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Canon 200-400 f/4L announced (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter HokkaidoStu
- Start date
Jaff
Registered Member
Or how many trips would you need to make to the sperm bank. :eek!: 
I'm a little bit miffed at the idea of this built in TC, I can't really see what advantages it gives, other than increased weight and price and then there's the question of will it still accept normal TC's on the back?
Would it have been too much to ask to just have a straightforward high quality f4 zoom? That would fly out the shops perfectly well on it's own! (wings sold seperately :-O )
EDIT You know what scratch all of that. The built in TC is actually a marvellous idea now I've thought about it! :king:
I could see this being the birding lens to have instead of the 500mm if it can deliver on the important issues (and I have no doubt it will).
I will say this too, the tripod collar looks pretty cool!
I'm a little bit miffed at the idea of this built in TC, I can't really see what advantages it gives, other than increased weight and price and then there's the question of will it still accept normal TC's on the back?
Would it have been too much to ask to just have a straightforward high quality f4 zoom? That would fly out the shops perfectly well on it's own! (wings sold seperately :-O )
EDIT You know what scratch all of that. The built in TC is actually a marvellous idea now I've thought about it! :king:
I could see this being the birding lens to have instead of the 500mm if it can deliver on the important issues (and I have no doubt it will).
I will say this too, the tripod collar looks pretty cool!
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The fact you won't need to mess around with changing teleconverters in the field will be huge plus for most folk I think (assuming the built in t/c has the same IQ as the regular Canon ones).
I'm assuming you'll be able to put another 1.4X t/c between it and the camera, the 1D can AF at f8 after all. Or maybe put a 2X t/c and switch the inbuilt one off to make a 400-800 f8 zoom................
I reckon its price point will be between the new 500 f4 and 300 f2.8. If you factor in the price of the new teleconverters with the latter the 200-400 may even be slightly cheaper, hey you never know.
I'm assuming you'll be able to put another 1.4X t/c between it and the camera, the 1D can AF at f8 after all. Or maybe put a 2X t/c and switch the inbuilt one off to make a 400-800 f8 zoom................
I reckon its price point will be between the new 500 f4 and 300 f2.8. If you factor in the price of the new teleconverters with the latter the 200-400 may even be slightly cheaper, hey you never know.
Keith Reeder
Watch the birdie...
I think it's fair to speculate that the in-lens TC could be better than stand-alone TCs because it will be tailored to the optical and electrical characteristics of the lens. It might need less glass too, and it might not even need the electrical connectivity of normal TCs if they implement this purely as a slide-in optical component - I can see this implementation (although I don't know if it's at all possible) as being something that simply drops in to the chain of optical elements like the slide-in filters in the big primes, with no need for the ICs of the separate TCs.
Add to that the same kind of weight-saving build decisions being applied to the new 500mm and 600mm primes, and it could come in at under 6 lbs, I reckon (the new 500mm is "only" 7 lbs - a 1.5 lb reduction; and the 600mm is 8.8 lbs, a whopping 3 lb weight saving).
Add to that the same kind of weight-saving build decisions being applied to the new 500mm and 600mm primes, and it could come in at under 6 lbs, I reckon (the new 500mm is "only" 7 lbs - a 1.5 lb reduction; and the 600mm is 8.8 lbs, a whopping 3 lb weight saving).
sparrowbirder
Well-known member
The prices being quoted for these lenses are just ridiculous now,£11000,a lens for the price of a decent car,I though my sigma 80-400 was expensive at the time (about £800),just pleased im not starting out now and have actually got some sort of kit,the prices have gone through the roof.that 600mm is defo a dream lens and if i ever win the lotto..
Roy C
Occasional bird snapper
Absolutely right Rob, I reckon the built-in tc is a great idea.
Jaff
Registered Member
Yep. This is what I realised, you can change TC's with the flick of a switch, massive time saver in the heat of the moment like if you see a bird heading straight for you. This lens is in effect a 200-560mm f4-5.6.
Realised one drawback though, don't bloody drop it! I bet even a basic service on a lens like this outside of warranty will be a fortune!
Realised one drawback though, don't bloody drop it! I bet even a basic service on a lens like this outside of warranty will be a fortune!
AndyMc
Well-known member
I can also see > £5000.
I bet I'm not the only one getting a little dejected over Canon price hikes. Yeh, the lenses may be getting better but they're getting (if they weren't in the first place) well out of the reach of 'normal' people (knackered lungs & kidneys with hungry mouths to feed & wife with trousers :smoke:B:eat:).
Can't they leave the old lenses (good enough) in production whilst introducing top class gear to fleece the pros, who will get it back off their tax bill anyway.or at least up the price of their pics.
How about fiilling the gap instead Canon?
I bet I'm not the only one getting a little dejected over Canon price hikes. Yeh, the lenses may be getting better but they're getting (if they weren't in the first place) well out of the reach of 'normal' people (knackered lungs & kidneys with hungry mouths to feed & wife with trousers :smoke:B
:eat:).Can't they leave the old lenses (good enough) in production whilst introducing top class gear to fleece the pros, who will get it back off their tax bill anyway.or at least up the price of their pics.
How about fiilling the gap instead Canon?
paul goode
Well-known member
In my experience its the rich amateurs with plenty of disposable income who buy up every long lens Canon make. The bankers have to spend their bonuses on something
A lot of the professional photographers I know and work with don't swap their kit just because something new has come out.
A lot of the professional photographers I know and work with don't swap their kit just because something new has come out.
AndyMc
Well-known member
Spelling mistake - (W)?.......The bankers have to spend their bonuses on something
Don't get me started on that rant!!! Probably right about your experience , no offence intended. But I bet there'll be quite a few lined up outside Buck House in a couple of months.
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Jaff
Registered Member
In my experience its the rich amateurs with plenty of disposable income who buy up every long lens Canon make. The bankers have to spend their bonuses on something
A lot of the professional photographers I know and work with don't swap their kit just because something new has come out.
I tend to agree with that but I could actually picture some pros seriously contemplating a trade in of their 300mmf2.8's and 100-400mm's for one of these because this lens isn't an upgrade on an existing model like the others, it's filling a gap that's been present in Canon's line-up for a long time and some pros like the rest of us may have been waiting for just such a lens to appear and it sort of covers the ground of the two above lenses (incl. any usage with converters) in one neat and tidy package.
That is of course once everything settles down and there's good amounts of stock of all the new lenses (like a year from now maybe), you'd have to hyper-mega rich to afford the 'just released' prices.
Another thing that's cropped up in my mind is with the inclusion of the TC within the lens I wonder will this model be more susceptible to the 'bad copy' theory that seems to knock some people's confidence in Canon? I suppose it may depend on exactly how they make the TC part like if it's basically the glass from an ordinary 1.4x just housed within the lens or if it's specially made for the lens like Keith suggested.
Come what may it looks like there's an interesting year ahead.
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I'm curious to hear how the TC works. I don't see how it could "drop in", because there would be nowhere for it to drop from.
I'm guessing that this is really an extension of the zoom. After all 200-400mm is an unusually small zoom range these days, isn't it? Even 200-560mm seems quite ordinary.
But if I'm right, why is it billed as being "switchable" to 280-560mm? Maybe it's easier to optimise two small ranges for CA, etc, than for one big one.
However it works, I'd say that all the elements will be in use all the time, and they'll just be moving in or out to achieve this "switchable" TC thing.
Maybe I was wrong. I found this photo in another forum:
http://dc.watch.impress.co.jp/img/dcw/docs/425/556/002.jpg
It shows a big bump at the rear of the lens where some elements could swing out to the side.
Vectis Birder
Itchy feet
I can also see > £5000.
I bet I'm not the only one getting a little dejected over Canon price hikes. Yeh, the lenses may be getting better but they're getting (if they weren't in the first place) well out of the reach of 'normal' people (knackered lungs & kidneys with hungry mouths to feed & wife with trousers :smoke:B
Can't they leave the old lenses (good enough) in production whilst introducing top class gear to fleece the pros, who will get it back off their tax bill anyway.or at least up the price of their pics.
How about fiilling the gap instead Canon?
sparrowbirder said:
No, you're not the only ones fed up at the prices, I think all - or a lot - of us are. All joking about selling various important body parts aside, even those of us without partners and kids can't afford this gear. £3k, even £4k at least seems reachable when saving, but £5k onwards doesn't and £8k is just ridiculous.
The only upside of all this is that there might be some more secondhand gear around as the more-easily-parted-with-their-cash may decide they want the newest stuff.
I am not about to switch (back!) to Nikon any time soon but it does make you think. Looking at Camera Price Buster, Nikon's long lenses are still more expensive than the Canon equivalents but that's until the new Canons appear.
I still want a 500mm lens but, as I said in an earlier post, it's going to have to be Sigma or secondhand.
AndyMc
Well-known member
It's not just having the hard earned money in the first place, it's also about justifying that amount of spend :-C, on something that only comes out at weekends.
Ah but that's what interest free installment plans are for.............
I can't get my head round a 3KG lens costing quite a bit more than the very nice used car I bought last year.
Keith Reeder
Watch the birdie...
Yep, and that'll be true right up to the point where Nikon release their new lenses, Fay - Nikon and Canon play the same game, and historically, Canon lenses are always cheaper than "equivalent" Nikons.
Keith Reeder
Watch the birdie...
Got to admit that I find this to be a potentially interesting alternative (with a 1.4x or 2x as necessary - the built-in TC is a great idea, but not a "must have" IMHO) - and it will be loads less expensive (MSRP is less than $5000).
The non OS version is very highly regarded.
The non OS version is very highly regarded.
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That Sigma does look very good value, it'll be interesting to see how good it is when the first reviews come out.
It doesn't say how heavy it is yet.
It doesn't say how heavy it is yet.
