Hi Andrew, Great video again, and just want to thank you so much for saving the Grebe, so good of you, I would'nt have realised that there was something wrong. Sp well done

@andrewbalcombe1338

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks a lot Jacqui! I think i'm lucky because i see them in my area quite a lot and i never noticed that behaviour before, it looked a bit strange. We got lucky! :-)

Andrew my hero! You saved the bird 🤛🏼 I had not seen this episode, nice birding!

@andrewbalcombe1338

2 жыл бұрын

Ha, thanks Edgloris, Yes, i was a total legend in that one :-) And it also had a happy ending for the Grebe! Thanks for watching.

This lens has an outstanding optical quality, obviously you need good light and minimum speeds of 1/1000 for birds in flight, iso not higher than 800 and quite practical, on cloudy days do not try, due to the weight it is ideal for taking pictures without a tripod, With a good mastery it gives excellent photographs, vivid colors and great sharpness !!!

@andrewbalcombe1338

2 жыл бұрын

Many thanks Victor and enjoy your wildlife shooting!

Thank you Andrew for very informative video! :)

@andrewbalcombe1338

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks a lot Aleksandra!

This is the best hand-holdable tele lens on earth for the knowledgeable photographers. Perhaps Canon stopped its production recently - a foolish decision. I'm using it with my FF, APS-H and APS-C DSLRs for last twelve years. I'll never part with it in my lifetime.

@andrewbalcombe1338

2 жыл бұрын

Hi Quazi, thanks for sharing your experiences with the lens. Over time I have become more skilled with the lens and learned that a higher shutterspeed is very necessary. Good luck with your photo efforts!

@user-io8fg4lk5c

10 ай бұрын

👍

Andrew, I have a Canon 100-400mm f4.5-5.6 IS Mk2 lens and I must say it is astonishingly sharp wide open. It has a 4-stop-rated image stabilisation system. This is the best lens I have ever purchased and for a long time, I used it with Canon 5D Mk3 (no IBIS). Thankfully I got $280 off as there was a promotional offer at the time. It is expensive but it's a good investment, especially as you are submitting images to SS and AS. I used to run a wedding photography business and I had used this lens indoors in ambient light and the results have been excellent; it has never let me down. What I love about it is that it allows me to work at low ISO without the fear of the camera shake. I'm in the UK and we have similar low light levels issues. It's worth saving up for the lens...

@andrewbalcombe1338

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Nishi, Many thanks for sharing your experience with the 1-400Mk2. I've heard it's great. And versatile too by the sounds of it. Didn't think it could be used as a wedding lens, so I learned something there. All the best!

@nikonfan76

3 жыл бұрын

@@andrewbalcombe1338 Yes, it was great for candid shots. Perfect for taking pics of tears in dad's eyes as he sits down after giving his daughter away at the ceremony.

Hello. Do you know how this lens works with a Canon RP with EF Lens Adapter or with a Sony A7iii using Canon Lens Adapter? thanks.

I've been in a similar situation as you. I used a Vivitar 135mm for a lot of my shots and I loved it. But one day, I saw a Carl Zeiss Jenna 135mm for a much cheaper price than it would normally be. Like Canon, everyone says about how sharp Carl Zeiss is, so I bought it and used that instead of the Vivitar. But the photos kept bothering me. The profile was flat and a lot of my shots were out of focus, even when I took my time to focus and use the best settings. Even though the Vivitar isn't talked about as much and is cheaper glass, it has great character and is a pleasure to use. This is the same story with any brand, including Canon. Brand loyalty is an expensive mistake I've made in the past. I recommend cutting your losses. Sell the lens and get a different one that you would enjoy using and would serve you well. You only get one chance at a photo. Don't waste your opportunities on a lens that isn't serving you well. I also disagree with what you've said about third-party lenses. I believe you're over-thinking it. The best thing to do is watch a bunch of KZread reviews on the kind of lens you're looking for, and look at samples online, to give you a good idea of a lens before buying. It's all trial and error. It never ends. That's the life of a photographer. :P

@andrewbalcombe1338

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Gareth, so true about what you said regarding assuming sharpness and quality because it's associated with a brand. Regarding the third party lenses, I've tried a few Tamrons and Sigmas but they have had issues with the focussing. The mirrorless systems don't have these problems anymore though. Only DSLRs do. Thanks for your advice and it's good food for thought!

good to know. I've heard that the 90D handles the high ISOs better, so maybe when you upgrade your camera it will work better! I have crop body too, which I prefer because I like to do macro. Too bad Canon doesn't have a long lens for crop sensor. 250mm I think is the longest they have.

@andrewbalcombe1338

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Kitty, I heard the 90D has a pretty super 32mp sensor. But, I'm not sure about the fosus system on it. I have to do some experimenting over the summer to see what works. And I have to sell a lot more stock photos to pay for it :-).

cool photos! Yeah it's really frustrating when you are in luck of taking a really amazing photo and then you go back home and discover it was blurry or not focused very well! What can you do nature is non cooperative and we have to be happy at least we got smth! Sometimes I get so upset when this happens I lose sleep haha!

@andrewbalcombe1338

3 жыл бұрын

yes, you're right I think. I should learn to be more philosophical about this. Nature is a teacher, that is for sure.

@MysticalJessica

3 жыл бұрын

@@andrewbalcombe1338 Yeah...thanks for sharing your experience, I am learning a lot. I think as a photographer or videographer the objective is to go beyond the limits of the camera...

Andrew, I enjoyed the journey of your photography video. My wife and I think that you are a very good person for taking the time to help the sick bird. The world could use more people like you! I really think that you need to calibrate your lens to your camera body. I wrote a detailed comment on your previous video about this. I bought software for that though. All of my Canon L-lenses needed calibration -- some significantly. Why don't you do an experiment: get a large piece of cardboard and tape some newspaper tightly to its surface. Place the cardboard perfectly vertically against a wall. Then mount your camera/400mm on a tripod straight back from the cardboard/newspaper. You want the distance between about where you can barely read the newspaper in the photo. This way, you scientifically determine how well your system together is focusing. If you find yourself disappointed, the begin adjusting the calibration in +1 increments until in perfect focus. If this doesn't help, then start the calibration at -1 and continue backwards until it improves. ALL of my Canon L-lenses needed some correction to my 5D mk iv -- ALL OF THEM. Earlier, you mentioned that only Sigma and Tamron lenses front/back focus -- you are incorrect here, Canon can not match a 2017 camera body and 2009 camera lens perfectly -- each may have their firmware out of date anyway. All cameras and lenses are mismatched to some extent! You must investigate this with a newspaper test before giving up on your camera/lens combination. When you photograph the newspaper, transfer the images to a large screen to scrutinize the focus. I think that this will improve things. Save the calibration setting inside the camera. However, you also have to consider that the 70D's focusing system is not as aggressive as the new R-bodies or the 5D mk iv. Maybe consider moving up to a more advanced camera body with an aggressive auto-focus. Cheers

@andrewbalcombe1338

8 ай бұрын

Thanks vry much for the time and effort of sharing your experince and knowledge. You make some very valid points. Thanks for your help with this.

I use the exact same setup the 70d with the 400 f5.6 L. Used it for wildlife, especially bird photography. It performed really well at a closer range and good lighting conditions. Where it lacked was at lower lighting, and I too was quite disappointed when it came to the image quality at higher iso. Also found it struggling with the autofocus, it would just not focus on the subject sometimes no matter what. Maybe an upgrade to the 80d or 90d (ive been considering it for a while) would improve image quality at higher iso , the image processing and a better autofocus. Overall I was fairly impressed with the lens, I want to use it for some more time (since im still a beginner) but it just lacks the sharpness at high iso. Great video and great shots! Maybe consider the upgrade, its worth it. Also did you try a tc?

@andrewbalcombe1338

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Abhinav, I think full frame is the way to go with this lens, especially in low light but the lack of IS is a bigger problem than I expected. I found after bumping my shutterspeeds up to 1/1600th plus, i've been getting sharper results. But after trying it with the R5, I think the R6 would be great with it. Trouble is the price. Regarding teleconverters, if you are using a crop sensor, the image quality will always suffer a bit because the lens is better suited to full frame bodies as it's an EF lens. Duade Paton has a birding channel and did extensive testing with the 1.4 and the 2x. I suggest checking his vid out :-). All the best with your bird shooting results!

This an awesome lens, no 1 compared to this unless you go for a 500 or 600 f/4.0 lens.

@andrewbalcombe1338

2 жыл бұрын

also a slight price differance ;-)

Thanks for this. I'm a beginner and was getting frustrated by the softness of my tamron 100-400 at the far end for wildlife. I heard about the canon 400 5.6 and how sharp it was , and was about to buy one. Seems you're not the only one who says it's not that sharp on an aps-c, and coupled with the fact that there is no I.S (which i knew about but thought i could get away with it), i've now decided not to bother. Granted, it may be fine on a full frame, but then i'll lose the 1.6 zoom of the crop. This kinda defeats the object of buying one. I'm in the UK so we have similar weather to you which is mostly overcast days with bad light... so keeping the shutter speed above 1/2000 often isn't an option. In countries with better light i can see this lens would work far better on an average day. I think i'll maybe wait a little while longer and get the 100-400 IS USM II , to take advantage of the I.S on that.

@andrewbalcombe1338

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for your thoughts. You didn't include the type of camera you would use the lends with although i believe probably an aps-c. If you can afford it, I do think the 1-400 L Mk2 is a better lens for the crop sensor. Out of interest I recently used the lens on a Canon R8 (full frame)and was able to get sharp shots at low shutter speeds using the digital stabilisation of the body. I was also able to get much better sharpness wide open and at shutter speeds und 1/200th.

also Andrew there is a few ways to get those sharp shots depending on camera body iso shutter the king is the TRIPOD or at least a monopod you must already know this. its a bit too easy to get into pixel peaking when it comes to sharpness often not so important and you can post process, light and composition would be a much better time investment

@andrewbalcombe1338

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the insights. I'm hoping to test it with the new R8 in the future. It will be an interesting field test. It's a pity the R8 doesn't have IBIS though.

you can’t zoom in 100 % of 2.38 MB picture and say it’s not sharp or soft. More you crop more the picture falls apart.

Interesting review. I find it strange to be so soft. I see you have to crop every picture quite heavy. Have you tried this lens in combination with a 1.4 x extension? Also have you tested if this lens is focusing correctly? On my 5D, it's quite easy to adjust the focus for each lens. I normally use a tripod, but when I want more mobility, a monopod gives you great stabilization help.

@andrewbalcombe1338

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Bob, thanks for your helpful suggestions. I still have to see if it needs micro adjusting but it's not so straight forward. Haven't tried the extender as I don't have one :-). I like to shoot birds in flight, so the monopod won't work for that. Have to take it out on the weekend and do some more test shots to get to the bottom of it.

@howzchannel9843

2 жыл бұрын

@@andrewbalcombe1338 Yes, I was thinking it might be front-focusing looking at some of the photos...

@andrewbalcombe1338

2 жыл бұрын

@@howzchannel9843 Thanks for the feedback!

@MrAndresMira

Жыл бұрын

@@howzchannel9843 Yes, looking at some pics seems like is front or backfocusing a bit maybe... maybe is youtube compression. Either way, Thanks for the video Andrew! very nice your tips and that bird save was pure love

Hi Andrew...I've had a similar experience with your exact lens / body combination. I think there are a few things at play....1) The lens has no image stabilisation, so it's really hit and miss regarding being stable and shooting with a high enough shutter speed. 2) The 70D body seems to have issues with inconsistent focus. I've had instances where one of two consecutive images was sharp and the other soft with this lens. This is in a test situation where I had a static subject and was shooting from a tripod. I don't trust the 70D to nail focus every time. In fact, it may be that the reason that the images are sharper when the lens is stopped down a bit is because of a back-focusing issue. Just the increase in depth of field may be enough to extend the plane of focus back on to the sensor. I'm considering dumping the 70D and going mirrorless. This lens I think can deliver tack sharp images, but she's a cruel mistress, and she seems to reveal any weakness in the system (body, settings, stability) quite unkindly. I've got more keepers with a cheap Nikon body and the Tamron 70-300mm IS lens, which is not as sharp, but delivers much more consistent results... Another option is the 100-400 IS Mk I lens, which is still pretty good, but by all accounts not as sharp as this prime. As you mention, we are pushing a lens designed for full frame film camera to its limits with a 20MP crop sensor. So all the ducks have to be in a row, if you'll excuse the pun.

@andrewbalcombe1338

2 жыл бұрын

Hi Angus. I've found I get a lot more keepers when I bump up the shutter speed to over 1250th of a second. I'll be buying a mirrorless in the far distant future so it'll be interesting how it does with maybe an R7 :-). Interesting to read about your back focusing thoughts and worth doing some more tests! All the best and success with this combo :-)

@anguskerr1872

2 жыл бұрын

Hi Andrew... I've found similar results....you have to have a fairly high shutter speed (certainly higher than the reciprocal rule would suggest). I would also A/B shots with the live view focus against the viewfinder focus to make sure that the camera AF is not contributing to the softness. (Although I hate shooting wildlife with live view - it is so hard to track and get stability). The 70D has dual pixel AF in live view, which nails focus 100% - there are a lot of videos highlighting the poor performance of the 70D viewfinder AF for fast lenses (of course this isn't a fast lens). In the case of my camera, it seems that the sensor is out of alignment..So I get poor results from both. I'm super excited about the R7, but the price! Ouch, it really is a lot of money for that beast. My general experience with the 70D has been traumatic, with soft images all round with good Canon L glass (400mm F5.6 L, 100-400mm L IS I, and 70-200mm F4 L IS). So the 70D has to go...

@anguskerr1872

2 жыл бұрын

Hi Andrew, I would suggest the following for testing the lens....with the rig on a tripod with delayed shutter release to eliminate camera shake, take 10 shots with viewfinder AF on a very detailed, static subject at F5.6, and then repeat on every aperture to F8, getting the camera to re-acquire focus for every shot. Then repeat the process with the live view AF. If there is nothing wrong with the viewfinder AF, then all 10 shots, particularly at F5.6, should be equally sharp (or not so much). I would bet that you will find one or two of the images is much sharper than the others. The issue with inconsistent viewfinder focus is it can't be fixed with micro-adjustment, because the error is different every time. My lens is at the clinic. As soon as I get it back, I'm going to do a test like this....

the long and short of it Andrew is. you will only get the best sharpness from almost every lens when stopped down 1 stop from maximum aperture, only a few top end lenses give crisp sharpness at max examples 300mm f2.8 canon 400mm f2.8 canon and so on no zoom lens will give its best at wide open and we have to pay ££££££ for them. if i was to bag all the sharpest canon lenses i need in my kit i would need to spend £55,000 plus.

@andrewbalcombe1338

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching the video. Sad but true i'm afraid. Thanks for the advice!

Hi Andrew, i see you are shooting in JPG, why not in RAW to get better sharpness... ? 🙂

@andrewbalcombe1338

2 жыл бұрын

Hi Boxer, I do shoot raw but for some reason I imported these pics back into lightroom as jpgs (it was a while ago). I agree that with raw, one does get greater flexibility with editing. For the purposes of the video I think those files showed the strengths and weaknesses of the lens clearly.

Speaking about bodies, Canon EOS 70D does have a poor high ISO performance.

Hope to get one soon to try out on the R6

@andrewbalcombe1338

2 жыл бұрын

me too :-). I think it is a good combination!

@MiguelJuanez

2 жыл бұрын

I'm still working this combo through its paces and hope to offer some insight.

And about tripods, why didn't you use one (or even a monopod)?

@andrewbalcombe1338

23 күн бұрын

From memory, I think I shot the originals in RAW and then reimported the edited JPGs backinto Lightroom. Or, I accidently left the settings on JPG 🙂I don't make that mistake anymore. I don't use tripods and monopods for birds because getting them in flight is too clumsy. And I hate carrying them around. They are very handy for video though. I'm also using a tripod for the KZread video so carrying two is tiresome.. Regarding the sensor and noise. it doesn't really matter now, as I use adobe ai denoise and it reduces noise hugely.

maybe the focus of the 70d is not on par for driving properly this lens, probably the 7d mark ii could do a lot better

@andrewbalcombe1338

2 жыл бұрын

Could well be Redis. I'm going to test it this week with the Canon RP with EF -Rf adaptor. See how that goes.

no stock earnings video this month?

@andrewbalcombe1338

3 жыл бұрын

Howdy there. Yes no need to worry :-) I'm a bit late this month. It's coming out next week!

nice video.. you say you purchased the lens second hand, perhaps original owner got rid because of the same issues.. have you tried to micro adjust the lens with the inbuilt software in the camera?. It would be interesting to see the focus point/s in canon DPP.

@andrewbalcombe1338

2 жыл бұрын

Many thanks for that. I don't think it's out of zero. After using it for a few bird seasons, now I believe I was using too low shutter speeds. Last suummer really proved this when i was getting excellent results above 1200th of a second handheld. Also when using the IBIS on the R5, I was able to get sharp shots at very low shutterspeeds.

I have great pictures ,but i have 7D and Tribod with gimball head.

@andrewbalcombe1338

3 жыл бұрын

nice set up :-)

Andrew, the video is interesting cause it shows some issues of the way you use the gear. As it is a dark lens it can be too much for a non top specs crop camera. I see you already realized that a full frame one is much better in this situation. And yes, looks like youve got the best quality/price ratio cause if you want the same lens to have F4 it would cost about 5.000 Euro, or even a 2.8 it would be 12.000 euro, clearly out of budget for both. The only way around it is a second hand camera, probably full frame that is cheap enough, but handles much higher ISO cause the shooting speed will have to be quite high anyway. Think that the longer in mm the lens you have to increase shooting speed anyway from 1 to 3 times the focal length minimum. In this case 1/400 of a second is the absolute minimum, but this is a minimum anyway for bird pictures, so I would go at least 1/1250 of a second and there is no way your crop camera can handle that. Duade Patton used pretty good this lens in his beginning, so you have to make sure to try it in similar conditions. But shooting speed and increasing F more than wide open is an issue that you will find in all long focal lenses anyway, so dont think you will avoid that paying 12.000 euros for the F 2.8 version and those lenses will be so crazy heavy that you would regret getting them. For example I just used a 100-400mm F 5.6 USM IS II lens of canon with my 60D crop camera, the result: not a single super sharp picture even with excellent light conditions. And the weight of the lens with IS and zoom was just too much for enjoying more than a couple of hours with a lot of hand held pictures. On top this zoom lens is less sharp than your prime 400 mm. Your lens is light enough to still enjoy handholding, but you need a monopod or tripod. I am not an expert in the topic, but this are my thoughts about it. I recommend you to check the video of Jan Wegener called: "Low ISOs Are RUINING Your Photos! Here's Why!" Cause seems you are too cautious not to increase ISO, but, of course have to do it with the right camera. I wish you can find a good deal for a second hand one that suits you and this problem could be solved. Good luck and keep enjoying the wildlife photography!

@andrewbalcombe1338

Жыл бұрын

hi there and thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts. I've gotten better using the 400 now and have improved my technique. Also, lightroom has upgraded the noise software which helps. I'm saving for the the new R8 but it will take time. Until then I'm enjoying the 400 with my 70d alot. All the best and I hope you enjoy the wildlife photography too!

@andersonboy620

Жыл бұрын

@@andrewbalcombe1338 You are welcome! I am happy that you are getting better results already:)

I'm pretty sure, you're dealing with heat distortion in a lot of these shots. Might not be the lenses error. :)

@andrewbalcombe1338

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the feedback. i'll look into that.

I got the canon 70/300MM F4.5.6L lens and at 5.6 F is SHARP and I shoot sport photography and not Always use the IS mode and I still get SHARP photos and on cloudy days to way to get SHARP photos I use my canon 80Ds on MANUAL MODE to be sure I get SHARP photos so to your 400 MM F 5.6L canon lens not doing a good job on cloudy days I suggest use it on MANUAL MODE on your canon camera and see what results you get

@andrewbalcombe1338

2 жыл бұрын

Many thanks for your feedback Shademan!

8:13 and why the hell didn't you shot in raw?!

@joaovtaveira

23 күн бұрын

You definitely should shot in raw and you could take full advantage of the sharpness (and increase it in post with great problems), how can you make such a basic mistake?!

what are you talking about man, that lens is amazing, its not the gear its the photographer, you need to practice man

@andrewbalcombe1338

2 жыл бұрын

Hi Henrik, yes the lens is amazing, especially for the price. But the lack of image stabilization is going to limit users with crop bodies, in low light, no matter how much practice.

Dont torture yourself with 70D, add it to the R5, set the camera to crop mode and you get same view as 70D but IBIS and much higher ISO and 20mp images. Denoise with Topaz and voila, perfect lens :)

@andrewbalcombe1338

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks a lot Chris, you forgot to mention the EUR 4000 that I would have to spend to achieve this though :-).