Canon TS-E 17/4L and 24/3.5L II in infrared

There aren’t many wide angle lenses that perform well in infrared; nearly all of them have troublesome hot spots or otherwise poor performance.

In fact, according to my tests of 60 or so lenses for the diglloyd Guide to Digital Infrared Photography, there are essentially no conventional wide angles free of issues (a strong hot spot in most cases).

The exception are industrial lenses such as the Zeiss ZF 25/2.8 IR-Distagon, with special coatings, a mainstay for my infrared shooting with my Canon 5D-IR. You generally cannot buy the IR lenses from Zeiss however.

Now along come the new Canon TS-E 17/4L and 24/3.5L II, just recently reviewed in DAP, and I have to say I’m astonished at just how good they are for infrared— head and shoulder above all other wide angles I’ve tried (except for the ZF 25/2.8 IR-Distagon). Canon’s claim of a “specially coated aspherical element” holds more than a little water here, and is a serious breakthrough for infrared shooters. For more infrared examples, see the review.