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 f16 (Zone A)

Olympus 18mm f3.5 at f16 (centre)	Leica 19mm at f16 (centre)	Canon 16-35mm f2.8 II at 18mm f16 (centre)
4.6 points	4.8 points	4.8 points

The Olympus responds well to being stopped down this far, but the other lenses in the group are beginning to soften up slightly.

Performance at f16 (Zone B: Foreground, Middle)

Olympus 18mm f3.5 at f16 (mid-frame)	Leica 19mm at f16 (mid-frame)	Canon 16-35mm f2.8 II / 18mm f16 (mid-frame)
4.7 points	4.8 points	4.9 points

There's nothing at all wrong with the Canon's performance in the near-field range: indeed in outperforms both primes when stopped down.

Performance at f16 (Zone C: Upper Right Corner)

Olympus 18mm f3.5 at f16 (corner)	Leica 19mm at f16 (corner)	Canon 16-35mm f2.8 II at 18mm f16 (corner)
4.4 points	4.5 points	4.5 points

Stopping down brings further benefits for the Canon: almost entirely eliminating CA. Both the Olympus and the Leica are showing traces here against the sky. It's a shame that we haven't seen a critically sharp corner from any of these lenses at any aperture; it seems to be the exclusive property of the Zeiss 21mm and Contax N 17-35mm f2.8 to deliver a rating of more than 4.5 in Zone C.