Canon L series Telephoto for video? Good? the bad? the ugly?

im torn between this > EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6L IS USM and this > EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM

The 100-400 is a great lens, I know Stept and 4bi9 both use it/used it a lot and i'm sure others would praise it as well.

If you have limitless funds definitely go with a 70-200 f/2.8 with a 2x teleconverter. I got to work with that setups on a project and it was great!

Unsweetenedim torn between this > EF 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6L IS USM and this > EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM

I use the 28-300 all the time, just got back from using it. Perfect lens for event coverage/basically anything that doesn't require low light. It's my go-to 'lazy' event lens when I don't feel like having two bodies on me

If you're looking ONLY at video, you don't need to go with L glass. There are plenty of other f2.8 tele lenses in this length - namely something like the tokina 80-200 f2.8 atx-pro being a solid option for 1/5 of the price on the used market.. (slightly more chromatic aberration wide open than the L lenses, but you can't really tell that shit in video anyway)

The thing I dislike about L lenses (and really any USM lens with video) is that there are no 'hard stops' for infinity and closest focus distances.. meaning I can accidentally focus beyond infinity on a subject and fail to get them in the right focus spot. If you're only shooting video, look in the direction of vintage 80-200 f2.8 or f4 zooms - they'll be lighter, and have better ergonomics for focusing with.

Also, while f2.8 might be sexy, I'd really only recommended if you're going to throw a 2x teleconverter on it at any point - which would make it a 140-400 f5.6 lens - an f4 lens would turn it into a 140-400 f8 lens which isn't the best for situations when the light is optimal, yet dimmer.

DingoSeannamely something like the tokina 80-200 f2.8 atx-pro being a solid option for 1/5 of the price on the used market.

I'm picking one of these up now. Never heard of this lens but i'm definitely trying it out? Do you know how it compares to the canon magic drainpipe/canon 80-200 f/2.8?

Aidin954I'm picking one of these up now. Never heard of this lens but i'm definitely trying it out? Do you know how it compares to the canon magic drainpipe/canon 80-200 f/2.8?

It's probably going to have more chromatic aberration, and it's probably not quite as sharp.. i'm not sure if the AF speed is as fast, but i'd imagine it's in the same ballpark being they're the same vintage... the price being 300 or less though is amazing for a pro-build quality product... as much as it's probably not the best at f2.8, and lacks VR, it's more than useable for portraits (which is where you're shooting at f2.8 anyway), and if you look at what people have gotten out of it via flickr I can't say it's all that bad.

Pixel peepers will peep, but for that price, fuck em. If I didn't already own the 70-210 f4 and also have the 70-200 f2.8 vr handy, i'd jump on the tokina train in a second for a good copy of the 80-200...

if you dont mind the limitations of an f/4 open ap then the Canon 70-200 f4 is solid. Some days i wish i had the 2.8 but the f4 is tack sharp and consistently gives the best IQ of my glass lineup. Speaking from a 6D background, that is. and not a ton of loot for the quality in my opinion

Twaddlerif you dont mind the limitations of an f/4 open ap then the Canon 70-200 f4 is solid. Some days i wish i had the 2.8 but the f4 is tack sharp and consistently gives the best IQ of my glass lineup. Speaking from a 6D background, that is. and not a ton of loot for the quality in my opinion

**if you have a crop sensor then thisll give you over 200mm. if youre on a full frame then this is all irrelevant