I got fed up waiting, and ordered a new RF 100-300mm f2.8L IS USM. Withe a doubler I get a 200-600mm f5.6, which is better than a 300-600mm in terms of range. Sure I have to choose to double or not before I set out, or swap the field. Obviously, I’ve got the 1.4x option too. 140-420mm f4.

I got the RF 100-300 for £8600 from Wex Photo Video, new UK stock at the Photography show. 72.5% of RRP

shadowsports said:

Canon could have sent an R5 mkII and R1 to NASA with 2-3 lenses. Talk about good PR. They missed the boat.

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Remember that Nikon has over half a century's experience in space. They've been providing NASA with space cameras since 1971 during the Apollo program and have been the standard cameras on Apollo (Command Module, not Lunar Module), Apollo/Soyuz, the Shuttle, Skylab and the International Space Station. It's rumored that all the major vendors do submit proposals every time a new camera is called for but fifty years' experience gives Nikon an edge in knowing what is needed and how to build and deliver it.

However, the embarrassing one was that some Sony fans released a fake press release that Sony had been chosen as the new Artemis camera complete with photos of executives, fake quotes and a photo of a Sony camera on a lunar-like background as an April Fools post. It actually got believed by some news sources.

AlanF said:

It says in the linked Petapixel article: They will be testing the camera, as the Z9 will be the backbone of the next-generation Handheld Universal Lunar Camera (HULC) used on future Artemis missions, including Artemis III, when humans will step foot on the Moon for the first time since 1972.

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Not quite accurate. The next lunar mission will be Artemis IV currently scheduled for 2028. The delays in SpaceX' developing their HLS lander, the Orbital Depot and the refueling tankers, all contracted to be tested in a lunar flight in early 2024 and none of which have had any public progress have caused the missions to shift. Artemis III is now an Earth Orbit mission to test docking the Orion capsule with the HLS lander and to test compatibility of the National Team's Blue Moon 2 lander's docking collar. Blue Moon 2 is the backup lander authorized when HLS missed its second deadline. It's currently slated to go to the moon on Artemis V but it could be the lander for Artemis IV if SpaceX misses their deadlines again and the National Team is ready before SpaceX despite starting three years later.

AlanF said:

They already have a Zero extender for all lenses.

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Yep, and it’s one of the cheapest Canon products!

Hector1970 said:

It would be handy if Canon developed a Zero//1.4/2 extender that could be attached to any of the big whites.

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Sure would. Perfect for pictures of unicorns, fairies and dragons in flight.

ISv said:

Ducks "in general" are hunted everywhere the humans exist

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But not during rabbit season.

Noreaster said:

Ducks,in general, are not very cooperative.

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Ducks "in general" are hunted everywhere the humans exist (except the protected ducks, protected areas e.t.c.) and they have every reason to be "non-cooperative" ! On Hawaii they are not a game birds: both endemic species are protected. On the main Hawaiian islands only the Hawaiian duck (Anas wyvilliana) exist, restricted to Kauai and highland Big Island. On Oahu you can see hybrids mallard/Hawaiian duck (but not genetically pure Hawaiian duck!) even in downtown Honolulu and they are not afraid of humans: many people actually are feeding them in the parks where they may come just few meters from you.

Hector1970 said:

It would be handy if Canon developed a Zero//1.4/2 extender that could be attached to any of the big whites.

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They already have a Zero extender for all lenses.

It would be handy if Canon developed a Zero//1.4/2 extender that could be attached to any of the big whites.

Daylight, so maybe say, "F/8 and be there." I presume you mean the RF 24-70/2.8L IS USM. In the center of the frame at 70mm f/8, the L-series lens is a little sharper, away from the center of the frame the L lens is noticeably better.


If by some chance you mean the non-L 28-70/2.8 IS STM, you can compare that lens using the above tool as well, and run through more focal lengths and apertures if you like.

Chig said:

Yes and most expensive , however Nikon's new one is just as good and slightly lighter from what I've read but even more expensive

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Just as good? Also with the 2X extender?

This is some of the extreme cropping I sometimes have to do, with examples from yesterday. A Little Ringed Plover had been reported, and a rare visitor of a Northern Wheatear, both far behind a fence. Using the RF 200-800mm on the R5ii, I got a decent enough shot of the Plover, where the bird occupies only 250x330 px and the the Wheatear in 500x500 px. Much closer was a Linnet, which occupied a massive 850x650 px. Were I in the Pantanal, using my 7D and 100-400mm (original) at half the distance, the first would be rather a blob, the second blurred, and the third lacking the detail. The line of the eye ring on the Plover is only 2-3 px wide, and the 200-800 is not considered very sharp at 800mm!

Anon said:

What a blast from the past! I really loved my 5D II, and with the small 40mm pancake it was surprisingly portable.

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Me too! I’m team Canon but the 5D II was so great! I didn’t think I would ever upgrade. I kept it until the R5 and don’t think I will ever buy another camera until it can’t be fixed! 5D IV is my backup.

I love my R5! I use the D5 IV as my second camera. I am still happy with the images!

neuroanatomist said:

I must have gotten lucky, my copy of the original 100-400L was quite good. I sold it after getting the 600/4 II, and never owned the 100-400L II.

“Mockingbird’s Glare”
View attachment 228874
EOS 7D, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM @ 400mm, 1/640 s, f/5.6, ISO 200

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Here is a 3000x2000 crop downsized the same as yours to 1600x1060 (a Snail Kite, taken in the Pantanal in 2013). They seem similarly sharp, and my images occupying a large fraction of the frame are fine. The problem is that I usually have to crop far more than that. My images often used to be rejected by the mods on a Dutch bird site because they considered them too soft. Everything changed when I got a 300mm f/2.8 II and put a 1.4xTC on it. The increase in resolution made all the difference for heavy cropping, and my images sneaked through. Nowadays, if I have an image of a bird that is about 1000 px long, it looks very sharp and I see lots of detail. I couldn't do that at 1000px on the 100-400mm original, though modern software would help greatly. They are still sharper than many images posted here but they wouldn't get past those tough Dutch mods.



EOS 7D, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM @ 400mm, 1/500 s, f/5.6, ISO 400

Del Paso said:

It might be the best 70-200 zoom ever!

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Yes and most expensive , however Nikon's new one is just as good and slightly lighter from what I've read but even more expensive

GirlsAreBeautiful said:

I mean, you have to build those electronic parts as well. And the design part especially looks very very complex.

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Some... but Canon, e.g., builds sensors but buys DIGIC CPUs and other chips. In any case, building chips is relatively quick once the facilities are in place, while growing / polishing / preparing the big glass elements for big whites takes up to 1 year or so in certain cases and it's therefore much less scalable

ISv said:

I have seen only once adult female on Oahu. The purplish collar on the neck is practically invisible with the females, with the males it's better but usually at shorter distances. It was pretty shy: on the last photo, when I was like "oh, it's coming closer!!!" it actually accelerated and took off !

View attachment 228875View attachment 228876View attachment 228877

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Ducks,in general, are not very cooperative.

Chig said:

Asking about the RF 70-200 Z ? It's amazingly sharp corner to corner

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It might be the best 70-200 zoom ever!

For those unsure about equivalency with APS-C vs Full Frame, here's a DOF simulator that perfectly shows examples. https://dofsimulator.net/en/

This sounds like it would be a good general purpose kit lens for the R7 II, they should make it a kit lens for an R10 II as well. An F/4 lens on an APS-C would be fairly decent for a lot of things. You can even mount it on a full frame RF body such as the R1 if you really want to

AlanF said:

Active couple of days. Today, from the largest, a Great White Egret - formerly very rare but now more common, a tiny Eurasian Wren, a Pied Wagtail (White Wagtail). A Linnet from the same locality, and from my garden yesterday, a Jay, Chaffinch and Goldfinch. All with R5ii and RF 200-800mm.View attachment 228854View attachment 228855View attachment 228856View attachment 228857View attachment 228858View attachment 228859View attachment 228860View attachment 228861

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Very nice series Alan! My favorites are the Wren, Jay and the Goldfinch on that apple branch!

Noreaster said:

ring-necked duck (Aythya collaris)
most of the time it is hard to see the ringView attachment 228865View attachment 228866View attachment 228867View attachment 228868

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I have seen only once adult female on Oahu. The purplish collar on the neck is practically invisible with the females, with the males it's better but usually at shorter distances. It was pretty shy: on the last photo, when I was like "oh, it's coming closer!!!" it actually accelerated and took off !

stillviking said:

How about corners for landscape?

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Asking about the RF 70-200 Z ? It's amazingly sharp corner to corner