Tim Boyer Field Review Olympus 100-400

[Holoholo55]

Think about it: an antisocial person would likely not do well as a portrait photographer.

But, I bet they would be great in landscape and product photography! Probably for wildlife too. Maybe not for weddings.

 

[Holoholo55]

Considering how fast some wildlife actions can occur without warning, pro capture is much more than a “crutch.” I’ll take it any day. And AF, and zoom lenses, and camera metering... etc...

AF and IS is a boon to me, as my eyes and body age. (Brain ain't as fast as it used to be too) Need all the "crutches" I can get!

 

[Lcrunyon]

I'm not judging people for using crutches.
But wildlife can be predictable They have a smaller hierarchy of needs than people.
There are ways to get outstanding photographs without the technological advances, if one chooses.


The reason I'm not a fan of those crutches is that I think they remove the joy of photography and turn it into "spray and pray", or using a piece of gear that doesn't require thought.

As for Pro Capture, I've not used it. Might as well shoot video. But if it's what you need to do, then go for it!

Learning about the subject is fun (for me) and enhances both my photography and my shooting experience.

There's been a lot written about shooting deliberately, which is what I've done (as hobbyist) for decades.

Knowing the animal can help, but even then pro capture is useful. Say you’re watching an eagle on a branch. You want to catch him taking off. You wait for him to defecate, knowing that this is a common tell. He still might takeoff any second, or minutes from now, or not at all. Maybe it’s a crane stalking for frogs in a pond. You may have an idea that he is seeing something, but when he strikes, it will be in a flash. It gets worse with songbirds, who often have no tell whatsoever. Human reaction is only so fast.

I don’t think pro capture takes away any of the fun (for me, at least). It’s simply a better tool.

 

[RAH]

Knowing the animal can help, but even then pro capture is useful. Say you’re watching an eagle on a branch. You want to catch him taking off. You wait for him to defecate, knowing that this is a common tell. He still might takeoff any second, or minutes from now, or not at all.

Well, see, you skipped past the best part there. Back when I was birding a lot more, it gets that you've seen most of the birds in your area. So people come up with ways to keep it "new," by restarting their list every year, etc. So a criteria my cousin and I came up with was "sh*tting birds." Yes, you had to see them doing it and that would add them to this special list. I did make it more interesting, although it was awkward explaining it to people.

Sooo, with the photography thing, you'd try to capture that eagle at the moment of truth, so to speak, not when he was taking off. Crap Capture - er Pro Capture - would work really well for that too.

 

[PhotoCal]

... so that's what this thread has devolved to. SMH.

 

[scottv]

@RichardC Exactly the same problems arise with the 75-300 class of lenses, Richard. The narrower the FoV/FL, the worse tge problem becomes.

The easiest 'solution' is often to blame the lens ...

I moved from the Panasonic 100-300mm to the Olympus 300mm f4.0, 2 years ago and I honestly believe that a lot (most?) of the improvement in my photos comes from the lens IS working together with the camera IS (IBIS).

 

[saladin]

So , how about that new Olympus 100-400 , huh?

 

[PeeBee]

So , how about that new Olympus 100-400 , huh?

Well, it's an elusive beast, that's for sure.

 

[RAH]

From reviews and videos, I'm getting the impression that with the O100-400 even if the camera and lens aren't completely working together, with both IS turned on you get the camera working on some aspects and the lens working on others, so the combo is better than either one alone (although early tests in YouTube videos seemed inconclusive to my eyes). When I first heard that they wouldn't cooperate, my first thought was, well, I'll use IBIS alone, which is the way I have handled earlier conditions like this (P12-35 and PL12-60), mostly for convenience. But a standard-reach lens and a high-power telephoto lens are totally different, of course. So using both does appear to be the way to go, IMHO. Now if I just had a lens to try it out on...

 

[Lcrunyon]

From reviews and videos, I'm getting the impression that with the O100-400 even if the camera and lens aren't completely working together, with both IS turned on you get the camera working on some aspects and the lens working on others, so the combo is better than either one alone (although early tests in YouTube videos seemed inconclusive to my eyes). When I first heard that they wouldn't cooperate, my first thought was, well, I'll use IBIS alone, which is the way I have handled earlier conditions like this (P12-35 and PL12-60), mostly for convenience. But a standard-reach lens and a high-power telephoto lens are totally different, of course. So using both does appear to be the way to go, IMHO. Now if I just had a lens to try it out on...

I think for stills the reviews showed that using both together is best. However, for video the combination seemed to create jerking movements that wouldn’t have existed if it was true dual sync IS.

 

[Holoholo55]

Well, it's an elusive beast, that's for sure.

I just looked at Getolympus and it says it's backordered, not expected to ship until mid-November. Elusive, indeed.

 

[RichardC]

Top tip: - if you are looking at a 1 month+ lead time, and are paying up front, pay by credit card so you get 'section 75' protection if the retailer goes into administration between payment and delivery.

 

[Shortsonfire79]

I just looked at Getolympus and it says it's backordered, not expected to ship until mid-November. Elusive, indeed.

Aah man. BH also saying Nov 16th. Guess it won't be in stock in time to capitalize on my trip to Oregon next week for the sweet 0% sales tax.

 

[PeeBee]

Top tip: - if you are looking at a 1 month+ lead time, and are paying up front, pay by credit card so you get 'section 75' protection if the retailer goes into administration between payment and delivery.

Good advice. I haven't been charged yet and I'm hoping they won't take payment until it's ready for shipping, partly because the invoice date is when the warranty starts.

I can't find any estimated shipping dates from UK sites. Luckily, I'm in no rush.

 

[PhotoCal]

Aah man. BH also saying Nov 16th. Guess it won't be in stock in time to capitalize on my trip to Oregon next week for the sweet 0% sales tax.

Were you planning to have it shipped to Oregon?

 

[Shortsonfire79]

Were you planning to have it shipped to Oregon?

Yeah. My family moved up there and I'll be visiting soon.

Also, Amazon US expects more in stock on Oct 14th.

 

[Holoholo55]

I just checked Amazon. They have it for $1,349, which is a good price. Expected receive date is Nov. 18th.