I have just put my order in for the newly released 70-200 f/2.8L IS III, unfortunately it looks like I need to wait until August until I get to put my hands on it.

I think that the 70-200 f/2.8L IS II USM was the first L-series lens that I purchased when getting into photography, and while I tend to use it less now with the release of the new 100-400 f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, every time I do use it, I’m still impressed with the results.

One of the biggest improvements over the predecessor is that both the front and rear element has a  air sphere coating which should reduce the flaring, and suppress the reflection of light.  The new fluorine coating is supposed to help reduce smearing and fingerprints on the glass.

The weight of the new lens is advertised as slightly lighter (1490g vs. 1440g for the new lens).

In addition to the new Canon 70-200 f/2.8L IS III lens, Canon is also releasing an updated version of the 70-200 f/4L IS II lens, which has improved image stabilization with three modes, and decreasing the minimum focus distance.

You can read more about the release from Canon’s press release here.   Feel free to email me [email protected] if you have any questions, or if you want share your experiences with the new lens.