What should I expect

[Cutter]

Hi my friends I have just ordered a new canon 100-400l is lense and it arrives tomorrow its the first L lense I have bought and after hearing and reading the reviews and of course being in budget I am excited to get out there and start snapping away. Heres the prob i dont want to come back dissapointed at the results so if i could have some advice from you on what I should be trying to acheive as opposed to going out there aimlessley i would be greatful.
ps thanks for all of your advice so far.

HAVE A GREAT PHOTOGRAPHIC NEW YEAR.

Regards
Cutter

[flake]

I guess before I suggest anything I'd like to ask what you bought this lens for? You must have had some idea of what you wanted to use it for? Most users of this lens will be looking to the longer end, otherwise they would have bought the 70 - 200mm.

At the longer focal lengths this lens is not particularly fast at f/5.6 so you're going to need to increase the Iso to get the shutter speed up to the 1/400th Sec minimum, the IS on this lens is a first generation one, it only gives 2 stops stabilisation, so it's perhaps best left out of the equation. It's also unreliable, a number of friends have had to have the units replaced in this lens.

Wildlife is probably the best subject for this lens, small subjects which need the magnification of a long lens but aren't too far away. At this time of year distance shots can be a problem due to atmospheric distortion (heat mist smog etc) so pick a day when the weather forecast says visibility is good for best long distance results.

For the best results use a tripod and a remote release, and if it's anything moving up the ISO to get the shutter speed up. Light levels at this time of year are poor and you probably won't see the best results from the lens until it starts to pick up in a couple of months time.

[Cutter]

Wow flake you have just blown all the wind out of my sails. I have bought the lens for wild life and sports photography at distance, I understand i need as you say faster glass but at the 400m range its out of my pocket. Having listened to you and other members on this forum I thought that the 100 400 L would best suit most of my needs. I have been on many review sites and they are realy happy with this lens for sport and wildlife. I hope I havent made a mistake in my purchase (the wife go mad ) but I do understand what your saying.
Just a quote
THE BOTTOM LINE
The bottom line is this: if I could have only one lens in my bag, the Canon EF 100-400L IS would be that lens. The enormous flexibility offered by the 100-400mm zoom range and the image stabilization really make this lens a phenomenal tool for the nature photographer. Although there are less expensive and smaller alternatives (namely the 400/f5.6L), I feel that this is the ideal lens for the bird photographer interested in taking a shorter, hand-holdable lens into the field with the larger super-telephotos. In addition, it is a great option for the nature photographer that can't justify the size or cost of the larger and much more expensive primes lenses. The great image quality, rugged build, and ease of use make this one of my favorite tools to use in the field.

Thanks for your imput flake
Regards cutter

[Sue Allen]

For user input on a lens like this I'd always advise taking a look at the Canon section of the photography forum on birdforum.net. For those who don't have bottomless pockets but can splash out a little more than average the choice usually comes down - if sticking to Canon's own lenses - to either the 400mm prime or 100-400 zoom and each have their own advocates. There's also galleries full of shots with this lens and the 400mm. My own choice when using a 40D was a 200mm f2.8 L [bought s/hand] coupled with a Canon 2x extender. This gave the advantage of a really nice fast focussing 200mm for all the times 400mm was'nt necessary and what proved to be a pretty good 400mm option for birding, albeit a bit slower all round.

[matt wilson]

Flake .Well done for making cutter think he's wasted his money.Cutter I bought the lens second hand .The clarity is stunning .Even if the light levels are low you can try some landscapes.The telephoto compression can work really well.Also unlike a lot of lenses it is sharp at it's maximum aperture so no need to stop down.

I use it on a 50 d.

I have read that very early versions of the lens had reliability issues but that is not going to be of concern to you.

Get out and enjoy it .The full blue moon would be a cracking subject .

[Cutter]

Originally Posted by matt wilson

Flake .Well done for making cutter think he's wasted his money.Cutter I bought the lens second hand .The clarity is stunning .Even if the light levels are low you can try some landscapes.The telephoto compression can work really well.Also unlike a lot of lenses it is sharp at it's maximum aperture so no need to stop down.

I use it on a 50 d.

I have read that very early versions of the lens had reliability issues but that is not going to be of concern to you.

Get out and enjoy it .The full blue moon would be a cracking subject .

Thanks Matt,yes i am concerned i have wasted my money but having read how happy you were with it ( and many more) i decided to make the plunge . If I get some good pics will put them on my gallery.
Ps i have the 50 D also

Regards

[cosmicma]

so you opted for the canon 100 - 400mm L
it's a good lense and one i will purchase myself when funds allow
flake seems to have concerns about low light and the widest apeture being f5.6 at 400mm, well yes a faster lens would be an advantage but i have been using a sigma 170 - 500mm f5.6 - f6.3 with no IS for a while to photograph birds/wildlife and got some pretty decent results i see no problem with the canon in real use

enjoy your purchase and if you find your struggling with keeping the shutter speed up buy a bean bag

[flake]

I don't think that I implied that anyone buying this lens has wasted their money, however it wouldn't be on my personal shopping list.

It's main uses are sports and wildlife above 200mm where the 70 - 200mm is a better choice. The results I have seen have been quite good, but they have all been in good light.

What I wrote was good advice - keep the Iso up and the shutter speed, if you're using it for landscape then don't point it at distant objects unless the visibility is good. You say that you bought it for sports & wild life, and so why not go take some photos of those?