Canon EF 400mm lens The Canon EF 400mm f/2.8L IS USM is a super-telephoto lens made by Canon Inc. The lens has an EF mount that works with the EOS line of cameras. The lens is widely used by sports and wildlife photographers. Canon currently manufactures three 400mm prime lenses EF 400mm f/2.8L IS USM EF 400mm f/4 DO IS USM EF 400mm f/5.6L USM The EF 400mm f/5.6L USM is Canon's cheapest 400mm lens. Being f/5.6, it is relatively slow, making it less useful in early morning or late evening light. The 400mm f/4 DO IS USM is one of only two Canon lenses that make use of diffractive optics (the other is the Canon EF 70-300mm lens). The use of diffractive optics allows the lens to be significantly lighter than it might otherwise be, but at the cost of some image quality. These lenses are compatible with the Canon Extender EF teleconverters. Cheapest price: $1359 (across 1 store) Read Reviews Compare Prices Similar Lenses Write a Review
Great bit of kit 10/08/2009 I love this lens, I use it mainly for birds and the auto focus is quick and precise particularly when birds are in flight. The pictures it produces are sharp and clear By Colin Vincent Wise Nuneaton uk				10/10
SHARP! 12/10/2007 This is a lens designed for those who like sports and wildlife photography.One thing that can't go unnoticed is the optical quality even in maximum aperture. Images produced by this lens are extremely sharp and contrasty. Autofocus is very quick and accurate. The lens is not very heavy (1.2kg) and it is easy to take handheld shots but if you choose to use a tripod or a beanbag (in safari vehicles) then this lens is an absolute joy! It is probably the only "affordable" super telephoto lens in canon L series telephotos range and if you add the 1.4X MKII teleconverter you have a 560mm f/8 lens with only a barely noticeable image degradation. You can't go wrong with this lens.Excellent optics, beautiful...white-professional appearance, tempting price! By Theodore Mattas Greece				10/10
Excellent lens, if you know what you want from it! 18/07/2010 I purchased this lens a year ago after extensively reading and learning about super telephoto primes. The real choice was between the 300mm f4 IS and the 400mm f5.6 no IS. Price was very close, and for me the extra reach was more important. So I got the 400mm. A lot has been said about lack of IS and the blurred images in low light situation, and I have to agree these points of view are correct. My copy is tack sharp. In reasonably good lighting, I get superb images handheld, especially birds in flight and wildlife. On bright days, this lens is a true delight to shoot with. Perhaps the most impressive feature is the amazing speed of the auto focus and how quickly it 'locks on' to the subject. With dim lihgting, it really is a challenge - I end up using a higher ISO (and miss the IS a lot). Looking back, I would still have got this one for the price, as the reach is important to me. And yes, I am saving for the 500mm lens (if I can afford it in this lifetime!). Bottom line - it is a terrific lens, if you understand its limitation and advantages, and know what you want from it. Thank you. By R. Sekhar				10/10
Close but no Cigar 18/05/2010 After reading all the rave reviews about this lens, I took the plunge. The first copy I got was so bad I sent it back immediately. In live view with a stable test target (ISO 12233) it couldn't even manually focus it to anything close to sharp. The second one I got was better, but its about 10% less resolution than I'm used to with the Canon 200mm F2.8 and 35mm F1.4 (both amazing lenses). I always enjoy zooming into an image and being surprised by the hidden details I miss viewing "fit to screen", but this lens constantly disappoints me. Its never crisp; its always on the soft side. Lots of reviews claim this lens is sharp as a tack but this just isn't my experience with it. I wish it was. Perhaps I'm just expecting too much. The images are extremely sensitive to the slightest movement of the camera, so you must shoot as fast as possible. Stopping it down did not measurably sharpen the images. It might work better with a full frame sensor (I'm using a cropped T1i). By Jeff				4/10
400mm f/5.6...Wonderful piece of glass!! 20/04/2010 I wont bore you with all the details. Many people have done a great job telling you just how wonderful this lens is. When buying a lens or a camera you should have a good idea how you shoot and how you intend to use the lens. I knew from the beginning that not having IS did not bother me. Having a 5.6 vs a 4.0...well...as much as I would like the extra stop, I also like an extra $4000 in my pocket. Some people think that the lens and the camera is what makes the photographer. That is like saying an Indy car makes me an awesome driver. You really do need to learn how to use your equipment and know its capabilities. There has not been a time when I have not been happy with this lens. If there is a photo that has not turned out the way I want, I look at my abilities before I blame the equipment. Want a great ultra zoom and a super price?? This bad boy is your guy!! [..] Thank you. Scott By S. Denny Green Bay, WI USA				10/10