majestros Loc: Miami, FL

Short Question: Which of the following telephoto lenses would be best for BiF:

300 f4 L
100-400 4.5-5.6 L
70-300 4-5.6 L

Long question:

I am looking to buy a general purpose long (300mm+) telephoto lens in the future (under $2000). I have been all over the place considering lenses, including looking at mirror lenses at the beginning.

I believe I have narrowed down my choices and am curious who has used any of these lenses for BiF. I have nearly taken the 400 f/5.6 out of the running because, while I would like to do some BiF, it will likely never be my main focus. (I know that, if I was primarily interested in BiF the 400 prime would be my best choice under $2000) I really would like a wider aperture/IS for photos of stationary animals in lower light as well. This has left me with the above options.

1: Of these options, does anyone know which has the fastest autofocus? (the best property of the 400 prime). I think all three have good sharpness.

2: Will I feel handicapped by choosing lens with only a 300mm max focal length versus 400? I know for most pictures I have taken with my existing telephoto (the 55-20 IS II ,and to some degree my 150 macro) longer is always better for wildlife (for me).

However, I barely use my 55-250 anymore as cropping my 150 macro gives me better results than the 250 for all but the very farthest away subjects. Since the 300 f/4 is brighter AND had IS AND seems to be barely sharper from the tests I have seen, I am leaning that way. The 300 f/4 also has the closest focusing of the set (but the 70-300 is almost as close).

However the 70-300 has the newest IS system and gives ~4 stops versus the ~2 stops of the 300 f/4 and the 100-400.

Any thoughts about these lenses (or other lenses), particularly if you have used multiple of these (including comparisons to the 400 f/5.6 L) would be greatly appreciated. Sorry for the long and boring post:-)

Thanks!

PS: I have just purchased a Kenko Pro 300 1.4x DGX to use with my 150 macro to tide me over till I can justify the telephoto lens :-)

gwong1 Loc: Tampa, FL

I have the 400 f5.6L for sale, it is a great lens, tack sharp and very fast to focus.
1) Autofocus depends on several factors, amount of available light, lens, and camera body.
2) Look at the attached images, 300mm vs 400 mm, not my images.
3) I will not compare non-L to L lenses' an L lens will win hands down due to quality alone, in my opinion.
Gary

300mm f8


400mm f8

oldmalky Loc: West Midlands,England.

Sorry cannot help you with the lens mentioned but as you realise a 400 is better than a 300 for bif

imagemeister Loc: mid east Florida

Put the 1.4X behind the 300 - and you are DONE. See Swamp Gator's site ...

imagemeister Loc: mid east Florida

The Sigma 100-300 F4 W1.4X is a great lens also - see my site - no IS though.

birdpix Loc: South East Pennsylvania

I know several bird photographers who have the 300 f/4 and do quite well with it. Of the three you mention, I own the 100-400 and in my opinion, the 300 is a faster, sharper lens. Keep in mind that the 300 will take a 1.4 tele-extender and will still autofocus. That will give you 420 mm at f/5.6 and better image quality than the 100-400 racked all the way out.

Here is a link to the flickr photostream of a guy I know who shoots with the 300mm f/4. You can actually see it in one of the photos. He took a break from birds for a while but if you go into his sets, you will see some great photos all taken with that 300mm. http://www.flickr.com/photos/34201377@N02/

majestros Loc: Miami, FL

Thanks for all the information guys.

Re: gwong1, the 70-300 L I mention is a relatively new "L" lens, came out in 2010 so probably not too many people have it yet. In addition to the things I mentioned above, the 70-300 L is weather sealed, which is nice on an expanding zoom lens.

The Sigma 100-300 looks nice but seems it is no longer in production. I'm guessing the 120-300 sport has replaced it (which looks like an amazing lens but is like $3500).

Sefferdog Loc: Ocala, Fl

I have the 70-300L, the 100-400L, and the 400 prime. If I could only keep one lens out of these here, it would be the 70-300L. It focuses fast, IS works wonderfully, is very versatile, and it is tack sharp. I have taken some very nice BIF shots with it. It will not let you use a Canon 1.4X, but you can use your Kenko extender with it just fine.

I love the 400 prime as it is just as sharp as the 70-300, focuses quickly, and is light enough to shoot handheld, but you are after a general purpose lens.

I can't recommend the 70-300L enough.

Notice not much mention here of the 100-400. It is just not nearly as sharp as any of the other choices you listed. At least not mine! :thumbup: :mrgreen:

Here are a few pics taken with the 70-300L. This is using a 5D MKIII as well, so if you have a crop factor camera you have the 1.6X to figure in as well.

Swamp Gator Loc: Coastal South Carolina

Virtually every photo on my wildlife blog was taken using the Canon 300 4 with a 1.4 attached.
I have been extremely happy with this combo.

Fits the under $2,000 budget too.

majestros Loc: Miami, FL

Thanks for all the tips everyone. It looks like I will have to decide between the 300 f/4 L and the 70-300 L. I found a few other forum posts across the net that claimed the 70-300 was the fastest of this bunch for autofocus, so its really a case of size/weather sealing/autofocus/zoom vs aperture/better hood/(easier)teleconverter use for me I think.

Many thanks again to everyone who contributed.