Canon RF 2x Extender, initial review

With how well the RF 1.4x extender has been working with my R5 and RF 100-500L lens, I had to bite the bullet and get the RF 2x as well to see if it was able to put on a similar performance.

Before getting an R5, I used both the EF 1.4x III and 2x III extenders with the 100-400L MKII lens, and honestly I didn't like the 2x at all and rarely ever used it. The 1.4x was useable, but it had it's limitations as well. Because of my past experience with extenders I really didn't have any plans on getting the RF versions until I heard some good reviews on the 1.4x.

Anyway, my RF 2x came in last Wednesday and I was able to get out on Thursday with my daughter to take come shots. One thing I wanted to do though, was to not take the extremely long shot as there are a ton of factors that can go into getting a nicely detailed picture, and 1000mm focal range can exaggerate a lot of those factors. So we went to a local place here in Phoenix called Butterfly Wonderland. I often use this place to test out a lot of macro gear and lenses. Considering the close minimum focus distance of the RF 100-500 I figured it would be an interesting test for it.

Well, to make this short I was blown away with how well the RF 2x converter, RF 100-500 and R5 worked together. I was able to get shots that I would never have gotten with my macro lenses, using settings I never would have thought would be possible with a 600-1000mm telephoto lens.

But getting the shot was one thing, the real question to me was, would they be worth keeping? How much loss of detail would there be by adding the 2x extender, and going and small as f/14 as a maximum aperture?

I certainly think so, but everyone is subjective on that so I'll just post some shots. These shots were all taken with roughly the same settings;

1/125th second shutter speed
max aperture f/11-f/14 depending on focal length used
Auto ISO, set to a max of 6400
All hand-held, as there are no tripods allowed where I was

Taking a shot, at 1000mm of a subject roughly 5 feet away (sometimes less), even with an aperture of f/14 gives a razor thin DoF. The slightest movement of me, the leaf it was on, the butterfly itself would potentially throw it out of focus. The fact that I was able to get any shots at that shutter speed and 1000mm still blows my mind. And I was able to get a lot.
1000mm f/14, 1/125th, ISO 1000

1000mm f/14, 1/125th, ISO 1000

1000mm f/14, 1/125th, ISO 1000

1000mm f/14, 1/125th, ISO 1000

686mm f/11, 1/125th ISO 6400

Now I want to see how well it does with a subject at distance. I have some plans to head out to the local Air Force Base soon and see if I can get some shots of the F16s and F35s again.

I did notice a bit of a slow-down in the auto focus, but not nearly as much as I expected and if I wasn't really paying attention to it I wouldn't have really noticed it much at all.

Would I use this for wildlife? Yes, but only in the right circumstances. Being in Phoenix, we have lots of light so that small f/14 aperture isn't as big of a problem as it would be for people in other parts of the country/world. That'll be a test for another time as well.