Any Canon 400DO users out there?

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gary43

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In my constant search for the ultimate walkabout wildlife shooting setup my thoughts have turned to the Canon 400DO.

I like the idea of such a FL in such a compact form, not sure I can afford the price, but, critically, this seems to be a real "marmite" lens.

User reviews on Fredmiranda seem quite mixed and I was wondering what experience people here have of using this lens ?

Have to say I LOVE my Siggy 120-300 os on the 60D but was wondering if the 400DO with the Canon x2TCII on my 1DsIII would give decent images ?

Would appreciate any input.

Gary

PS. I know I could rent one (and probably will in due course) but I'm at the thinking about it stage at the moment !
 
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I had a 15 minute swapsie for my 300/2.8 at a model aircraft display in less than ideal weather. It was more pleasant to hold than the 300/2.8 even though the weight difference isn't huge....I guess it's down to it being shorter. The most noticeable thing between the two sets of images was the lack of colour saturation from the 400....very flat although, as I said, the conditions were far from ideal. I've no idea what the other guy thought of the 300/2.8 shots he got in return.
I'd certainly recommend that you try before you buy.

Bob
 
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I also had a shot with one a couple of years ago.....as Bob said it is a bit more user friendly in terms of weight than the 300 2.8 but for the price the IQ was I felt not up to the 300, and I've always wondered why, if the DO system was so good (as Canon said when it was brought out) it hasn't been extended to other prime lenses.
You are right in trying before buying, does Stuart at lenses for hire have one?
He might give you an opinion as well?

George
 
Hi Bob & George

Thanks for the input. Lots of review sites do mention the lack of contrast in 400DO images and obviously this is reflected in field shots.

Were both happy with the sharpness of 400DO images ?

Best wishes.

Gary
 
I'm more of a bokeh and colour rendition person so, other than macro lenses, sharpness isn't high on my list of priorities. It was a dull day with low shutter speeds so it would have been flawed and fruitless to assess that aspect....sorry. My lasting impression is simply that the 300/2.8 was far more capable in the prevailing conditions.

Bob
 
If it's as good as the 70-300 DO it's an expensive lemon :D Damn I hated that lens..

The 500/2.8 DO IS never happened. The 200-400/4 DO IS took 10+ years and eded up as a 200-400/4 non-DO with built-in extender. Basically Canon axed the DO roadmap after the 400/4 DO.

The 400 DO has appeal and its fans.. but I think the 300/2.8 + pair of extenders in your pocket is far more popular.

Note: I have personally shot only once with the 400/4 DO and didn't find much wrong with the pictures. They were good but they weren't spectacular like what I keep seeing from the 300/2.8...
 
Sorry, was out last night.
Well to be honest I can't remember the sharpness being a problem, but as Bob says for me the 300 2.8 is just the business. I have played around with the mk 1 300 and the mk 3 extenders, and I certainly would go down that route in preference to the 400 (particularly with the 1.4x on the 300).
Looks like the DO doesn't have much support here, I can only ever remember seeing one in the field.
 
A "blast from the past" from me but I remember meeting up with Barry Boswell to discuss macro lenses. Barry is a keen (and excellent) bird photographer who has a 400DO. Barry is a member on here using his real name and last visited the forum about a week ago.....maybe tap him up for his impressions as he will be a more frequent user of the lens. His website is http://www.britishbirdphotographs.com/ and I suspect there will be shots on there using the 400.

Bob
 
Thanks to all for the input.

Lots of food for thought. I will obviously check Barry out, as advised.

Thanks again to all.

Gary
 
Hi Frank

Will look into the situation when I have a bit more time. Pity about LFH though they would be my first port of call.

Thanks for the steer.

Gary
 
You can try hiring one from "The Flash Centre" if you have a local branch (London, Leeds, Birmingham). They swap them between branches and I know they have got at least one 400mm DO copy.

Trouble is, you have to put down a deposit for the lens which is the price of the lens :eek:, however the daily rental is only about £35. Hire it on a Friday and you can keep it for the weekend for the same price as a single day...the Leeds guys are really helpful and friendly.
 
.....and let us know your thoughts if you do hire!!
 
gary43 said:
In my constant search for the ultimate walkabout wildlife shooting setup my thoughts have turned to the Canon 400DO.

I like the idea of such a FL in such a compact form, not sure I can afford the price, but, critically, this seems to be a real "marmite" lens.

User reviews on Fredmiranda seem quite mixed and I was wondering what experience people here have of using this lens ?

Have to say I LOVE my Siggy 120-300 os on the 60D but was wondering if the 400DO with the Canon x2TCII on my 1DsIII would give decent images ?

Would appreciate any input.

Gary

PS. I know I could rent one (and probably will in due course) but I'm at the thinking about it stage at the moment !
Click to expand...


Hi Gary,

It was pure chance that I stumbled on this thread as I have not been on this site too much recently. As Canon Bob said earlier, I have had one of these lenses for a number of years. I use it a lot as a walkabout lens and I think it is very good. My experience is as follows: - I originally bought it and used it with a 20D - the results were OK. I then upgraded to a Canon 1D Mk III which was an absolute dog of a camera and in my opinion Canon should never have put it on the market. However, the results I was getting were so bad that Canon eventually took all my camera gear, including the 400 DO lens, for callibration, and this, together with the upgrade on the focusing mirror in the 1D MkIII produced acceptable results.

I got rid of the MKIII as soon as the 1D MkIV came on the market and was generally accepted as a huge improvement with no particular problems.

So - the 400DO lens combined with the 1D MkIV is great, produces excellent images and I have no issues with it at all. In my experience it works just as well with a 1.4x converter and I see little or no degradation in the image quality. I rarely use it with a 2x converter as this does visibly soften the images, but this is well known and has nothing to do with the 400 DO lens.

My advice would be to bite the bullet and buy one. Check the initial pictures that you take with it VERY carefully on a good screen at 100% resolution and if the images are not perfect then send the lens straight back to Canon for callibration. This should be f.o.c because the lens is brand new.

Regards - Barry Boswell
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Hi Barry

Thanks for the information above and the PM. Definitely food for thought.

The new price of these lenses is a bit prohbitive (I have just paid out for a 1DsIII which took a chunk of my spare cash). I would definitely be interested in getting one used though.

Thanks again.

Gary
 
hollis_f said:
Are you sure you can rent one? LensesForHire don't have one.
Click to expand...
I've been struggling to convince myself that there would be much of a market for this lens, though it's on my list of "maybe"s for 2012.

I've handled one of these and I loved its ergonomics. It's considerably lighter than the 300/2.8, and actually closer in weight to the 70-200/2.8. But I haven't shot with one in anger so I don't really know how acceptable the IQ would be.

The way I see it, this lens is more pricey than the 300/2.8 and close to the price of the 500/4, both of which have unquestionably stellar optics. So you'd have to place a very big premium on the size/weight in order to prefer the DO.

(The MK II versions of the 300 and 500 are currently more expensive of course, so that tilts the balance in favour of the DO. Or at least it would if I didn't have large stocks of the Mk I versions of the 300 and 500!)


Now what I really need is someone who will let me borrow one for a while, to evaluate...
 
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Hi Stewart

Gotta say the new price of this lens is crushing and I'd be looking for a used version so the price/weight ratio would have to be smaller than for a new item, for me at least.

Have not read any reviews compaining about the sharpness of this lens but the lack of contrast that the 400DO gives has been mentioned around the web.

That said, those that actually use it seem to rate it highly.

Please do post up here if you get one in.

Thanks for chipping in.

Gary
 
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