Quote Originally Posted by Jan Paalman


I just rented the 400mm f2.8L IS for the weekend and I can tell you this. A lens of this calibre will do more for you than a camerabody "upgrade". The image quality, AF and sharpness of the lens I rented are simply insane. They make the 100-400 feel like a nifty-fifty. It is quite a big thing to take on your bicycle though :O


I personally feel that the only reason for me to buy a super expensive 1D IV or 1Ds Iv would be if I had all the super tele's already


I hear you, Jan. On both ends - while I don't really want all the supertele's, a couple would sure be nice. You mentioned the weight of the 400/2.8, and that's an issue with the 500/4 as well. My shooting with the 100-400mm usually involves quite a bit of hiking - parking the car, walking a few steps, setting up a tripod/gimbal head and waiting for the birds to come just isn't my style. I have some concerns about hanging the 11.5 lbs / 5.2 kg of gripped 7D + 500/4 from a BlackRapid strap on my shoulder, and walking for a few miles. The 10 lbs / 4.5 kg of the body + 500/4 II is slightly better (helped by the loss of $3500 in 'weight' from my wallet), but a far cry from the 6 lbs / 2.7 kg of the body + 100-400mm. Thus the lens dilemma. The other part of that dilemma is that the current 500/4 is a fine lens, and while I expect some modest improvement with the MkII (perhaps more with TCs), the real difference is probably the weight Is that worth $3500? It's a tough decision, especially if the situation with the 300/400 II's repeats (i.e. close to the availability of the MkII's, the MkI's are no longer available anywhere - means you need to make a decision before the MkII is actually available). That's combined with the fact that I do most of my shooting with the 5DII, and while the AF is ok, having used the 7D I know how much difference a better AF makes, and the 1-series AF is a substantial improvement on the 7D. So...the debate continues. I've got time, as I won't be making a decision until the 1DsIV is actually announced, and at that point, we'll see how 'full' my proverbial wallet has become...