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Accessory for 100-400mm: Flash or Extender? (1 Viewer)

lassa8

lassa8

Well-known member
United States
I'm thinking about purchasing the Canon 100-400mm IS lens in the near future and will likely have a bit of money for an accessory purchase as well. I'm considering either a Speedlite flash or a 1.4x extender. I can see the pros and cons for getting either, so I'm just wondering which of these two accessories users of the 100-400mm lens wish they had and/or use more often. I'll be primarily using the lens to photograph passerines when birding on foot in fields and deciduous woods.
 
For me it would (will) be the extender, without doubt - I'm just not a fan of flash (unless it's very well done, it always looks obvious and unnatural) and would rather push the ISO up a bit, even though I know there are limits to that.

I'd still rather have the option of extra reach than artificial illumination. An extender is less extra to carry, too.
 
I'd tend to agree with Keith - I recently got this lens and it seems to work reasonably well with a 1.4x tc. I do have a flash but very rarely use it for bird shots, I reckon a 1.4x will be of more general use.

That said I think you should get the lens first and see what you feel you need. You might find that reach isn't an issue for you, but light is... why not use the lens for a month or so before deciding what other kit to buy.
 
I would have to agree with Keith and Peter. Just recently got the 100-400 myself and must admit to having a 1.4 teleconverter basically glued to it already.
 
Thanks for the comments! I don't know how I managed to miss the link from a year ago...sorry for the duplicate question!
 
Don't worry about that, Lassa - as you can see, this time round the weight of opinion is in favour of the extender, whereas last time the flash won.

Which kinda leaves you where you started!

;)
 
Hi,

I must say I agree with Ian. I have a flash (so I guess that an extender will be the next choice), and I wouldn't be witout it. It allows me to take pictures in situations where no ISO could save me (such as barnswallows in a dark stable or frogmouths in the middle of the night). Higher ISO can only work with the light that's actually there - it can't imrpove the light.

I guess it depends on who you are and what your preferences are. I like to shoot in strange situations and prefere pictures that sharp both in terms of resulution and colors, and don't care much about if the light is somewhat unnatural. But it's a personal choice.

Thomas
 
Lisa W said:
I would have to agree with Keith and Peter. Just recently got the 100-400 myself and must admit to having a 1.4 teleconverter basically glued to it already.
Click to expand...

Hate to disagree with so many but I rarely use the 1.4x on mine - disappointed with the loss in quality.
 
No arguement here,has to be the 1x4.There could just be the chance of a bird in the distance ,and the extender can make just that one iota of difference.May not be as sharp as a 600mm lense,but is not far off.
 
It's love/hate with converters on the 100-400mm, it seems - some people just can't get away with it, but I've seen plenty of examples of the 100-400/1.4x combo where I've actually said "wow!!" out loud.

If you've got a good 100-400mm in the first place (I think I have..!) and can get into some good light, a converter is definitely a tempting option - I'm going to pick one up ASAP before my trip to Norfolk next month.

I guess it all comes down to if you miss more shots for lack of light than lack of reach, get the flash. If it's the other way round, get the converter.
 
lassa8 said:
I'm thinking about purchasing the Canon 100-400mm IS lens in the near future and will likely have a bit of money for an accessory purchase as well. I'm considering either a Speedlite flash or a 1.4x extender. I can see the pros and cons for getting either, so I'm just wondering which of these two accessories users of the 100-400mm lens wish they had and/or use more often. I'll be primarily using the lens to photograph passerines when birding on foot in fields and deciduous woods.
Click to expand...

I'm lucky to have a very good copy of the 100-400 IS. It's as sharp as my 400 5.6L at 400 mm wide open, and it's not too bad at 560 mm wide open even when used with the standard Tamron 1.4x TC. AF with my 20D at 560 mm f/8 is workable, though slower than the bare lens.

Here are some test shots with the 20D + 100-400 IS + standard Tamron 1.4x TC:

http://www.pbase.com/liquidstone/100_400is_tamron14x

Regards,

Romy
 
Last edited:
Thanks for all the replies! In the end I think I've actually decided I'll likely purchase the Canon 400mm f/5.6 lens rather than the 100-400mm IS! Partially because my 100-300mm cheapo is never set on anything other than 300, so I'd always be at 400mm on the zoom and the prime is a few hundred dollars cheaper...a huge amount for a grad student! I'll probably give the lens a few weeks before I decide if I want a flash or teleconverter first...I'm sure I'll end up with both though. Thanks again!
 
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