Panasonic 100-400 or new camera + Nikkor 200-500

JackBell

JackBell

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Hi all, I am currently using 2 Panasonic G5's with (amongst others) a 45-200 lens. Lately I am getting more and more into nature and wildlife photography and am finding my kit a bit limiting in terms of focal length and focusing speed for this type of photography. I am happy enough with my Micro 4/3 gear for other types of photography I do. Now the dilemma, should I sell both G5's and 45-200 and get a G80 + Panasonic 100-400,or, sell one G5 and buy a used Nikon camera with a used 200-500 to run alongside my Micro 4/3 kit. I didn't really want to run two systems but I would only be taking the Nikon kit on specific wildlife shoots, and I would expect better autofocus performance with this outfit. Then again is the G80 + 100-400 bad in this respect?
Any thoughts and advice would be appreciated.

Thanks Jack.

Sorry, should have put this in the equipment section,if the mods would oblige.
 
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Have you considered the Olympus E-M1 + 40-150 f/2.8 PRO + 1.4 TC as an alternative? This will give you pretty much the best AF performance available in m4/3 and an optically excellent and fast f/2.8 telephoto lens (80-300mm f/2.8 FF Field of View equivalent) that takes a teleconverter very well. Optically this setup will be far superior to the Panasonic 45-200 you currently have.

If you need to go longer still the Panasonic 100-400 or the Olympus 300 f/4 would be good options.
 
I sold up all my Pentax gear so I could switch to nikon simply so I had access to more tele lenses. Particularly the tamron / sigma 150-600's. I ended up with the nikon 200-500 in the end :)
 
maarten.dhaese said:
Have you considered the Olympus E-M1 + 40-150 f/2.8 PRO + 1.4 TC as an alternative? This will give you pretty much the best AF performance available in m4/3 and an optically excellent and fast f/2.8 telephoto lens (80-300mm f/2.8 FF Field of View equivalent) that takes a teleconverter very well. Optically this setup will be far superior to the Panasonic 45-200 you currently have.

If you need to go longer still the Panasonic 100-400 or the Olympus 300 f/4 would be good options.
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I have no doubt the 100-400 is optically good, I am just a little concerned about autofocus.
 
RichardMills said:
I sold up all my Pentax gear so I could switch to nikon simply so I had access to more tele lenses. Particularly the tamron / sigma 150-600's. I ended up with the nikon 200-500 in the end :)
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How do you find AF with the 200-500? I am assuming it's good optically.
 
JackBell said:
I have no doubt the 100-400 is optically good, I am just a little concerned about autofocus.
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The EM1 is ok, usable in some instances and not in others, you want the EM1 mk2 if you want really good AF. Today I was using the 100-400 and EM1ii to try and shoot some falconry and it was the first time with m43 that I am 100% the limitation.

Expensive setup though and you could get some serious Nikon gear for the same cost but then the m43 has a serious size advantage.
 
Nawty said:
The EM1 is ok, usable in some instances and not in others, you want the EM1 mk2 if you want really good AF. Today I was using the 100-400 and EM1ii to try and shoot some falconry and it was the first time with m43 that I am 100% the limitation.

Expensive setup though and you could get some serious Nikon gear for the same cost but then the m43 has a serious size advantage.
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Yes, exactly. Top end m4/3 kit isn't cheap is it!
Size was an issue when I bought into the m4/3 system a few years ago, but back then I used to take ALL my kit out on a shoot to cover all eventualities, now I am more selective on what I will be doing on any given day. Think I am trying to convince myself to go down the Nikon route :confused: as I think AF is going to be better with phase detect as opposed to contrast detect, and the aim of the exercise is not to miss as many shots. Thanks for the input.

Jack.
 
The EM1ii does have phase detect, lots of phase detect points, which is why the AF is so good but yes, it isn't cheap. It's been a while since I used a DSLR but I would say that the EM1ii is in or around my old Nikon D700 (which had fantastic AF).

I'm already invested in the glass (which is fantastic) so the EM1ii was the obvious choice for improved AF, also I like that I can get 18-800mm (FF equiv) in a small rucksack.
 
Nawty said:
The EM1ii does have phase detect, lots of phase detect points, which is why the AF is so good but yes, it isn't cheap. It's been a while since I used a DSLR but I would say that the EM1ii is in or around my old Nikon D700 (which had fantastic AF).

I'm already invested in the glass (which is fantastic) so the EM1ii was the obvious choice for improved AF, also I like that I can get 18-800mm (FF equiv) in a small rucksack.
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It has phase detect!!! now you've put the cat amongst the pigeons:eek::eek::eek:
 
JackBell said:
Sorry, should have put this in the equipment section,if the mods would oblige.
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The mods don't read every thread. To get it moved, 'report' the thread and make your request explicit in the 'why are you reporting this thread?' box.
 
You can try the Olympus kit being discussed. LCE and Clifton I know definitely do it. Just go to wow.olympus.eu. No charge! And I don't work for them or anybody photographic.
 
JackBell said:
How do you find AF with the 200-500? I am assuming it's good optically.
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Optically it's fine, especially stopped down, but it is not a fast focus lens by any stretch of imagination, especially in poor light.
 
[QUOTE="JackBell, post: 7816815, member: 60821"! now you've put the cat amongst the pigeons:eek::eek::eek:[/QUOTE]

What goes "Meeeow meeeow, coo coo, meeeow meeow, coo coo"?????

Sorry just in a silly mood lol :ROFLMAO:
 
I have read the PL 100-400 has good AF, but is suffers from sharpness drop off at the long end.

To give you a little context; I have a GH5, and want a long, sharp lens for birds in flight, amongst other things. One of the options I have been considering, other than those mentioned above, is a Metabones EF Smart Adapter.

The cost of a PL 100-400 is £1400 new, maybe £1000 used/grey import. The Olympus 300mm F/4 Pro is £2000. For that, you can buy the smart adapter at £350, and a whole host of EF options (especially considering, the strong used market for these lenses):

Sigma 150-600 OS C
Canon 300mm F/4 L IS
Canon 400mm F/5.6 L (GH5 has IBIS)
Canon 70-300mm F/4 - F/5.6L IS
Canon 100-400mm F/4 - F/5.6L IS II

The main issue is, focus speed and accuracy; It varies per body, and quite simply, spending this sort of money, you don't want to be gambling. I should also mention that for me, the size and weight of the above setups are not an issue; I appreciate that for many m4/3 users, that's not the case. If anybody has tried this setup - I would love to hear about your experiences.

Also; looking at the charts around on the internet, the Sigma 150-600mm OS C compares well to the Nikon 200-500mm.

More options to confuse you!
 
The AF on the PL100-400 is almost instant on the EM1 / EM1ii and I've got no issues with sharpness at 400mm, it doesn't have the micro-contrast of the Oly 300 but it just produces nice images with great acuity and no CA (which means edges look like edges, not slightly blurred as can happen on some lenses), also it is tiny for a 400mm lens.

Also, on the GH5 you will get depth through defocus which is their way of judging distance to a subject (as opposed to phase) and hence improving CAF, it's meant to work pretty well so that could be something to try.
 
m3csl2004 said:
I have read the PL 100-400 has good AF, but is suffers from sharpness drop off at the long end.

To give you a little context; I have a GH5, and want a long, sharp lens for birds in flight, amongst other things. One of the options I have been considering, other than those mentioned above, is a Metabones EF Smart Adapter.

The cost of a PL 100-400 is £1400 new, maybe £1000 used/grey import. The Olympus 300mm F/4 Pro is £2000. For that, you can buy the smart adapter at £350, and a whole host of EF options (especially considering, the strong used market for these lenses):

Sigma 150-600 OS C
Canon 300mm F/4 L IS
Canon 400mm F/5.6 L (GH5 has IBIS)
Canon 70-300mm F/4 - F/5.6L IS
Canon 100-400mm F/4 - F/5.6L IS II

The main issue is, focus speed and accuracy; It varies per body, and quite simply, spending this sort of money, you don't want to be gambling. I should also mention that for me, the size and weight of the above setups are not an issue; I appreciate that for many m4/3 users, that's not the case. If anybody has tried this setup - I would love to hear about your experiences.

Also; looking at the charts around on the internet, the Sigma 150-600mm OS C compares well to the Nikon 200-500mm.

More options to confuse you!
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Nawty said:
The AF on the PL100-400 is almost instant on the EM1 / EM1ii and I've got no issues with sharpness at 400mm, it doesn't have the micro-contrast of the Oly 300 but it just produces nice images with great acuity and no CA (which means edges look like edges, not slightly blurred as can happen on some lenses), also it is tiny for a 400mm lens.

Also, on the GH5 you will get depth through defocus which is their way of judging distance to a subject (as opposed to phase) and hence improving CAF, it's meant to work pretty well so that could be something to try.
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I really want to stay with m4/3 for the size/weight issues and I'm now more or less convinced that the PL 100-400 would be OK for me, but I'm now dithering over what body to upgrade to, Panasonic or Olympus. TBH I had a budget in mind of about £1500 on top of any trade in deals I may get, and £1300 for the lens and £1600 for the body(EM1II or GH5) is pushing it a bit. I may get the lens now and see how it goes then upgrade my body around Xmas time.
Thanks for all the help everyone,it really is appreciated.

Jack
 
The main thing to remember when shooting wildlife is that a fast shutter speed is essential, this means that fast lenses are important in order to obtain that fast SS at lower ISO's, something that again is important with M43 camera's ( stick to not shooting above ISO 1600 with my Em5 mk2 and with a ss of 1/1000 of a sec but never below 1/500th even for stationary wildlife.

So this means the penny 100-400 is a slow lens, bare in mind your probably gonna stop it down to f8 then take the good old British weather into account and you'll find yourself shooting at high ISO's fairly often.

I have the Oly 40-150 pro & the 300 pro + the 1.4 tc all combinations or solo lenses work fantastically, fast AF, good lock on target and sharp even wide open.
 
dragonfly said:
Optically it's fine, especially stopped down, but it is not a fast focus lens by any stretch of imagination, especially in poor light.
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Have you used it with a D500 ... if so would you say your comment stands true for this combination? :)
 
Panasonic body's have DFD focus assist worth reading up about,the beauty of that is it can be upgraded and improved at any time by Panasonic via a firmware upgrade.i find it makes the G80 and 100-400 very fast and accurate i also find the only thing that makes my 100-400 soft at 400mm is me (getting old now)

If like me you changed due to weight then the extra weight of the DX and 200-500 could cause you to lose any extra sharpness it has,i know ime a lot steadier with the G80 and 100-400 using dual is 2.

If you dont consider weight would be a problem then my money would be on the DX gear.
 
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