Shooting at 400mm

[Hans Kruse]

I like ultra wide angle lenses as you saw on my 11mm thread. I equally like long lenses for landscape photography. With long lenses I can capture a scene otherwise out of reach for me and out of reach even if I could move freely around. It is possible to isolate a smaller part of a scene. It allows compression of perspective. For a while my longerst lens was 200mm for landscape until I tried the Canon 100-400 f/4.5-5.6L IS II lens and was completely sold on that. So now it is always in my bag.

Attached are some examples of using this lens at 400mm or very close to 400mm.

[kers]

Hans,

You jump from 11 to 400mm... 

I am a big fan of the new 300mm pf lens Nikon has made.  Less than 800 grams i can take it into the mountains...
Indeed it widens ( narrows) you photograhic perspective..
I use it to learn to see new photographs for my mind is more into wide that tele when it comes to seeing things.
In combination with the 2x converter i have a 600mm f8 that weighs 1100 grams.

[Paulo Bizarro]

Hans, I really like #1, the second lit hill on the background really makes the shot for me.

[Hans Kruse]

Hans,

You jump from 11 to 400mm... 

I am a big fan of the new 300mm pf lens Nikon has made.  Less than 800 grams i can take it into the mountains...
Indeed it widens ( narrows) you photograhic perspective..
I use it to learn to see new photographs for my mind is more into wide that tele when it comes to seeing things.
In combination with the 2x converter i have a 600mm f8 that weighs 1100 grams.

Thanks, I understand my post probably was not clear enough. It was not about the Canon lens, it was about shooting landscapes with long lenses and examples of that. What is important for me is not to have a fixed lens, but a zoom lens where I can frame what I want to shoot without having to compromize because of a fixed focal length. But I'm not interested in getting into a technical lens discussion

[Jeremy Roussak]

Hans, the first and last are stunning. You are making it very difficult for me to resist signing up to one of your workshops! (Those are Tuscany, I presume.) Maybe I'll yield to temptation next year.

Jeremy

[Hans Kruse]

Hans, the first and last are stunning. You are making it very difficult for me to resist signing up to one of your workshops! (Those are Tuscany, I presume.) Maybe I'll yield to temptation next year.

Jeremy

Thanks very much Jeremy. They were all from Umbria from the Monte Sibilini National Park. I don't do workshops there at the moment. The wonderful village Castelluccio was destroyed in an earth quake last year as well as Norcia. So not sure when to come back there. Abruzzo is another location with very nice mountains, hills and an old castle. My hotel was completely demolished by an avalanche this winter so have to go back and investigate again. Really tragic.

Long lenses work in many places. Attached a shot from Isle of Skye at Neist Point and one from the Dolomites. The first at 400mm and the second at 330mm.

[Hans Kruse]

A couple of long lens shots from Tuscany from last November.

[Peter McLennan]

Thanks for those, Hans.  I too pine for a longer lens.  The previously mentioned 300 f4 is very tempting, especially given its small size and weight and I really wish Nikon would make a 400 f4 using that technology.  IMHO, 300 isn't enough jump from 200 to justify the $2K price tag. 

There seems to be a dearth of 400 f4 lenses. If there are any, I'd love to hear about them.

[Eric Myrvaagnes]

These are wonderful, Hans. They, and your 11mm shots, show me once again that the most important piece of equipment is the photographer's eye.

I was saddened to hear that the earthquake also destroyed Castelluccio, which was a highlight of my one trip to Tuscany and Umbria in 2005. The news reports I saw only mentioned Norcia, which was very sad as well.

[Hans Kruse]

Thanks for those, Hans.  I too pine for a longer lens.  The previously mentioned 300 f4 is very tempting, especially given its small size and weight and I really wish Nikon would make a 400 f4 using that technology.  IMHO, 300 isn't enough jump from 200 to justify the $2K price tag. 

There seems to be a dearth of 400 f4 lenses. If there are any, I'd love to hear about them.

Thanks Peter, I would not recommend a fixed lens as there would be way too many times you would need to compromize the composition due the foxed focal length. For the Nikon you could go with the 80-400mm lens. Although this weighs more and slightly less sharp at 300 than the fixed lens, you get the versatiltiy in spades. You will get so many composition possibilities that I promise you, that you will not look back if you buy and love longer focal lengths.

[Hans Kruse]

These are wonderful, Hans. They, and your 11mm shots, show me once again that the most important piece of equipment is the photographer's eye.

I was saddened to hear that the earthquake also destroyed Castelluccio, which was a highlight of my one trip to Tuscany and Umbria in 2005. The news reports I saw only mentioned Norcia, which was very sad as well.

Thanks Eric, yes, it is really sad that Castelluccio was destroyed http://www.thelocal.it/20161124/after-the-earthquakes-why-you-should-still-visit-central-italy as well as Norcia. I'm planning to go back during this year at some point and have a look at this area and also Abruzzo. For a couple of years I did a combined workshop in Abruzzo (based in hotel Rigopiano which is now destroyed)  and Umbria (based in Norcia and shooting mainly in the Monte Sibbilini National Park). Despite the tragic events and destruction there is still a lot to shoot, of course. I have had my share of earth quake damages. Attached is a picture from a village in the Aterno valley south of l'Aquila that was destroyed in the April 2009 earth quake. I came back after the earth quake and the spot was gone as the houses were quite a bit destroyed. L'Aquila is still not rebuilt so we can imagine how long it will take to rebuild Norcia and Castelluccio, if it ever happens.

Attached also one including Castelluccio and one including the moon over the rolling hills around Piano Grande. I love the area but there are too many tourists in late June. In the autumn there are very few people and the landscapes are wonderful and there is very often fog on the plateau. We could support this area by going there.

[kers]

.... But I'm not interested in getting into a technical lens discussion

Not my intention to start a technical discussion, that is why i added a photo.
Very much like you photos and just wanted to add that i like to use telelenses for landscape too and that for me it is a new way of learning to see things that did not notice me before.
When hiking there are now really nice light weight telelenses to use making it easier.
For me fixed lenses are lighter and give better performance. I can always crop or stitch if needed.
The interesting thing is also -as you added a close up - that indeed for close ups these lenses can be very nice too.

PS
really sad to hear these old villages destroyed. I love the Italians and the way they always built the village on top of hills.

[Brad Smith]

Hi Hans,

Thanks for the nice images.

I'm curious if, when carrying your 100-400, you prefer a full frame or cropped sensor body? For nature shots, I would generally prefer a cropped sensor, but I have not used my 100-400 much for landscape. Based on your results, maybe I should start!

[Hans Kruse]

Not my intention to start a technical discussion, that is why i added a photo.
Very much like you photos and just wanted to add that i like to use telelenses for landscape too and that for me it is a new way of learning to see things that did not notice me before.
When hiking there are now really nice light weight telelenses to use making it easier.
For me fixed lenses are lighter and give better performance. I can always crop or stitch if needed.
The interesting thing is also -as you added a close up - that indeed for close ups these lenses can be very nice too.

PS
really sad to hear these old villages destroyed. I love the Italians and the way they always built the village on top of hills.

Thanks and I like your pictures and they show also what is possible with a long lens. I prefer zoom lenses of good quality for flexibility, but if fixed lenses works for you there is nothing wrong with that

[Hans Kruse]

Hi Hans,

Thanks for the nice images.

I'm curious if, when carrying your 100-400, you prefer a full frame or cropped sensor body? For nature shots, I would generally prefer a cropped sensor, but I have not used my 100-400 much for landscape. Based on your results, maybe I should start!

Thanks Brad, I have not had a cropped sensor body for many years now. I prefer the high resolution 35mm full frame bodies for the big lens choice and quality. You are giving up a lot of resolution on a cropped sensor body compared to a Canon 5DSR. For landscapes resolution does not make the picture, of course, but I like to have the resolution for a large print at some point. That is for landscape. For wild life the 5DSR has the same pixel density as the 7D II so the reach is the same for the two bodies. If I was hard core wild life photographer I most likely would also carry a cropped sensor camera like the 7D II or D500. But regarding the options that e.g. a 100-400 presents it does not matter so much if the camera body is full frame or cropped. Except that I would find the 100-400 a bit too long on a cropped sensor body. Many also like a 70-300 zoom lens and on a cropped sensor body I would say this is a better choice. But in your case try it out, if you haven't. But not all locations works equally well with long lenses in my opinion, just like some locations does not work so well with ultra wide angle. That is just my opinion and others may feel different.

[Eric Myrvaagnes]

Hans,

Here are my two favorite photos of the Sibilini Mountains from Castelluccio on May 1, 2006. The first is out the window of our room on the second floor of the Taverna, before breakfast. The second was on our hike that day. Such a beautiful area and the people were so wonderful.

Eric

[Hans Kruse]

Hans,

Here are my two favorite photos of the Sibilini Mountains from Castelluccio on May 1, 2006. The first is out the window of our room on the second floor of the Taverna, before breakfast. The second was on our hike that day. Such a beautiful area and the people were so wonderful.

Eric

Thanks for sharing and nice shots from a wonderful place.

[kers]

Here close focus example of a really dull urban subject that for me looks beautiful with a telelens.
As a whole image and in the detail.