axlotl
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Senior Member
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Posts: 2,273
Re: R5+100-500+1.4x or R7+100-500?
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drsnoopy wrote:
I have the R5 and 100-500, and very happy with the combination. I also have an R7 on order but now I'm wondering whether anyone has done a comparison between the R5 with the 1.4xTC (giving 700mm max FL) and the r7 with the bare lens (giving 800mm effective max FL). I do understand the issue with the TC restricting the short end of the zoom range. I've also tried crop mode on the R5 (17MP) and the results are mostly good but would like the extra sensor resolution. My feeling is that the r7 should have the edge, bearing in mind of course the differences in noise, which I am happy to deal with in RAW conversion (DXO) or in post (Topaz). However the TC would be less expensive...
Thanks for any examples or pointers towards other sources.
I have been trying to answer this question for several weeks, making several thousand frames in the process, mostly of birds in and out of trees and bushes, but also set static landscape type subjects.
My first conclusion is that either R7 + 100-500 or R5 + 1.4x + 100-500 can be used to make excellent pictures and that getting experience with the equipment is probably more important than the this-or-that choice.
Price: the R7 + 100-500 obviously wins but only if one does not also have an R5.
Convenience: The R7 kit wins here also. It is smaller and the full zoom range of the lens is available.
Image quality: On static subjects the R7+100-500 combination wins by a very small margin, observable only by pixel peeping at 100% on screen.
Autofocus: This is by far the most important issue and also unfortunately where things get complicated. Compared to R5 + 100-500 without the extender, both the R7 + 100-500 and R5 + 1.4x + 100-500 have less reliable AF. The loss of AF capability is worst in low light and in dappled light when both can struggle to acquire focus on the subject which in my tests is usually a bird.
Having acquired the subject it seems to me that the R5 holds onto it more tenaciously than the R7 which is prone to drifting off focus. The R7 is also more prone to focus drifting in bright light and with relatively easy subjects. It will usually come back during a burst but not always.
I use Servo AF Case 1 with tracking sensitivity and Accel/decel tracking at default for both cameras.
I suspect more insights on this question will emerge over time as more users have experience with both kits.
Andrew