Canon 100-400 is L or 75-200 F4L

[Ezz.]

I nee to decide between these two lenses. I have 20D 17-85, 420 Flash, Flash trax 40G. Travel US and foreign, conserned about weight of the 100-400 but would like the range and IS capability. Does anyone travel abroad with this lense in their backpacks?. Is it a pain or is it portable enough?.

[jpsimon]

i love mine, and i dont mind the weight at all.. i walk around a lot without switching the lens and i dont see any problems with the weight at all.

but i hear people complain a lot ??? oh well. its great for me

[Jim_T]

I love my 100-400, but it can be a pain to carry for a long time or long distance. When I do carry it, I undo the strap of my camera bag and run the lens case zipper loop around the strap.. When I fasten the strap again, I can carry my case and the 100-400 together as a joined pair..

I don't take the 100-400 on really long or rugged hikes where it might get damaged.. I carry the smaller and lighter Canon 100-300.. It fits inside my camera bag. The images aren't as sharp, but it's much easier to carry..

[phili1]

I back pack mine along with a 70-200 a 28-75 a 17-35 - 105Macro - flash - charger - Road Stor - Batteries - filters.


Some time it is heavy but if you only take the 17-85 and 100-400 it will be light. You could get away with a small back pack. I am not sure if it will fit in a fanny pack. Tamrac got allot mof different bags.

It's a super lens, you will love it.

[Canuck]

I trravelled back from the UK on a 777 with all the following:
Canon EOS 10D w/ Big Ed
Canon 16-35mm F2.8L
Canon 24-70mm F2.8L
Sigma 120-300mm F2.8EX
Flashtrax 40GB and a lot of other stuff (filters, shutter release, and more).

Note it was not in a backpack designed for camera kit, but everything was in pouches and the like. With all that kit, I was not gonna let it leave my sight. No hassles at all, just said that it was carry-on.

I have had many flunkies check my stuff out in the US. Why do they get their panties in a bunch, I have an ID of sort that should allow me to get around this but not this time. I had to refrain from wanting to slap one of the flunkies stupid. Apparentlu they wanted to see what was under all the camera kit and meant taking out the 10D , all the lenses. About the time said flunkie got to the Sigma 120-300 I was like be careful! (side note: the lense is 5 3/4 lbs) The lens cover came off and I moved closer to grab the lens to prevent (what I perceived as) further damage. The flunkie asked me what that lens was worth and I said, that it was more than your job, some serious cash and that I can't afford to replace it. I left it at that. So the flunkie puts it with the UV filter face down on the table. Ok at this point I am bordering on really ticked off. So the test goes as advertised and I asked if I could put the stuff away. They allowed me to. The flunkie asked me again what hte monster lense was worth and I exaggerated a lot and said about $2500. (I got it for a lot less but that was the going rate for a little while.)
I sailed thru customs coming back to the US. I thought it was a joke. I have found that air travel has become a real hassle, especially in the US.
Idunno.

[Jon]

I took my 100-400 along on a trip to Seattle and the Pacific Northwest with (IIRC) 15-30 Sigma, 28-90, 35 f/2, 1.4x TC, D60, Elan 7e, 550EX, Tamron 90 f/2.8 macro, ZR70 MC Mini-DV camera and an A80. Plus, of course, tapes, batteries, and CF. There may well have been more.All this was in a Domke F-1X (The Little Bigger Domke). Laptop and assorted chargers were in a second carry-on. It's a fairly standard loading for me. These cameras/lenses all also go along (in a backpack/waist pack combo) hiking. I don't mind the weight, because I need the lens, although I've thought about sticking some of this into a rolling carrier for flights with plane changes. YMMV.

[Jon]

I sailed thru customs coming back to the US. I thought it was a joke. I have found that air travel has become a real hassle, especially in the US.
Idunno.

It's TSA's new terrorist identification procedure. You make air travel unpleasant enough and pretty soon you'll be able to spot the terrorists because noone else will be flying. Safer? "Perception is everything." They make it look like they're doing something and count on that to stop people from asking whether what they're doing is really going to help the situation.