Super telephoto lenses are essential whether on a safari or the sidelines to bring the image in tight on a subject, but they often are not the lightest lenses to carry around. Canon's new compact and lightweight EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II USM super telephoto lens will help lighten the load of professional and advanced amateur photographers. At only 4.6 lbs., it is roughly half the weight of the EF 400mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens. The new EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II USM lens features newly developed gapless dual-layered diffractive optical (DO) elements that help improve optical performance while maintaining virtually the same size and weight as its predecessor. The DO element in the new lens is optimally positioned deeper within the optical formula than in the original EF 400mm DO lens to help reduce flare around backlit subjects. Other optical improvements include the use of a large-diameter ground and polished aspherical element and a UD glass element that work together with the DO elements for thorough correction of spherical, chromatic and other optical aberrations. Canon's original SWC (Sub Wavelength Structure) lens coating is also used internally to help improve resistance to flare. Fluorine coating is applied to the front and rear lens elements to repel dust and make lens cleaning easy. A nine blade curved diaphragm is also incorporated to help produce smooth, natural-looking bokeh in areas outside the depth of field surrounding the main subject.
The new EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II USM lens features Canon's Optical Image Stabilization with up to four shutter speed steps of correction**. In addition there are three IS modes - standard, panning and during exposure only - that help to provide superb results in a variety of shooting situations. For greater convenience, the Image Stabilizer does not have to be disabled when shooting with a tripod. Four programmable buttons on the front of the lens allow photographers to customize lens and camera operation to fit their unique shooting style, or simply pause autofocus (AF) adjustment at any point to hold focus on a subject in a busy scene. Even in AF mode, full-time manual focus can be employed at any time. The lens also features a Power Focus mode for smooth focus "pulls" ideal for filmmaking. For those mobile shooters and documentarians truly "on-the-go", the lens is also highly resistant to dust and water for durability and reliability when shooting in even the harshest conditions.
Canon Media / Press Release Canon USA
Canon EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II USM Lens Overview / Specifications
Innovative, professional and compact Full-Frame super telephoto lens with IS
- Professional and compact f/4 full-frame super telephoto lens with Canon’s unique Diffractive Optical element (DO) to achieve 400mm focal length and high image quality at a length of 232.7mm and a weight of 2,100g only
- Newly developed optical design with 18 lens elements in 12 groups. By combining a 3rd generation diffractive optical element (DO), a large diameter Ultra-low Dispersion (UD) lens and a large diameter ground aspherical lens, chromatic aberration and other aberrations are effectively compensated, resulting in high resolution images
- The newly developed 3rd generation gapless dual-layer diffractive optical element (DO) improves diffractive efficiency across the entire spectrum of visible wavelengths to significantly reduce diffraction flare around strong light source. The optimal placement of the DO element also reduces flare in backlit scenes
- First use of large diameter ground aspherical lens in EF super telephoto lens to compensate various aberrations, especially spherical aberration and comatic aberration
- Incorporation of Canon’s Subwavelength Structure Coating (SWC) to minimize ghosting caused by strong light source in image
- Optical Image Stabilizer offers shake compensation up to 4-stop shutter speed and is equipped with IS Mode 3 designed for sport photographers
- Power Focus (PF) mode enables smooth focusing for movie shooting
- Features AF-Stop buttons and Focus Preset function
- Active use of magnesium alloy for main components to provide structural strength for keeping a lightweight lens design
- 9-blade circular aperture produces beautiful out-of-focus images
- 3.3m minimum focusing distance with 0.13x magnification
- Fluorine coating on foremost and rearmost lens surfaces makes cleaning easier
- Inner focusing design, ring USM, high-speed CPU and high-speed control engine for fast and quiet auto focusing
- Optimized lens disposition and coatings ensure excellent colour balance and minimize ghosting and flare
- Dust and water resistance design to enable shooting in harsh conditions
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