How unexpected. The 24-70 F/2.8L is one of Canon’s best and most popular lenses, but it’s been around since 2002, and although it’s still an excellent piece of kit, it seems that Canon feels it could use a bit of a reworking. They’ve applied for a patent, made public just yesterday, for what appears to be a new version of the versatile lens.

The source quotes some dimensions that appear to put the new lens at a much larger size than the existing one, a move I think is unlikely, so let’s take this with a grain of salt. The new lens appears to have the same number of elements, but fewer groups, which could improve optical qualities. Beyond that I’m not sure.

Hopefully we’ll find out more soon. Of course, I can’t afford this thing anyway; it’d likely debut above the 24-70′s present price, so somewhere around $1500, perhaps?

[via Canon Rumors]