Thanks Espen. Always a pleasure to hear someone give good information without sounding like a tech geek. Just "this is what I like" and I can go try it out and know what I'm doing and then I can experiment with the knowledge you shared. Thanks again. Tony from Florida. By the way, Florida is a wonderland for bird photography!!!
Thanks a lot for your excellent explanation. Just sold my EF100-400 mkII and bought the RF100-500 instead. Always figuring out what these modes really mean, you just opened my eyes! Many thanks Espen.
I heard the clicking you get with the IS. I bought the lens used and thought it was a lens issue, but this has me at ease with the IS clicking. Good video
Because of my disabilities my 70-200 f4IS is the heaviest lens I hand hold for birds in flight. I often (always) forget to turn my IS off on tripods so I've stopped using it, at 1/1000 second plus shutter speed it’s very very rare I get any camera shake. If I’m dragging my shutter to get wing blur I will use then, but then I staple a post it note on the bridge of my nose to remind me to turn it off. Another great video explaining the concept really well. I actually read the blurb under the video for this one and I have to say I’m really impressed both with your journey thus far and your English (I actually thought you might be Irish with Scandinavian parentage). I wish I’d done something like ecology at uni instead of law.
Thanks very much Mark! People seem to think Irish every now and then😅 suppose I've picked up a few dialect over the years. I like your post it note trick 👍🏻
your explanations was the best one I found. Made me realize that I was in the wrong mode and need to be in 2. I will go out ant ext the camera lens this week as I need it ready for a sports game on Sat.
I always switch IS off when shooting BIF because I find the autofocus mush less responsive when IS is on. My camera does a better job holding focus with IS off.
This was an awesome video. I have that lens and camera and I mostly use mode one as I like the IS too. Your explanation was superb and very helpful. Thank you so much Espen.
Another good video. I used to own a Canon 7D mark II/70D, Canon 10 - 400mm f4.5/5.6L IS II and a Canon 300mm f2.8L IS. I kept both lenses in position 1, even if I remembered position 2 it did not seem to make any difference. I hated position 3 on the 100 - 400 - the unstabilised image was all over the place like a mad man's kilt. Same with my old Nikon D500 + 200 - 500mm. My old Olympus EM1 mark II and my current Sony A9/A7III use IBIS + lens stabilisation, so I just set it to the on position. I always forget to turn stabilisation off when using a tripod; but again, it doesn't seem to make any difference.
Cheers Pete! Interesting that you didn't notice a difference with mode 2. I think I'll have to do a lot more panning shots to see if I can tell a difference. How are you finding the switch to Sony Mirrorless?
@@EspenHelland. I only ever view my images via a Samsung 55" UHDTV. I believe that translates to 8MP and probably has some bearing on why I have never noticed any difference between 1 and 2. As for the Sony kit: it's marvellous. The A9 was stunning prior to the v5 firmware update, now it's even better at tracking, with Animal EyeAF coming in the summer. The A7III is a brilliant bit of kit and the v3 firmware update gave it Animal EyeAF. It now has a 90mm macro on the end, which will probably not be taken off now I have an A9 for everything else. So I can't comment on the Animal EyeAF. I use a Sony 100 - 400mm G Master on my A9 with a Sony 2 x TC when necessary. Works very well on the A9; AF is still incredibly fast. I generally use it at ranges just beyond my 100 - 400mm lens in order to fill the frame as much as possible. That way images are still pretty sharp and detailed. Using it at long range results in a real loss in detail.
Just found your channel I’ve the same lens either on the 80D or my 5D mk4 fantastic bit of kit I generally leave in mode 1.. I really like your honest approach keep up the good work 😉👍
Totally agreed with your opinion of just set on mode 1 instead of mode 3 or “off” on IS. Especially, Shoot at 1250-2500 shutter speed. I use mode 2 only when shooting low shutter speed panning to get special effects of moving vehicle, bike, etc. Mode 3 did give me slightly (very limited) sharper IQ on my 5D4+100-400L II+1.4III setup. However, I found very hard to focus on Bird’s eye when shooting BIF in mode 3. Love the mark II version of 100-400L IQ on 400mm and its bokeh when shooting at MFD.
Nice video again Espen, i see you are using a arca-swiss plate under the 100-400, i have a problem with my 70-200 and a arca-swiss plate, it gets loose every time, no matter how tied i do the bolt, don't you have a similar problem ?
@@EspenHelland hahaha no it's a brand new Leofoto ball head with plate, does the 100-400 have a notch or something that keeps the plate into his place ? when i'm walking around with my Induro tripod and camera with the 70-200 lens mounted, it always gets loose, my next lens will be a lens with a arca-swiss standard mount, i need more reach... ;-)
Mainly I leave my 100-400mm f4.5-5.6 L IS II in mode 1 IS. This is because where I do most of my photography I shoot a mixture of perched birds, flying birds, plus dragonflies, butterflies and reptiles. A lot of my opportunities come very suddenly. So if I've switched the IS off for flying birds, put it in panning mode, and suddenly I have an opportunity for a perched bird, I will forget I had the IS switched off and get blurry shots due to the lack of IS. If I am concentrating on flying birds, such as the Hobbies which will turn up any day now, I will switch the IS off as I reckon sometimes the odd blurry image you get in a burst at a flying bird it may be due to the IS being out of synch with the movement. When you shoot Hobbies at close range they are travelling so fast and it's not like other flying birds.
@@EspenHelland - They're an incredible bird to watch, let alone photograph. They are just the most incredible fliers and put on breathtaking displays of aerobatics which have to be seen to be believed. They just turned up on my local patch Fenns and Whixall Moss NNR the other day. Their numbers build up until they disperse to breed in about the third to fourth week of May.
Interesting. My personal preference is to leave it on 2 as I find for birds in flight I get a better hit rate than in 1 and I still seem to get good results when not in flight also. I will then use 1 if I am photographing a stationary bird or other form of wildlife and want to reduce the shutter speed. I think it does come down to individuals techniques at the end of the day. Have to say I have never used 3.
Hi Espen, thanks for answering my question. If you get time it would be interesting if you could compare results on a similar subject in the 3 modes, which gives you the sharpest image? I often find that in mode 1 at a high shutter speed, the IS works against you and somehow hurts the sharpness. But maybe it's my technique that needs improvement.
justin holding not a bad shout to do a comparison! People seem to use different modes with success. @KG's Photography was saying he gets better results with mode 2 for birds in flight, so might be worth trying.
@@irascher It varies as I change the shutter speed often. I tend to leave the IS on all the time unless I do long exposures over several seconds on a tripod.
Interesting stuff - on the Nikon side of things the newer lenses no longer have the equivalent of mode 3, though my old 80-400mm did. Now they only have "normal" (full time) and "active" / "sport" (for more erratic movement).
Go pick up the really right stuff LCF-54 foot and remove some weight and it fits in the case better. Then pick up a QD Strap Swivel which will plug right into the foot and now you can use any carry strap you wish.
Thanks!
Thank you Jacques! Much appreciated :)
Thanks Espen. Always a pleasure to hear someone give good information without sounding like a tech geek. Just "this is what I like" and I can go try it out and know what I'm doing and then I can experiment with the knowledge you shared. Thanks again. Tony from Florida. By the way, Florida is a wonderland for bird photography!!!
Thank you very much Tony! I bet Florida is, so many places in the US seems great for birds :)
Recently purchased this lens, so I'm still learning about it. Thanks for the explanation...great job, and very beneficial.
Thanks a lot for your excellent explanation. Just sold my EF100-400 mkII and bought the RF100-500 instead. Always figuring out what these modes really mean, you just opened my eyes! Many thanks Espen.
Glad it was helpful!
I heard the clicking you get with the IS. I bought the lens used and thought it was a lens issue, but this has me at ease with the IS clicking. Good video
Because of my disabilities my 70-200 f4IS is the heaviest lens I hand hold for birds in flight. I often (always) forget to turn my IS off on tripods so I've stopped using it, at 1/1000 second plus shutter speed it’s very very rare I get any camera shake. If I’m dragging my shutter to get wing blur I will use then, but then I staple a post it note on the bridge of my nose to remind me to turn it off.
Another great video explaining the concept really well. I actually read the blurb under the video for this one and I have to say I’m really impressed both with your journey thus far and your English (I actually thought you might be Irish with Scandinavian parentage). I wish I’d done something like ecology at uni instead of law.
Thanks very much Mark! People seem to think Irish every now and then😅 suppose I've picked up a few dialect over the years. I like your post it note trick 👍🏻
your explanations was the best one I found. Made me realize that I was in the wrong mode and need to be in 2. I will go out ant ext the camera lens this week as I need it ready for a sports game on Sat.
Thanks Melissa, hope you got on well with it!
Great Tips. I use a canon T6I for now and I have a 100 - 400mm f/4.5 -5.6 L IS ll USM but like to up grade to 90D for wildlife.
I always switch IS off when shooting BIF because I find the autofocus mush less responsive when IS is on. My camera does a better job holding focus with IS off.
Excellent explanation on one of my favorite lens. Keep it up!
Thank you very much!
Just found your channel tonight Espen. Really like your style man. Keep up the great work. I'll now smash the sub button. Thanx.
Thank you very much! Appreciate it :)
Thanks Espen, it,s always been a bit of a mystery to me. I tend to leave it mode 1 though most of the time. Great vid, thanks
Thanks Rich! I doubt I'll change it much.
It's better to put it on mode 2 for shooting moving subjects. Mode 1 will fight your movement and you can actually feel the effect.
This was an awesome video. I have that lens and camera and I mostly use mode one as I like the IS too. Your explanation was superb and very helpful. Thank you so much Espen.
Thank you very much Pauline 🙂 I'm going to try to remember to switch next time I pan 😉
Another good video. I used to own a Canon 7D mark II/70D, Canon 10 - 400mm f4.5/5.6L IS II and a Canon 300mm f2.8L IS. I kept both lenses in position 1, even if I remembered position 2 it did not seem to make any difference. I hated position 3 on the 100 - 400 - the unstabilised image was all over the place like a mad man's kilt. Same with my old Nikon D500 + 200 - 500mm. My old Olympus EM1 mark II and my current Sony A9/A7III use IBIS + lens stabilisation, so I just set it to the on position. I always forget to turn stabilisation off when using a tripod; but again, it doesn't seem to make any difference.
Cheers Pete! Interesting that you didn't notice a difference with mode 2. I think I'll have to do a lot more panning shots to see if I can tell a difference. How are you finding the switch to Sony Mirrorless?
@@EspenHelland. I only ever view my images via a Samsung 55" UHDTV. I believe that translates to 8MP and probably has some bearing on why I have never noticed any difference between 1 and 2. As for the Sony kit: it's marvellous. The A9 was stunning prior to the v5 firmware update, now it's even better at tracking, with Animal EyeAF coming in the summer. The A7III is a brilliant bit of kit and the v3 firmware update gave it Animal EyeAF. It now has a 90mm macro on the end, which will probably not be taken off now I have an A9 for everything else. So I can't comment on the Animal EyeAF. I use a Sony 100 - 400mm G Master on my A9 with a Sony 2 x TC when necessary. Works very well on the A9; AF is still incredibly fast. I generally use it at ranges just beyond my 100 - 400mm lens in order to fill the frame as much as possible. That way images are still pretty sharp and detailed. Using it at long range results in a real loss in detail.
Sounds like a great setup Pete. Think I'll make the switch one day 👍🏻
Great explanation, I have the 7D/ii with this lens for aviation photography and it’s a great combo. Subbed you 👍
Thank you :)
Just found your channel I’ve the same lens either on the 80D or my 5D mk4 fantastic bit of kit I generally leave in mode 1.. I really like your honest approach keep up the good work 😉👍
Thank you very much JP 🙂
Totally agreed with your opinion of just set on mode 1 instead of mode 3 or “off” on IS. Especially, Shoot at 1250-2500 shutter speed. I use mode 2 only when shooting low shutter speed panning to get special effects of moving vehicle, bike, etc. Mode 3 did give me slightly (very limited) sharper IQ on my 5D4+100-400L II+1.4III setup. However, I found very hard to focus on Bird’s eye when shooting BIF in mode 3. Love the mark II version of 100-400L IQ on 400mm and its bokeh when shooting at MFD.
Scott Yeh yes, such a quality lens! I think I need to get the 1.4III as well to get that extra reach 👍🏻
Nice video again Espen, i see you are using a arca-swiss plate under the 100-400, i have a problem with my 70-200 and a arca-swiss plate, it gets loose every time, no matter how tied i do the bolt, don't you have a similar problem ?
No not experienced that. Might be worth trying a new one?
@@EspenHelland hahaha no it's a brand new Leofoto ball head with plate, does the 100-400 have a notch or something that keeps the plate into his place ? when i'm walking around with my Induro tripod and camera with the 70-200 lens mounted, it always gets loose, my next lens will be a lens with a arca-swiss standard mount, i need more reach... ;-)
Mainly I leave my 100-400mm f4.5-5.6 L IS II in mode 1 IS. This is because where I do most of my photography I shoot a mixture of perched birds, flying birds, plus dragonflies, butterflies and reptiles. A lot of my opportunities come very suddenly. So if I've switched the IS off for flying birds, put it in panning mode, and suddenly I have an opportunity for a perched bird, I will forget I had the IS switched off and get blurry shots due to the lack of IS. If I am concentrating on flying birds, such as the Hobbies which will turn up any day now, I will switch the IS off as I reckon sometimes the odd blurry image you get in a burst at a flying bird it may be due to the IS being out of synch with the movement. When you shoot Hobbies at close range they are travelling so fast and it's not like other flying birds.
Yeah, forgetting is my problem as well. Hobbies must be a great bird to photograph! Best of luck with them :)
@@EspenHelland - They're an incredible bird to watch, let alone photograph. They are just the most incredible fliers and put on breathtaking displays of aerobatics which have to be seen to be believed. They just turned up on my local patch Fenns and Whixall Moss NNR the other day. Their numbers build up until they disperse to breed in about the third to fourth week of May.
Interesting. My personal preference is to leave it on 2 as I find for birds in flight I get a better hit rate than in 1 and I still seem to get good results when not in flight also. I will then use 1 if I am photographing a stationary bird or other form of wildlife and want to reduce the shutter speed. I think it does come down to individuals techniques at the end of the day. Have to say I have never used 3.
That's very interesting! I might have to give mode 2 a bit more of a try 🙂
One more question. I sometimes shoot video with my 100-400 II. does the IS effect video as well?
Yes it does, which is really handy. I mostly shoot the b-roll for my vlogs handheld :)
Hi Espen, thanks for answering my question. If you get time it would be interesting if you could compare results on a similar subject in the 3 modes, which gives you the sharpest image? I often find that in mode 1 at a high shutter speed, the IS works against you and somehow hurts the sharpness. But maybe it's my technique that needs improvement.
justin holding not a bad shout to do a comparison! People seem to use different modes with success. @KG's Photography was saying he gets better results with mode 2 for birds in flight, so might be worth trying.
What speed do you use with stabilization ???
Rodrigo Rascher not sure what you mean, shutterspeeds? I use it almost always.
Espen Helland What is the shutter speed along with the stabilizer? 1/40 " 1/500? 1/1000?
@@irascher It varies as I change the shutter speed often. I tend to leave the IS on all the time unless I do long exposures over several seconds on a tripod.
Hi Espen your actually in my area. May bump into each other. Also same equipment.
Cool! It's a good setup 🙂
I want to buy this lens. Canon EF 100-400mm L.
Rembrandt worth it 👍🏻
There is any difference between Canon and sony 100-400mm lense
Sorry, never tried Sony so I don’t know.
Im guessing mode 3 uses less battery power?
Possibly, would make sense.
mode 3 does stabilize better witch means you can actually put the aperture further down than in mode 1.
Thank you.
superbe ...
Interesting stuff - on the Nikon side of things the newer lenses no longer have the equivalent of mode 3, though my old 80-400mm did. Now they only have "normal" (full time) and "active" / "sport" (for more erratic movement).
Interesting, I guess it must take panning into account on one of those modes then?
Espen Helland According to Nikon support “normal mode also includes automatic panning detection.”
Geoff Cooper that's much handier! I think mode 3 does that on Canon, but I don't really use it.
Go pick up the really right stuff LCF-54 foot and remove some weight and it fits in the case better. Then pick up a QD Strap Swivel which will plug right into the foot and now you can use any carry strap you wish.