To measure and compare purple fringing caused by chromatic aberrations and sensor blooming, we photographed a high contrast test chart using each lens set to its shortest and longest focal lengths with the aperture wide open. The crops are taken from the upper left corner of the chart and presented here at 100%.

All four lenses perform similarly here, exhibiting some coloured fringing in their corners when zoomed-out, but little when zoomed-in.

To measure and compare macro performance we photographed a chart using each lens at a focal length and distance which delivered the maximum possible reproduction. The dark lines are 10mm apart and the result is not cropped. Smaller areas are preferred in this test.

While none of the four can be described as macro lenses, the best result is actually enjoyed by the budget EF-S 18-55mm, delivering a maximum area of 66x44mm. Next is the EF 17-40mm, followed by the EF-S 17-85mm and finally the EF-S 17-55mm. It's interesting to note the budget kit lens delivers an area four times smaller than the EF-S 17-55mm at its closest focusing distance.