Thinking about buying the 100-400mm L - Are they any good?

Deano

Deano

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I have thought about buying one of these for a while and have read a few reviews. Some are concerned regarding the 'push & pull' zoom. What do they mean and how does it operate?
Also is it worth buying one of the extenders to go with it. I also wondered what the main difference was between the extenders as they seem to be the same price?
 
I would recommend the lens, it is the most used in my kit, I would not bother with the extender as you will loose AF with it.

The Push Pull zoom means that you extend the zoom by pushing the zoom ring away to zoom in and pull it back to zoom out, rather than using a twist motion.
 
The one I used was pretty good indeed.

You might also want to consider a Sigma 100-300 F4 which is a couple of hundred quid cheaper and is a constant F4 to 300mm. Obviously doesn't have the total reach, but can be made flexible with a 1.4x extender which gives you a 420mm 5.6 lens.
 
100-400mm This is the best lens i own.... at the moment
 
Go for it Deano bought mine a few weeks ago hasn't been off the camera yet, great lens....JIM:clap:
 
Great lens :thumbs:
Never off my camera.
 
Can only agree with all above, great lens both in terms og IQ and flexibility.

Rob
 
We've got 15 of them. Customers love them and I do too. If I had £1 for every customer who's hired one and subsequently said they'd like to buy one...

The push-pull mechanism works as Graham described. In my opinion it's MUCH better than a twist ring mechanism, for two reasons.
1. It's completely intuitive, like a joystick. Reach towards the subject to zoom in; pull back away from the subject to zoom out. It's as if it were telepathic. No conscious thought required.
2. Your left hand is always in the optimal position supporting the lens, so you can zoom and shoot very quickly.
 
It's a great lens, you can use it with a tc but you have to put some tape over some of the contacts and it will then AF, I have had some good results with a 1.4Xtc but it's slow to AF and needs good light.
They take a little getting use to if you aren't use to that size lens, so don't be suprised if your first shot are a bit naff, but once you get use to it you won't be dissapointed, I think it's one of the best value for money lenses Canon make imo

Edit: I think think you would really struggle with a 2X tc on it.
 
I spent a lot of time deciding between the 100-400L and the 150-500 from sigma, in the end I went for the canon and have not regretted it for a minute.

This is the 100-400 on the 40d

mandrill.jpg


This is it on the 400d with the canon 1.4 TC

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Tara
 
It's a good lens with really useful focal range. Produces good colours, good contrast and isn't too heavy. It will always have a place in my kit bag.

I would say the AF is a little slow when compared to the likes of the 300 f/4 and 400 f/5.6 but it's more than acceptable. I wouldn't however use a teleconverter on it as the AF would be far too slow (also remember the 40D can't AF at f/8).

Sample: http://www.airliners.net/photo/UK---Air/Panavia-Tornado-GR4/1239655/L/
 
Don't think twice Deano, just buy one! I absolutely love mine. I've not tried it with a TC but tbh I've not felt the need for one as 400mm is a decent length anyway :)

As Stewart says above, the push-pull mechanish feels completely comfortable. You can also lock the lens off at any chosen focal length, so there's no chance of it drifting.

Couple of examples from it for you....

Snow%20Leopard%20III%20lo%20res.jpg


Puffin%20VI%20framed%20low%20res.jpg
 
Agree that it is a cracking lens, gets the most use by me at the moment, the zoom is not difucult to use, and once used you'll wander why you were consernd about it.
 
Go for it, it is a great lens. I have the 1.4 convertor but never use it because of iq loss. You'll read about the lens being a dust pump. Ignore it I have had mine for over a year and dust has never been an issue.

This was taken from a ridiculous distance (50 - 60 yards and 40ft up a tree) was a huge crop and still came out a reasonable shot of a small bird (Meadow Pipit)

Fetteresso23July08-3_filtered.jpg


Hope this helps.
 
I have only had mine a couple of weeks and was surprised to find how intuitive it was, I thought there might be a problem with zooming in and out but I can switch between cameras with different lenses without thinking about it (and did every few seconds when I was photographing the horse jumping+dog agility classes last week.

I only have a 2x extender at present and have not tried it yet but plan to soon.
 
I'm another big fan of the 100-400L . Much as I love the 70-200 2.8L, and it's bigger aperture, it just doesn't have the reach of the 100-400L, and it's focal range makes it a very useful all round lens.

You shouldn't really expect any zoom lens to perform well with a converter, especially one with a zoom range as large as the 100-400L. At a pinch, I'd use the 1.4X TC but the 2X TC is really a nono on this lens.

I actually prefer the push/pull zoom, it's very fast in use.

This was my main wildlife lens before I got the 500mm, and rest assured it's a very capable lens indeed - the IS is a godsend! This is one of many shots I've taken with the 100-400L.

IMG_4020-01.jpg
 
StewartR said:
We've got 15 of them. Customers love them and I do too. If I had £1 for every customer who's hired one and subsequently said they'd like to buy one...
Click to expand...

I'm one of them, having hired one for Fairford.

And I intend getting one in a couple of weeks or so.

Stewart, where do I send the pound to?
 
I took this shot with a Kenko 1.4X tc fitted to the 100-400, there is a slight loss of IQ but not enough to worry about, although the quality of this tc was very good compared to some of the others I had tried.
730576293_35e9160bb8_o.jpg
 
Hi i find it a great Len's

helliready-1.jpg



This flew over our house yesterday i have redone the boarder as less is more, hand held @400mm and it was moving fast as well,i had to grease my wheels

Regards Mark.
 
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