Canon 400 f/2.8 or 600 f/4 for Digital nature work

[daniel_smith6]

Am looking at the possibility of using pixelography for bird photos

& am looking at two lenses for Canon. The 400 f/2.8 and the 600 f/4.

I am used to a 600 f/4 for film photography & it has been my

standard lens for years. With the Digital camera bodies & the 1.3 or

1/6 magnification factor I think the 400 might be just the ticket.

So many times I wished I had a faster lens while shooting early

morning or late evening or in shadow areas. The f/2.8 might be very

nice there & with the magnification factor would be akin to a 520 or

640 f/2.8 depending on the pixel body of choice. I know the 600

would be that much longer but I have lived with the focal length so

long I think it might be a good fit.Even with a 1.4 teleconverter I

am still at f/4 with a big lens rather than f/5.6 if I go with the

600. Anyone know of a drawback or shortcoming if one goes this

route?

[erik_van_bogaert]

i would go with the 500mm f4 if i had the choice,

1: the 400mm is heavy and 2.8 you don't need that very often

2: the 500 mm is lighter tha the 600 and 400mm and

the f4 and f5.6 is not a problem when you going digital , with film it is perhaps a problem.

So go for the 500mm f4 IS

[mark_chappell]

I'm with Erik here. Forget the 400 if you're serious about bird work. Go with either the

500/4 or (if you can

stand the weight and cost) the 600. In either case, you're going to be using 1.4X and 2X

converters a lot. FWIW, <A HREF="http://www.biology.ucr.edu/personal/MACphotos/

index.html">my website </A> shows the focal lengths used; for the recent bird images

you won't find many taken with less than 500mm + 2X, even with digital crop factors.<P>

 

You asked for a drawback or shortcoming for going with the 400. In a nutshell: it isn't

nearly long enough for the majority of bird images, and it weighs and costs a lot more

than the 500/4. My advice: don't go there.

[joseph_smith3]

I agree with the recommendation for the 500mm for the reasons already sited. It also allows for closer focusing without an extension tube than the 600mm--an important factor for small bird photography. Joe Smith

[mark_chappell]

Joseph: IIRC, the Canon 500 and 600 IS lenses yield identical magnification at their

respective closest focus points, so you can't get higher magnification with the 500 even

though it does focus a bit closer than the 600. However, sometimes (not that often),

closer focus is handy when a small bird does get pretty confiding. Also, you'll gain more

magnification with a given extension tube with the 500 than with the 600.

[rob_murray]

Well with digital, just up your ISO, fast lenses are not

quite as important with digital vs film.

[ben z]

I have always rented equipment for my bird photography, so I've used a bunch of it. Back when I was shooting ISO 50 slide film rated at 40, speed was a huge thing. When the E100 series came along I shot mostly ISO 100 rated at 125 and speed was still an issue but less so. Then when Provia 400F came out, I no longer felt the need for anything faster than f/5.6 or at most f/4. I've tried a 20D (not for nature photography, I still will shoot slides as long as I can get the film)and it was quite good at ISO 1600 so I don't doubt ISO 400 would be as good as Provia 400F or better. My most favorite of late has been a 300/2.8 with Image Stabilizer and the 1.4x and/or 2x teleconverter (Mark-2 for the 2x, doesn't matter for the 1.4x). It focuses a lot closer than a 400 or 600, and it's a lot lighter. With the 1.6x crop of the 20D I will definitely not bother with anything longer or heavier than that outfit.

[abrepsom1]

Hi Daniel,

 

I wouldn't go for the 400/2.8 either, although the huge aperture seems like an advantage. I used to work with a 600/4.0 for several years, and I still love that lens, but it is very heavy to handle. (You must know that!) Since I have started shooting digtal too, with a D60, then a 10D and now a 20D, I don't use it very often any more. Especially when travelling by plane, I choose my 500/4.0 IS which is a truly great lens with the bonus of image stabilzer. If you can manage to sell your 600/4.0 for a decent price, I would recommend to switch to the 500 IS. I think you won't regret it. Good luck!