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I am considering the purchase of a Canon lens for photographing birds. Most of the work I do is hand held and thus I am looking at the Canon 300 f2.8 IS. Are there suggestions of a better birding lens? Maybe a Canon 400 4.0? I welcome other thoughts and experiences. Thanks. Tom Mast, Tampa, FL
I have the 300 IS and use it on my 5D3 with a 1.4X hand held for BIF. It's wonderful if you can get close enough. If you can't get close enough, you'll often be battling "diffusion" or whatever it should be called from moisture and junk in the air, anyway.
The 300 f/2.8 is a great lens and takes the TCs very well too. Depending your budget and strength/ health the series II telephotos are amazing, handholdable, and also take the TCs without having the IQ take a hit (but you may lose AF with the 2x depending which camera body you use)
A 300mm lens is too short for general bird photography (although in some locations in Florida it is sufficient depending on what you want to shoot ). I agree with Dan, If you have budget consider series II super telephoto lenses. They are not only lighter which makes them perfectly handholdable but the AF technology is a generation ahead of old lenses when used on the current bodies such as 1Dx or 5D3. More accurate and faster.
good luck.
Daniel
Thanks for the comments. The 300 f2.8 IS II is the lens I had in mind along with a 1.4 III and 2.0 III extender. I currently have a Conon 7D with a 300 f4.0 with a 1.4x III extender. It does well in sunlight but leaves a lot to desire in low light conditions. I think I can hand hold the 300mm but the others (400, 500, 600) would require a tripod and a gimbal head.
I have viewed your work and it is outstanding. I will be posting some images for critique and hope to improve. Thanks again.
Tom Mast
I use the 5D3, which does give a wider field of view, but with enough shutter speed (usually 1/2000 to 1/2500 is enough) I can get completely sharp shots for birds in flight, or ones perched on a branch, with the 300 + 1.4x. I'm 70 years old, 5 feet tall and weigh 120 pounds, 20 of which is blubber. Unless you have neurological problems you should be able to handhold that combination better than I can!
I've developed some strategy to make handholding easier. I have a dense foam pad that slips over the lens foot to support it comfortably on my forearm and keep my hand off the focus ring, but someone with longer arms might not need to do that. If I'm staked out at a location I carry a lightweight folding chair, so I can rest the lens in my lap when not aiming it, and it lets me shoot at a steeper angle without falling over backwards. If I'm walking a short distance I wear a heavy belt and hook the lens foot in the belt -- it's a little awkward but it carries the weight. For longer walks the smaller Lowepro Lens Trekker fits the lens with the hood in place, a body and the 2X attached.
My recent posts in Avian have been with that combination. The narrower field of the 7D would give you more magnification (equivalent to my using the 2X, which I haven't done as much, but can) so you might practice first without the TC.
Looking forward to seeing what you get!
