Canon 400mm f/4 DO IS II Review (Imaging Resource)

Canon EF 400mm f/4L IS DO II

SLRGear posted their review of Canon’s new 400mm f/4 DO IS II lens, announced last September for Photokina.

Some excerpts from the review:

  • On a full-frame body, the Canon 400mm DO II is sharp, though not as tack sharp as the 400mm ƒ/2.8 II
  • As one would hope from a nearly-$7000 lens, chromatic aberration is very minimal. On both full- and sub-frame cameras, CA was very low
  • […] vignetting on this telephoto lens is very, very low.
  • […] geometric distortion on the Canon 400mm DO II is practically nonexistent
  • […] this large lens is, as they say, “built like a tank”. The build quality is simply impressive […]

From the conclusion:

The Canon EF 400mm ƒ/4 DO IS II USM is a fantastic, professional-level supertelephoto lens. As a significant upgrade optically compared to the original version, the 400mm DO II is an even more attractive option over the heavy, expensive 400mm ƒ/2.8L IS II. For professional and serious wildlife, sports and action photographers who don’t want or need a fast, low-light-friendly ƒ/2.8 supertelephoto prime, the 400mm DO II version offers healthy savings in both cost and weight. Image quality is very good, and the built-in I.S is extremely impressive

The review comes with charts and sample pics.

The Canon 400mm f/4 DO IS II lens is not a budget lens. It sells for around $7000 (B&H Photo | Adorama).

Specs:

  • EF Mount Lens/Full-Frame Format
  • Gapless Dual-Layer Diffractive Optics
  • Large Diameter Aspherical Element
  • Ultra Low Dispersion Element
  • Protective Fluorine Coatings
  • Ultrasonic AF Motor and Internal Focus
  • Optical Image Stabilizer with 3 Modes
  • Power Focus Mode; Full-Time MF Override
  • Dust- and Water-Resistant Construction
  • Rounded 9-Blade Diaphragm
[via SLRGear ]

Canon 400mm f/4 DO IS II B&H Photo, Adorama, Amazon USA, Amazon Canada, Canon Canada, Canon USA

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Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II Review (an excellent performer, Photography Blog)

Photography Blog posted their review about Canon’s new EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II, the long-awaited replacement for the EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS. The lens gets a “Highly Recommended”.

In the conclusion:

Image quality is generally excellent. Chromatic aberrations are very well controlled, bokeh is impressive despite the slowish maximum apertures, and the Air Sphere coatings successfully prevent contrast loss attributable to flare. The only real optical issues are some corner shading especially at the 400mm focal length, and a lack of centre and edge sharpness when shooting wide-open at 300-400mm. Still, given the versatile focal range on offer, the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM is an excellent performer.

As usual Photography Blog’s review come with sample pics, sharpness tests etc.

The previous model, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS, is currently selling for $1,499 after a $200 mail-in rebate (USA). The new EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II is available for pre-order for $2,199 at B&H Photo and Adorama (Adorama with some accessories). Lens specs (taken from B&H’s product page):

  • EF Mount L-Series Lens/Full-Frame Format
  • One Fluorite and One Super UD Element
  • Air Sphere and Fluorine Lens Coatings
  • Ring-Type USM AF Motor, Internal Focus
  • Optical Image Stabilizer with 3 Modes
  • Rotating Zoom Ring & Torque Adjustment
  • Weather-Sealed Design
  • Detachable, Rotatable Tripod Collar
  • Rounded 9-Blade Diaphragm

EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II price checkB&H Photo, Adorama, Amazon USA, Amazon Canada, Canon Canada, Canon USA.

Canon EOS 7D Mark II Review (CameraLabs)


Canon EOS 7D Mark II sample movie: Continuous AF / 1080 / 50p / 16000 IS

CameraLabs felt the pulse of Canon’s new APS-C flagship, the EOS 7D Mark II. It’s an exhaustive review that covers every aspect and feature of the 7D2.Final score is of 87/100.

In the conclusion they write:

There’s a lot to like here. The headlining 65-point AF system and 10fps continuous shooting really are a powerful combination, especially when coupled with evaluative metering. Configured to deploy intelligent tracking and recognition, the 7D Mark II enjoys an uncanny ability to find the desired subject, focus on it, meter correctly and effectively track it as you’re firing bursts. I tried it for wildlife, sports and event photography, and in each case came home with a high hit rate. I was particularly impressed how much I could trust the AF, metering and recognition to identify and correctly meter for people regardless of the lighting, their position on the frame or if they were wearing hats or scarfs. The broad spread of the AF array also means you can more confidently let the camera do the hard work with subjects closer to the edges than before, especially if you’re used to shooting full-frame.

Once more, the EOS 7D Mark II is compared to the high-end EOS-1D X:

[…] the 7D Mark II will give you most of [the EOS-1D X] handling performance in a smaller, lighter and much cheaper package. Indeed it’ll also throw-in AF in lower light, effective focusing for movies and a built-in GPS receiver.

CameraLabs’ review comes with sample movies and pics, and plenty of useful information.

Read more about the EOS 7D Mark II’s highlights: the excellent weather sealing, the highly advanced AF, and the industry leading high ISO performance (have a look here too). All our coverage on the EOS 7D Mark II can be seen here (and there is a lot).

Canon EOS 7D Mark II price check: B&H Photo, Adorama, Amazon USA, Amazon Canada, Canon Canada, Canon USA

7D Mark II

Canon EOS 7D Mark II Review by Richard Bernabe

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Richard Bernabe reviewed the Canon EOS 7D Mark II. And it is a critic review, more critic than other reviews we featured here.

About the high ISO performance:

[…] I am comfortable with results up to 2000 ISO under most conditions. ISO 2500 – 3200 is passable if I expose properly […] and use minimal noise reduction in post processing. Anything above 4000 is nearly unusable, at least with regard to my standards.

About the auto-focus:

[…] the autofocus in the 7D Mark II is a vast improvement over the 7D which was pretty good already. […] I nailed some shots that I would not have gotten with either the 7D or the 5D Mark III.

Conclusion:

[…] this is a serious upgrade from the original 7D in terms of ISO performance, auto focus capabilities, shooting frame rate, and ruggedness. These upgrades are all important to me so short of buying the 1DX, this is the best Canon DSLR for wildlife photography that has been manufactured to date.

Richard Bernabe’s review comes with sample images and a lot of more information about the 7D Mark II, don’t miss it for a critical point of view.

[via Richard Bernabe]

Canon EOS 7D Mark II price check: B&H Photo, Adorama, Amazon USA, Amazon Canada, Canon Canada, Canon USA

Canon EOS 7D Mark II is As Good As Last Year’s Full-Frame Cameras (says Ken Rockwell)

7d2_king

Canon EOS 7D Mark II price check: B&H Photo, Adorama, Amazon USA, Amazon Canada, Canon Canada, Canon USA

Ken Rockwell’s EOS 7D Mark II review. He says that the EOS 7D Mark II performance is as good as last years full-frame cams.

About the comparison with Nikon’s D7100:

The Nikon D7100 is a primitive thing by comparison.

Unless face-recognition autofocus is important to you, everything else about the 7D Mk II just feels better and faster.

The D7100 feels like a consumer camera, while the 7D Mk II doesn’t feel any different than Canon’s top EOS 5D Mark III.

About the EOS 7D Mark II:

[…] for sports and action in any light, the 7D Mk II can be beat only in some ways by the $6,800 Canon EOS-1D X and Nikon D4S — and the 7D Mk II lets us auto focus on more of the frame than either of those pro beasts. Is Canon kidding? The 1D X only has AF sensors in the middle of its frame!

Want to know more about the game changing EOS 7D Mark II? Read about the EOS 7D Mark II’s excellent weather sealing, the highly advanced AF, and the industry leading high ISO performance (have a look here too). All our coverage on the EOS 7D Mark II can be seen here (and there is a lot).

[via Ken Rockwell] EOS 7D Mark II Tutorial

Canon Powershot G16 Review (still a great performer)

g16

While the Canon PowerShot G16 is not the latest model of the series (it’s the Powershot G7 X, though somebody may object) it is still a great performing camera, and still worth a review.

Carl Garrard of Photographic Central felt the pulse of this little, WiFi-enabled compact camera, which was released to the public in August 2013. Let’s start with the core specs:

  • 12.1 Megapixel 1/1.7″ CMOS Sensor
  • Canon 5x Optical Zoom Lens (28-140mm)
  • Optical Zoom Viewfinder and 3.0″ LCD
  • Full HD 1080/60p Video
  • DIGIC 6 Image Processing Engine
  • Enhanced Wi-Fi Capabilities
  • Continuous Shooting at 9.3 fps
  • Intelligent IS Image Stabilization
  • ISO 12800 and Canon HS SYSTEM

As you can see these are respectable specifications. You do not always need the newest gear, especially not if “older” cameras still perform very good (well, it’s just a bit more than a year old, but in this industry it is a long time). Carl highlights the features he liked most:

  • A fast lens with an excellent all purpose range and macro capabilities that gives you a surprising amount of photographic creativity and control for a compact camera
  • Extremely effective optical image stabilization ( I shoot hand held easily down to 1/5th second with no blur) in stills and video
  • A dual axis electronic level that you can calibrate (excellent option Canon)
  • Good low light image quality by any standard (and improved over G15)
  • Superb build quality (and improved over G15)
  • Excellent ergonomics (grip/placement of controls, balance, again improved over G15)
  • Excellently implemented and placed external controls
  • Blazingly fast autofocus (much improved over G15)
  • Raw Files (Supported by popular convertors)
  • Excellent battery life (360 shots per charge or more)
  • Included AF assist lamp
  • Excellent glass covered LCD screen
  • Pocketable (just)
  • Affordable price compared to other serious compacts (as the price dropped)
  • Comfortable spacious grip on the front and rear (better than G15)
  • Optical viewfinder when you need one
  • Quick start up and shut down, and really fast overall operation (image scrolling, accessing menus, in camera development, etc.)
  • Hot shoe and fast sync speeds with external flashes
  • Mostly customizable menu system
  • Two custom menu settings on the mode dial (use them!)
  • Addition of XFine Jpegs, and some NR control of high ISO shots (low to high)
  • New Night Display Function (turns down LCD and changes color so you don’t blind yourself during night shooting)

If you are interested in this camera I suggest you have a look at Carl Garrard’s in-depth review, it’s really covering every aspect you may want to learn about. Sample shot are also provided.

The Powershot G16 sells for $449 on Amazon | B&H Photo | Adorama. Be aware that there is $50 instant discount that will expire on January 3.

[via Photographic Central]