coppertop wrote:
Starting to think Canon underestimated demand and only sent one or two units to retailers.
Maybe we'll be lucky and the full shipments are sitting in a UPS truck that's stuck in traffic.
And while it's only been a two days since the "ship date" has passed, if it drags on for a month or so I'll just cancel and use the money to buy a 2x converter for my 100-500mm.
All these camera manufacturers spend millions on product development and none of them put a dime into any particular product unless they have research to show it will be profitable. These are well established companies, not startups. They know what they are doing, though we think they don't have a clue. So, no Canon did not underestimate demand, though you are right, they probably did ramp up slowly and sent out a very few copies to date, partly for quality control and partly to increase FOMO demand. This being consumer grade glass manufacturing should be a lot quicker than it would be for an L lens. I suspect all pre-orders will be met no later than late Feb. Launching any product two-weeks before the end of the year is always going to slow distribution, demand or no demand.
Really, we see the same storyline every major release for every camera company. You'd think we'd be wise to the game by now.
On a serious note, I don't expect the 200-800 to be as excellent as my 100-400 L IS II for landscape. It won't be because of the aperture though, as I often stop down to f/11 or f/16 anyway.
My 70-200 2.8 doesn't see much use since I often prefer to pack the 100-400 instead, but that might change after I get the 200-800. Having 200/2.8 and maybe 280/4 will give me some low light/shallow DOF capability.
200/2.8 isn't nearly as shallow dof as 800/9.
200/2.8 is more like 800/11 but more bg visible/in focus in 200mm than 800/11, even, due to longer FL on 800mm
Hairy Heron wrote:
All these camera manufacturers spend millions on product development and none of them put a dime into any particular product unless they have research to show it will be profitable. These are well established companies, not startups. They know what they are doing, though we think they don't have a clue. So, no Canon did not underestimate demand, though you are right, they probably did ramp up slowly and sent out a very few copies to date, partly for quality control and partly to increase FOMO demand. This being consumer grade glass manufacturing should be much quicker than for an L lens. I suspect all pre-orders will be met no later than late Feb. Launching any product two-weeks before the end of the year is always going to slow distribution, demand or no demand.
Really, we see the same storyline every major release for every camera company. You'd think we'd be wise to the game by now.
mslino wrote:
I gonna cancel my order if it is not fulfilled by the end of March 2024.
I'm leaning towards the end of February.
Still hoping to get the lens in a few weeks. The lens should work out well with the Sandhill Cranes that have migrated to North Alabama.
coppertop wrote:
I'm leaning towards the end of February.
Still hoping to get the lens in a few weeks. The lens should work out well with the Sandhill Cranes that have migrated to North Alabama.
I hope to have it to use at the Sun n' Fun Air Show in Lakeland, FL, at the beginning of April 2024. This year, I rented a Canon RF 100-500mm, and that lens is impressive, except for the price.
AmbientMike wrote:
200/2.8 isn't nearly as shallow dof as 800/9.
200/2.8 is more like 800/11 but more bg visible/in focus in 200mm than 800/11, even, due to longer FL on 800mm
People see f/9 and think no dof. But it's 800mm.
If you try to frame the same subject, the DoF for 200 mm f/2.8 is much shallower than 800 mm f/9. That is because your subject distance needs to be 4 times more in order to frame the subject with 800 mm.
The background will be less distracting at 800 mm though, because there will be less background in the frame. But I was talking about shallow DoF and that is not the same as background blur.
Z250SA wrote:
AaaaoooaHHHH!!! I sprained my imagination trying to comprehend "The Famous Canon RF 200-800 Portrait lens"... Fast widening my horizons here!
I have used the 300/2.8 for wedding. On crop. There is no limit to how much fun you can have with the 200-800
alundeb wrote:
If you try to frame the same subject, the DoF for 200 mm f/2.8 is much shallower than 800 mm f/9. That is because your subject distance needs to be 4 times more in order to frame the subject with 800 mm.
The background will be less distracting at 800 mm though, because there will be less background in the frame. But I was talking about shallow DoF and that is not the same as background blur.
I don't disagree with that, testing 85/1.4 vs 200/2.8 it seemed like you got more of the subject in focus and got rid of the bg more. So I liked it better. However I'm not sure why you'd want shallow dof if you are not getting rid of the bg
And 800/9 requires a larger element on the front than 200/2.8. If you double 200/2.8, you get 400/5.6, which doubled is 800/11. So it should do pretty close to 300/2.8 imo better than people seem to expect
I've used 400mm ff equivalent and cropped for portraits. 300 2.8 sounds good
So nobody here on FM in the US got in on the first batch? This has got to be a first to my knowledge.
Ya'll need to hit that ORDER button faster you slackers!
Edit: I just read someone saying they talked to "their guy" that works at B&H, and was told they only received 7 lenses for this month and have 700+ orders so far.
I'm glad I wasn't in on this pre-order. I hope all of you that did pre-order get yours soon. Looking forward to you real world hands on reviews. The few I've read so far sounds like it has fantastic IQ.
lighthound wrote:
So nobody here on FM in the US got in on the first batch? This has got to be a first to my knowledge.
Ya'll need to hit that ORDER button faster you slackers!
Edit: I just read someone saying they talked to "their guy" that works at B&H, and was told they only received 7 lenses for this month and have 700+ orders so far.
I'm glad I wasn't in on this pre-order. I hope all of you that did pre-order get yours soon. Looking forward to you real world hands on reviews. The few I've read so far sounds like it has fantastic IQ....Show more →
That would explain why mine didn't ship from B&H: usually I press the button within seconds of announcement, never failed me (R5, 100-500, etc); but this time I was slacking and it took me about 15 minutes. My 24-105 should be delivered today, though, FedEx gods permitting.
Ordering photography gear these days has gotten ridiculous. I am still waiting for the RF 10-20 since I ordered it a few minutes late. I ordered the 200-800 in the afternoon since I was debating in the morning. I think Canon is the worst, but I have had problems with others as well. The Tamron 35-150 f/2-2.8 took me over 6 months to get since I didn't order on day one. The days of blaming things on COVID are passed. It does make you wonder what they are thinking.
You could probably get one from the not so popular for camera gear cities. I googled San Diego for some reason one time, there's shops there, Baltimore and Des Moines might have one around a few days.
When the R3 was released, I got a bit late on the list and ended getting it from a smaller retailer > B&H list was a long wait
This time, I got in earlier, but I suspect that is not that much shorter...
11/03 is my listed date
I might just take it out and wait even longer, till stock becomes stable, if I don't see any changes in mid January or so
I tried to buy it at announcement from B&H. Their site would not load for at least 45 minutes at the midnight launch. I called my local store at opening that morning and got on their list. They said I was #3. Yesterday they got two in… so I’m waiting. I was waffling on whether I really wanted it, but I’ve got a couple friends who are interested in getting it and they haven’t ordered at all, so perhaps if I don’t care for it I’ll be able to offload it easily whenever they get another one in.
lighthound wrote:
So nobody here on FM in the US got in on the first batch? This has got to be a first to my knowledge.
Ya'll need to hit that ORDER button faster you slackers!
Edit: I just read someone saying they talked to "their guy" that works at B&H, and was told they only received 7 lenses for this month and have 700+ orders so far.
I'm glad I wasn't in on this pre-order. I hope all of you that did pre-order get yours soon. Looking forward to you real world hands on reviews. The few I've read so far sounds like it has fantastic IQ....Show more →
mslino wrote:
Wow! If B&H, one of the largest Canon retailers in The USA, received only seven copies, the waiting would be longer than I thought!
This comes up every so often with Canon's releases. It would appear that Canon likes to spread around the joy to as many shops as possible. That way everyone gets something, even if initially only one or two. I'm guessing B&H probably could have taken Canon USA's full initial shipment, but that would leave everyone else SOL.
This has got to be a first to my knowledge.