. B&H sells this lens for $1180, IF YOU CAN FIND IT IN STOCK! If you do, jump on it as they sell out QUICK.