The "New Gear/Willy Waving" thread

Tis a measly 70d but it'll have to do for a while now lol

The 7dmk2 is probably the upgrade I'll be thinking about eventually if it focuses at F8 since this lens isn't bad with a separate 1.4x extender
 
I'll be doing a bit of everything really :) I'd like to do some serious wildlife stuff but since I have a job it'll have to remain a hobby for the moment ;)

Having 200-560mm range with very good IQ is very nice and I find the IS on this lens very good too. 2m minimum focus range means I can use it for Butterflies and Dragonflies too and even with a 25mm extension tube on, I still get 6-7 meters of focus range.
 
Sounds good,

Would be good to see what you get up to with it, it's been a few years since I did serious nature photography, it's a seriously expensive hobby lol, (I had a 300 and a 600 and everything that goes with it)

Good luck!
 
Yeah it's a shame it's so expensive to get decent lenses. When you look at the other primes in the same class the price is higher but relatively it's not a massive step up so I figured I might as well go the whole hog. I tried to be sensible at first but whilst the Sigma 120-300mm S F2.8 was sharp, it wasn't with extenders :/

This lens is sharp enough to let me crop a lot even with the extender in use so I'm in love :D
 
It's still just a hobby for me but I'm single and don't have a mortgage etc and the photography habit doesn't seem to be going anywhere. It would be nice to get shots published/sold etc but with nature shots, it seems difficult to do this and even more difficult if they're not up to a certain level of quality.


It's definitely very satisfying to use this lens :) plus it's good exercise to lug around!
 
SDK^ said:
It's a great in all-in-one lens but you sure pay the price for being lazy switching lenses :p
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Yeah but I wonder how much it would cost to get lenses of equal quality to cover the same range.

200mm F4
400mm F4
560mm F5.6

The 400mm DO lens is still around 4-5k and I get everything in between as well as no time lost switching lenses. There is a small delay for using the extender switch as it shouldn't be moved whilst the AF is active otherwise some serious damage can occur!


I liked my old 100-400mm as the quick zooming in and out was great but the quality was lacking when cropping in and with a 20MP sensor, it seems a shame not to be able to crop much.

My 100mm F2.8L macro lens really spoilt me on that front but now I have this which isn't far behind :D

I also recently had a trip to Canada which was another reason why I decided to get this now. I managed to get some of the local wildlife in my few trips out but I really want to roam this country a bit more now :) it's a good reason to drag my ass out of the house!
 
Phal said:
It's still just a hobby for me but I'm single and don't have a mortgage etc and the photography habit doesn't seem to be going anywhere. It would be nice to get shots published/sold etc but with nature shots, it seems difficult to do this and even more difficult if they're not up to a certain level of quality.
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Same tbh,

I used to do a LOT of wildlife, (some people on here may remember, must be 6 years ago..) did well in some of the big competitions, used to go all over the place, now I do landscapes more than anything else, but i'll do wildlife again at some point in the future... Like you i'm single, get paid decent wages, and just find it to be such a rewarding hobby, so whatever really - enjoy it while it lasts.
 
Phal said:
It's still just a hobby for me but I'm single and don't have a mortgage etc and the photography habit doesn't seem to be going anywhere. It would be nice to get shots published/sold etc but with nature shots, it seems difficult to do this and even more difficult if they're not up to a certain level of quality.


It's definitely very satisfying to use this lens :) plus it's good exercise to lug around!
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If you can afford it go nuts :) I'm easily pleased with my measily 1k L lens :p
 
For the range you want you've got the best lens. Unfortunately the 200-400, even with 1.4x, is a little short for me which is why I went with the 600 II which, on full frame (1DX) is a very similar FOV to the 1dIV/500 I combo I was using. I still use a 1.4x (III) quite a bit but with the 600 II/1DX you hardly notice it being on there compared to the 1DIV/500 I in terms of AF speed/aquisition.

Phal said:
Yeah but I wonder how much it would cost to get lenses of equal quality to cover the same range.

200mm F4
400mm F4
560mm F5.6

The 400mm DO lens is still around 4-5k and I get everything in between as well as no time lost switching lenses. There is a small delay for using the extender switch as it shouldn't be moved whilst the AF is active otherwise some serious damage can occur!


I liked my old 100-400mm as the quick zooming in and out was great but the quality was lacking when cropping in and with a 20MP sensor, it seems a shame not to be able to crop much.

My 100mm F2.8L macro lens really spoilt me on that front but now I have this which isn't far behind :D

I also recently had a trip to Canada which was another reason why I decided to get this now. I managed to get some of the local wildlife in my few trips out but I really want to roam this country a bit more now :) it's a good reason to drag my ass out of the house!
Click to expand...
 
Phal said:
Yeah but I wonder how much it would cost to get lenses of equal quality to cover the same range.
Click to expand...
The 200-400 is a heavy lens (3.6kg) so it's not as versatile as it looks. Wildlife, motorsport and aircraft photography tend to demand range so I can't see a use for the zoom feature.

Also, surely your Macro lens is better to use for insects etc..?
 
I switch between 70/135/200/300 when shooting motorsport, not everything is a head on shot. It's heavy but only a tiny bit heavier than a Sigma 120-300 f2.8 and although you lose out on a stop you gain a lot more versatility.
 
SDK^ said:
The 200-400 is a heavy lens (3.6kg) so it's not as versatile as it looks. Wildlife, motorsport and aircraft photography tend to demand range so I can't see a use for the zoom feature.

Also, surely your Macro lens is better to use for insects etc..?
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It's certainly not something I want to handhold all day but it's more than possible to get some good shots out of it if you're quick.

For me it's usually on my tripod with two of the legs extended to use it as a bipod. As for the zoom feature, granted that you'll probably have it at 560mm for the majority of the time but there's definitely still plenty of use for closer lengths and this is especially true since you don't need to switch lens to do so.

As for how I got the Dragonfly in flight, quick/decent AF helps and obviously a 1dx would be better but it's still possible! Being able to crop in a lot later also helps since this dragonfly was 5-6 meters away over a large pond. I've seen other people with shots at much closer distances so I have to wonder how they manage theirs lol

The macro lens provides more magnification but with a minimum focus distance of 30cm ish, it also requires me to get a lot closer. When I'm 2 meters away with my extension tube in, I'm a lot less likely to scare the Butterflies/Dragonflies away and I still get plenty of detail in


This pic says it all tbh :)

Sharp Dragonfly is Sharp by Phal44, on Flickr
 
And said:
For the range you want you've got the best lens. Unfortunately the 200-400, even with 1.4x, is a little short for me which is why I went with the 600 II which, on full frame (1DX) is a very similar FOV to the 1dIV/500 I combo I was using. I still use a 1.4x (III) quite a bit but with the 600 II/1DX you hardly notice it being on there compared to the 1DIV/500 I in terms of AF speed/aquisition.
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If I had a 1Dx I could make more frequent use of my 1.4x mk3 extender too. I wouldn't mind longer lenses too but this is definitely the best for me and I'm not about to start carrying two large white lenses around lol
 
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