Reviews for Canon EF 400mm f/5.6L USM Super Telephoto Lens

Canon 4.. f/5.6 L USM

Strengths: ultra sharp autofocus, very light, hand holdable, in-built retractable hood, L series, tack sharp images, fine glass, comes with tripod mount,sexy white color

Weakness: f/5.6 is a bit small for low light, autofocus hunts in low light, not a 500mm lens :)

I bought this lens from amazon to use with my 30D primarily for wildlife,bird protography.
I was absolutely impressed how sharp the pictures came out from this combo of my 30D + 400 f/5.6 lens. I went to the SF zoo one day, took pictures of the birds that were on display
from about 12-15 feet. You can check the pictures out at flickr.com/400mm. They came out amazingly sharp with a nice bokeh since the background was a bit far from the birds.
I am very happy with this lens except for the fact it's not a zoom like the 100-400 where u can recompose a scene in case u are in a jeep on a safari trip. If that animal is very close to your vehicle..u are out of luck, might has well keep the 70-200 on another body handy. Anyway, this prime should live with me for many years as I go out looking for wild animals on my jungle trips to costa rica and india.

get this lens, it's sharper than the 100-400 at 400 mm. photo.net has a great comparison with other lenses in this class, nothing beats this 400mm in terms of sharpness.
I haven't used any extender cos I like the pure results that come out of the optics from this lens. Also using the canon extender drops the max aperture to f/8...don't need that now, do you ?
I don't miss the IS on this lens since ISO 800-1000 gives me decently fast shutter speed to compensate the hand shake. Trust me, IS only adds to the bulk of the lens and besides, when shooting moving wildlife, what's the IS going to help me with ?
My usual settings for this lens are
Av or Tv mode, AI SERVO, Spot Metering, RAW, ISO 400.

Click away, let the magic happen.

Oh and yes, mounting this on a tripod or monopod is pretty easy cos of the low weight using this combo, it's pretty good for the budget minded person who wants a L class lens without burning a hole in the pocket. I bought it just over a grand, but it's well worth it...the next higher price was 4k...so I think I am pretty happy with what I spent.

VALUE FOR MONEY LENS !

good luck !

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Canon 400mm 5.6L

Strengths: Sharp, AF Speed, Build Quality, Price, Built-in Hood

Weakness: None

A beautiful lens that produces beautiful images. This lens was designed to shoot wide open at f/5.6. I have shot thousands and thousands of images using this lens and there hasn't been a time where I needed to stop down if it wasn't for depth of field. The Autofocus is extremely fast and the focus limiter switch makes it even faster. If there is only one thing I consider a con it would be the minimum focusing distance (11.5 ft.). I use this lens mostly for close-ups so I find a set of Kenko Extension Tubes vital for my work. Keep in mind though this actually is what helps make the auto focus so fast. When I need a bit more reach I add a Tamron 1.4x Non-SP which retains Autofocus on non 1-series bodies like my 20D. Highly recommended!

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A Dependable Lens

Strengths: Canon Name, Image quality

Weakness: Bulky. Weight.

I have tried other lenses for my Canon Cameras, but I have been most happy with the Canon brand lenses. This lens is no exception. I was looking for a good telephoto lens, but I didn't want to spend $3,000 or more. The 400 mm f/5.6 looked to be a good option. This lens has produced some fantastic images. I have been very happy with its performance. Couple the lens with a 2x extender, and you now have an 800 mm lens for about $1200. I know the aperature changes from 5.6 to 11, but I'm willing to accept that. If you are looking for a good telephoto lens that is not going to break the bank, this would be it.

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Great

Strengths: Sharp images, very fast

Weakness: None so far

I have done some nature shooting and the lense has been great. I have only been using it for a very short time, but I'm very happy with my purchase. I would recomend this lense for anyone who needs the power...

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Best Canon Telephoto Lens

Bestcovery experts have rated the Canon Telephoto EF 400mm f/5.6L USM Autofocus Lens as a best pick for the Best Canon Telephoto Lens. Bestcovery's experts recommend the best products and services for a particular need based on extensive research and evaluations. Click below to see Bestcovery's full review of this product.

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Canon EF 400mm f/5.6L USM

Testseek.com has collected 4 expert reviews for Canon EF 400mm f/5.6L USM and the average expert rating is 80 of 100. The average score reflects the expert community’s view on this product. Click below and use Testseek.com to see all ratings, product awards and conclusions.

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