pmsc70d Loc: Post Falls, Idaho

I have a Canon 5D IV and a Canon L 100-400 zoom (older edition).
I have been considering getting a 1.4 X tele-extender. One thing I have read about this lens is that it gets soft at higher focal lengths. My question is, will a tele-extender just magnify the softness, and really do me no good in the end? If so, would I do better to try a software solution, like Topaz Gigapixel?

Thanks for your thoughts.

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

Any tele-extender will magnify lens defects by the amount of power of the extender, in your case 1.4.
--Bob

larryepage Loc: North Texas area

Even a well-designed and matched teleconverter moves you to a wider aperture for the same exposure. If this is noticeable with your lens alone, it will be noticeable with the accessory. If the lens is a little soft, the softness will be magnified along with the image.

There are no free lunches in optical systems. The trick is separating the compromises that matter from those that you can tolerate. A quick experiment to identify the baseline impact of adding an extender would be pretty simple...just take some images one stop wider than your normal preferred aperture and print them 50% larger than you normally would. This isn't a perfect simulation, but it would give you an idea of the best results you might hope to achieve. And it has the benefit of not relying on anyone's opinion.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

Let's keep the discussion to Canon branded L-series equipment, rather than theories about other brands. And therefore, your combination of EOS 5DIV and EF 100-400L ver I and especially the series III 1.4x is a fine combination, giving 30MP of Canon full-frame glory at an effective 560mm.

The trick is to recognize the effective aperture is now f/8 at the long-end, but the sharpest aperture is going to be around f/11 (say settings f/10 through f/13). Recognize too, the AF system will be a bit sluggish with the extender. It's better to engage the AF via AI Servo (always focusing) rather than the stop & start of AF single-shot. At this smaller effective f/8 max aperture, the more light you can find on the subject, the better / faster the lens combo can focus.

Although this post emphasizes the ver II 100-400L with the 1.4x III, see if you can detect the two images intermingled from the older vI lens:

https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-559960-1.html

You may also hear repeats of the old wives' tale of filters impacting specifically the performance of your vI lens. You cannot find any images I've shared on this site using any Canon EF or FD lens that does not have either an UV or Clear filter, with the exception only of my EF 180L and FD 200 macro lenses.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Gigapixel will not add anything that wasn't captured. It will not add detail. The 1.4 TC might add a little detail. I would suggest you consider a) The new 100-400 with a 1.4 TC which is an excellent combo, even wide open, or a 150-600 Tamron G2, or the 150-600 Sigma Sport. Alternately a Sigma Contemporary will do a decent job.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

I use the 100-400L version 1 and the Canon MKIII 1.4x extender with a 5D4 and find the IQ quite acceptable. The 100-400L version 2 is bit better, but the price difference in trading up to the version 2 (which is an excellent lens) is $900-$1,000, and only you can decide if the difference is worth it. This particular lens/extender combination is actually quite good, and I would certainly choose the extender rather than the SW if I had to make that choice.

pmsc70d Loc: Post Falls, Idaho

Thank you, CHG_CANON. It looks like my 100-400 with the version III 1.4 extender is a good choice.

Drbobcameraguy Loc: Eaton Ohio

I believe if you are shooting moving objects you may be disappointed. Stationary ok. I shoot a d500 with a 200-400mm f4 and a teleconverter. Works great but any lens that is f8 max is to slow to autofocus for moving objects. In my opinion of course and the D500 has a class leading autofocus system

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

LOL. Is a D500 a premier Canon EOS full-frame product, with the same AF system as the professional 1DXIII model? Is your 200-400 lens the Canon EF L-series lens? Is your doubler to f/8 the series III EF 2.0x?

Drbobcameraguy Loc: Eaton Ohio

I don't see the op stating he has the aforementioned equipment. I'm shooting at f5.6 with 99 cross type sensors. Pretty sure my autofocus system will out perform the ops set up for moving objects. Just sayin. 😂

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

You mean like this? “I have a Canon 5D IV and a Canon L 100-400 zoom (older edition).
I have been considering getting a 1.4 X tele-extender.”

Drbobcameraguy Loc: Eaton Ohio

Yes exactly. First make sure your camera will focus at f8 and if it does see how many cross type focus sensors are available with that combination. They normally work decent for stationary objects but for bif at f8 is a challenge. All I'm saying is do your due diligence with facts from the manufacturer before spending the money.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

I actually own this camera and this lens/extender combination, so this is not speculation. It focuses fine at f8, and I use it to shoot sports, so I can comment accurately on the AF capabilities, which as ChgCanon has pointed out is almost the same as Canon’s 1DX series bodies which are probably used by more professional sports shooters than any other series of cameras. It has 61 crosspoint sensors, but in many cases the number is not important as many pros often use either single point or a group of up to 9 focus points placed on the subject. And before you ask, with the MkIII 1.4 EX extender at f8 all 61 points are usable and 24 of the center cross points (8 vertical x 3 horizontal matrix)

Those of us that actually shoot this body and this lens with an extender long ago did our due diligence. It’s always wise to consider any AF issues when shooting at small apertures, but Your Nikon D500 experience is just not directly applicable in this instance.

Btw, it will take me a few minutes to find the MTF charts on the 100-400L MkI, but I happen to have those for the MKii at hand both with and without the 1.4 extender, and the degradation in IQ is about 5% for the MKII version (probably better than the MKI), the point being that this is a zoom that works quite well with The Canon extender as many users know.

ImageCreator Loc: Northern California

Using the 100-400 L with the 1.4 ext. at f8, I have found a stationary subject is sharper on my 5D3 and softer on my 7D2. I'll take your suggestion and go to f11 and see if I can coax some add'l sharpness from both the 5D3 and 7D2. I never use the extender with BIF's as its just not satisfactory.

I've been using this setup for a nest of eagles for the added reach but the images are just too soft. I'm going to try using my 5D3 with the 100-400 and just manipulate the images in PS.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Just wondering if you’ve tried micro focus calibration with this combination. I know that with mine, the calibration is quite different with and without the extender - one more set of tolerances to add to the stack up. Both of your bodies allow calibration at two different FLs. The difference at 400 mm is +10 without the extender and -2 with on my 5D4.