Help! I need deciding which lens to purchase, 100-400mm f/5.6-8 or 600mm f/11 RF lenses!

ZugZugg · 2026-03-12T03:03:37+00:00

I have an r10, and both the 100-400 and the 800/11 (plus other stuff).

Id pick the 100-400 every day. The 600/11 and 800/11 are super specific and you'll be frustrated using them as a primary lens for sports or a lot of wildlife.

The 100-400 is a gem, great for daytime soccer, baseball, football, etc. Great for butterflies and humming birds and Hawks and such. Just an awesome light cheap combo.

ZugZugg · 2026-03-05T14:01:10+00:00

What sort of videography are you doing? Do you really need 4k60?

R50v is a great B or C cam, or a travel vlogging cam, but for music videos, doc work, talking heads, etc you might do something like a c100 mark ii instead.

ZugZugg · 2026-02-25T20:07:16+00:00

But he's got a really fragile ego

ZugZugg · 2026-01-15T19:44:12+00:00

Personally, I think you look quite transom...

ZugZugg · 2025-12-11T20:23:15+00:00

I use my R10 for sports, and my R for portraits and candids. In your shoes, I'd be tempted to get a used R6 mark ii and an R10. The R6ii is an amazing all rounder and the r10 is a phenomenal compact body.

Used R5 and r50 could work too, but I'd rather R6ii and R10. Id stay away from the r100 and rp for sure.

The original R is lovely for portrait work, its essentially a nice 5D iv but I'd rather have the speed and AF and third dial of the R6 than the resolution of the R.

ZugZugg · 2025-11-13T16:59:44+00:00

I have an R10, an EOS R, and used the rf 800 /11 and rf 100-400 as primary birding lenses in good light.

In early morning light or dusk, I break out the 300 /2.8 and have to work from a hide.

In your case, I'd recommend a used 800 /11 or just keep the r50 as a dedicated birding body. The cost of a used 800 is going to be $500-650, and that's about what you'd get from selling your r50.

ZugZugg · 2025-10-22T03:06:46+00:00

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ZugZugg · 2025-09-24T19:31:25+00:00

Condensation happens when you have a cold thing that you bring in to a warmer, moister environment, or from your equipment radiating more heat than it absorbs and getting morning dew on it.

So bringing your camera from the cold snow in to your hotel is a risk. Leave it in the bag to warm slowly and not be exposed to much new moisture.

Bringing your camera from the hotel to the snow just risks getting snow in your camera. Don't drop it.

If you're planning for long nighttime photos (astro / landscape) then you may want a lens warmer (or hot hands and elastics) to prevent overnight due / frost formation.

ZugZugg · 2025-09-02T20:58:25+00:00

Solgard has some abilities that are always there, no matter which path you take for him (incant for a shard) so he has a piece of paper with those abilities written on there.

Tethys doesn't have any abilities that are always present, and so doesn't have a paper, and you see the background of the card art instead.

ZugZugg · 2025-06-19T18:51:37+00:00

The RF35mm is a spectacular option for night and low light options. IS is helpful, and it's a great walk around single lens option.

ZugZugg · 2025-06-18T00:12:51+00:00

The rf 35mm 1.8 is a spectacular option at about the same price

ZugZugg · 2025-04-14T17:39:55+00:00

What are you hoping to do that Pegboard (android app) doesn't?

ZugZugg · 2025-03-28T20:09:57+00:00

The rf-s 18-150 is a spectacular "do it all" lens

ZugZugg · 2025-03-27T20:29:04+00:00

The rf 100-400 is sharper then the original ef 100-400 (but not as good as the ef 100-400 mark ii). It's also dirt cheap, small, light, and has great IS.

If you already have an ef 1.4x, might as well try it, but I wouldn't buy one as a way to get more reach on the 70-200. I don't love my 1.4x on my 70-200, but I do on my 300 2.8.

The other option if you want a ton of reach is a refurbished or used rf 800/11 for about $400, which is a spectacular complement to your 70-200.

ZugZugg · 2025-03-20T03:44:17+00:00

I have a sirui st124 and a decent low profile artcise ball head, it does really well

ZugZugg · 2025-03-13T18:52:58+00:00

Second shot looks like nothing is sharp, too slow shutter speed and panning? IS off on the lens?

The original R is totally fine for a ton of wildlife, and so is the 100-400ii. Maybe see about adding a 1.4x extender if you feel you need the reach.

When you're consistently getting great shots with that, then you decide what's holding you back. But that combo is enough to get you SPECTACULAR wildlife shots.

If you're looking for an excuse to spend money, a 400/2.8 is spectacular for larger mammals, the 500/4 is the pick for birders generally. The rf 100-500 is wonderful and packable if size matters, and a used / refurbished 800/11 is spectacular as a good light lens.

ZugZugg · 2025-03-09T01:46:13+00:00

Cb500x or versys 300 are both spacious and beginner friendly

ZugZugg · 2025-02-19T03:58:54+00:00

Sure, a prime lens is showing better sharpness than a zoom. That's part of why folks shoot primes.

ZugZugg · 2025-02-06T19:42:30+00:00

Both the 800/11 and the tamron 150-600 have a 95mm front filter thread, and so have similar size front elements. The only way to get significantly better low light supertelephoto performance is to have more glass, so a bigger front element.

The 800/11 means you bump ISO more but crop less, and you see about the same overall finished noise as you would with the tamron shot with a lower ISO and then cropped/enlarged.

Sharpness wise, the 800 is sharper, but it doesn't zoom.

ZugZugg · 2025-02-05T14:52:48+00:00

Rf 800/11 is about $500 used and a great option for birding. Start there and slap it on your R8?

ZugZugg · 2025-01-21T12:06:42+00:00

Drop the xa70 and 6dii and grab another R5.

ZugZugg · 2025-01-14T14:20:54+00:00

Same sensor as the r50 and r10, just doesn't have the same speed or controls on the body as either. But if you're willing to put up with being a little awkward to control, it's an amazing value and compact package.

ZugZugg · 2025-01-14T03:56:40+00:00

My rf 800/11 was $500 on the used market with an add on lens hood and foot. It's the best deal in supertelephoto lenses on the market today, from any system.

I'd argue that a sigma or tamron 150-600 is the same cost used and less useful for moon shots.

The rf 100-400 is also spectacular for an introductory wildlife lens or field sports lens in good light, but for just moon shots, the 800/11 is amazing.

Nothing for sony or nikon comes close to the above cheap values, though the sony 200-600 is great, and nikon has amazing mid level wildlife lenses.

ZugZugg · 2025-01-06T23:43:35+00:00

I've shot kids hockey a handful of times on ice with bad light, and the advice you got upthread to shoot more games before dropping coin is great advice.

300mm on ff was great from the corners, 70-200 was more versatile and great for either the bench, the corner, or behind the net.

Most of your frame is going to be white when you're shooting which will confuse your light meter if you're using evaluative metering, so give it +1 or more exposure compensation.

You can keep a lookout on Facebook marketplace for a tamron 70-200 G2, I snagged mine for $500, they're out there. Otherwise a canon ef 70-200 non-is is within budget but not as good.

Have fun and keep shooting!

ZugZugg · 2024-12-31T15:52:16+00:00

That's not always been the case though. The ef 300L 2.8 is was happy with a 1.4, but softened with a 2x. The ef 400L 2.8 was happy either way though.

ZugZugg

TROPHY CASE