After playing around with a friends Canon 100-400 lens, and the results I had, I decided to lash out a bit, and buy one for myself.....
Considering the very low light level, I was more than pleased with the results, a random rose growing from behind a brick wall
There's not much wildlife around at the moment, so I almost gave up, until I heard the tell-tale chirp of a house sparrow, frustrated that I was stopping it getting to the feeders...
Yes, the one in the photo below....
Before I knew it, they slowly started to gang up, and juvenile male came along, almost in full adult plumage
Que Alfred Hitchcock theme music
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fmeb-f4pthA
PeterC47 said:That's the lens that I use for most of my bird pictures. Absolutely brilliant.
It started with playing around with an older version from a former colleague who takes photos of fast cars (he's not interested in wildlife), and some very good photos as well. I could be tempted to get a convertor, though the 2x won't work with AF (I've done the research), and the 1.4x is possible, though research suggests all is not plain sailing, but I'll look deeper into that. My thoughts are the 5D4 should take the 1.4x because it has settings in the menu, but I'll ask my camera shop before making the purchase, unless someone knows for definite.
That would then make take the lens to 560mm with the associated aperture changes etc.
What I do like is the filter size (77mm) is the same as my other two Canon lenses, which also makes it appealing for using the Star 6, Circular Polarizer (ideal for the pond photos to remove water surface glare) and ND8.
I still have and still like the Sigma 150-600 Contemporary, and I'm a little reluctant at the moment to let it go, but I may have to to balance the books.
Tomorrow (Thursday) I'll leave the Sigma at home and it'll get its full field trial at RSPB Conwy, a reserve I know well.
Hi Mike Do I assume that you bought the 100-400mm mk2? I currently have both the 100-400 mk1 and mk2 lenses. All the images I have recently posted were taken with the mk1. I also have a Canon 5D4 and a 1.4x convertor. I originally bought a used mk1 lens at the beginning of the first lockdown and was very impressed with it. The main thing I didn’t like was the push/pull zoom. I watch quite a few wildlife youtube videos and subscribe to some that seem to know what they are talking about, especially on the technical side. Everyone says that the mk2 lens is sharper and the focusing is much quicker and more accurate, and has 4 stop stabilising. It also focuses down to about 85cm at 400mm, so I took the plunge and bought a mk2 about a week ago. The faster and more accurate focusing should be better for birds in flight. Time will tell! The mk1 will be going on eBay soon. I haven’t done much with it so far, but I have just attached (for the first time) the 1.4x convertor to the mk2 lens. The reviews from my trusty wildlife guys say that the1.4x works from f8, and from my quick testing half an hour ago it does appear to work. There were no issues at all, it just worked. If you want me to try anything else with the convertor let me know. Peter
Good luck with the new lens, it should give you plenty of fun :-) Yes, the lens & 1.4x will work on the 5D4 OK - only the centre spots though, not all the AF regions across the frame. Results are reasonably decent, yes you lose a little bit of sharpness (that's inevitable), but not too bad. One of the GoA threads had some lens+extender comparisons, I'll see if I can find the direct URL
ETA - Here's the link to the thread on lens + extenders. The 100-400 appears lower in the thread