The glorious 24-70L!!

Although this lens is absolutely beautiful, both in appearance and performance, I must admit there is a serious learning curve. I doubt it has as much to do with the lack of IS and more to do with my lack of experience and skill...:(
Anyway, I've struggled a bit with this beast, as it is quite a bit heavier than my Tamron. On day 2 of the rental (which is today) I feel a little more confident and hope to have it somewhat "figured out" before I have to mail it back on Tuesday.
So, with no further adeu, a few snapshots.
Hannah was still napping when the lens arrived, so I grabbed Sarah for an impromptu "photo shoot".

The above picture is basically SOOC {straight out of camera} with little more than a bump in exposure and contrast. The colors are truly beautiful, and I do think an improvement over my Tamron...but I'll have to do a side-by-side comparison to really make my final judgement. ;)

Aren't they cute? I got a really nice picture of my Mom with her gorgeous blue eyes, but I'm sure she'd kill me if I posted. However, I doubt she really reads my blog...that may be a great way to see if she does, eh Mom? ::wink wink::
This is my brother, Mark. He'd kill me, too, but I know for a fact he follows my blog but never reads it. What you don't know can't hurt you, right? Sarah absolutely adores her Uncle Marky...like, everything stops when he walks in the room. No matter what she's upset over, just his mere presence puts a huge smile on her face. Is there anything sweeter?!

I love the above image...weird crop and all. I wanted to see how sharp the lens was. It looks like it's pretty darn sharp to me, and I'm thinking any lack in sharpness was probably user error.

And onto today. I felt guilty for neglecting the lens all day. I grabbed Hannah after her nap (hence, the wrinkled shirt) and made her stand outside in a similar spot to the pictures I took the other day. I'll have to do a side-by-side comparison, although it won't really be relevant, as it would be two different times of day, etc. Oh, and I don't know how to do that in Photoshop. And I'll probably forget I ever promised a side-by-side until it's weeks later and everyone's all but forgotten that I even had something to compare. Whew. Raise your hand if you just took a breath for me! ;)

My review of the lens is this: I think it's amazing. The build quality far exudes that of any of my other lenses. And that red ring? Whoa. It just makes me feel good. haha
In all seriousness, I do see an improvement in my SOOC shots. They require less editing which makes me exuberant. I hate editing. Maybe it's because I kind of stink at it. Either way, whatever will save me time in post processing makes me happy. Getting a properly exposed shot in camera obviously means less work post. Having great glass is another step to a gorgeous shot. Oh, and awesome photography skills help a lot, too. :) I'd like to buy some of those. Any suggestions on where to get them? :wink: