WOW! my 100-400 L just arrived!!!!!

I thought it was going to be a good size lens but WOW this thing is HUGE! And did I mention HEAVY

Only took abot 50 shots around the yard and am very impressed. Not sure if it was the lens or not but suddenly, all the birds seemed to disappear from my yard. I'm out there this morning and there were birds and squirells all over the place.

Have to say ... I like the push / pull of this lens very much. Very fast AF too!

Well, time to head off for "points unknown" and test this monster out. Glad I took the night out of work (Hmmmm ... I did the same thing when both my sons were born too ... gotta have priorities, right?)

Way to go! You are going to love this lens. To keep from scaring away the birds, I suggest a camo sleeve for the 100-400. Easy to make, just get a long sleeved camo T-shirt and cut off one arm. Slide the arm over the lens. Works like a charm. Again, congrats. Post some shots.

Word of caution:

All that pushing and pulling on the zoom will give you a disproportionately large bicep on your left arm.

Congratulations on the new lens. I'm waiting for mine to be delivered, fresh from an overhaul at Canon. Based on personal experience, I can tell you that you really don't want to drop it.

johneo,

I love the lens. When it is good, it is great. It can be really, really sharp and fast. It is not a good low light lens, so shoot as much as you can when you have the light.

I am not sure if this is your first "L" lens but if so, welcome to the club. I find myself using that lens for a whole range of shots. I love the bokeh on the flowers I shoot with it. You will find that it is a great lens for just about anything.

NiL,

Youre gonna love it before the week is out. Heavy or not, it is tops, and that IS is worth a ton!!! Yep the birds see it as a Canon ready to shoot them out of the saddle

JZ

LOL...That is so true. People and birds see that lens they will pose for you. I swear.

Before I purchased the lens I read the reviews on Fred Miranda's site and one thing everyone said, it attracts a lot of attention and boy it does.

Enjoy it and be prepare to speak to a lot of people and get a lot of stares and comments.

NiL,

Wait till you get your 70-200. You will think it is light!

I hope Canon start making lighter lenses, the price and the weight are too much. LOL

Maybe they can make Carbon fiber lenses....Hmmmmmmm.

NiL,

They already are...Diffractive Optics (DO). The 70-300mm IS version just came out.

Took out my new 100-400mm to Central Park (in NY) for lunch today. Man! I haven't worked my bicep like that in a while!

Originally thought I wouldn't like the push/pull zoom, but now I PREFER it! And the way the smooth/tighten ring works is great; I hold the lens with my left hand and my thumb always sits right on the smooth/tighten ring...When I want to zoom, the thumb adjusts to 'smooth' and then push away. And when I retract it to move to the next shot, the thumb then quick adjusts to tighten...No 'lens creep', nice!

IS is just fantastic. I've already got the 28-135IS, but you really don't appreciate just how wonderful IS is until you're looking through a tele-zoom that's all the way out to 400mm and even holding your breath you just see every tiny shake...Then you press that shutter button 1/2 way and PRESTO, everything is smooooooth.

...Can't wait to get home and see my results.

Congrats on the recent purchase, It really is a great lens. I just bought mine two weeks ago and have had the opportunity to photograph a local high school lacrosse game. The pictures came out very sharp and when I had three of them printed professionally they had requested that I had added a watermark to them for copyright purposes...lol Needless to say I was fuul of awe. I love this heavy lens....works extremely well with a monopod for sports photography .....

I've had mine for over a year now and use it primarily for sports shots. It's been a great lens. It's amazing how many people this lens attracts when I show up at an event. For most events, I can hang around the local press staff at the sidelines without a pass or being bothered by the ushers. That gray lens with a red stripe carries some clout!

PS......Don't forget you are able to submit for a $50.00 rebate for your purchase.....easily the price of a good protective uv or skylight filter to protest that brand new baby.... Also to Jon Borcik, Maybe you could give me a few pointers to talk my way into Fenway Park with this lens....Now that would be awesome.... Dave

I've been enjoying mine for a month now. W W was pretty much my reaction when I picked it up, looked at it and used it. W W was my lovely wifes reaction when she found out the price. I still say W W when I see some of the captures I get.

where1 wrote:
I've been enjoying mine for a month now. W W was pretty much my reaction when I picked it up, looked at it and used it. W W was my lovely wifes reaction when she found out the price. I still say W W when I see some of the captures I get.

And now your wife doesn't say anything because she's not speaking to you.


Mike

mjordan wrote:

where1 wrote:
I've been enjoying mine for a month now. W W was pretty much my reaction when I picked it up, looked at it and used it. W W was my lovely wifes reaction when she found out the price. I still say W W when I see some of the captures I get.

And now your wife doesn't say anything because she's not speaking to you.


Mike

LOL My lovely wife does not know how to NOT speak.
As long as the bills get paid (some how that ended up being my responsibilty) she lets me get by. She does tease me about the size of the lense though.