M5 goes wildlife, BIF and DIF

Leebristol33 wrote:

Interested in your views on the M5 and fast moving subjects with this lens?

I always tell people who ask about using the M5 with the EF 100-400mm L that it is mainly just a matter of practice. The better you are with a long lens on any camera, the better you will be with this combo as well.

That doesn't mean that it is the dream combination for fast subjects. Fast subjects are doable if they are large (In Nature, an eagle in flight can be caught without too much effort - see here , a turkey vulture - see here , or as small as a hawk - see here ). The hardest part is getting the moving subject in the frame, but the camera will then focus. I generally use spot focus, lock, maintain moving frame, shoot a single image; the eagles being an exception.

For fast small subjects in Nature, like song birds in flight, it is definitely not as "easy", and I in fact have had little success (at least not success worthy enough to make my website). It depends on the small subject, like the dragonflies in the OP. Like bees, dragonflies both helicopter and their flight paths are predictable. It still takes skill by the photographer, but the M5/EF100-400 is quite capable of focusing and capturing the image, as the OP shows very nicely.

So, getting back to the airplane show you will be attending. Airplanes are big. Airplane flight paths are generally predictable. In this example, I was surrounded by trees but in a small clearing when I heard an approaching jet engine that seemed to be approaching at a relatively low altitude. I thought it would be a good test of the M5/EF100-400 to see what I could capture as it came over the small clearing. Here is the result.  That was a single image capture.

If you take the time to practice (a lot) on passing planes before the show, not only to see how the different focusing modes react to your shooting style, but also (very important) to get acquainted with the ergonomics of the combination, then I believe you will have no problem using the M5/EF100-400 at the show.