I have a 600 f/11 which I prefer because I am a weak old guy who doesn't carry equipment as gingerly as I did 50 years ago when I had an 8x10 view. I am also interested in the possible R7 which will make my measly 600 into a lens for head shots only at minimum focus distance. I do use a set of extension tubes on the 600 for feeder shots. I do have fears that the R7 might be too strong for bigger birds. I assume you noticed that the restricted focus area with the f/11 gets bigger if you set the R6 to 1.6x crop mode (a terrible idea with the 20meg sensor) so the R7 might do better. I wonder if they might even come out with a 400mm f/8 useable on the R7. It could be quite the thing for packing into the woods. My main complaint on the 600 is the lack of a rotating tripod collar option even if that meant you could not collapse the lens. I like verticals and rarely do video. This was a great video. Thanks!
What a great video! Thank you for the mention too!!! I had no idea you thought about the kingfisher that way, I really appreciate it. 👍 The baby cowbird and the little sparrow is pretty epic 😆, that photo or the one of the cardinals is probably my favorite mainly because they are doing some sort of action as well as being laser sharp in focus. I mean, the photos of the wood pecker are great as well, but the birds interacting makes those photos even more special to me. I am gonna be honest here, that R6/800mm rig is perfect for you. It is incredible how good the photos are that you are getting with it. I see why you wanted to get one and try it out now. It just works. 👍
Thank you, David. That lens is a difficult beast to work with but in the end you can get some really fabulous results with it. Maybe I should make a bird book!
@@PhilThach I really think you should personally. You have SO MANY great photos that it would be a shame not to share them. Plus I could get you to autograph my copy 😬
Have you tried using extension tubes on the lens to reduce the minimum focus distance? I'm curious how well that would work before I consider purchasing this lens.
Great video! Why don't you use the R5 if you are so used to the extra reach and are eagerly awaiting the R7? The R5 in crop mode will give you the 1.6x with 17mp files (85% of the R6 you are using) and you will get full frame if you need it for deer such
This is a very good point but I have an R6 which I’m making do with for now for bird photography while eagerly waiting for the R7. Thanks for watching the video, I really appreciate it!
Thanks, Adrian! I starting to get the hang of that lens. The difficulty level is high compared to their 100-500mm but the results are worth it if you can figure it out. LOL Have a nice weekend!
TY so much for the very insightful vid :) I've been shooting with the R5 and a Sigma 150-600 + 1.4 TC for 840mm. I have taken "some" eye bleeding sharp shots with this combo, so this tells me, its capable. Unfortunately the AF consistency is absolutely terrible :( If I take 20 or 30 shots, I "might" get 1 that is as sharp as I know it can be. This is not acceptable. I have ordered the RF 800 for rent, and it should be here in a couple days. My only concern for it, is the min focus distance... I guess for small birds, very close, I could go back to the Sigma 150-600. Maybe without the 1.4 TC, it will have better AF performance ? I've hardly ever shot it without the TC, so I'm not sure the difference. I need to test that too. You had some really nice shots in this vid ! Those Red Headed Woodpecker shots were freaking awesome ! :) Thanks again.
Thank you! The minimum focus distance can be a problem, but often I find myself unable to get closer than the minimum focus distance without scaring off the bird so the 800mm is undoubtedly valuable. When I can get close, I switch to my 100-500 lens or 100-500 with rf 1.4x extender. Have a great weekend and good luck!
The sigma has a lot of focus pumping on RF cameras, would explain in AF-C the mass of unsharp shots. I got because of the focus pumping issue directly a RF 800 F11... JUST WOW! I used it already nearly 2 weeks, soon im getting out waiting in the golden hour if i get the chance for nice shots. The limited AF area is annoying especially when it comes to the initial focussing on fast, flying birds, but as soon the camera realized after the shot the subject is out of AF area but still sharp.... it just shoots without refocussing - intelligent and saved me within 2 weeks already many fast shots (despite being useless anyways...) When my images are not sharp... it focussed on something different or not at all... so i can say pretty sure... we can trust the RF 800s autofocus as much as the limited area goes! Im still interested in the 150-600mm sigma.. i just want to see and feel the difference in AF and if the pumping is really THAT BAD as people complain about. The only reason i got instant a RF 800 was because i found a good deal 2nd hand, but at this moment not a single good deal for a sigma 150-600c, let alone the more expensive sports version, at least not with EF mount. I just sold my 75-300mm IS USM and i learned already: i miss the telezoom a bit, as poor performing it was (but definately not worth the nearly 300$ i sold it for!) many wildlife shots before the rf 800 were taken with this garbage lens and well.... too many look still better than the ones i took with the RF 800 (but im still learning to handle and use 800mm handheld on the go... its still a steep learning curve when it comes to handling, even on full frame. I cant really imagine using the 800 on crop with 1200mm+... i would need a red dot scope mounted to aim fast enough at ANYTHING.
Great video as always. I could careless what camera brand you use your videos are just great. I loved the Red headed woodpecker I had never seen one in person until the other day I got some pics of it and posted it to Instagram.
I have an R6 and the RF 600 as well as the RF 100-500. What happens if I set the R6 Shoot menu 1, cropping aspect ratio to 1.6? I don't know. I'm asking. Will this give me a crop sensor camera like my old 7D? Or the 7 you are hoping for?
With the already low resolution of the R6 when using its full sensor, shooting in 1.6 crop mode leaves you with only about 7 or 8 megapixels. The R7 I'm hoping for would have somewhere between 20 and 32 megapixels on it's 1.6 crop sized sensor!
Thanks, Randy. I love that place, especially now that the redheaded have arrived. A few years ago they were not there and could be seen at Chester Frost park which is basically directly across the river/lake from there. A short distance away but a LONG drive.
Hey Phil. I'm sure you know but thought I'd mention that on the R6 you have the option in menu you use 1.6 crop. I've used for birds abs it works fairly well to get that little extra distance. Thanks fur the videos and tips much appreciated
Thank you, Mike! I still shoot in full frame mode and crop later, it’s the resolution that I want from the rumored R7. Even if it is only 20 megapixels it will still have a higher pixel density than even the R5. Thank you for watching, I really appreciate it!
Love the Redheaded shots. I see one at a park that is close to me, and he is very personable. Small bird photography (especially warblers) is like trying to hit a fastball.
I love red headed woodpeckers. I’m really lucky to have some so close to my house and it sounds like you are as well and I love your baseball analogy! Thanks for watching!
On ebay there is a company selling 24 and 36mm Canon RF extension tubes as a set. I am wondering if this would fix the long min focus distance, and get us closer to the tiny birds.
That is a distinct possibility. Are those for RF mount lenses? If they are for RF mount and they have pass-through electronics I might buy a set and give them a try at some point.
@@PhilThach It says they are: "Auto Focus Macro Extension Tube 26+36mm for Canon EOS R R5 R6 RP RF Mount Camera" Photo shows a pic of them used on an EOS R. I ordered a set just now. From China, late Dec delivery predicted.
@@PhilThach There are of course smaller sizes available, but the longer the focal length, the longer the needed extension tube. I use a 25mm on my 400mm f4 DO II and it only gets me 20% closer.
Hi Phil, I am a ardent follower of you & Heather in your photographic adventures. It's nice to see your photographing in local parks & in your yard as I do the same kind of trips in NJ. I am using a Nikon D500 with a 300mm PF lens with the new 2.0 lll converter which provides 900 mm at f8.0. (considering the 1.5 crop) Focus is a little slow but fine for sitting birds. In good light the images are excellent with a very small and light kit. Thanks for these moments.
That is an interesting kit! Certainly small and light. I've never thought of that combination of glass but it makes great sense. Thank you and thanks for watching!
I totally get your point on the R7 which is why I am forced to shoot in APS-C crop mode pretty much full time on my R5. In order to shoot full frame, you will need teleconverters in most situations, but unfortunately teleconverters are not really designed to work well on superzooms, on primes yes, just not on zooms. But, I see your problem, you are on the R6 with a 20 MP sensor which leaves you with zero room for cropping in. Even on the R5 the resolution drops to 17 MP in APS-C crop mode. I also noticed you like to drop your shutter speed pretty low. Personally, I never do that if I can help it. On an overcast day, 1/640 sec is what I am comfortable with and on a normal day 1/800 - 1/1250 sec on perched birds. At 1/320 sec, it doesn't leave much room of error to account for the bird moving. If is really dark, 1/400 sec is about my limit.
I agree, the 1/250th speed that I often use probably causes me to miss some shots. The R6, especially when combined with Topaz Denoise AI can hand pretty high ISOs. I should take your advice and go with faster shutter speeds. Thanks for watching, Alex!
Great images Phil! Loved the ones of the red headed woodpecker. You are really getting some amazing images out of the RF 800mm lens. I live in foothills of NC and saw my first kingfisher last week, a male belted kingfisher in the river beside our local Greenway. I had my medium zoom, 480 equivalent on my Canon 80 D and got several Images, but had to really crop in as it was about 35 feet away. I was excited to see one! It made several dives in the water for fish. Great video.
Some really nice bird images there Phil. I suppose another disadvantage of the RF 800mm f/11 lens is the minimum focussing distance of 6 metres. I am still using my Nikon D7500 + Sigma 150-600mm C lens which gives me a 35mm equiv. of 225-900mm at f6.3 (tele end). Great for wildlife photography (not so great for video-I prefer using mirrorless/bridge cameras).
Thank you! That is very good point! That minimum focus distance is very restrictive. However I find when doing photography of the type that I did in this video, I can virtually never get closer to the bird than minimum focus distance without spooking it. Bird photography from a blind is completely different and this 800 mm lens would be basically useless. My back porch set up places me 7 to 10 feet from the birds. I know many photographers who use Nikon apsc cameras and third-party super telephoto zooms with great success! Thanks for watching, Steve!
@@PhilThach Yes I agree, for back-yard birding it would be useless for me. I think that's where something like the Olympus 300mm F/4 lens is really good as it as a minimum focus ditance of 1.4M. keep up the good work :-)
Fantastic Photos! I was talking with a friend about how I punch into "Crop Mode" on my FF Nikon to get some extra reach and she shoud try the same...After some research and confusion, turns out the Canon 5dm4 dose not have a "crop mode" at all; FF and stuck FF. I thought that was so weird to have a FF camera without a Crop Mode, but apparently there are a few Canon lines missing it.
Canon SLRs don't have crop modes and are also not compatible with EF-S lenses. The EOS R6 has a crop mode but the resulting image becomes 7.74MP (it's also automatically applied when you fit an EF-S lens). On the R6, it's 18MP. I also noticed some more moire artifacts when shooting in crop mode vs full frame.
While I agree, it’s not the sharpest lens ever made, it’s certainly capable of making sharp photographs. Overall, I’m very happy with mine. So far I have purchased three premium “L“ lenses and three basic lenses. Of the basic lenses, the 800 is the only one I really like. Maybe you got a bad copy. Thanks for watching!
![ค้างคืนโรงเก็บกระสวยอวกาศร้างกลางทะเลทราย [Around The World Ep. 3]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/E5bWZQhABJE/mqdefault.jpg)
You know I am right behind you for the R7!
I bet we order them on the same day like we have so many other Canon products! LOL
I have a 600 f/11 which I prefer because I am a weak old guy who doesn't carry equipment as gingerly as I did 50 years ago when I had an 8x10 view. I am also interested in the possible R7 which will make my measly 600 into a lens for head shots only at minimum focus distance. I do use a set of extension tubes on the 600 for feeder shots. I do have fears that the R7 might be too strong for bigger birds. I assume you noticed that the restricted focus area with the f/11 gets bigger if you set the R6 to 1.6x crop mode (a terrible idea with the 20meg sensor) so the R7 might do better. I wonder if they might even come out with a 400mm f/8 useable on the R7. It could be quite the thing for packing into the woods. My main complaint on the 600 is the lack of a rotating tripod collar option even if that meant you could not collapse the lens. I like verticals and rarely do video. This was a great video. Thanks!
Thank you, Doug. I appreciate your reasons for choosing the 600mm version. I like your Redheaded profile image! Thanks for watching!
Some lovely shots there and the high ISO ones are really impressive. Great work and best wishes from Bonnie Scotland.
Thank you!
What a great video! Thank you for the mention too!!! I had no idea you thought about the kingfisher that way, I really appreciate it. 👍 The baby cowbird and the little sparrow is pretty epic 😆, that photo or the one of the cardinals is probably my favorite mainly because they are doing some sort of action as well as being laser sharp in focus. I mean, the photos of the wood pecker are great as well, but the birds interacting makes those photos even more special to me. I am gonna be honest here, that R6/800mm rig is perfect for you. It is incredible how good the photos are that you are getting with it. I see why you wanted to get one and try it out now. It just works. 👍
Thank you, David. That lens is a difficult beast to work with but in the end you can get some really fabulous results with it. Maybe I should make a bird book!
@@PhilThach I really think you should personally. You have SO MANY great photos that it would be a shame not to share them. Plus I could get you to autograph my copy 😬
Have you tried using extension tubes on the lens to reduce the minimum focus distance? I'm curious how well that would work before I consider purchasing this lens.
I haven’t yet but I plan to at some point. The minimum focus distance doesn’t cause me problems often but when it does it’s pretty annoying.
Great video! Why don't you use the R5 if you are so used to the extra reach and are eagerly awaiting the R7? The R5 in crop mode will give you the 1.6x with 17mp files (85% of the R6 you are using) and you will get full frame if you need it for deer such
This is a very good point but I have an R6 which I’m making do with for now for bird photography while eagerly waiting for the R7. Thanks for watching the video, I really appreciate it!
Stunning shots of the Redheaded WP!
Thank you, Tim!
You got all great shots in this video! Well done!
Thank you, Stephen! I was pretty happy with this one, I must admit. :)
Great shots Phil - 4:03 and 13:00 were my favs. Good to see the R6 in action. Thanks for sharing the video 👍🙏
Thanks, Adrian! I starting to get the hang of that lens. The difficulty level is high compared to their 100-500mm but the results are worth it if you can figure it out. LOL Have a nice weekend!
TY so much for the very insightful vid :) I've been shooting with the R5 and a Sigma 150-600 + 1.4 TC for 840mm. I have taken "some" eye bleeding sharp shots with this combo, so this tells me, its capable. Unfortunately the AF consistency is absolutely terrible :( If I take 20 or 30 shots, I "might" get 1 that is as sharp as I know it can be. This is not acceptable. I have ordered the RF 800 for rent, and it should be here in a couple days. My only concern for it, is the min focus distance... I guess for small birds, very close, I could go back to the Sigma 150-600. Maybe without the 1.4 TC, it will have better AF performance ? I've hardly ever shot it without the TC, so I'm not sure the difference. I need to test that too.
You had some really nice shots in this vid ! Those Red Headed Woodpecker shots were freaking awesome ! :) Thanks again.
Thank you! The minimum focus distance can be a problem, but often I find myself unable to get closer than the minimum focus distance without scaring off the bird so the 800mm is undoubtedly valuable. When I can get close, I switch to my 100-500 lens or 100-500 with rf 1.4x extender. Have a great weekend and good luck!
The sigma has a lot of focus pumping on RF cameras, would explain in AF-C the mass of unsharp shots.
I got because of the focus pumping issue directly a RF 800 F11... JUST WOW!
I used it already nearly 2 weeks, soon im getting out waiting in the golden hour if i get the chance for nice shots.
The limited AF area is annoying especially when it comes to the initial focussing on fast, flying birds, but as soon the camera realized after the shot the subject is out of AF area but still sharp.... it just shoots without refocussing - intelligent and saved me within 2 weeks already many fast shots (despite being useless anyways...)
When my images are not sharp... it focussed on something different or not at all... so i can say pretty sure... we can trust the RF 800s autofocus as much as the limited area goes!
Im still interested in the 150-600mm sigma.. i just want to see and feel the difference in AF and if the pumping is really THAT BAD as people complain about. The only reason i got instant a RF 800 was because i found a good deal 2nd hand, but at this moment not a single good deal for a sigma 150-600c, let alone the more expensive sports version, at least not with EF mount.
I just sold my 75-300mm IS USM and i learned already: i miss the telezoom a bit, as poor performing it was (but definately not worth the nearly 300$ i sold it for!) many wildlife shots before the rf 800 were taken with this garbage lens and well.... too many look still better than the ones i took with the RF 800 (but im still learning to handle and use 800mm handheld on the go... its still a steep learning curve when it comes to handling, even on full frame. I cant really imagine using the 800 on crop with 1200mm+... i would need a red dot scope mounted to aim fast enough at ANYTHING.
Beautiful as always.
Thank you!
Well done Phil it's great to see what you get out of that lens 👍😍
Thank you!
Great video as always. I could careless what camera brand you use your videos are just great. I loved the Red headed woodpecker I had never seen one in person until the other day I got some pics of it and posted it to Instagram.
Thank you, Joey! I really appreciate your continued support. I think I may have seen your Instagram redhead, great job!
@@PhilThach You’re Welcome:) Thank You I was really proud of it, it being my first time seeing one:)
Great images Phil but the best for me was the Woodpecker, stay safe...
I think the woodpecker shots were my favorite as well, thank you!
I have an R6 and the RF 600 as well as the RF 100-500. What happens if I set the R6 Shoot menu 1, cropping aspect ratio to 1.6? I don't know. I'm asking. Will this give me a crop sensor camera like my old 7D? Or the 7 you are hoping for?
With the already low resolution of the R6 when using its full sensor, shooting in 1.6 crop mode leaves you with only about 7 or 8 megapixels. The R7 I'm hoping for would have somewhere between 20 and 32 megapixels on it's 1.6 crop sized sensor!
@@PhilThach Roger that. Thank you for clarifying (or not, pardon the pun).
Nice work Phil, patience is key. I’ve got to make a trip to TN it’s beautiful.
Thank you Christopher, if you come to Chattanooga and are free on a Thursday morning I’ll take you to some of my favorite locations!
Enjoyed that. I went to Harrison Bay about 20 years ago but haven't made it back. Looks like you had a good time.
Thanks, Randy. I love that place, especially now that the redheaded have arrived. A few years ago they were not there and could be seen at Chester Frost park which is basically directly across the river/lake from there. A short distance away but a LONG drive.
Great video!!!
Thank you, Jose! I really appreciate it.
Hey Phil. I'm sure you know but thought I'd mention that on the R6 you have the option in menu you use 1.6 crop. I've used for birds abs it works fairly well to get that little extra distance. Thanks fur the videos and tips much appreciated
Thank you, Mike! I still shoot in full frame mode and crop later, it’s the resolution that I want from the rumored R7. Even if it is only 20 megapixels it will still have a higher pixel density than even the R5. Thank you for watching, I really appreciate it!
Love the Redheaded shots. I see one at a park that is close to me, and he is very personable. Small bird photography (especially warblers) is like trying to hit a fastball.
I love red headed woodpeckers. I’m really lucky to have some so close to my house and it sounds like you are as well and I love your baseball analogy! Thanks for watching!
On ebay there is a company selling 24 and 36mm Canon RF extension tubes as a set. I am wondering if this would fix the long min focus distance, and get us closer to the tiny birds.
That is a distinct possibility. Are those for RF mount lenses? If they are for RF mount and they have pass-through electronics I might buy a set and give them a try at some point.
@@PhilThach It says they are: "Auto Focus Macro Extension Tube 26+36mm for Canon EOS R R5 R6 RP RF Mount Camera" Photo shows a pic of them used on an EOS R. I ordered a set just now. From China, late Dec delivery predicted.
@@PhilThach There are of course smaller sizes available, but the longer the focal length, the longer the needed extension tube. I use a 25mm on my 400mm f4 DO II and it only gets me 20% closer.
Hi Phil, I am a ardent follower of you & Heather in your photographic adventures. It's nice to see your photographing in local parks & in your yard as I do the same kind of trips in NJ. I am using a Nikon D500 with a 300mm PF lens with the new 2.0 lll converter which provides 900 mm at f8.0. (considering the 1.5 crop) Focus is a little slow but fine for sitting birds. In good light the images are excellent with a very small and light kit. Thanks for these moments.
That is an interesting kit! Certainly small and light. I've never thought of that combination of glass but it makes great sense. Thank you and thanks for watching!
I totally get your point on the R7 which is why I am forced to shoot in APS-C crop mode pretty much full time on my R5. In order to shoot full frame, you will need teleconverters in most situations, but unfortunately teleconverters are not really designed to work well on superzooms, on primes yes, just not on zooms. But, I see your problem, you are on the R6 with a 20 MP sensor which leaves you with zero room for cropping in. Even on the R5 the resolution drops to 17 MP in APS-C crop mode. I also noticed you like to drop your shutter speed pretty low. Personally, I never do that if I can help it. On an overcast day, 1/640 sec is what I am comfortable with and on a normal day 1/800 - 1/1250 sec on perched birds. At 1/320 sec, it doesn't leave much room of error to account for the bird moving. If is really dark, 1/400 sec is about my limit.
I agree, the 1/250th speed that I often use probably causes me to miss some shots. The R6, especially when combined with Topaz Denoise AI can hand pretty high ISOs. I should take your advice and go with faster shutter speeds. Thanks for watching, Alex!
Great images Phil! Loved the ones of the red headed woodpecker. You are really getting some amazing images out of the RF 800mm lens. I live in foothills of NC and saw my first kingfisher last week, a male belted kingfisher in the river beside our local Greenway. I had my medium zoom, 480 equivalent on my Canon 80 D and got several Images, but had to really crop in as it was about 35 feet away. I was excited to see one! It made several dives in the water for fish. Great video.
Thank you, Bill, and congrats on your Kingfisher success!
Some really nice bird images there Phil. I suppose another disadvantage of the RF 800mm f/11 lens is the minimum focussing distance of 6 metres. I am still using my Nikon D7500 + Sigma 150-600mm C lens which gives me a 35mm equiv. of 225-900mm at f6.3 (tele end). Great for wildlife photography (not so great for video-I prefer using mirrorless/bridge cameras).
Thank you! That is very good point! That minimum focus distance is very restrictive. However I find when doing photography of the type that I did in this video, I can virtually never get closer to the bird than minimum focus distance without spooking it. Bird photography from a blind is completely different and this 800 mm lens would be basically useless. My back porch set up places me 7 to 10 feet from the birds. I know many photographers who use Nikon apsc cameras and third-party super telephoto zooms with great success! Thanks for watching, Steve!
@@PhilThach Yes I agree, for back-yard birding it would be useless for me. I think that's where something like the Olympus 300mm F/4 lens is really good as it as a minimum focus ditance of 1.4M. keep up the good work :-)
Cool 😁👍🏻
Thank you, Luis!
Fantastic Photos!
I was talking with a friend about how I punch into "Crop Mode" on my FF Nikon to get some extra reach and she shoud try the same...After some research and confusion, turns out the Canon 5dm4 dose not have a "crop mode" at all; FF and stuck FF. I thought that was so weird to have a FF camera without a Crop Mode, but apparently there are a few Canon lines missing it.
Thanks for watching, Joe!
Canon SLRs don't have crop modes and are also not compatible with EF-S lenses. The EOS R6 has a crop mode but the resulting image becomes 7.74MP (it's also automatically applied when you fit an EF-S lens). On the R6, it's 18MP. I also noticed some more moire artifacts when shooting in crop mode vs full frame.
Phil, if you get a chance, I'd like to see an in-flight shot with the 100-500 on the Redhead. I love their color pattern. Just a thought.
I'd love to bag a shot like that. I'm not certain that I am good enough to bag that shot. Not the camera but me. I'll certainly try though!
Better forget that beer. Soft drink is better for you.
You are probably right. Thanks for watching, Ken!
Do not buy rf800mm f/11. Not sharp at all. I returned it.
While I agree, it’s not the sharpest lens ever made, it’s certainly capable of making sharp photographs. Overall, I’m very happy with mine. So far I have purchased three premium “L“ lenses and three basic lenses. Of the basic lenses, the 800 is the only one I really like. Maybe you got a bad copy. Thanks for watching!