Unexpected Benefits

As imaging technology advances, some improvements present in unanticipated ways.  For those who pursue small, wary nature subjects (birds in particular), long lenses with a narrow angle of view are especially useful, and items like extenders or teleconverters aid in increasing perceived reach.  While adding an extender to a telephoto lens always degrades the image quality to some degree, at times the benefits are worth it.  Over the years I’ve often used Canon’s EF1.4 Extender with excellent results.  I’ve also used the EF2.0 Extender on numerous occasions, but even with the most careful focusing and sturdy support, the results have rarely been satisfying.  Enter the Canon EOS R5.  While major user-interface changes required considerable retraining of muscle memory, when optimally configured the body is a marvel.  Of particular note has been how well Eye Detection autofocus works—especially with the EF500/4 II + EF2.0 III and EF-EOS R Mount Adapter…better results than I’ve ever achieved before.  To be sure, I’d rather be close enough to use the prime lens without extender, but when pressed, I’m no longer reluctant to use this 500+2X combo.  I don’t know why this works so well, but whatever the reason it’s a big plus.