Will a Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM work properly on a 5D Mark III full-frame body?
Asked 7/9/2012
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I currently use a Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM on an EOS 450D for bird photography, and I’m considering upgrading to a Canon 5D Mark III full-frame camera. Will this EF lens work normally on the 5D Mark III, or are there any drawbacks when moving from APS-C to full frame? I’ve heard conflicting advice and want to understand whether compatibility or effective reach will change.
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
14y ago
2 Answers
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Yes, that lens will work fine on a 5D (or any other full-frame Canon camera). The only Canon lenses which are incompatible with full-frame sensors are the EF-S range.
You will notice a change in zoom factor though. The 1.6x smaller sensor on your 450D means that the lens is currently giving you a zoom range equivalent to 112-480mm. On a full frame camera you'll notice it really is 70-300mm - things won't look as close when you zoom in. However, the massive difference in resolution (12mp on the 450D vs. 22mp on the 5DmkIII) means you can (if you want) perform the 1.6x crop in post-production without losing too much image resolution.
Originally by user3644. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user3644
14y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes. Your Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS USM is fully compatible with the 5D Mark III. Canon EF lenses work on full-frame EOS bodies; the incompatible Canon mount for full frame is EF-S, not EF.
The main difference is field of view, not lens performance. On your 450D’s APS-C sensor, the 70-300mm gives a full-frame equivalent field of view of about 112-480mm because of the 1.6x crop factor. On a 5D Mark III, it will show its true 70-300mm view, so subjects will appear less “close” at the same distance.
For bird photography, that means you may feel like you lose reach when moving to full frame. However, the lens itself will still function properly, and you can crop full-frame images in post if needed.
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