Soccer with 70-200 and 2x TC

Just thought I'd share s a few shots since lots of folks seem to consider tc's as a way of gaining some reach. I sold all of my long glass in favor of a few new race bikes and since my paid work doesn't require long glass, I've been happy with the decision. That said, I really miss the reach so I picked up a tc to pair with my 70-200 f/2.8 II. To keep it budget friendly (and decide if a tc was even going to work well) I went with the 2x II as opposed to the III. The 70-200 has done great with a 1.4x so I was optimistic but cautious after reading many many threads.

I do think it's going to take some getting used to as I am not thrilled with today's results. I don't really think it was the tc so much as me being out of practice and using new gear. Settings were generally 1/1000s 1000iso f/8. You really have to stop down a bit with the 2x II I am finding. Focus speed may have been impacted slightly but not to a point where I can see it being an issue as the 1DIII and 70-200 II are already lightning fast. I used it with and without the stabilizer and all were handheld. I may try a monopod next time around but feel kinda goofy doing so with that combo.

Game wise, I was shooting my son mostly (#39) who plays for USSDA Internationals in a match vs Fort Wayne. Very meh match but we came out on top 4-2 so at least that worked out.

These are obviously not originals so the resizing seems to do some damage on them but you get the picture (see what I just did there? its a photo site, "picture", yeah....)

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Good pics. How does the AF speed feel for this? I currently have the 70-200/4 IS and 7d for kids soccer and it's getting to the point where I need more reach. I could really use the 2.8 upgrade in the 70-200 for other stuff I shoot and I can't really afford to upgrade the 70-200/4 IS to the 2.8 II and get a 100-400 II so I am trying to decide which way to go.

looks really good to me. You lose the ability to really separate the background, but the pics looks plenty sharp to me. Thoughts of moving to the 1.4 III?

They look pretty good to me, too.

carpenter wrote in post #18134198
... You lose the ability to really separate the background, but the pics looks plenty sharp to me.

That was the downside I found when I used that lens/TC combination. I didn't feel that the sharpness was good enough until I reached effective f/11. (f/5.6 on the lens.)

thanks for the feedback. I'm not 100% sold on the combo yet but I think it has some potential. the 1.4x II is definitely better but just lacks reach and since there's no money in this for me, I'm just not inclined to repurchase a 300 or 400 f/2.8. I've thought about the Sigma 120-300 as the non-sport OS can be had for about $1600 which seems reasonable but I've never loved the images from Sigma glass I've owned (the 15mm fisheye being one huge exception).

AF speed didn't seem to be an issue at all with the 1D and 70-200 II with 2x so its really more of an issue of really watching backgrounds since separation is an issue and whether I can consistently produce sharp images with this combo. Nothing I have read suggests that the 2x III is worth twice what I paid for the II so I'm not even considering that right now.