which one ?

[Alex_B]

I love my 300 f/4

and my 50 f/1.4

 

[usayit]

OMG there's a lot being thrown in this thread... some true .. much is speculation.. some is just plain false... some hurts my head.

My opinion... Two extremely different lenses... with very different purposes.

You need a long reaching (focal length) zoom with excellent image quality, 100-400mm. Easy to handle, easy to pack, easy to use.. both handheld and on a monopod. Excellent for wildlife and outdoor sports.

You need a wonderfully fast (max aperture) zoom with excellent image quality, get the 70-200mm f2.8. A bit heavier.. mainstay in portraits and wedding photography. 200mm is way too short for most wildlife and sports.

Throw on a 1.4x teleconverter is acceptable but not comparable to the 100-400mm zoom. The 1.4x teleconverter IS a wonderful option if you see yourself shooting past 200mm only once-in-a-while. I didn't like the results when I borrowed the 2x teleconverter.

I own both and I can't ever remember a time that the decision to pack one or the other was obvious for a particular trip/shoot. In the end.. for the type of shooting I do.. I generally bring along my 24-105mm + 100-400mm + 19-35mm (tokina). Wonderful easy traveling set.

Other times... I travel with 24mm f1.4l, 50mm f1.4, 85mm f1.8, 135mm f2L.

Unfortunately, the 70-200mm f2.8 gets the least usage. Don't get me wrong, its one of Canon's all time best zooms in their line-up. It just doesn't fit me as often as I thought it would... I've actually been considering selling it for quite some time but could never convince myself to jump for it.