Sparkography

Drool, drool, drool…

Well would you Adam and Eve it. There I was about to take the plunge and invest my future kids’ school fees into the Canon EF 70-200mm f2.8 IS USM lens (as of course you would) and what happens? Canon go and launch the mk II version today, that’s what!

But you can’t deny it – this is a thing of beauty and a true object of desire.

I mean, just look at it!

But how frustrating! After weeks of exhaustively researching websites and magazines to establish which piece of glass would be my first purchase with which to adorn my beloved Canon 5D2, I knew the 70-200 was the lens I wanted and needed: amazingly fast, versatile and able to get up nice and tight for portraits and candids. And of course incredibly cool to be seen with!

Fashion and photography have always been inextricably linked, and no camera product range waves the fashion flag as much as Canon’s L series lenses. According to ancient legend, the “L” stands for Luxury which is easy to believe given that these are the most expensive lenses that Canon produce. Members of this exclusive club can be recognised instantly by their distinctive red ring, which means slinging one of these over your shoulder is the photographic equivalent of wearing Prada Sport.

Couple that with the always-in-season putty finish of the telephoto L lenses and you have the ultimate accessory to be seen with. It’s hard to equate this to just one fashion item, so try this: close your eyes and imagine Scarlett Johansson decked out in a little black Givenchy dress, Chanel sunglasses, an Hermes scarf, Marc Jacobs handbag and Manolo Blahnik killer heels.

That will get you slightly close to what I’m talking about.

And therein lies the problem: both 70-200mm lenses are absolutely exquisite in functionality and results and if I’m honest, would I be able to tell the difference between photos taken from them? No, of course not. I imagine 99% of professionals won’t be able to tell the difference. But say you heard that Claudia Schiffer was single and looking for a photographer boyfriend and you also heard that she has an equally hot sister who is 10 years younger and has better taste than to marry David Copperfield, which one would you go for?  Both would be equally head turning, both would bestow instant kudos upon you in the pub, and both would ensure instant entrance to VIP areas in nightclubs all over the world (if you’re into that sort of thing).

So that leads to my dilemma: do I go for what is now last season’s 70-200mm lens whose only future in making headlines lies in being inducted into the camera lens Hall Of Fame? Or do I wait until April for the mk II and pay the premium to have the hottest supermodel on the planet?!

What would you do?