Canon EF S 17 85mm f/4 5.6 Image Stabilized USM SLR Lens for EOS Digital SLR's
Normal Price:$468.68
Our Price:$556.49 (Sale Price!)
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Manufacturer: Canon
Model: 9517A002
Binding: Electronics
Publisher: Canon
Label: Canon
Features for Canon EF S 17 85mm f/4 5.6 Image Stabilized USM SLR Lens for EOS Digital SLR's:
- 17-85mm standard zoom lens with f/4-5.6 maximum aperture for EOS digital SLR cameras
- Image Stabilization system reduces camera shake to extend use in low-light levels
- Aspheric element and 2 aspherical surfaces deliver excellent optical quality
- Ring-type ultra-sonic monitor (USM) for superior autofocusing; 1.15-feet close focusing
- Measures 3.1 inches in diameter and 3.6 inches long; weighs 16.8 ounces; 1-year warranty
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Customer Reviews
Good medium grade lens 
2008-05-14
Bought the Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 lens to use as a general purpose lens on my Canon 40D. Overall I am pleased with the quality of the optics. It's not a "L" lens so don't expect it to perform like one. One complaint I have is that the zoom ring feels a little loose and wobbly. However the focus ring is tight and precise.
I have owned a Sigma 17-70mm lens in the past which is the direct competitor of the Canon 17-85mm. The Sigma has a bigger aperture of f2.8 but a lower range than the Canon. The Canon provides fulltime manual focus and IS, which is not available on the Sigma. Personally I liked the pictures the Canon lens produced over that of the Sigma.
shipped too early 
2008-05-11
I ordered this lens, as well as a camera body, at the same time. The lens arrived a month ago; the camera body is delayed until the end of June. How can I assess this lens without the camera body? I wanted them shipped together, not two months apart!
Canon EF-S 17-85 lens 
2008-05-09
This lens let me take three other lens from my camera bag.
All around great lens for studio work and outdoor or weddings too.
The lens that should have been included 2008-05-03
This lens was originally part of the 40D kit. I don't know why, but now the cheaply made, overall useless 28-135 mm lens is the only lens you can find in the kit. You are better off buying the body only then purchasing this lens. Remember that the 40D has a crop factor of 1.6 - meaning that you have to multiply your lens by 1.6 - so a 28-135 is actually a 45-216 mm lens. Nice on the zoom part - awful on the other!
This lens is equivalent to a 28-136 mm lens - a perfect overall size. Picture being in a 12x12 foot room. With this lens you can shoot a small group. With the other lens (46mm equiv.) you have to climb a chair and stretch - and miss most of the group anyway. Seriously. I've been there.
This lens is well made, focuses fast, and is pretty silent. It's now my primary.
Good lens but vignetting is significant... 2008-04-12
Bought this lens to get a bit more zoom than the kit lens and am happy with it. However, the feedback you read about vignetting is real -- you see it through the view finder! I get vignetting almost always at the lowest focal length. As I said, I'm happy and can recommend the lens but realize you're likely to see significant vignetting (dark edges in your pictures at the low range {17mm "non-zoom "}).
Canon 17-85 EF-S; Nice lens...canon quality? 2008-07-06
Well I was excited about this lens because of it's range so I purchased it from Amazon. I had it shipped overnight because I was going on a trip and need it right away. When I received the lens right out of the box the mount ring was not seated in place all the way. I pushed the one side back in place because I did not have time to return the lens. The lens worked well for a while and seemed to have good images but then my zoom ring started to "stick" around 70mm and at one point it completely froze and would not move at all. I took it off and it started to work but now there is something that rattles inside the lens. I have contacted Canon and was told to send it in for "possible" warranty repair. We will see what happens. I would suggest that you save your money and buy the 24-105L lens and that is what I am also going to do.
Only virtue is zoom range. 
2008-06-19
The only virtue of this lens is the zoom range.
Chromatic abberation, highly abnormal distortion, and slow aperture above 17mm make this a bad value.
The new Canon 18-55 IS is much better optically. Even better, go for the Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 or the Canon 17-40L for a bit more. This is the worst lens I have ever used without a doubt.
Check photozone.de for detailed comparisons of the lenses and save yourself some money and get quality instead!
Great upgrade for your kit lens 2008-06-16
Read the reviews of all the professionals and see for yourself.
I'm an amateur and cannot operate all those photography terms, but I can see the huge difference in the quality of the pictures from my kit lens.
It is a little bit heavy and big, but the quality worth it.
Great but heavy 2008-06-12
This is an amazing lens. I did notice that when its fully zoomed out the corners tend to get a little dark. But have taken amazing pictures with this lens. I have this on my Canon Rebel XTI. The image stabilizer has worked awesome for me and the zoom range is perfect. Very easy to use. WARNING though it is heavy at first. It takes some getting use to for the weight of this but i still really like it. Careful though because it requires a 67mm filter and they can run expensive so make sure you shop around for them. I recommend this lens for people that do not like the standard crappy lens and wants some more zoom. I was able to get mine for $400 because it was an out of box lens but it has worked great for me.
Very nice lens but as others stated, price-value-performance? 2008-05-22
Excellent IS based lens, but I have to question the value of the lens based on the other products available today. With a very slow F4 aperture, one can easily find a better solution to line up a great lens set including fast primes. Still, this lens is quite compact, has an exceptional focal range, and can easily serve its purpose on the APS-C sized sensor cameras.
