Olympus 70-300 or 75-300

[Fred S]

Excuse me if this has been beaten up here before
My Trusty FT 70-300 with not focus any more on my EPL-5
I tied cleaning the contacts, Still NO Go
I even tried it on my E-520. It will not focus . Hunts like crazy
so it is not the adapter

So is a 70-300 for $429.00 or a m75-300 for $539.00 the way to go.
I really don;t use my 520 any more

any big advantages of the 75-300
I like bird photography . How is the 75-300 vs 75-300 at 300mm

thanks for any help

 

[Growltiger]

I have the 75-300 and I'm very happy with it. It is remarkably good, including at 300mm. It focuses fast and gives sharp photos. Astonishing to me is the size and weight and what such a little lens can do.

 

[fortwodriver]

Have you tried running a firmware upgrade on your camera with the lens installed? The update procedure, if it can detect the lens, may find newer firmware. If so, and it is able to load it in, it may reset whatever issue the lens is currently having.

Why not send it in for repair? Repair may still be cheaper than a new lens.

 

[Fred S]

Have you tried running a firmware upgrade on your camera with the lens installed? The update procedure, if it can detect the lens, may find newer firmware. If so, and it is able to load it in, it may reset whatever issue the lens is currently having.

Why not send it in for repair? Repair may still be cheaper than a new lens.

Thanks its worth a Try

I was working fine until this morning

 

[dhazeghi]

Thanks its worth a Try

I was working fine until this morning

The flat repair rate for the 70-300 (at least in the US) is ~$100. Henry's is also selling a 70-300 with warranty for $230, so I suspect it'll be a lot less expensive to stick with a 70-300. The 75-300 is quite nice of course - it's a good bit smaller, lighter and faster focusing - but in addition to the cost, you'll also lose the ability to focus close enough for macros, one of the 70-300's more attractive features (IMO).

 

[Fred S]

I got one to test out

I picked up a 75-300 for a 2 week test run ( Best Buy Return Policy )
and at a GOOD price
and these are Canuck Bucks

The 75-300 is quite nice of course - it's a good bit smaller, lighter and faster focusing - but in addition to the cost, you'll also lose the ability to focus close enough for macros, one of the 70-300's more attractive features (IMO).

I have a 12-50 for Macro

Yesterday morning there were 2 remaining in Calgary

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[Ross the fiddler]

Excuse me if this has been beaten up here before
My Trusty FT 70-300 with not focus any more on my EPL-5
I tied cleaning the contacts, Still NO Go
I even tried it on my E-520. It will not focus . Hunts like crazy
so it is not the adapter

So is a 70-300 for $429.00 or a m75-300 for $539.00 the way to go.
I really don;t use my 520 any more

any big advantages of the 75-300
I like bird photography . How is the 75-300 vs 75-300 at 300mm

thanks for any help

The 75-300 is much better for birds being much faster to focus, no external focussing & that annoying rotating front & you could always stick the old 70-300 on for close ups MF. The 75-300 is half a stop darker but not much of an issue in reasonable light & with the higher ISO ability of the later cameras. I even modified the 40-150 lens hood to fit on it (including reversing) making it much smaller again.

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Lens hood before

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After being modified

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[Fred S]

The 75-300 is much better for birds being much faster to focus, no external focussing & that annoying rotating front & you could always stick the old 70-300 on for close ups MF. The 75-300 is half a stop darker but not much of an issue in reasonable light & with the higher ISO ability of the later cameras. I even modified the 40-150 lens hood to fit on it (including reversing) making it much smaller again.

I had the 75-300 out last weekend for some test shots ( Birds )
the sandpiper is at 300 mm and the 2X crop EFL 1200. ( tripod) He was at least 50 yards away

vs 70-300 Lighter , Smaller and the Auto Focus a little Quicker


The 75-300 is a Keeper

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[Fred S]

I could have never have done this with the FT 70-300

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