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Archive 2013 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

Tom_W
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p.13 #1 · p.13 #1 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

rscheffler wrote:
It does if you use live view with contrast detect AF on static subjects. Also with internal TC and stacked 1.4x and 2x.

I forgot about contrast detect AF - I successfully used that method with stacked 2X teleconverters on the 400/2.8 also. It's a big sluggish, as expected, but it does work and it seems to be accurate.

Obviously, not suitable for tracking moving objects.

Jun 07, 2013 at 08:03 AM

Tom_W
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p.13 #2 · p.13 #2 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

PetKal wrote:
Thank you, Mitesh, it looks like the TC aggravates the falloff.
Well, as long as images are cropped a fair bit, either thru camera (1.3 or 1.6 crop) or in postprocessing, or the lens is stopped down, that falloff should not be seen.

The 100-400 has a bit of light falloff around the corners as well. Provided you have otherwise good exposure and aren't on the far frontier as far as ISO and noise are concerned, I think a bit of post-processing can easily take care of that if you need the entire full frame.

Of course, it really depends on the situation. If you're already underexposed and you're pushing the image in PP, you might not have the exposure latitude to successfully eliminate all signs of light falloff without introducing noise artifacts in the areas where exposure was bumped the greatest - which would logically be the corners.

Jun 07, 2013 at 08:10 AM

PetKal
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p.13 #3 · p.13 #3 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

Primes seem to be less susceptible to the falloff problem than the zooms. For example, the Pipe has a terrible light falloff.

Edited on Jun 08, 2013 at 08:48 PM · View previous versions

Jun 07, 2013 at 08:23 AM

Tom_W
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p.13 #4 · p.13 #4 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

My 24-105 has a good amount of light falloff wide open at the wide end. Probably a tradeoff for a lens that covers such a range with reasonably good IQ.

In general, though, I agree. For the most part, the primes don't seem to have as much of an issue with light falloff (though I did have a 20/2.8 USM that had quite a bit of falloff wide open).

I suspect that there are ways to deal with light falloff that would have made the lens considerably larger and heavier. And perhaps a bit more expensive to produce. Might even have made it a lot more difficult to produce the desired level of IQ. I don't really know.

Jun 07, 2013 at 08:47 AM

rscheffler
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p.13 #5 · p.13 #5 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

Since it's a new lens there isn't a profile for it yet (that I know of) for Lightroom, but I found using the 100-400 vignetting profile worked if pulled back from 100. The amount seems to depend on focal length and aperture used. For my BIF lesson with Peter, most of the shooting was done at f/9 or f/10 and falloff at that point wasn't an issue. In the further tests I've done in 1/3 increments, stopping down 1/3 and 2/3 makes a noticeable difference, but you need to go past 1 stop and closer to two stops to get rid of it.

It's definitely one of the tradeoffs with this lens.

Jun 07, 2013 at 09:56 AM

PetKal
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p.13 #6 · p.13 #6 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

rscheffler wrote:
It's definitely one of the tradeoffs with this lens.

Yes, and just about every piece of gears we have involves some sort of a compromise. Naturally, the important thing for us is to compromise hopefully in a right direction, so that we may be left with a net gain at the end of the day.

For example, 800L and 400 DO have presented a notable compromise for me, as both lenses have some serious shortcomings. However, they also have some unique qualities which have been helpful to my photography, and all around I am happy and thankful I've got those two lenses.

Jun 07, 2013 at 10:26 AM

Deborah Kolt
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p.13 #7 · p.13 #7 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

For those interested in examples, I've posted some boys lacrosse shots from my first outing with this lens over in Sports Corner: https://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/1218638

Nothing scientific, just on the field shots with a variety of different lighting, ISO and focal lengths. All at f/4. The vignetting was noticeable at 400mm, but for me is not a major issue because the majority of my action shots end up being cropped.

Loved the light weight, speed of autofocus, sharpness, narrow profile. Remembering to zoom was a bit of a problem initially, but that I can fix.

Jun 08, 2013 at 02:36 PM

Roland W
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p.13 #8 · p.13 #8 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

Something I have noticed about the 200-400 is if you are shooting at f4 using aperture priority without the built in 1.4x switched in, and you change and put in the 1.4x, the camera of course knows and goes to f5.6, which is very logical. The interesting thing, that Canon "did right", is that when you go back to no 1.4x switched in, the camera and lens combination "remembers" that you were at f4 before, and the setting returns to and shows f4, where you logically would want it to go to. Thank you Canon for that.

Jun 08, 2013 at 06:54 PM

PetKal
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p.13 #9 · p.13 #9 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

Here's my last contribution to 200-400L picture galleries.
Come to think of it, the zoom wouldn't make a bad BIF lens if it wasn't so darn heavy for an 400mm f/4 (or 560mm f/5.6) lens.

Edited on Jun 10, 2013 at 04:14 PM · View previous versions

Jun 08, 2013 at 10:46 PM

SKumar25
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p.13 #10 · p.13 #10 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

^-- brilliant shot Peter!

Jun 09, 2013 at 12:38 AM

PetKal
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p.13 #11 · p.13 #11 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

Thank you, Kumar, glad to hear you like the picture.

Jun 09, 2013 at 04:51 AM

StillFingerz
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p.13 #12 · p.13 #12 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

Peter, that's quite the shot, composition, to end your image contributions to this discussion, nothing common about your effort, except the BIF

Jun 09, 2013 at 10:15 AM

Doctorbird
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p.13 #13 · p.13 #13 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

PetKal wrote:
Here's my last contribution to 200-400L picture galleries.
Come to think of it, the zoom wouldn't make a bad BIF lens if it wasn't so darn heavy for an 400mm f/4 (or 560mm f/5.6) lens.

Peter, I see that your thoughts are Terning around.

Db

Jun 09, 2013 at 10:39 AM

PetKal
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p.13 #14 · p.13 #14 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

StillFingerz wrote:
Peter, that's quite the shot, composition, to end your image contributions to this discussion, nothing common about your effort, except the BIF

Thank you, Jerry, but it is really the pijun that decided on the pose, background and thus the composition, and I was just there to push the button.

Jun 09, 2013 at 11:34 AM

PetKal
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p.13 #15 · p.13 #15 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

Doctorbird wrote:
Peter, I see that your thoughts are Terning around.

Db

Db, things I say along those lines do not really carry much weight.......I have gone on record saying that even much shorter lenses, such as EF-S 60mm f/2.8 macro, make good BIF photography tools.

Jun 09, 2013 at 11:37 AM

KatManDEW
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p.13 #16 · p.13 #16 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

For some reason I stopped getting updates notifications about this thread...

I got a message from B&H saying "One or more items from this purchase are still out of stock"

It's discouragingly reminiscent of when my 24-70 f/2.8 II was on back order for 5 months last year

It's worse with the 200-400 because that's a sizable chunk of change sitting around doing nothing. I could use it for something else if I knew the 200-400 wasn't going to be available until to late to utilize it this year. I have a big 4 day gig to shoot this coming weekend, and I could really use that lens.

Jun 10, 2013 at 07:10 PM

PetKal
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p.13 #17 · p.13 #17 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

There have been suggestions that this week the dealers in USA/Canada might get more lenses. The first shipment to select Canadian dealers must have been quite small, because some of bigger stores apparently haven't seen any lenses yet.
One way or another, give it a couple of months, and the lens will be in stock everywhere, because I expect the long term steady-state demand for 200-400L will be very very modest.

Jun 10, 2013 at 07:36 PM

KatManDEW
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p.13 #18 · p.13 #18 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

PetKal wrote:
There have been suggestions that this week the dealers in USA/Canada might get more lenses. The first shipment to select Canadian dealers must have been quite small, because some of bigger stores apparently haven't seen any lenses yet.
One way or another, give it a couple of months, and the lens will be in stock everywhere, because I expect the long term steady-state demand for 200-400L will be very very modest.

Thanks for the hope. Unfortunately in a couple months race'n season will be over, as will be the vast majority of my uses for the lens this year. If I knew it was gonna be a couple months, I could use the money for something that I could use during the "daylight season" this year. Frustrating and constricting...

Jun 10, 2013 at 07:53 PM

mitesh
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p.13 #19 · p.13 #19 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

For a modest convenience fee, you can have mine and I'll wait to take delivery of yours

Jun 10, 2013 at 08:12 PM

PetKal
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p.13 #20 · p.13 #20 · Hands-on: EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Extender 1.4X

Alternatively, this fellow might have a lens available for immediate shipment.

Jun 10, 2013 at 08:28 PM

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