Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

    I have just bought a Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI and wonder if I have a dud. I have rarely had issues with focus or sharpness with my previous Canon telephoto lenses (300mm F4 L, 70 - 300mm L and 70 - 200mm f2.8 MKII) but this 100 - 400mm L MKI seems way off. Admittedly, I have only had the lens a day so not discounting user error but as I have never had issues like this before looking for answers. I have uploaded some images to my Flickr account including two from my 300mm lens (an impala and a couple of ducks).

    The images with the lens stopped down seem OK but I need to be shooting near to wide open which I had thought would be possible with this lens. The images are straight out of camera Jpegs but I do have the Raw files as well.




    Would doing a manual focus adjustment help? It seems to me that wide open nothing is in focus (eg. the chimney) so maybe MFA won't help.


    I have loved my other Canon lenses so am hoping that I can resolve this.

    Thanks for your help.

    Peter

    #2
    Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

    Hi,

    Had a look at the first few pics and they look to have been made with higher shutter speeds (1/500th and 1/400th) whereas some of the later shots taken with your new 100-400 used 1/125th.

    Frame PJR_0633 looks good though (1/640th).

    Probably need to use higher shutter speeds than normal with this lens.

    I'm thinking of getting either the MKII of this lens or the 70-200 f2.8 IS MKII.

    Let us know how you get on.

    Regards
    Last edited by geoffc; 09-03-2017, 13:03.

    Comment


      #3
      Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

      I too would suggest using higher shutter speeds. with a 400mm lens I would use shutter speeds of over 400 say 800-1000,to prevent camera shake for example.
      Canon 6D; Canon 760D;Canon G15;Canon 40mm f2.8(Pancake);Canon 50mm f1.8(ii); Canon 17mm-40mm f4L;Canon EF-S 10-18mm f4.5-5.6 IS STM;Canon EF-S 55-250mm f4-5.6 STM lens;Canon 24mm-105mmf4L IS;Canon 70-300mm f4-f5.6 L IS USM;Kenko 1.4x HD TC;Canon 430EX ii flash;Giottos tripod;Manfretto monopod;Cokin P filters + bits and pieces!

      www.flickr.com/photos/nathaniel3390

      North Wales where music and the sea give a great concert!

      Comment


        #4
        Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

        Test reviews I've found seem to show very little variation in resolution according to F stop, wide open isn't much different from stopped down so that shouldn't be an issue.
        I assume it's a used lens, in which case it may have had a knock. Or perhaps the IS is faulty. But I agree with the previous comment, I'd try faster shutter speeds to eliminate camera shake as a cause. Tests indicate that 2 stops is about the max for IS with this lens, which is quite an early lens to have IS.
        EOS 6D, 6D Mk II, 80D, 70D, 100D, 200D, M50, M100. Canon 10-18, 18 - 55, 55 - 250 IS STM lenses, Canon 16 - 35 mm F4L, 35 mm EF-S macro, 50 mm F1.8 STM, 60 mm EF-S macro, MPE-65 macro, 85 mm F1.8, 200 mm F2.8 L II, M 15 - 45 mm, M 22mm F2, M 32mm F1.4. Sigma 24 - 35 F2 Art, 135 mm F1.8 Art, 17 - 50 F2.8 DC, 105 mm OS macro, 100 - 400 C, 150 - 600 C.

        Comment


          #5
          Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

          I've had no issues with mine...you can see example on my Flickr page....I've normally used higher shutter speeds come to think of it...either for dog photos or air shows.

          Example below at 1/160 at 400mm



          hope that helps
          Last edited by @imagesBV; 09-03-2017, 14:17.
          Brian Vickers LRPS

          brianvickersphotography.com

          Comment


            #6
            Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

            Might be worth checking the date code to see the age of the lens ...

            Comment


              #7
              Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

              Thanks for all your comments.

              The lens was made in 2014 and in new condition.

              I will spend some time 'testing' the lens this weekend. The IS seems to be working OK (the viewfinder firms up when the shutter is pressed).

              I agre that PJR_0633 looks fine but that was stopped down to F9.

              It seems strange that the blossom is looking so off at ƒ/5.6 and 1/500 with the lens at 135.0 mm and a static subject.

              I think I will first find some good light and use faster shutter speeds - at least 2x focal length for now, with IS and some tripod mounted without IS. Of course, it may be that this lens is too slwo for my purposes (daen and dusk shooting). I was surprised

              As you can see from the 40mm lens, the camera is fine.

              Back again soon.

              Comment


                #8
                Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

                I decided to do the three battery tests, focused on the middle battery, with a tripod and flash and the lens seems to be really out at the short end. The results are the same with live view and auto focus. I wonder what the fix is? The 400mm end looks really good.

                Explore Peter Railton’s 42 photos on Flickr!




                PJR_0668.jpg
                Attached Files

                Comment


                  #9
                  Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

                  I have to enter this topic ,I have looked through your sample images on Flickr and there is only one conclusion ,your shutter speed is way way to low for this lens ,it should be pin sharp at f6.3 or f7.1 that will give you the d.o.f but you have with these lenses to work on the rule of thumb setting which is shutter speed should equal focal length plus crop factor .so ipso facto your shutter speed should exceed a minimum of 1/700th sec your shutter speeds are around 1/125sec .nothing wrong with your lens purely and simply user error

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

                    Originally posted by the black fox View Post
                    I have to enter this topic ,I have looked through your sample images on Flickr and there is only one conclusion ,your shutter speed is way way to low for this lens ,it should be pin sharp at f6.3 or f7.1 that will give you the d.o.f but you have with these lenses to work on the rule of thumb setting which is shutter speed should equal focal length plus crop factor .so ipso facto your shutter speed should exceed a minimum of 1/700th sec your shutter speeds are around 1/125sec .nothing wrong with your lens purely and simply user error

                    That did cross my mind as I haven't used a cropped sensor for some years but how is it the battery test using a tripod at 400mm is sharp and at 100mm blurred. The flash should cancel out any slow shutter speed but these were all taken at a 1/200 and with your logic the images should get worse as the focal length got longer. There are a few shots at 1/125th but are at the short end if the focal range so with IS that should have been OK. The 400mm shots are at 1/1250th and most of the images are at least 1.6x, many well over that multiple.
                    Last edited by peter29903; 10-03-2017, 22:38.

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

                      Jeff, the 1/focal length rule isn't complicated by crop factor - my experience, and that of my wife, with a 7D2 and 400L is that it's 1/FL regardless of the crop factor. Never mind the fact that the IS, which this lens has, will complicate that calculation and significantly reduce the lower end shutter speed.
                      EOS 7D mk II, Sigma 150-660C, Canon 17-85 EF-S, Tamron 10-24 and a wife who shares my obsession.

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

                        Doing more tests this morning the lens does seem to have an issue wide open at shorter focal lengths.

                        100mm https://www.flickr.com/photos/129197...57681280055345
                        200mm https://www.flickr.com/photos/129197...57681181649476
                        400mm https://www.flickr.com/photos/129197...57677793346434

                        The lighting wasn't great but the 400mm looks OK at all apertures. The 100mm and 200mm are dreadful wide open.Much worse than being 'soft'.

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

                          If the issue is only when the lens is wide open, that would indicate an a/f problem, which can vary at different focal lengths. Depth of field probably covers it up with a smaller aperture. I'd suggest trying microadjustment at the shorter end.

                          I agree with Jeff that you should allow for the crop factor in general when setting shutter speed, even though that's probably not the issue here. The theory states that the required speed is proportional to angle of view, and the angle of view at 400 mm focal length is equal to that of 640 mm on full frame. Of course, as Andy says, IS does affect this obviously, and some people have steadier hands than others.
                          EOS 6D, 6D Mk II, 80D, 70D, 100D, 200D, M50, M100. Canon 10-18, 18 - 55, 55 - 250 IS STM lenses, Canon 16 - 35 mm F4L, 35 mm EF-S macro, 50 mm F1.8 STM, 60 mm EF-S macro, MPE-65 macro, 85 mm F1.8, 200 mm F2.8 L II, M 15 - 45 mm, M 22mm F2, M 32mm F1.4. Sigma 24 - 35 F2 Art, 135 mm F1.8 Art, 17 - 50 F2.8 DC, 105 mm OS macro, 100 - 400 C, 150 - 600 C.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

                            I disagree regarding taking account of crop factor....as the angle of view of the lens is the same, its just the crop sensor only sees a smaller part of the image circle. If it did matter then the centre area of a full frame shot would be more vulnerable than the borders....i.e. using crop sensor is the same as using a full frame, printing the full image and then taking scissors to a print....just because you chopped some paper off the remainder is unaffected......thats how I understand it.
                            Brian Vickers LRPS

                            brianvickersphotography.com

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Re: Canon 100 - 400mm L MKI

                              Originally posted by Richard W View Post
                              If the issue is only when the lens is wide open, that would indicate an a/f problem, which can vary at different focal lengths. Depth of field probably covers it up with a smaller aperture. I'd suggest trying microadjustment at the shorter end.

                              I agree with Jeff that you should allow for the crop factor in general when setting shutter speed, even though that's probably not the issue here. The theory states that the required speed is proportional to angle of view, and the angle of view at 400 mm focal length is equal to that of 640 mm on full frame. Of course, as Andy says, IS does affect this obviously, and some people have steadier hands than others.
                              Thanks Richard


                              I had understood that micro adjustment only affects front and back focus. Looking at the 100mm f4.5 shots. Nothing is in focus. The images are still out of focus using live view which doesn't use the AF module. I will give Canon a call on Monday.

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X