Lens Choice :D

Thanks to all that have replied.

Have come to the conclusion that as long as i can source a 100-400 IS for under £900 i will have one of those. If anyone has any links that are non-ebay if they could Put them up here or PM them to me?

Thanks again,

James 😀

Hi James

Try this company on Ebay…i cant see any on his site at the moment, but drop him a message and he will source you one..i got mine new for £700 of him

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/harbour48_W0QQssPageNameZstrkQ3amefsQ3amesstQQtZkm

Thanks to all that have replied.

Have come to the conclusion that as long as i can source a 100-400 IS for under £900 i will have one of those. If anyone has any links that are non-ebay if they could Put them up here or PM them to me?

Thanks again,

James 😀

I use the Bigma and am very happy with it for 99% of the airshow / airport photography and example can be found here:

http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/attachment.php?attachmentid=155348&d=1183988257

However I agree with the other guys on here that it does need tons of light to get it to perform. Anything needing ISO 400 to 800 to get the speed is going to be dark and when lightened in photoshop etc rather grainy.

If your going to the hills for lowfly etc you really need a good quality glass lens and dare i suggest a prime lens rather than a zoom for pin sharp images in low light conditions else it’s join everyone else in the pub!

best advice is to try both the 100 – 400 canon and the bigma on your camera then decide wich is best for you before spending what is a large amount of cash. Maybe renting one of each for an event may be an option for you to help decide?

Cheers and good luck with the lens hunting,

Cliff

I’m very happy with my 50-500. I’ve been using it for around a year and a half and it’s served me superbly (apart from having an aperture failure which I need to get fixed, but frankly considering the amount I’ve used it that doesn’t bother me too much).

The 100-400L IS is a superb lens as well if it suits what and where you’re shooting, although it’s next to useless for 80% of what I do and hence why I went for the 50-500. If 100mm is wide enough and you can afford it, I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.

Ultimately the lens you choose should be the one that suits you the most, not the one people say you should get. Both the 100-400L IS and 50-500 are excellent quality and very capable lenses. Just a quick note on the 170-500 though, I’m certain you would find 170mm at the wide end extremely limiting for the vast majority of aviation photography. Full side shots at most airports would be next to impossible and your shutter speed would need to be higher in poor weather as the lower focal lengths wouldn’t be available to you, limiting its usefullness even more. If possible, try and at least have a play with the other two lenses and see which feels best to you.

Hope that helps. Feel free to drop me a PM if I can help further.

Paul

Hi,

right now, I am using the Canon 70-200 4L, but I also want to upgrade to the Canon 100-400.

Thanks for the reply, Manc – those shots are superb looks like i will end up going for the 100-400IS if i can get enough dosh, lol.

Cheers

If you have the dosh get the 100-400 IS L end of….

Scottish bloke = Kerso on ebay shop Flash Camera. Email off ebay for best deals, I’ve used him for stuff.

Check my shots at www.iesphotography.co.uk/avpix.html or a.net, lots of of examples all with lens/body info on the pics.

😀 Thanks alot for the replies,,,
Have decided against the 170-500, been reading up on it and found that it has a slower autofocus than the Bigma so that ones off the list.

Would love to hear people’s opinions for the Sigma 50-500

Cheers,

James

Don’t discount the Sigma F/4.5 – 5.6 80-400 OS zoom.

I’m very pleased with the results I get from mine. 🙂

The Canon 100 – 400mm is a nice piece of kit, I got mine off an ebay seller as well, Scottish bloke whose name I forget… I can dig it out if you like.
I’ve not tried the other lenses you mention, but the Canon 100-400 is better spec’d in my opinion because of the IS. At 400mm zoom (+ crop factor) you need fast shutter speed to stop camera shake, but because they only open up to f4 or f5, you’re seriously in need of some light from somewhere. Bumping up ISO helps but degrades quality….IS allows you to slow down that shutter speed and claw back some light.
However, this is all just IMHO…I’m down at the bottom of the learning curve, lol.

Canon 100-400mm f4.5/5.6L USM IS

got mine from ebay for £800

a lot of money but if you want quality thats the one