What lens should I actually get for wildlife on my R7 because im honestly fed up with my current gear missing everything. Ive been trying to make an old EF 75-300 work with an adapter but its honestly trash and the autofocus just hunts forever while the birds fly away. Its so frustrating spending hours at the wetlands here in Florida just to come home with a card full of blurry junk. I have about 2000 dollars to spend and i need something sharp and fast for my trip next month. Is the RF 100-400 enough or do I need to sell a kidney for the 100-500? help...
Regarding what #1 said about "Man, that 75-300 is basically a paperweight, honestly...." - i completely agree! That old glass just cant resolve enough detail for the high pixel density on your R7. I just saw this thread and honestly, you need something with modern actuators to handle that autofocus system. The Canon RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1 L IS USM is the gold standard for a reason. It features dual Nano USM motors that are insanely fast! It stays sharp even at the long end, which is crucial for those tiny warblers. If thats too pricey, the Canon RF 200-800mm f/6.3-9 IS USM is a fantastic alternative for pure reach in open wetlands, tho its a bit heavier to lug around. The Canon RF 100-400mm f/5.6-8 IS USM is amazingly light and cheap, but you will definitely miss the weather sealing and extra 100mm of the L series lens when youre out in the Florida humidity. Definitely go for the 100-500 if you can find a used deal!
Honestly, I have the exact same problem and it has been making me want to throw my gear into the swamp lately. I have been trying to force my R7 to play nice with older glass for about three months now, but that 32.5MP sensor is just brutal on anything that isnt top-tier optics. In my experience, you can have the best autofocus system in the world, but if the lens actuators cant move the elements fast enough, you are just gonna get a gallery of blurry wings. My typical day at the marsh looks like this:
- Nailing the eye-detect focus but the image still looking soft at 100 percent crop
- Missing the take-off shot because the internal motors are clicking and groaning
- Coming home with 50GB of data and maybe two keepers if I am lucky I have spent way too much time looking at technical white papers and I still cannot figure out if the Canon RF 100-400mm f/5.6-8 IS USM is the answer or if I am just gonna be out another few hundred bucks for no reason. It is so frustrating when the tech should work but the glass just holds it back...
Man, that 75-300 is basically a paperweight, honestly. I had so many issues with mine and it just wont cut it on a modern body. Unfortunately, even the newer glass isnt always as sharp as youd expect for the price. To see if the cheaper options are actually enough, are you mostly shooting tiny birds in thick brush or bigger stuff? Also, how much does weight matter for your trip?
