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Hello I'm looking for some advice
I have a Canon 500D with a Canon EF 100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS USM
I am thinking about extending the range as I have started and really enjoy taking pictures of wildlife!
I can seen that there is a way I can get even closer. However I cant decide which one to go for unfortunately money has to come into the calculation.
The choices, seem to be Canon, Sigma, Tamron, Vivitar, not sure if there are any others?
Any help would be appreciated
Steve.
I assume your talking about Teleconverters?
I use kenko pro 300 1.4X TC. I can't fault it when I use it with my Sigma 150mm macro lens, however I'm not so sure you'd be that happy with your 100-400 lens, and that would apply with any of them. You'd lose AF plus it softens the image. It may work well enough in perfect light, but how often do we get that? You could of course tape the contacts to try and force the camera to AF, but it's not that good. It becomes unreliable at best.
An extender will physically fit on to that lens but it isn't a good option as you will lose auto focus and the image quality will suffer quite considerably.
You can sometimes get reasonable results, but it will be the exception rather than the rule.
Extender's are best left for use on prime lenses or fast (i.e. f2.8) lenses.
You will get far, far better quality results by practising your field-craft skills and getting closer to your subject.
There is one for sale in the classifieds on this site! Pity it's not mine, but a free plug for the seller!
It is sound advice as long as it is permitted and practical.
It is one area where photographers get a bad reputation i.e. The shot comes 1st rather than the welfare of the wildlife.
For what it's worth my 2pennyworth of advice is try and learn about the wildlife and make sure it comes 1st.
Hi Steve there is the option of selling your 100-400mm lens and buying the sigma 120-300mm f2.8 os apo dg hsm and put the sigma 2x converter on or the sigma 1.4x as they both work well.
I can vouch for this as i am taking wildlife with the 2x converter, I am getting 600mm focal length plus the 1.6 crop factor of the 7d and an f5.6 and getting good results, however do bare in mind the longer the focal range the harder it is to keep the lens still so you will need a mono pod at best, i use a mono pod and it seems to do the trick for me.
Quote: It is sound advice as long as it is permitted and practical.
It is one area where photographers get a bad reputation i.e. The shot comes 1st rather than the welfare of the wildlife.
For what it's worth my 2pennyworth of advice is try and learn about the wildlife and make sure it comes 1st.
Got to say the best advise yet and hence why longer zoom ranges are important, I have seen people going right up to wildlife especially the seal cubs on the Norfolk Beaches with a lens that do not do the job and I am talking something like the 50mm prime or some thing silly like that and disturbing the poor cubs, there are people that have no clue or respect for wildlife and need to learn that we encroach enough into there worlds as it is with out shoving a lens in there eye, a bit dramatic I know but it does happen too often.
Quote: For what it's worth my 2pennyworth of advice is try and learn about the wildlife and make sure it comes 1st.
That is what field craft is all about
There is no field craft in disturbing/stressing young seals and the like
Seen it with my own eyes and I find it quite disturbing
Quote: For what it's worth my 2pennyworth of advice is try and learn about the wildlife and make sure it comes 1st.
That is what field craft is all about
I wish all "Wildlife photographers" believed that.
I know of one award winning professional whose behaviour has led to him being banned from 3 sites.
When organisations be it National Trust, RSPB, The Wildlife Trusts, or The Wetland & Wildlife Trusts manage properties you are permitted on providing you comply with their rules. This means you go where they say you can and don't just where the fancy takes you.
Quote: I wish all "Wildlife photographers" believed that.
I know of one award winning professional whose behaviour has led to him being banned from 3 sites.
When organisations be it National Trust, RSPB, The Wildlife Trusts, or The Wetland & Wildlife Trusts manage properties you are permitted on providing you comply with their rules. This means you go where they say you can and don't just where the fancy takes you.
The actions of one 'wildlife' photographer is hardly representative of everyone else that photographs wildlife. Getting close doesn't have to mean causing disturbance, hence why the term fieldcraft was used.
I have done some trials on a 100-400 with a couple of teleconverters with not so great results. Wide open and on a 1.4x converter the results were no better than just applying a 1.4x crop on the image. But if you have all the electric connections fitted it shows as an F8 lens and AF is disabled. Stop it down to f11 and the teleconverter is better but that is optically slow.
If you search the internet you will find a suggestion of taping over a couple of the electrical contacts and the lens will then be reported as an f5.6 one and AF will work, but there is no guarantee it will work and be as accurate as it needs to be. The lens will still be f8 its just the camera does not know it.
So in short if you need a longer focal length think about a different (more expensive) lens.
In general you get a better image using a teleconverter to get the range rather than cropping (in general), however, as said already, with this combo you lose your auto focus control (though you should still have it with many cameras in live-view, but it will be slow and prone to errors) and you've also lost another stop of light and if you want to close down from wide open to get a bit more detail then you've lost yet more light - all bad things for wildlife which requires fast shutter speeds in general.
I've spoken a few who use and like this combo, but they are in the minority and in general most people find this combo just that bit too soft. It's good for a record shot and results will probably clean up (with processing) for a half decent post in the internet at small sizes - but otherwise the quality just isn't good enough for most people.
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