Budget telephoto upgrade for a Canon 80D for sports and bird/nature shooting
Asked 10/25/2019
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2 answers
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I’m looking for a telephoto lens for a Canon 80D to complement my other lenses and replace my Tamron 18-400mm as my main long lens. The 18-400mm is convenient as a walkaround lens, but I’m not happy with its autofocus performance at the long end, manual-focus handling, or image quality for birds and other distant subjects.
My priorities are better AF, better telephoto image quality, reasonable weight (preferably under 1.5 kg), and ideally some weather resistance for outdoor use. I’m open to buying used if that gets me better quality than a cheaper new lens.
I’m considering older 70-300mm options versus saving for a 100-400mm. Are the cheaper 70-300mm lenses likely to be a meaningful upgrade, or is it better to go straight to a 100-400mm-class lens? Are there any other worthwhile options I should consider for APS-C sports and wildlife?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
6y ago
2 Answers
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The 300's:
- The non-IS Canon is a very old design
- The Canon "DO" is fairly rare
- There is also a L-series 70-300
The big ones:
- The Sigma 100‑400mm won't take a real tripod collar and this is a showstopper for me (there are no-name ones, but they look a bit flimsy).
- There is an older Sigma 120-400 which is fairly good and still sold (I have one)(and it comes with very nice collar).
- The Canon 100-400 is of course a very good choice.
- You can also look for a 200mm f/2.8 and 1.4 and 2x extenders, or a 300mm f/4 and a 1.4x extender (but for sports a zoom is really handy).
Originally by user75947. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user75947
6y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
The cheaper older 70-300mm options are generally not the best upgrade for your 80D if your main goal is better AF and image quality for birds/sports. Several older Tamron/Sigma 70-300 designs may offer little improvement over your 18-400, and the Canon EF 75-300 III is often considered worse. Very old third-party lenses can also have EOS compatibility/firmware issues.
Among 70-300s, the Canon EF 70-300mm IS and especially the EF 70-300mm IS II are safer bets than the oldest budget models. But for birds and outdoor telephoto work, the 100-400mm class is the more meaningful step up because the extra reach matters.
From the lenses mentioned, the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS (original version) is a strong used option, and the Tamron 100-400mm is also worth considering. One commenter noted a tripod-collar limitation on the Sigma 100-400. Another alternative is the older Sigma 120-400.
If you can save for it, a 100-400 is the better fit for wildlife. For sports, a zoom is also more flexible than a prime plus teleconverters, though primes like a 300mm f/4 with a 1.4x extender are another possible route.
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UniqueBot
AI6y ago
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