So a day early maybe but it looks like the specs for the all new Canon 5D Mark III (3) have been leaked and they look perfect to my eyes. Gone is the frankly appallingly poor focusing to be replaced with 61-point high-density reticular AF, I don’t even know what is but it sounds fantastic especially as 41 of those point are cross point, to the 1 that is cross point on the current 5D Mk II.

Fingers crossed it will be available in the early part of 2012 and we won’t be waiting months to get out filthy mits on the camera. Everything on the spec sheet looks good to me, no omissions, no stupidly high pixel count and they haven’t gone all super video and forgotten about the real photographer. So it will be launched across the planet tomorrow the 2nd of March and hopefully it won’t have a silly price tag.

So here it is in all of its glory the full spec sheet for the all new Canon 5D Mark III, I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy, I might even treat myself.

Unsurpassed Image Quality
22.3 Megapixel Full Frame CMOS sensor
DiG!C 5+ Image Processor
ISO 100-25600 (expandable to L:50 H1:51200, H2: 102400
Full HD Movie (ISO 100-12800 (H:25600)

High Performance Operation
61-point high-density reticular AF (up to 41 crosstype points)
6.0 fps for high continuous shooting
Intelligent viewfinder with approx. 100% coverage
3.2-type, approx.1.04m dot (3:2 wide) Clear View LCD II
iFCL metering with 63-zone dual-layer sensor
Shutter durability of 150,000 cycles

High end features
Silent & low vibration modes
Dual card slots (CF & SD)
High Dynamic Range (HDR) Mode
Multiple Exposures
Comparative Playback function
Improved durability & water and dust resistance

SPECIFICATIONS
Available Colours – Black
Megapixels – 22MP
Sensor Size – 36 x 24mm
ISO/Sensitivity – 100 – 25600
Autofocus Points – 61 points
Lens Mount – Canon
LCD Size – 3.2?
Liveview – Yes
Viewfinder – Optical TTL
Min Shutter Speed – 30 sec
Max Shutter Speed – 1/8000 sec
Continuous Shooting Speed – 6 fps
Self Timer – 10 sec, 2 sec
Metering – Centre-weighted, Spot, Evaluative, Partial
Video Resolution – Full HD 1080
Memory Type – Compact Flash
Connectivity – USB 2, HDMI, Mic Input, Wireless (optional)
Battery – LP-E6
Battery Type – Lithium-ion
Charger – Includes Li-Ion Charger
File Formats – AVI, RAW, H.264, MOV, MPEG-4
Dimensions – 152 x 116 x 76mm
Box Contents – Battery Pack LP-E6 .. Battery Charger LC-E6 .. AV Cable AVC-DC400ST .. Interface Cable IFC-200U .. Eyecup Eg .. Wide Strap EWEOS5DMKIII .. CR1616 Lithium Battery+

Yes thats right it appears that right on schedule the iPad 3 will be announced in the first week of March and released at least in America the following week. There isn’t much news on when it will be available everywhere else if past esperiance is to go by it looks like the UK could see the iPad 3 available as early as March the 9th or 16th.

Will I be getting one, erm no I’ve already go an iPad 2 and I’m waiting for the new iMacs to be released with will hopefully be in April or May and will come with the new Ivy Bridge processors and it will have a slight redesign. My hope is that it will be available with an SSD as default and also a standard SATA hard drive. The chip set that is already in the current iMac allows for both drives to appear as a single drive with the most commonly access files automatically moved onto the SSD, so come Apple lets have it a super quick desktop Mac that we have all been waiting for!

A little over a year ago the stalk arrived with a beautiful little boy who wanted for nothing but actually needed loads and loads of new things from toys to prams and the odd bottle or 6 all of which needed plenty of research. So here is a list of the things that worked for us and we would consider as essential buys.

So lets start off with the things that worked and were the real best buys. I will do a mini review for each item as to why it was good or just average. Note that some things just didn’t get used in the first six months but were great 6months +

Newborn to 6 months the essentials – The best Buys

1. Quinny Buzz Pram + Accessories Review

A pram for me took more research that just about everything else put together, do you go lightweight, a system, get something that has a crib as well as the seat and that it can have a car seat attachment the list goes one. But after much deliberation and the odd test drive or three we got it down to the Quinny Buzz.

Why? Well it ticked all of the boxes, it was a system pram which fitted the MaxiCosi Cabriofix car seat great to transfer the little man from the car straight onto the pram without waking him when needed. It wasn’t heavy or too big and it felt great in the show. But lastly it is very easy to collapse and to get back up, a flick of a catch and you just watch it rise.

We added the shopping carrier, shame this doesn’t come as standard and we bought the Crib and foot-muff all proved to be great and of a high quality. Its way better than the Mothercare equivalent and as a combination beat the Mamas and Papas to boot, look no further this is a cracking pram system if not the cheapest. We also bought the footmuff and the carrycot plus the shopping basket, not cheap but its been fantastic.

2. Maxi- Cosi Cabriofix Car Seat Review

Not much to say about this really, it worked at treat, managed well with the odd spill and bang. Its not that light but then again you want to be strong so thats a good thing. Its won many a review for its design and safety and it also fitted with the pram, you see lots of them about and thats because they are very good.

They expand as they do, take some padding out first then the head restraint and it lasted to over 12 months when we bought a front facing seat. Its best not to move them to a forward facing seat too soon as their neck muscles aren’t that well developed. In fact many say that a rear facing seat is the safest thing until they are 2.

We bought both an Maxi-Cosi Easyfix Base that can be used as ISOFIX and without if the car doesn’t have it fitted which mine at the time didn’t. Its so so easy to get it in and out and it always gave that positive firm click when it was in place. That first trip home is a very special one and this seat certainly helped me feel better having him in it.

3. Mamas and Papas Coastline Cot Review

We went for the Mamas and Papas Coastline Cot and Changer, they feel like they are built like granite, are easy to construct and look good. The Cot itself has the benefit that it can be converted into a bed when the time is right and obviously the hight of the base of the cot is adjustable.

To adjust it isn’t the easiest sometimes as the screws aren’t the best at locating sometimes but after dropping it a few times it becomes easier once you get the knack. There are cheaper alternatives out there but this the one we liked the most for the money.

4. Tommee Tippee Bottles + Steamer

At some point you will need bottles but which ones? We went for the Tommee Tippee bottles as they had won plenty of reviews and several friends have used them. We had no problems with them and our little boy hasn’t either which is the main thing.We have only upgraded the bottle teats to faster flow ones as he got older, they are still in use today for his morning and night feeds.

As for the steamer it work faultlessly for 12months without a single hiccup and oh my its been used a lot. It holds loads of bottles and works quickly. Not the easiest to port around maybe but hey you get used to that.

 5. Tomy Starlight Dreamshow

Now there is a time when your baby can’t quite settle on his own,  but is getting too old to need to be rocked to sleep, this projector light is perfect for this. Attach it onto the side of the cot point it at the ceiling and hey presto you have something to attack the attention of your baby for long enough for them to drop to sleep on their own. You probably won’t have to use it for too long or too often but its worth its wait in gold when you do.

6. Lamaze Toys

Quite simply the whole range of Lamaze toys are great not one thing that we bought or where given to us hasn’t been great for him. The textures, sounds and noises that they make are all brilliant and help them to develop in many ways. I think his favourite was the dog that barked, bright green and with squeakers and all sorts, you don’t need many of them but they are a worthwhile and quality purchase.

7. BT 150 Baby Monitor

Well this bit can be a bit of a mine field, lots of different makes to buy and the big question of do you go for one with a camera or not. We decided not to get a camera, many people advised us not to as if you aren’t careful you just keep watching them all the time. This is fine when they are very young but its the sound that they make thats important not what they are doing. Also you need to be relaxed about them when they get older and settle into life they don’t need as much watching. We didn’t go for one that sensed their movement either for the same reasons as not getting a video camera plus some are unreliable and I personally think you might end up getting a little neurotic about them.
So we got a BT 150 Baby monitor and its been brilliant, its does all of the things we wanted, its got great battery life and is really sensitive almost too much if you don’t turn it down but hey its great to hear your own baby snoring himself to sleep as you drop off. The new range of BT Baby Monitors also has some new features and I’m sure are just as good.

 
8. Your Baby Week By Week

I’m not that keen on books that tell you how to do what you think should be instinctive but this book was a godsend as a new parent. Its not pushy or opinionated like some are but it guides you through the process of bringing up your baby. We tended to read ahead a month or so and it was brilliant at helping us to not get into bad habits.

For instance don’t take your baby out in the car to get them to sleep as they get used to it and always want the same each time which isn’t good for them or for you, I could go on but if you only buy one book get this one, it was probably our single best purchase.

9. Grobag Sleeping bags

From an early age our little boy wouldn’t keep still when he was sleeping with the net result that he would sometimes wake up in the middle of the night and be cold having kicked off his blankets. So we decided to get the smallest Grobag we could which had a nice extra feature of an extra set of poppers that meant he wouldn’t slip down inside it being so small.

From that point to today he is still in Grobags, the quality of the materials used and the designs of them all has been great. They help from a safety point of view and if you have a baby that moves around like ours does you will not be wanting to use a blanket thats for sure.

10. Fisher-Price Rainforest Gym

Last but not least the Fisher-Price Fainforest Gym again this is another essential purchase. It can keep your baby amused for hours before they get mobile and with the lights and the music they get to hear and see new things plus as they get older then start to reach out and play with the mobiles, hours of fun for everyone.

Back in the day Carbonite, for me was great; it backed up all of my data and worked flawlessly. But recently I’ve run into problems mainly support or lack of.

I’ve got a not inconsiderable 300Gb+ of data backed up online but a few weeks ago the client suddenly said I didn’t.

So I raised a support call and have been battling to get it fixed ever since. Initially I was told I had re-installed it on another computer erm, NO. Then they wanted to close the call already even though I was in dialogue with about 5 different support people.

Then I was told a web chat would sort it, guess what no joy send over some more log files. Then I found the software was filling up my hard drive, they didn’t seem to care.

So after sending 4 lots of log files, over 30 emails and a web chat the problem isn’t resolved. The client is now starting to backup all the flies from scratch which is annoying to say the least as I’ve already done it.

So in conclusion despite my other posts saying how good the service is, I’d say avoid it like the plague. You need a fire and forget solution not s hassle and stress service which is what I’ve got now.

So, I’ve moved to Crashplan it is much quicker to upload to it’s got more features and so far fingers crossed it’s still working just fine.

Update

So its all sorted and back working again, after a 7 week wait. Yes thats right it got sorted out in the end but it took an age to be resolved. No data was lost and I didn’t need to re-back everything up. And to help with silly wait I was refunded my entire subscription and then given a free year, I can’t ask for more than that.

I was told that they were looking for more people as they have expanded so fast they have more issues than they have support people, fair enough it happens a lot.

I still also use crashplan for local backups to an external HD that I keep out of the house so maybe I now have an even more resilient plan than before.

Now I love Gran Turismo or at least I did but with the release of GT5 everything has changed.

I initially said GT5 was great, I mean look at those graphics they are amazing, but good graphics don’t make a good game do they, NO! So what is wrong then?

• Well plenty of things really, firstly everything takes an age to load, I don’t want to wait several minutes to get into each race plus how many updates have there been and some of them have been huge.
• How many cars do I need to buy and why is it such hard work to get them? I mean why do I get awarded the car I need to do the race at the end not get give it as a reward of doing the race before maybe? It just seems daft and tiresome to often buy a car that is way to quick for the rest of the cars in the race not making it fun at all, and a game should be fun.
• Why do the cars that I get given go into a truck for me to accept or well accept, why can’t go straight into my garage and for it to say new cars or for them to be highlighted when I go into it, another stupidly unnecessary step.
• Damage, its there but its not. Its only available on premium cars and you can only use it when you have got to a high experiencing level.  Why? every other racing game manages to make the a great damage model available from the very start I don’t want to wait and I shouldn’t have to.

But above all the biggest thing is that its just not fun enough, far too much time is waisted buying a car that isn’t quick enough for the race you enter or more often is the case is way way to quick. Let us choose from 5 cars that are all similar for each race or indicate which are the right once to pick without going into the race looking, coming out buying seeing it needs upgrading and then going back in again. It really does detract from this being a stunning game. In the end I’ve gone back to playing NFS Shift which has its fair share of issues but its still great fun to play.

They could have made the game great, we all waited long enough but in the end its a massive miss that they may never recover from, I certainly won’t be pre-ordering it again when the next release comes out.

Is this the lens that I’ve been after all this time? With a 5DII now in my kit bag and being full frame the 5.6 at the wide end doesn’t really bother me.

As I do a bit of wedding photography the full weather proofing will come in handy as well as will the far lower weight of the full 70-200 f2.8 IS.

So how much does the new 70-300 IS L f4/5.6 weight then, well its not too bad at 1050g, that’s more than a standard 70-200 f4 L at 720g (IS 750g) but far less then the new 70-200 f2.8 IS II at 1540g so a result really considering the extra reach on offer.

So this could be the all new high quality travel and FF longer range lens of choice and we didn’t even see it coming, well done Canon.

UPDATE – Well maybe I was wrong about this lens, yes its got great reach for a crop and a nice range for FF but Canon has done it yet again, they have priced it too high. How the hell they think this lens is worth £1500 I have no idea.

Canon have recently recorded record profits in a downturn, this is probably due to the higher prices blamed on currency conversions and just plain rude pricing. I can only describe some of the new lenses as a complete rip off. Don’t even look at the price of the new extenders, how does an increase in the current priced ones of 120% sound, plain madness to me.
Maybe Canon should be investigated for its current pricing strategy in the UK, I can only hope that Nikon and Song go super aggressive on pricing and take the legs from underneath Canon and get them to wake up on the pricing. But then I doubt it.

UPDATE - Well it seems that at last the prices are starting to drop and Amazon have the lens at less than £1150 now the cheapest I found it available. Reviews have said its very sharp and actually a great lens to own, maybe I need to treat myself.

Its always nice when you get something through the post for free that might help you save some money. But not great when it doesn’t work.

So a week ago I set up the meter and its been working a treat but as I like my gadgets I thought I’d add the software onto my laptop and see what I could find out about my energy usage.

In the CD went and all look fine until I started up the software with a message about there is a problem with your software. Great what is the problem?

So I un-installed everything and tried again but still no joy and I got the same error.

So what’s the solution, run the install as an administrator. Yep I’m running Windows 7 (non ultimate) and I ran the setup.exe install program as administrator and hey presto it all installed fine and dandy.

My Dad has installed his on Windows 7 without problem, no idea why mine didn’t work but this might help some other people to fix there issues.

If you are reading this and fixed it another way then post away below and help others.

We all look forward to getting a new game especially when its a GOD / Empire building type game because lets be honest there aren’t many about these days. But sometime things can get in the way, and this time is some dreaded DRM. Know I don’t normally have an issue with this, I man game makes can get ripped off left right and centre as soon as they are launched and they need to make money after all.

The first hurdle – Installation / Getting it going

But things didn’t start well, when I installed Settlers 7 it didn’t work first time even though it even downloaded a patch before I fired up the game.  So I re-installed after removing it all for the same to happen.  So the troubleshooting started, here are a few tips.

1. Turn off dual screens if you have them. I did this and it at least tried to start, it seems after you have done this it you can turn them back on as the game is configured for using only a single screen.
2. Make sure you allow all the requests out through your firewall, doing this at least made it try and start but it still fell over. The standard changes are for the windows firewall but that doesn’t help if you are using Comodo or Zonealams
3. Turn off the Security level for Comodo, not the firewall that is left on but if I turn off the security hey presto it will fire up.

Yes yes its hard for a software supplier to test everything but Tropico started without problem so why can’t this be the same, oh and little or no DRM on Tropico and its been a dream to play.

Game Review – The Good

Well I’m up to about mission 5  or 6 and its brilliant so far, not too hard or easy but just right. The graphics are great and just about the right amount of serious and playful. The story line is evolving and the interface is pretty good as well. It is a bit confusing in some areas when trading, it seems you do it in the interface for trading but then can actually do it on the map or is it both, I’m a touch confused on that bit.

You need to get off the mark quickly on some missions to get ahead of your opponent that might need a second try to win but that is all part of the challenge.

Game Review – The Bad

Well I’ve mentioned the DRM a bit already and it really is a massive pain. Three times whilst playing the game its told my I’ve lost a connection. But so what I’m playing a local mission on my PC with no interaction with anyone else, why the hell do I care if I’ve lost connection. But in fairness its come back fairly quickly and I’ve been back to playing again.

But today takes the biscuit. Better half is out shopping for the day so I can get some quality gaming in but no, the Ubisoft servers are down and I can’t get a connection. Great so I can’t play a local game because I can’t get to the server. Now I can write this so by ADSL connection is fine but they can’t create a solution that allows me to play the game, pathetic.

Verdict

Well this is tough, I want to give the game a 9/10, its really really good but how can I give it a score like that when I can’t even play the game. DRM and the digital rights bill that is about to go through the commons in the UK is only going to make this sort of thing worse, not just for gaming but films and music. I buy all my games but do you know what I’d be looking for a crack if such a thing was available just to allow me to play the game.

So it seems its the verdict is

Ubisoft Game developers 9/10 well done you did a great job.

Ubisoft finance and marketing team 0/10, well done for killing a game I wonder how well this is going to affect your profits for this and future games, mine is going back to the retailer.

Until this issue is fixed for good I can’t recommend buying a game that might not work for a day or more (its still down after 2 hrs so far today). I will report back if there is a fix or the issue no longer occurs. Personally I’m off to play Tropico 3, that’s working perfectly and is just as good.

So I’ve had my trusty Fuji F30 for quite a while now but what replacement should I get and more to the point do I really need to  replace it?

The reason that I was so attracted to the F30 when it was launched was its stunning low light ability, at the time people were comparing it to SLR’s. It was never as good as the SLR’s lets be honest but it was way better than just about any compact camera that was on sale.

So this time around I think that a good sensor and thus great low light ability has to be top of the list, I’d like a longer reaching and wider lens greedy I know and potentially some nice HD video.

The contenders

• Panasonic LX3
• Canon S90
• Canon G11
• Sony DSC-HX5V

Well firstly I think I will clarify some of my requirements, I don’t want it to be too big, I’ve got an SLR to take full on shots, if I want to take those that will be with me, so it needs to be able to fit in my jeans pocket.

First to GO

That has to be the G11 then, its a great camera that ticks just about all the boxes but its just to big for what I want. I hear that the G11 is going to be the last in the G series range and it will be re-launched as an all new model with a complete re-design. I personally don’t think it needs to be as big and clunky as it is, many other cameras can do the same for much less size admittedly without so much control but maybe they have something new up their sleeve on that front.

Seconds out

Next to go is the Panasonic LX3, I don’t know why but its never really floated my boat. When I handled it I wasn’t too happy with the bulge on the front to contain the lens or the need to have a lens cap, I mean why surely a little shutter wouldn’t have been that hard would it.

Secondly the camera fixed the lens’s distortion for you which isn’t bad I guess I mean who needs a photo showing lots of barrel distortion, but then you aren’t getting the full shot for it to do this. So if you do shoot really wide and it does go fairly wide but it doesn’t go very long. The lens is nice and quick though at F2 when wide open, but ultimately this isn’t the camera for me, plus it must be due and update soon surely.

So its down to the Sony HX5 or the Canon S90

This is going to be tough, both of these cameras have their pro’s and cons.

Canon                                Sony

Lens         28-105 F2-4.9           ¦       25-250 f3.5-5.9

Sensor    1/1.7″ Type CCD        ¦       1 / 2.4 inch “Exmor R” CMOS sensor
10 Mpix                                10.2 Mpix

Screen    3.0″ 460k                      ¦       3.0″ 230k

Video      640 x 480 @ 30fps  ¦       1920 x 1080 50i AVCHD format

So the specs so far aren’t that much different, the Sony sensor is smaller but it is back lit so the photo sites are a similar size or possibly larger. The Lens is a different matter, do you want the long 250 or the super fast f/2 or the Canon, its a tough choice to say the least.

The Sony also has some pretty funky modes, like an auto panoramic mode, sweep the camera across the horizon and hey presto a panoramic shot. It also has a clever low light function that quickly takes 6 shots, merges them together and creates stunning hand held low light shots, or at least so some of the forums are saying for the existing model.

However when it comes to control the Canon probably has the nod, if you know what you are doing with a camera then you want to be able to control things and this is something the Canon does very well. From the unique wheel on the front of the camera to modes to control aperture and shutter priority it really excels at allowing full control over what you are shooting. But it appears that the old Sony doesn’t seem to have much control at all, fingers crossed they have realised this isn’t what people want form a top of the range camera and adds some more.

The Sony also has a GPS sensor, no I don’t know why more cameras don’t have it either especially SLRs but hey ho it seems camera manufactures can be a bit slow.

So which one would I go for?

Well that is a tough one, compact cameras are a funny thing. The Canon has a good sensor and a good lens, it is f/2 after all but then it is meant to have lots of distortion and it doesn’t really go that long. And what is that video mode about, 640×480 I had on a 3 year old mobile phone let along a top of the range compact camera. The extra potential adjustment and one thing I haven’t mention yet the ability to capture RAW is a big bonus.

The Sony does however have the newest feature set and do I really want to use a compact camera to shoot RAW or just get it out to take quick family shots, Mmmm this is a tough one indeed. The video mode will embarrass some Camcorders so that gets it a big vote and some of the clever features would be useful.

I’ve already seen some comparison high ISO shots of the same test scene and the Sony took the nod surprisingly but it was quite close. I think its a draw at the moment and I will see what the results of some of the reviews are and see a few more shots. I’d be interested to see if the control issues have been resolved and how sharp the lens is.

Either way both of these cameras are great, if only one could be created that merged best parts of both I’d be very happy indeed.

UPDATE

Well only a day after I’ve posted I might have found the camera and its not one of those already mentioned. Its the all new just announced Samsung TL350 or WB2000 depending on the market. So what makes this the potential choice I hear you asked.

Well its got a nice big 10Mpix 1/1.7″ sensor, a fairly quick f/2.8 Schnider lens at a super wide 24mm and it also goes all the way to 120mm at full zoom, so far so good. As for movie mode, well what can I say its got HD video at 30fps and even a very low resolution 1000fps slow motion function, a bit pointless but the HD video certainly isn’t.

Its also got a nice AMOLED screen with 640,000 pixels, so nice and high res. Its got a few other nice features like a panoramic mode and you can also take 10mpix images in the middle of taking a video, things are looking good.

But I’ve left the best bit till last, it can take photos in RAW and, it has fully manual controls hallelujah, why others don’t on a top end camera is a mystery to me. On and look at the power and memory meters, a nice little analogue dial, nice and retro.

So this could be it, will have to see what the image quality is like first and then make a final decision.

Well its been rumoured for a good while but Canon have eventually updated the long standing 70-200 f/2.8 IS. So what’s change?, well not a lot really. They have added some extra UD glass and updated the optics which is the main thing. They have also added the new 4 stop IS system replacing the old 2 stop that was originally fitted.

In terms of weight and size there is very little difference, the new lens is only 20 grams lighter which is welcome but hardly revolutionary for 9 years worth of lens advancement. Its got updated controls with a wider focusing ring and better weather sealing to bring it up to the latest standards as well.

But the frankly shocking thing is the price, in the UK its MRRP is £2700, compared to the current retail price of about £1400 (way up from last year but that’s currency fluctuations for you)  the new lens is almost double the current lens. Personally I think unless it comes down a lot when it hits the retail stores I think Canon are getting a little greedy on the profits front and they need to wake up and smell the coffee. Canon have lost a 15% advantage in market share over the last 3 years if this carries on updated lenses or not they aren’t going to keep and lead at this rate.

Full Press release and Detailed specification below

5th January 2010 – Canon today adds to its acclaimed L-series with the launch of the new EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM telephoto zoom lens. The lens launches as the successor to the immensely popular EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM, offering improved performance in every area.

True to the L-series’ heritage, the EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM delivers optical excellence in the most challenging situations. As well as a revamp of the internal optical system, the lens has also been structurally re-developed as a direct result of user feedback, making it as robust and reliable as it is optically advanced.

“Reuters’ photographers have used the EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM for a number of years and it allows photographers a great level of flexibility,” said Reuters Production Editor Kevin Coombs. “The focal length, fast aperture and Image Stabilizer all contribute to it being a workhorse lens and you’ll find it in many professional photographers’ camera bags. I’m very much looking forward to seeing the improvements offered by the EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM.”

Premium quality, premium performance

The EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM features a re-designed optical system, consisting of 23 elements in 19 groups to deliver truly impressive results. A high-performance fluorite element is used at the heart of the lens path, coupled with no fewer than five ultra-low dispersion (UD) elements, drastically reducing chromatic aberration throughout the zoom range to produce high contrast images with edge-to-edge definition.

A high-speed Auto Focus (AF) system perfectly matches the abilities of the recently-launched EOS-1D Mark IV and EOS 7D Digital SLR (DSLR) cameras. The new model also features a ring-type USM AF motor, which combines with a new high-speed CPU and an optimised AF algorithm to make auto focusing both faster and quieter.

A reduced minimum focusing distance of 1.2 metres (3.9 ft) and improved 0.21x magnification will allow photographers to get closer to subjects without needing to swap lenses – greatly benefitting time-pressured news and events photographers who require flexibility. An updated Image Stabilizer mechanism also offers a shutter speed advantage equivalent to four-stops, reducing the effect of image blur resulting from camera shake in busy shooting environments.

Enhanced design, exceptional ease of use

As well as an update to the internal construction, the EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM features an enhanced external appearance to improve lens operation. The thickness of protruding exterior parts and switches has been significantly reduced, guarding against accidental switching and creating an improved overall look. The rubber focusing grip has also been redesigned and widened; with finely-patterned grooves making it easier to manually focus.

Being an L-series lens, the EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM is fully weatherproof, making it ideal for use in all weather conditions. The mount, focus mode switch and focusing ring all feature a completely dust and drip-proof structure, preventing dust or water from getting inside the camera and lens when used with accompanying weatherproof EOS bodies. The lens has been designed to stand up to the daily wear and tear of professional usage, making it a highly durable, reliable lens for use day-to-day by professional photographers.

High quality L-series accessories

The EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM is supplied with several accessories, including the new ET-87 Lens Hood and the Ring-Type Tripod Collar B (W). A brand new Lens Case LZ1326 is also included as standard, offering quick and easy access when users need to switch lenses in time-pressured situations.

Compatibility with a range of optional Canon accessories also allows users to pair the EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM with the Lens Extender EF 1.4x II, Lens Extender EF 2x II, Extension Tube EF 12 II, Extension Tube EF 25 II, and 77mm filters.