I've succumbed to the siren's song!!!

[twebster]

Hi y'all,

I've gone and done it now I'm moving to the "darkside" of nature photography...avian photography The Canon EF 300mm f 2.8L IS lens sang its siren song to me and I ordered it from B&H Photo...along with a new carbon fiber Gitzo tripod...and an Acratech ballhead...and both the Canon 1.4x and 2x teleconverters...and...oops ...I better stop there

Here birdie, birdie...birdie

(PS...Just in case you might think my wife got the short end of the straw...She's quite happy with a new diamond ring )

[MikeBinOKlahoma]

Tom, you'll love the 300/2.8. It is astoundingly sharp, even with the 2x. Check out this shot, and the 100% crop from it (I've got another pair I'll try and remember to post tomorrow just to show off).

Burrowing Owl, SW Florida, 1/250th second, f/8, ISO 100, Canon 1Ds, tripod mount

Here's the full shot:




And here's a 100% sample of the owl's eye in the above shot:



I used to fantasize about getting a 500mm or (gawd forbid) a 600mm lens someday, but based on the incredible cost and weight, I think the 300 plus 2x combination is as big as I care to go. It works especially impressively with crop factor cameras like your Rebel XT! Congratulations!


Even with the 2x teleconverter, the lens is amazingly sharp as long as you can stop down one or more stops. Still very sharp even wide open with the 2x.

[MikeBinOKlahoma]

I just "processed" that you'd also bought an Acratech. I'd take good care of it while giving it a quick try. I have one, and am not totally happy with it. It is very light, and seems very easy to clean and dust-resistant. But the angled locking ring is a pain in the neck, always seems to be going the direction to block you from doing what you want to do! And the tension screw is prone to slowly working lose and abruptly letting the lens flop. Give it a try, you may not find problems, but do be careful. (I'm assuming you're referring to the original design ballhead--They have a new one that doesn't use the angled locking ring and may not suffer from this.

[twebster]

Hi ya' Mike,

Great burrowing owl image I saw a couple of those, yesterday. One of the reasons I decided to take the plunge. The 300 f 2.8 is probably Canon's sharpest lens, as your image is proof. I've also seen some incredible images using the 2x and 1.4x teleconverters stacked

I'm assuming you're referring to the original design ballhead--They have a new one that doesn't use the angled locking ring and may not suffer from this.

Actually, I purchased one of the new Acratech V2 ballheads. It is designed more like a conventional ballhead. It looks to me like it has a bit more substantial locking mechanism. I will watch out for the tension screw loosening, though.

I very nearly bought the 500mm f 4L IS but I have to keep my setup as light as possible. That two pound difference means a lot to me as I will have to carry the rig about a 1/2 mile to get where I will be doing most of my avian photography. Also, I will be using the 300mm on a window mount on my truck. The 500mm would have been too unwieldy to carry in the front seat of my truck.

All in all, I put a considerable amount of research into this purchase. I hope the five grand I just laid out will be justified in the images.

Thanks for the input, Mike. Best regards as always,

[Sven Bernert]

...I better stop there

I wont comment on this!

[Sven Bernert]

Congrats on the new gear Tom! You'll love it BIG TIME It will help enormously with the 300 mil (especially with converters) to put a Wimberley Sidekick onto that Acratech, the new version allows it, the older version wasn't able to take a Sidekick. You might want to ask in the buy/sell sections of NSN or NPN for a used one since lots of folks there are jumping onto the new Wimberley head at the moment ..

Now we need a bird section here too …

Best,
Sven

[S. Alden]

Now we need a bird section here too …

Best,
Sven

[twebster]

Hi ya' Sven,

Now we need a bird section here too …

Ooh, you're just too funny, Sven

Best regards as always, my friend