Canon RF 100-300mm f/2.8L IS USM will start shipping on May 31, 2023

[neuroanatomist]

B&H said they were getting 300 in, not three. Real bait & click, just be honest and tell folks availability in 2024. I guess the three were to see if bugs show up before they ship the rest.

Sorry, but it sounds like you ordered too late. I’m sure they got more than three.

With the R3, I recall the announcement email from B&H went out around 6 AM, I assume that is when pre-orders started. For the 100-300, the email from B&H went out at around midnight, and I had gone to sleep early and slept late the next morning, so I didn’t get my order in until ~8a. Fortunately, that was early enough to get one from their first batch.

 

[SonicStudios]

Just bait and click to see how many possible orders they may need, I get it. Just really disappointed. They said May shipping to pull ya in. So much for any summer shots using this

 

[neuroanatomist]

Just bait and click to see how many possible orders they may need, I get it. Just really disappointed. They said May shipping to pull ya in. So much for any summer shots using this

You still haven’t said when you placed your order. People get busy, I get it. No need to post unsubstantiated information just because you’re disappointed. Did they actually tell you that they received only three lenses? 300 does seem like a reasonable number of units for them to have received.

B&H started accepting preorders when the lens was announced, they placed an order with Canon and received the number of lenses Canon decided they should get, which was lower than the number of preorders they had in hand. Canon knew that would be the case...the 100-300/2.8 was announced on 20-Apr and just four days later, Canon included on the list of products with an expected delay. In late May, a few days before the 100-300 started shipping, they specifically added for that lens, "Even for customers who have already placed an order, it may be difficult to deliver within 2023." B&H is still accepting preorders and they will fill them in the order they were placed, as they receive lenses from Canon (as it says on my preorder confirmation email, "Your order will be filled on a first-come-first-served basis.").

People who ordered early enough got their lenses. Hopefully you appreciate the irony in your current signature, "RF 100-300 2.8 | It Pays to Plan Ahead," lol.

They said May shipping, mine shipped from B&H on 31-May, I had it on 02-Jun and have gotten nice shots with it already. If Adorama’s info on the next batch of lenses is correct (given Canon's statement, it probably is), it looks like those who ordered too late won’t get any summer or even fall shots using this excellent lens.

Sounds like you were hoping to have the lens at the soonest possible time. You can continue to blame B&H for a 'bait-and-switch' (which is untrue), you can blame Canon for not making enough copies of the lens (even though they warned they could not just after the announcement, due to the global parts supply situation), or you can take responsibility for not placing your order early enough. Those of us who did have happily added the lens to our kits.

 

[SonicStudios]

I ordered the day they announced. Who did u order from? And I never said anything about bait and switch

 

[neuroanatomist]

I ordered the day they announced. Who did u order from? And I never said anything about bait and switch

I guess ‘bait & click’ is very different, sure, sure.

B&H said they were getting 300 in, not three. Real bait & click

I ordered from B&H, just before 8a ET on announcement day. As with the R3, orders placed early got filled in the first batch, orders placed later in the day did not. In that case, the cutoff time was about 9a (and the wait was less than two months for the next batch, whereas with the 100-300 it looks like at least 7 months).

 

[unfocused]

I recommend setting an alert with Canon Price Watch. That way if a store gets some in stock you will be notified immediately. In years past the Canon store often restocked in the middle of the night. With CPW you might get a notice at 3 a.m. and the item could be out of stock within a few hours.

 

[SonicStudios]

Thanks everyone for your feedback and insight.

 

[neuroanatomist]

Thanks everyone for your feedback and insight. First the R5 debacle with the overheating and heat timers, now this. Seven months, yea ok, now I'm starting to see a distribing pattern on Canons end and at the retailers end please change ITEM COMING SOON, because no it's not.

Your intentional silence on specifically when you placed your order pretty much says it all. I find it sad that people seem unable to take responsibility for their own actions…it’s always someone else’s fault.

Disturbing pattern? Lol. This has been a fact of life for a few years now, as I and others have pointed out. If you want a new Canon product early, order early.

Also on the retailers end, why do they insist on a credit card in pre-orders if they're not going to charge it, tell ya what, I give ya the number when you have the item.

As for a temporary charge on your credit card, that's how online businesses work. You're not going to even get a place in the queue if they can't confirm you can pay. Of greater concern to some is that if you use PayPal or Apple/Google Pay (or order from outside the US), they will charge you for the full amount when you order, not when they ship, but they tell you that up front. I do see where it can be a hardship for some to have even a temporary charge of $10K on their account, since it reduces available credit until the charge fails to post. But that's the way it works. If it bothers you that much, just go into B&H in person and pay in cash (FYI, with >$10K cash transactions, there's IRS paperwork that you need to fill out when you pay at the register, as I know from personal experience at B&H).

 

[SonicStudios]

Ok, just venting, did not mean for it to go this far, I ordered it a couple of days after it was announced, retailing folks told me I would still get it when they get them not to worry they were getting plenty, obviously not, and I understand, they can’t control that. For the folks that got them, I really am happy for you, it looks like a heck of a lens, and the new extender looks to be epic. By the time the next shipment comes out, hopefully I’ll get one, all seriousness aside, it’ll probably be a MKII.

 

[koenkooi]

I recommend setting an alert with Canon Price Watch. That way if a store gets some in stock you will be notified immediately. In years past the Canon store often restocked in the middle of the night. With CPW you might get a notice at 3 a.m. and the item could be out of stock within a few hours.

And as much as I hate Canon Direct, they do have stock popping up every now and then. Just keep in mind that they only play at being an online retailer, badly.
I bought my R5 that way, but it’s not something will recommend without the warnings above.

 

[AlanF]

There's now a glut of used EF 300mm f/2.8 IIs in excellent condition on the UK market; WEX has 7 and MPB 6. Until recently, there were very few. It would seem that the owners have replaced them with the RF 100-300mm. The 300/2.8 ii takes the 2xTC particularly well and was taken up by birders when it first came out as a lightweight 600mm. It's now a bargain used if you are going to use the RF 100-300mm mainly as a 600mm.

 

[kaihp]

The 300/2.8 ii takes the 2xTC particularly well and was taken up by birders when it first came out as a lightweight 600mm. It's now a bargain used if you are going to use the RF 100-300mm mainly as a 600mm.

I can only agree to that. The 300/2.8 II works very well with both the 1.4x and 2x TCs (Mk III).

The EF200-400 doesn't work well with the 2x TC, though. In fact, the only lens I've been happy with the 2x TC MkIII is the 300/2.8. YMMV, as always.

 

[neuroanatomist]

There's now a glut of used EF 300mm f/2.8 IIs in excellent condition on the UK market; WEX has 7 and MPB 6. Until recently, there were very few. It would seem that the owners have replaced them with the RF 100-300mm. The 300/2.8 ii takes the 2xTC particularly well and was taken up by birders when it first came out as a lightweight 600mm. It's now a bargain used if you are going to use the RF 100-300mm mainly as a 600mm.

When the 100-300/2.8 was announced, there weren't any 300/2.8 II's available, new or used. Now there are 3 at MPB for $3750 in EX condition (one even has the RRS foot). If those had been available when I ordered the 100-300/2.8, I would have strongly considered getting the EF prime instead. But the 100-300 is a great lens, so no regrets on my side. Fall sports start tonight, will be my first field use of the 100-300/2.8 + 1.4x.

 

[AlanF]

When the 100-300/2.8 was announced, there weren't any 300/2.8 II's available, new or used. Now there are 3 at MPB for $3750 in EX condition (one even has the RRS foot). If those had been available when I ordered the 100-300/2.8, I would have strongly considered getting the EF prime instead. But the 100-300 is a great lens, so no regrets on my side. Fall sports start tonight, will be my first field use of the 100-300/2.8 + 1.4x.

The RF 100-300mm is clearly a fantastic lens. It's very versatile. The 300mm prime was killed for birders by the 400mm f/4 DO II. Having bought and sold 2 of them, I hanker after a third but the 100-500mm is more useful to me and every time one comes up used after consideration I let it pass. I'm tempted by a used 300/2.8 II but I'll resist it.

 

[Ozarker]

There's now a glut of used EF 300mm f/2.8 IIs in excellent condition on the UK market; WEX has 7 and MPB 6. Until recently, there were very few. It would seem that the owners have replaced them with the RF 100-300mm. The 300/2.8 ii takes the 2xTC particularly well and was taken up by birders when it first came out as a lightweight 600mm. It's now a bargain used if you are going to use the RF 100-300mm mainly as a 600mm.

That's definitely a lens I always wanted. The only way I could justify is with the 2xTC. I have found that even 400mm is too short for birding for me. I got some nice shots when I owned the Canon 400mm f/5.6L, but I always felt too far away. However, that was with the 20mpix 5D Mark III. I think the ability to crop more with my R might change the experience a lot. I'd imagine something with the mpix of the R5 would be even better.

 

[AlanF]

That's definitely a lens I always wanted. The only way I could justify is with the 2xTC. I have found that even 400mm is too short for birding for me. I got some nice shots when I owned the Canon 400mm f/5.6L, but I always felt too far away. However, that was with the 20mpix 5D Mark III. I think the ability to crop more with my R might change the experience a lot. I'd imagine something with the mpix of the R5 would be even better.

Here is an image I took 10 years ago, Aug 2013, with the 300mm f/2.8 II + 2xTCIII on the 5DIII. I was just stunned at the time with the quality I could get from that combo. I couldn't believe I had paid so much for a lens but it was worth every penny. It's as good as the best I have taken since.

 

[neuroanatomist]

Fall sports start tonight, will be my first field use of the 100-300/2.8 + 1.4x.

It did not disappoint.