Choosing an ultra wide zoom for 70D

[Bob Ohlemann]

I am really enjoying shooting with the 70D and have decided that I would like to go wider than the 18-135 STM kit lens (or my 17-40L) will get me. I considered the Canon 8-15 f/4L but it won't take filters so it is out.

I am really between two ultra wide zooms; the Canon EF-s 10-22 f/3.5-4.5 or the Tokina AT-X 11-16 f/2.8 PRO DX-II. Both are the same price right now. I have owned the Canon before and felt it was an excellent lens for still photography. They both have 77mm filter threads so that is convenient for my NDs. The Canon gives me more zoom range at the cost of less light. The constant f/2.8 of the Tokina sounds nice since I always expose in manual. My understanding is that one of the big features of the Tokina DX-II is a silent AF motor which would be beneficial with the 70D's AF. I could only find one video online of the 11-16 DX-II being used on a 70D but, it looked to be focusing without issue.

So, what am I missing? I think I'm leaning toward the Tokina but there's just not much info out there on how well it works with the 70D for AF video.

Bob

[Seth Bloombaum]

Can't speak to the continuous AF on the 70D (still 60D here), but...

That Tokina 11-16mm is a mighty fine ultra-WA on a crop cam. I was first introduced to it by an early user of the 7D for video, someone who shoots a LOT of video on all sorts of cams, and I haven't been disappointed. Very pretty pictures and video, I love this lens! Great reputation among the shooters I know.

I recently did some comparison testing on the still side. The picture is is uniformly very good right out to the edges. It compares very favorably with the prime Canon 14mm L lens, an outstanding short prime.

It is a rectilinear (non-fisheye) on crop-sensor, with minute to no barrel distortion at the edges at 11mm, minute to no chromatic abberration at the edges, and it is a sharp lens, very sharp!

I only know the Canon 10-22 by reputation & specs, but I'm old-fashioned and don't buy video lenses without constant aperture. I've seen some outstanding stills...

If you do consider the Tokina, there are two Canon versions being sold, the "II" has an update to the focusing motor, which might be essential for continuous AF on the 70D.

[Michael Bishop]

I pick up a Tokina AT-X 11-16 f/2.8 PRO DX-II lens today. I have shot not any video yet with it. I did talk a few photos. I will try it out in video Friday or Saturday. I want it for shooting video at night in the city. That way I have the 50mm 1.8 and the 2,8 Tokina for wide views at night.

[Bob Ohlemann]

I went with the new model of the Tokina 11-16mm. It should be here Monday. Really looking forward to seeing how it performs on the 70D. Additional benefit is that it works at 15-16mm on my 5DII.

Bob

[Michael Bishop]

I went out Sunday and shoot some video started out using the 11-16mm. Then I put the 18-135mm lens on. One thing I seen with the 11-16mm was if your shooting a seen where you have bright light and part shad it's hard to adjust exposure, but that would with any lens I thing. I got it for low light night shooting. Plus this is only the second time I have shoot video with a DSLR. When I got downtown it was like 11 AM I put a circular polarizing filter on the 18-135 lens when the sun got up high in the sky.

I just started learning to shoot video with Canon VIXIA HF G10 this year and got the 70D about month ago. Over the last 7 years I just video from my motorcycle and could not adjust them type of cameras. That's why I learning photography to. Here is the video I got Sunday it starts out with the 11-16mm.

Took A Stroll In Downtown Indy Before The Big Game on Vimeo

[Bob Ohlemann]

My Tokina 11-16 came in yesterday. This morning I put a Tiffen vari-ND on it and went out to do some testing on the 70D. Big no-go! I get really bad dark spots in the top-right and bottom-left corners. It goes away when I dial the ND back to about 3 stops but that doesn't help much in full sun at f/2.8. I've not had this issue on other lenses so I'm thinking that it is the ultra wide nature of the lens combined with the need for more ND due to the f/2.8. I have a 3 and a 10 stop fixed ND; looks like I'm going to have to spring for a 6-stop.

Other than the ND issue, I find the focus a little jerky and louder than I would have expected since the new DX-II was supposed to have a silent motor. It seems to hunt a little which the Canon 18-135 STM just doesn't do. There is an audible chirp when changing aperture. Image quality so far seems excellent. Also, the lens is smaller than I expected, so that is nice.

Bob

[Bob Ohlemann]

I put the Tokina 11-16 on my 5DII this evening and shot my first timelapse. It is really only useable at 15-16mm but it does a nice job. This was shot all manual at 30sec intervals, f/16 in raw. I brought the exposure up a stop in ACR then rendered the sequence in AE. I then put a Lumetri Look on it in PP and exported it. I'm ok with the flare but it would be nicer in a yellow or red. I think a 15 second interval would have looked better.

Bob