extenders

[adrian mandea]

in your opinion wich is the best extender on the market (1,4x and 2x) to be used with canon 100-400mm IS or canon 70-200mm IS f4. I know about the loss of contrast, sharpness and everything else I just want to know the best brand and model





thank you

[neuroanatomist]

Canon's will give the best optical quality ('best' being a relative term, here). Of the two, the 1.4x is optically better, significantly so. Be aware that the 100-400mm will not autofocus with either extender on anything other than a 1-series body (in which case it will AF with the 1.4x but not the 2x), and the 70-200 f/4 will AF with the 1.4x on all bodies, but with the 2x only on 1-series bodies.

[adrian mandea]

thank you for your reply, I am asking because i've heard that kenko is much better (1,4x) than canon and I am planning to buy one.I now own one tamron 2x but I think is an older version ,I don't like it .it does not work with the 100-400 even in good light (I understand why) and the only way to take a picture is using the live view and MF but the results are bad,real bad.so canon it is then,thank you again

[neuroanatomist]

They are (reportedly) about the same in the center, and the Canon is better at the edges of the frame (even on a crop sensor, more so on a FF). If cost is the issue, consider a used Canon extender. I bought a used, like new 1.4x MkII last week ($180 on my local Craigslist). Even if you're normally reluctant to buy used, the nice thing about extenders is that there are no motorized parts, just non-moveable optical elementsand solid-state electronics.

[adrian mandea]

I don;t mind to buy used ,I always do it but the fact is that in Romania (and I think most of Europe) is not that easy to do so.you usually find second hand products for sale with the same amount of money as they are for sale new on bhphoto let's say.it is kind of frustrating to be honest.


thank you

[Jayson]

Try the Kenko 1.4 Pro 300 dg believe thats what i have. Shoot almost all of my outside stuff with that. I like it because it works withall of my lenses, not just the L lenses. Look at the post your best bird shots thread. I believe it is also non reporting so you probably won't have to tape the pins to get your 100-400 to work.


Jayson

[Iguide]

I have a Kenko 1.5 and it works great with my 100-400, IQ is excellent and it AF also. If you use it on either end of the day you have to take into account the reduction of light and plan accordingly.


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[adrian mandea]

thank you guys, so the kenko is not bad....I'll buy what i'll find first, then.

[adrian mandea]

100-400mm at f5,6 plus 2x extender zoomed all the way to 400 becomes f11,but is this the sharpest is going to get or if I set the aperture to f8 to become f16 it will become sharper ?





thank you

[neuroanatomist]

First off, the terms 'sharp' and '2x extender' don't work well together...


But yes, stopping down a little does improve sharpness, as you can see in this ISO 12233 comparison. I would suspect that if you go even narrower, diffraction will kick in and sharpness will start to go down again.


As a side note, you don't 'set the aperture to f8 to become f16' - the lens reports aperture to the body, and with the 2x extender the camera 'knows' the widest is f/11, so that's as wide as you can set it.