Canon 16-35mm Mark II: Evaluation 1

Canon 16-35mm f2.8 Mark II v Leica 19mm f2.8 v Olympus 18mm f3.5

Performance at f4 (Zone A)

Olympus 18mm f3.5 at f3.5 (centre)	Leica 19mm at f4 (centre)	Canon 16-35mm f2.8 II at 18mm f4 (centre)
4.3 points	4.9 points	4.9 points

The half-stop penalty suffered by the Olympus catches up with it here as the other contenders step up their game one stop down. Again, both the Leica 19mm and the Canon 16-35mm are superb: the Elmarit resolves more information and sees deeper into the shadows; the Mark II zoom benefits from stronger macro-contrast.

Performance at f4 (Zone B: Right Side)

Olympus 18mm f3.5 at f4 (mid-frame)	Leica 19mm at f4 (mid-frame)	Canon 16-35mm f2.8 II / 18mm f4 (mid-frame)
3.9 points	4.8 points	4.9 points

However fine the Leica is at f4, the Canon is just a little better in Zone B, though it can't match the Leica for colour, frequently looking a little jaundiced by comparison.

Performance at f4 (Zone C: Upper Left Corner)

Olympus 18mm f3.5 at f3.5 (corner)	Leica 19mm at f4 (corner)	Canon 16-35mm f2.8 II at 18mm f4 (corner)
4.0 points	4.1 points	3.8 points

The Leica 19mm isn't entirely vignette-free one stop down but it does resolve strongly in the outer image circle – not as well as, for instance, the Contax N 17-35mm in the 17-19mm range, but well enough. The Canon 16-35mm is still off the pace. Amid the fog, the Zuiko (wide open) is seeing more of the corner than the Canon L at f4.