My ultimate decision jumped out quickly, but somewhere in the back of my mind I had been thinking about zoom lenses for quite a while. Once I convinced myself that I really wanted a lens, and that I would really use it, I started comparing products.
My requirements were relatively simple: that I be able to (at least attempt to) grab photos of some of the elusive wildlife that I see when I'm wandering on my bike, and that I be able to hand-hold the lens.
My hand-hold requirement sent me right into the Canon lens family. Image stabilization sounded like a good thing to me.
The first lens I tried, the Canon 100-400 IS, took beautiful photos. From a quality standpoint, this lens got a resounding "yes" to the question "is it right for me?". But - the size and weight didn't feel right for me for right now. It wasn't so much the size and weight while I was using the camera as much as it was facing the question "will I always take this lens with me when I travel?". I was going back and forth so much on the decision that when I finally made myself face the issue I realized that I was going to be fighting with myself over carrying the lens. That's not the right attitude to have towards something that is supposed to be fun to have and to use. And that's why I decided to return the lens and continue my search.
So how did I make that decision? I finally listed the things that were important to me:
- The lens needed to allow me to pull small creatures into my photos. 300 to 400mm sounded good to me.
- The lens needed to be of a size that I would be happy always carrying it with me - in addition to my standard lens, of course.
- Why do you want the lens?
- Does the lens you are looking at satisfy your "why?" criteria?
- Does the lens take pictures that make you happy (quality)
- Do the lens characteristics - including size & weight - meet your needs?
Remember, there are no answers here!
