I am going on a safari to India early next year and I have pretty much sorted out the gear that I am taking. The trip involves 6-7 days of safari tracking tigers etc either on elephant back or by jeep, followed by 2 days in Agra and a couple more travelling around. The kit so far is:
Canon 1D mkIII, Canon 5D, 300mm f2.8 IS, 70-200mm f2.8 IS, 24-70mm f2.8, 17-40 f4, 1.4 and 2x TC's and either my 15mm fisheye or 85mm f1.2 (probably the 85mm).
My question is this...would you bother with the 100-400mm or would you leave it at home? I have found that since buying the 300mm that the 100-400 has stayed at home, but the versatility of the lens may be of use on the safari.
So for those who have done similar trips, what would you do?
IMHO, while you're out looking for tigers, you'd do well to have the 300 on your MKIII and the 100-400 on your 5D. If you leave anything home, I'd leave the 70-200.
Where are you going to see the tigers? I've been to Kanha and had the fortune to see them each time I was in the park. In my experience there when you track the tigers via elephant in the morning you get quite close to them. Not so close they can touch you, but 70-200 close for sure. However, if you are travelling around the park by jeep they can be aways away - the 100-400 would come in handy in this case. You mention additional travelling. Where? Keoladeo is only a few hours from Agra. If you're going there you will definitely want the 100-400. I would take the 100-400.
I've never been on a safari but I myself would go out and buy a 100-400 just for the trip. The flexability the 100-400 offers I think is a must, for most people this is a once in a lifetime experience and you don't want to miss the shot.
Wow, awesome set up, Ken. I don't know the answer! I agree you should make a decision between the 70-200mm IS f/2,8 and the 100-400mm IS. The 70-200mm +/- 1.4 TC could give you enough zoom range.
If I had your kit, I'd be trying to shoot as much as I can with the 300mm f/2.8 IS. Its not only an extraordinary quality lens, its highly versatile and 300mm + TC's is really a great focal length. You won't get the same quality with a 100-400mm zoom, especially for birds (unless yours is a rare sharp copy). You might `get the shot' but you have to weight that up against quality I guess.
