Telephoto help

hollis_f wrote in post #14867873
Only if your definition of 'works' is 'tries to do what it's supposed to, but normally fails unless you have a static subject and very good light'.

Well I would say that the kenko is ruled out then.

I want to pull the trigger on the 400 5.6 but the extra 100 (or 160 on my 7d) and 4 stops of OS is hard to beat

I am not sure about your area, but for our eagles here and in Alaska, my 100-400 serves nicely. It depends a lot on how close you can get, of course. That said, I have heard glowing reports about the Bigma but have not had a chance to work with one.

Julius

JuliusUpNorth wrote in post #14867928
I am not sure about your area, but for our eagles here and in Alaska, my 100-400 serves nicely. It depends a lot on how close you can get, of course. That said, I have heard glowing reports about the Bigma but have not had a chance to work with one.

Julius

I am actually not sure either. I guess I am going for the worst case scenario method.

Lichter21c wrote in post #14867677
Would anyone recommend the kenko 1.4? It says AF works with the 100-400 and the 400 5.6?

Not with the 150-500, as I never liked the inconsistency with AF. Plus I didn't like taping the pins. I also prefer not to manual focus - except for macro.

Bill Ragosta wrote in post #14867900
I've got the Kenko 1.4 that I occasionally use with my Sigma 150-500. As Hollis said, it sometimes works and often doesn't work very well but it's fine with manual focus and the IQ is surprisingly good with that combo. Obviously, manual focus typically isn't going to work very well with eagles in flight but there will be times that it would work for you on your trip I'd think.

BIF might be OK with the combination manually using a gimbal head on a tripod. I never tried it, I don't have a gimbal.

jimewall wrote in post #14868242
Not with the 150-500, as I never liked the inconsistency with AF. Plus I didn't like taping the pins. I also prefer not to manual focus - except for macro.

BIF might be OK with the combination manually using a gimbal head on a tripod. I never tried it, I don't have a gimbal.

You may have a point about the inconsistency with auto-focus when using the Kenko TC with the 150-500 but you don't have to tape any pins.

Bill Ragosta wrote in post #14869572
You may have a point about the inconsistency with auto-focus when using the Kenko TC with the 150-500 but you don't have to tape any pins.

Bill I wanted to double check again what I was sure of, so I had to wait until I got home to retest. I did!

I have an old white 2X Kenko Teleplus 300 Pro and a newer (but I don't think it is the newest) 1.4X Kenko Teleplus 300 Pro. The both report the accurate resultant aperture change (plus two f-stops for the 2X and plus one f-stop for the 1.4X). Therefore I lose the ability to AF with this lens and either TC.

If I tape the pins, only then does it keep the native aperture of the lens and tries to AF.

From memory as I don't like the tape trick. With the 2x it is garbage, never locks focus regardless of the light. With the 1.4X it was inconsistent, in good light it was OK (not good - OK)! Obviously MF is fine - but for manual focus I don't need the tape!

So sorry, on mine with the Kenko (at least the oldTeleplus 300 Pros - or my copy of the Sigma) you need to tape the pins or no AF.

mine needs the pins to be taped as well...also using an older kenko 1.4X...although i put it on very rarely as i think it degrades the image too much to be very useful

jimewall wrote in post #14872400
Bill I wanted to double check again what I was sure of, so I had to wait until I got home to retest. I did!

I have an old white 2X Kenko Teleplus 300 Pro and a newer (but I don't think it is the newest) 1.4X Kenko Teleplus 300 Pro. The both report the accurate resultant aperture change (plus two f-stops for the 2X and plus one f-stop for the 1.4X). Therefore I lose the ability to AF with this lens and either TC.

If I tape the pins, only then does it keep the native aperture of the lens and tries to AF.

From memory as I don't like the tape trick. With the 2x it is garbage, never locks focus regardless of the light. With the 1.4X it was inconsistent, in good light it was OK (not good - OK)! Obviously MF is fine - but for manual focus I don't need the tape!

So sorry, on mine with the Kenko (at least the oldTeleplus 300 Pros - or my copy of the Sigma) you need to tape the pins or no AF.

OK, got it, I'm using newer DGX. It works, some, but not well. That said, the image quality is actually surprisingly good with the TC. In fact, I wish like heck I would have thought of it yesterday. I was photographing the largest whitetail buck I had seen all year or in several years with a full 500mm and it wasn't quite enough. I looked at the photos at home and they would have been fine if the image quality was better. It was only at that time that I noticed the OS on the Bigmos was turned off! Dohh!!!! I also never even thought to go back to my bag (I had snuck down the road from my truck and could have gotten back there without spooking the animals) for the TC. Some times I'm such a dolt.

As always, it seems no matter how long you have with you - you always need longer!

Sorry about your picks, sounds like a nice area.

UPDATE: I ended up putting my 28-70 up for trade for a telephoto. I traded "Rendil" for his 150-500, I also bought a 1.4 TC EX DG from "skater911".

today I got a chance to take the 150-500 to the local zoo. Here are a few from today. They are unedited. just turned to JPEG for flickr. for those we know telephotos much better than I do you think I have a sharp copy? It seems pretty sharp to me actually. I am happier than I thought I would be.

granted there is much more I have to do to truly test how the lens performs in different situations.

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com …s/joshlichter/7​986493001/

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com …s/joshlichter/7​986484475/

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com …s/joshlichter/7​986467643/

Those look pretty good from here - enjoy the new lens!

Lichter21c wrote in post #14991863
UPDATE: I ended up putting my 28-70 up for trade for a telephoto. I traded "Rendil" for his 150-500, I also bought a 1.4 TC EX DG from "skater911".

today I got a chance to take the 150-500 to the local zoo. Here are a few from today. They are unedited. just turned to JPEG for flickr. for those we know telephotos much better than I do you think I have a sharp copy? It seems pretty sharp to me actually. I am happier than I thought I would be.

granted there is much more I have to do to truly test how the lens performs in different situations.
there are more in the Set on flickr if you want to look

I suppose at f11 they are sharp enough. If you still have your 100-400 try comparing pics at the same settings, say at f4.5 or f5.6 - you may see a difference

i find shooting at f8 to give the best results...also you may find that you need a little boost in contrast when at 500mm...congrats on the lens

the last one is shot wide open...

how do you like the TC? i put my kenko 1.4X on once...and just didn't see the benefit of it at all...maybe for the odd moon shot...

snowblower wrote in post #14854238
. . . I don't know why your not focused on a new body like a 5D III. Blowoff the lens purchase, make the 100-400 work the best you can, save your money (not purchase a new long lens) and your already 1/3rd of the way to a 5D III. That body will make a difference with your photo's much more than one lens on on vacation trip. That is my 2-cents worth. Whatever you do, good luck!!!

Hmmm. Snowblower, I take it you aren't really into bird photography? WIth birds, the lens is just about everything. Not to mention, the pixel density of a 7D is more suited to bird images than the larger sensor of the 5D series bodies.

DreDaze wrote in post #14992689
i find shooting at f8 to give the best results...also you may find that you need a little boost in contrast when at 500mm...congrats on the lens

the last one is shot wide open...

how do you like the TC? i put my kenko 1.4X on once...and just didn't see the benefit of it at all...maybe for the odd moon shot...

I'm planning to go use it either tomorrow or the next day. If I get anything good I will post it here