New lens testing

weepete

weepete

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Got a new (to me) lens last week, a Canon 100-400mm f4.5-5.6 L IS II. Just having a play and doing some sharpness testing last weekend. Was hoping to get some birds in the garden, but out neighbour trimmed one of the big trees in their garden, and most of the small birds have disappeared just now. To be fair, it was getting a bit too big with the high winds we've been having. So had to content myself with some other garden wildlife.

Looks promising so far though. Here's my first decent shot with it:

2025-08-16_07-15-59.webp
 
You set me off along the IS path lol.
I'm 60 now and I'm struggling to take 300mm shots of wildlife with a steady hand so I've just bought a Canon 70-300 USM IS.
Sacked the Sigma's off.
 
nav2022 said:
You set me off along the IS path lol.
I'm 60 now and I'm struggling to take 300mm shots of wildlife with a steady hand so I've just bought a Canon 70-300 USM IS.
Sacked the Sigma's off.
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Nice! The 70-300mm IS is a decent lens from what I remember. The IS does come in handy for static subjects, and can get you a stop or two back if you are in poor light. In good light, and with faster shutter speeds (over 1/200th sec) it can rob a bit of sharpness though, so worth bearing in mind.

With wildlife I tend to keep my shutter speed quite high anyway, as subjects can move quickly. To eliminate camera shake, you want to be shooting at least 1/focal length. So if you are at 300mm, you should be at least 1/300th sec. That doesn't take movement blur into account, so you may need to go faster.

The other thing that can really help if you are struggling with camera shake is some support. I've got a monopod that I've stuck a cheap gimbal head on That I often use if I'm in a hide, or I wat some additional stability.
 
weepete said:
Thanks Nav2022, taking it out this weekend to give it a proper try out. Hopefully get a few birds. Also got a 1.4TC coming, but hoping to sneek that one in on the QT 🤫
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Good choice the 1.4. Just one stop loss and the image quality suffers little.
 
Jimbobjones said:
Good choice the 1.4. Just one stop loss and the image quality suffers little.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I just couldn't resist after having the 600mm end for so long. Did some initial testing today, and the loss of sharpness seems minimal with the TC III, plus the 5DmkIV has a lot of focus points even at f8. There is a bit more CA though. Need to get out and test it in the field, but there are quite a few people who seem to be fond of the combination.

At least I don't feel like I'm missing the additional focal length of the 150-600mm now!
 
I don’t believe the CA is that bad TBH, it can get noticeable at the extreme ranges( pin sharp otherwise ), but the RAW images can be nicely adjusted in software programs.
 
weepete said:
Nice! The 70-300mm IS is a decent lens from what I remember. The IS does come in handy for static subjects, and can get you a stop or two back if you are in poor light. In good light, and with faster shutter speeds (over 1/200th sec) it can rob a bit of sharpness though, so worth bearing in mind.

With wildlife I tend to keep my shutter speed quite high anyway, as subjects can move quickly. To eliminate camera shake, you want to be shooting at least 1/focal length. So if you are at 300mm, you should be at least 1/300th sec. That doesn't take movement blur into account, so you may need to go faster.

The other thing that can really help if you are struggling with camera shake is some support. I've got a monopod that I've stuck a cheap gimbal head on That I often use if I'm in a hide, or I wat some additional stability.
Click to expand...
Yeah I've got a monopole lined up on ebay.
 
Jimbobjones said:
I don’t believe the CA is that bad TBH, it can get noticeable at the extreme ranges( pin sharp otherwise ), but the RAW images can be nicely adjusted in software programs.
Click to expand...

Good to know, I've only had a few shots in the garden, so fingers crossed I get those results. My initial testing with a bare lens suggests the new setup is sharper across the whole focal range than my Tamron 150-600mm, though there were some parts of the lens where it was close.

The ISO performance was noticeably different, with the Canon more inclined to push the ISO higher and overexpose the highlights which I'll need to get used to. I think that's due to the Tamron "Tricking" the camera software into focusing.
 
weepete said:
Good to know, I've only had a few shots in the garden, so fingers crossed I get those results. My initial testing with a bare lens suggests the new setup is sharper across the whole focal range than my Tamron 150-600mm, though there were some parts of the lens where it was close.

The ISO performance was noticeably different, with the Canon more inclined to push the ISO higher and overexpose the highlights which I'll need to get used to. I think that's due to the Tamron "Tricking" the camera software into focusing.
Click to expand...
Look forward to seeing your results. 👍
 
I'm thinking of a Canon 7D 1.6 crop sensor for the IS lens.
That gives me about 480mm on a 300mm lens. That's the one thing I miss about cropped sensors, I have to get closer full frame.
The 7D's are going cheap at around 100 quid well used, the battery and most functions are same as my 5DMkIII.
So I'd use the 5D for macro and GP then the 7D for small birds.
Very tempting.
 
nav2022 said:
I'm thinking of a Canon 7D 1.6 crop sensor for the IS lens.
That gives me about 480mm on a 300mm lens. That's the one thing I miss about cropped sensors, I have to get closer full frame.
The 7D's are going cheap at around 100 quid well used, the battery and most functions are same as my 5DMkIII.
So I'd use the 5D for macro and GP then the 7D for small birds.
Very tempting.
Click to expand...

That's not a bad shout if you need the extra reach. I used to use the 7D for my photography, and it's a good camera. I would have brought it with the 100-400 but since it won't AF with my TC on there's only around 100mm difference.

Of couse if you can get close enough, then the 5D would be better, but if you need the reach, it's a good option.
 
weepete said:
That's not a bad shout if you need the extra reach. I used to use the 7D for my photography, and it's a good camera. I would have brought it with the 100-400 but since it won't AF with my TC on there's only around 100mm difference.

Of couse if you can get close enough, then the 5D would be better, but if you need the reach, it's a good option.
Click to expand...
The 1.4x magnifiers are also temping which would make a 300mm on the 5D around 420mm but they are really expensive.
And the other problem is, you are switching lenses every pair of plates on a shoot.
I've gone out in the past with a Nikon D3200 with DX 70-300 over one shoulder for birds and a Canon rebel over the other shoulder with a macro lens on for insects and its much easier but more tiring with the weight. Thing is, if you spot a dragon fly and you want a macro but you've got the wrong lens on, by the time you switch lenses its gone. This has happened loads of times and caused me to go to two cameras.
 
weepete said:
Got a new (to me) lens last week, a Canon 100-400mm f4.5-5.6 L IS II. Just having a play and doing some sharpness testing last weekend. Was hoping to get some birds in the garden, but out neighbour trimmed one of the big trees in their garden, and most of the small birds have disappeared just now. To be fair, it was getting a bit too big with the high winds we've been having. So had to content myself with some other garden wildlife.

Looks promising so far though. Here's my first decent shot with it:

View attachment 789593
Click to expand...
Cracking shot (y)
I'm in the market for a new zoom lens myself, put a few quid to one side and our lass is making a donation so its either the Tamron 50-400 or the Tamron 150-500, a trip to Harrisons here in Sheffield on the cards for this week.
Also how you getting on with the lens now you’ve had it a while ?
 
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