Canon 100-400 f4.5-5.6L | FerrariChat
Buy

Canon 100-400 f4.5-5.6L

Discussion in 'Creative Arts' started by MarkPDX, Mar 9, 2008.

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

  1. MarkPDX

    MarkPDX F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa

    Apr 21, 2003
    15,111
    Gulf Coast
    #1 MarkPDX, Mar 9, 2008
    Anybody have this thing? Other than the size/weight and the hefty price tag is there any reason not to get one? Anybody have experience?
     
  2. bludevil12

    bludevil12 Formula 3
    Lifetime Rossa

    May 12, 2004
    1,930
    Northern VA
    Full Name:
    David L.
    #2 bludevil12, Mar 9, 2008
    Depending on what you want it for, it is great/not so good. As a sports photographer, I can definitely say there are better options. The variable aperture hurts when you have all your settings programmed, then zoom, which changes the aperture. Also, low light shooting sucks; the f4.5 is not nearly good enough for light and bokeh.

    But if you want a nice long lens for every day use, it is a good option. It is fairly heavy, I would recommend using a monopod for times when you are using the camera for a while, and the push zoom takes a while to get used to. But for the range it offers, it is a reasonably priced option.

    Hope that helps, let me know if you have any other questions!
     
  3. MarkPDX

    MarkPDX F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa

    Apr 21, 2003
    15,111
    Gulf Coast
    #3 MarkPDX, Mar 9, 2008
    The speed is one of the things that has caused me to pause a bit, but as far as I can tell the only faster lenses are primes and are WAY more expensive. I really can't justify spending $4-6k on a lens so I'm looking at the 100-400 as a more reasonable option. It would be replacing/supplementing the 70-200 f4 L that I bought a while back when I was first getting into SLR cameras. I have been looking at the settings on a bunch of my pictures with the camera set to auto and most of them the aperture is more like f8-12 as lots of my shots are daytime but it would be nice to have some lower light capability.
     
  4. bludevil12

    bludevil12 Formula 3
    Lifetime Rossa

    May 12, 2004
    1,930
    Northern VA
    Full Name:
    David L.
    #4 bludevil12, Mar 9, 2008
    I know what you mean about the $$$ for the primes. Have you thought about an extender? Canon makes some nice 1.4x and 2.0x teleconverters/extenders, which would work great with your 70-200, if you are usually shooting at a higher aperture. Below a quarter of the price as well.
     
  5. LetsJet

    LetsJet F1 Veteran
    Owner

    May 24, 2004
    9,334
    DC/LA/Paris/Haleiwa
    Full Name:
    Mr.
    #5 LetsJet, Mar 9, 2008
    I own one.......... It's heavy and becomes a bit of a workout shooting for any length of time if you don't rest on something. I also have the Canon 1.4x extender but you lose AF when you attach it. I like the lens but it is special purpose. I use the 28-105 L for normal shooting.
     
  6. bludevil12

    bludevil12 Formula 3
    Lifetime Rossa

    May 12, 2004
    1,930
    Northern VA
    Full Name:
    David L.
    #6 bludevil12, Mar 9, 2008
    On mine-- AF is a tad slower, but definitely still functions? Is that just on the 100-400?
     
  7. LetsJet

    LetsJet F1 Veteran
    Owner

    May 24, 2004
    9,334
    DC/LA/Paris/Haleiwa
    Full Name:
    Mr.
    #7 LetsJet, Mar 9, 2008
    BD, from memory.... I think so. I don't shoot with it often (100-400) and I recall it being an issue holding it, getting the picture framed the way I wanted, and focusing. No problems with the ext. off.

    I'll try and check on this later.

    If you're in town you're welcome to try it.
     

Share This Page