Canon EF 70-300 f/4-5.6L IS USM Lens

Devonlad

Devonlad

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Tony
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I have a 5D3 and since owing it i have been trying to find an ideal combination of lenses for me, i also bought a bashed up 7D for wildlife but idealy want my kit to be on the 5D3 only as less to carry around
I do have health problems so weight and keeping kit to a minimum have been my objectives along with covering as much between 24mm to 400mm.

After great expense and much trial and error, i have found what i believe to be my ideal lens combination.
This being a 24-105 F4 L, 70-300 f4-5.6L, 50mm f1.4 and a 400mm f5.6L.

I tried a 70-200 with 1.4 extender, 100-400 (which i hated with a passion) my 70-300 was purchased from the forums and only arrived this morning but already having taken a walk along the estuary this morning i can tell it suits me far more than the 100-400 which i just could not get on with mainly because of weight length and push pull.
The 70-300 has one annoying feature with the zoom ring being opposite to other Canon lenses but boy is it sharp, IS excellent and focuses so quickly and on the button.

The great thing with Photography compared to other pastimes i have ventured with over the years, if you buy used you can pretty much buy and try and if it does not suit sell again for probably just the loss of postage prices which is far cheaper than renting and enables you to have the time to ensure the lens is not right not just new or different to what you are use to.

I now await my 400mm to arrive after Christmas and hope then to have found my ideal kit and will stop looking for alternatives.

Merry Christmas to you all and a very happy 2014.
 
The 70-300 L is a fine lens and the 400, although being around since 1993, still compares well with more modern glass. Just shows how right canon got it the first time.

Enjoy it and Merry Christmas.
 
It's very helpful to read about your lens experiences. I also bought both my Canon L lenses from TP's Classifieds - A 70-200mm f4L IS and a Canon 100mm f2.8L Macro IS (not used fully yet) and then a Canon 1.4x Extender which I use with the 70-200.

So I'm interested what made you choose a Canon 70-300 f4-5.6L over your 70-200 f4L + 1.4x when you could have bought a Canon 2x Extender for the 70-200, please.

Do you shoot mainly wildlife?
 
jerry12953 said:
For me the problem with the 70-300 zoom was that it would not take a Canon 1.4x extender. Otherwise it looks a great lens.
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It will take a Kenko converter so I'm told. I didnt buy one for the same reason. In fact a Canon one will fit but restricts the zoom so unless you're desperate the Kenko one is better.
 
RedRobin said:
It's very helpful to read about your lens experiences. I also bought both my Canon L lenses from TP's Classifieds - A 70-200mm f4L IS and a Canon 100mm f2.8L Macro IS (not used fully yet) and then a Canon 1.4x Extender which I use with the 70-200.

So I'm interested what made you choose a Canon 70-300 f4-5.6L over your 70-200 f4L + 1.4x when you could have bought a Canon 2x Extender for the 70-200, please.

Do you shoot mainly wildlife?
Click to expand...

I never considered the 70-200 f4 IS as i wanted the 300mm within the lens as i dont like converters on anything other than a prime lens.
I shhot Birds and wildlife but also will use the 70-300 for anything that needs to get closer than the 24-105
 
jerry12953 said:
For me the problem with the 70-300 zoom was that it would not take a Canon 1.4x extender. Otherwise it looks a great lens.
Click to expand...

Yes i agree hence buying the 400mm as well i dont like converters but will probably get one just to see how it functions, i didnt like the 100-400 one bit and after a few days with the 70-300 i am so glad i switched and feel comfortable using it and with the results..
 
Gaz J said:
The 70-300 L is a fine lens and the 400, although being around since 1993, still compares well with more modern glass. Just shows how right canon got it the first time.

Enjoy it and Merry Christmas.
Click to expand...

Thanks Gary strange how the 400mm still feels like a modern lens while the 100-400 feels like a throw back to my AE1 days.
 
I can understand people being wary of extenders/converters and that's why I bought a Canon one following the assumption that it would be directly designed to suit better than if by any third party.

For what it's worth, the Canon 1.4x III has an excellent reputation as being the best of all of Canon's Extenders and I'm certainly enjoying the extra reach it is offering on my 70-200 f4L IS. But, of course I would love a 400mm lump of L glass!

Does the Canon 400mm f5.6L need to be mono/tripod mounted? The DO version is obviously lighter weight but much heavier cost.
 
The 400 f5.6 is easy to hand hold. The 400 DO is significantly heavier than the 400 5.6. The 5.6 is only fractionally heavier than the 300 f4.
 
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