CANON EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6l IS II USM
This high-performance lens remains a favoured supertelephoto for DSLRS with a relatively fast aperture
Canon’s original 100-400mm IS USM lens was launched all the way back in 1998, with film cameras firmly in mind. It continued to be highly desirable with the advent of digital SLRS, both for full-frame and APS-C format bodies, having an effective zoom range of 160-640mm on the latter. Less popular was its trombone-style, push-pull zoom mechanism. That’s been changed to a more regular twist-action zoom ring in this second edition, which replaced the original in late 2014.
The optical path includes top-grade fluorite and Super UD (Ultra-low Dispersion) glass, and is more sophisticated than in the original lens, with four additional elements. As with some of Canon’s more recent top-flight lenses, high-tech ASC (Air Sphere Coating) is featured, plus fluorine coatings on the front and rear elements.
Another neat feature is the triple-mode image stabilizer. As well as the more usual switchable static and panning options, the third mode applies stabilization only during actual exposures. The viewfinder image is unaffected, making it easier to track erratically moving objects. The stabilizer is rated at 4-stops, compared with just 1.5-stops in the original lens.
Performance
Autofocus is very fast and retains particularly good tracking performance even under very dull lighting conditions. Sharpness and contrast are impressive at short to mid-zoom settings, but there’s a noticeable drop at the long end, and it’s certainly outclassed by the RF 100-500mm lens at all focal lengths.