Sony FE 100-400mm F4.5-.6 GM OSS Lens with Extras
Used Gear Page regular, IPT Veteran, Used Gear Page regular, and BAA friend Dane Johnson is offering a Sony FE 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 GM OSS lens in like-new condition for $1,895.00. The sale includes the original product box, the owner’s manuals and all original paperwork, the lens hood, the front and rear lens caps, the lens case, a LensCoat (Realtree AP Snow), a $104 value, the Really Right Stuff LCF-101 Replacement Foot (Arca-Type Compatible Double Dovetail — a $120 value)., and insured ground shipping via major courier to lower-48 US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.
Please contact Dane via e-mail or by phone at 559-593-0989 (Pacific Time
This lens, perfect for general nature photography, sells new at BH for $2,698.98. Save more than $800.00 by grabbing Dane’s pretty much new lens. artie
Super-Telephoto Versatility
Targeting nature, flower, sports, wildlife, and action shooters, the is FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS Lens from Sony will satisfy many photographers and videographers who are looking for a bit of extra reach with their full-frame E-mount camera. As a member of the G Master line, it is designed with outstanding resolution and sharpness in mind, along with a relatively compact size, responsive autofocus, and Optical SteadyShot image stabilization for outstanding performance at all focal lengths. B&H and Sony
Missed This One
I forgot to mention that in the Nickerson Afternoon North Wind With the 400-800 at f/8 (?) blog post here, I preferred Image #4: Black Skimmer in flight above welcoming committee, to the clean-up version, #4A. Even though the birds in the welcoming committee were cut in half by the lower frame edge, I loved the calling bird on the right and felt that the committee added to the story rather than distracted. I think that Adam agreed with me on this call.
What’s Up?
First off, thanks for the plethora of birthday wishes sent by text, e-mail, and social media.
With west and SW morning winds and clear skies predominating here at ILE, morning bird photography has been tough. Sunday was terrible but with the same conditions on Monday I kept a very few decent images. I swam both days, walked 2 miles on Sunday, and 3.7 miles yesterday. I have been enjoying some of the great World Cup soccer games, especially tiny Cape Verde stunning Spain, one of the top teams in the tournament, by holding them to a zero-zero tie.
Thanks to good friend Anita North for using my Bedfords link to purchase her new Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5 GM OSS. Her lens shipped yesterday! I have long preached that if you want to get your hands on the latest/greatest gear that Bedfords is a great option as the waiting lists are very small, even tiny, when compared to the wait list at B&H.
Today is Tuesday 16 June 2026. I will be heading down to the lake soon despite the wind against sun forecast. Worse yet? The long term forecast is calling for sunny skies with winds from the west for nearly the next two weeks! The next morning east wind is supposed to be on 28 June! Though there are tons of birds about — I’ve seen more than 30 species over the past week, bird photography will continue to be extremely challenging.
Whatever you opt to do, I hope that you too choose to have fun and enjoy life. Please remember that happiness is a choice — Byron Katie, The Work.Com
If an item — a Delkin flash card or reader, a Levered-clamp FlexShooter Pro, or a Wimberley lens plate or low foot — for example, that is available from B&H and/or Bedfords, is also available in the BAA Online Store, it would be great, and greatly appreciated, if you would opt to purchase from us. We will match or beat any price. Please remember also to use my B&H affiliate links or to earn 3% cash back at Bedford by using the BIRDSASART discount code at checkout for your major gear purchases. Doing either often earns you free guides and/or discounts. And always earns my great appreciation.
Gear Questions and Advice
Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of photographers whom I see in the field and on BirdPhotographer’s.Net, are — out of ignorance — using the wrong gear, especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads. And the same is true in spades when ordering new camera bodies or lenses. My advice will often save you some serious money and may help you avoid making a seriously bad choice. Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. If you are desperate, you can try me on my cell at 863-221-2372. Please leave a message and shoot me a text if I do not pick up.
B&H Simplified
To ensure that I get credit for your B&H purchases, you can always click here. The tracking is invisible. Using my affiliate links is greatly appreciated. And, with B&H, you can use your PayBoo card. You must use the website to order. You cannot get your free guides if you make a phone order. Once you have an item in your cart, you must complete the order within two hours. Huge thanks!
B&H
Many folks have written recently stating that they purchased a Sony a1 from B&H and would like their free membership in the Sony 1 Info and Updates Group, a $150.00 value. But when I check my affiliate account, their orders have not been there. When I let them know that they get credit for B&H purchases only if they use one of the many B&H affiliate links on the blog or begin their searches with this link, they are always disappointed. If in doubt, please contact me via e-mail and request a BH link. I am always glad to help and to guide you to the right gear.
Bedfords Simplified
Click here to start your search. Choose standard shipping, and when you get to the payment page, enter BIRDSASART in the discount code box and hit apply. You will be upgraded to free second day air Fed-Ex and receive 3% cash back on your credit card once your stuff ships. Using either my affiliate links is greatly appreciated and will often earn you free guides or discounts. To receive a free guide or free entry into a Sony Set-up and Info Notes e-Mail group, you need to shoot me your receipt via e-mail. The B&H receipts need to include the order number.
Bedfords Amazing BAA Discount Policy
Folks who have fallen in love with Bedfords can always use the BIRDSASART coupon code at checkout to enjoy a post-purchase, 3% off-statement credit (excluding taxes and shipping charges) on orders paid with a credit card. The 3% credit will be refunded to the card you used for your purchase when your product ships. Be sure, also, to check the box for free shipping to enjoy free Second Day Air Fed-Ex. This offer does not apply to purchases of Classes, Gift Cards, or prior purchases.
You can visit the Bedfords website here, shoot Steve Elkins an e-mail, or text him on his cell phone at (479) 381-2592.
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This image was created two days ago, on the day of my birth, June, 14. Standing at full height, I used the Robus RC-5570 Vantage Series 3 Carbon Fiber Tripod/Levered-Clamp FlexShooter Pro-mounted Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter, and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera.. ISO 800. The exposure was determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear wheel: 1/4000 second at f/5.6 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 7:55:35am on sunny morning. Tracking: center Zone/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy the larger, inexplicably sharper high-res version. Image #1: Osprey with wings raised for balance |
A Strange But Very Happy Birthday Gift
Just as on every other day of the year, I was hoping to make a really good image or two on my birthday. A fairly brisk wind from the WSW was ruining my party. I headed down to the natural nest by the tangerine house and alas, the three juvenile Ospreys and their mom were perched in the open, but all were facing to the west as the rose 30° north of east. Unfortunately for my birthday plans, these were classic wind against sun conditions. I never even took my gear out of my SUV. I headed to the pier hoping to find some birds flying the wrong way. I was patient and eventually made a nice image of a Limpkin landing on the pier railing with the pier in the background. In short, it was a less than thrilling image. Glancing back over my right shoulder, I noticed that the flag was hanging down nearly limp; the wind had died. I took the lens off the tripod, walked quickly back to my vehicle, and headed back to the natural Osprey nest, hoping at at least one of the young Ospreys had turned around and was facing the sun.
With the wind having died, the juvenile male, the handsomest by far of the three fledglings, had flown away, returned, and landed on the left-most candelabra perch, the closest to sun angle. Working horizontally in APS-C crop mode, I clipped the wing tips when the bird lost its balance and flapped in place. I hit the Trash Can button and toggled to full frame mode as the bird continued flapping away. Happy birthday to me! I kept two frames from a long series.
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This image, made in the same second but ten frames after #1 above, was created two days ago, on the day of my birth, June, 14. Standing at full height, I used the Robus RC-5570 Vantage Series 3 Carbon Fiber Tripod/Levered-Clamp FlexShooter Pro-mounted Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter, and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera.. ISO 800. The exposure was determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear wheel: 1/4000 second at f/5.6 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 7:55:35am on sunny morning. Tracking: center Zone/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy the larger, inexplicably sharper high-res version. Image #2: Osprey with wings raised for balance |
Your Call?
Which is the stronger of today’s two featured photos? Why did you make your choice? I feel that one of the images is 100 times better than the other. Which one is it? And why? I will share my thoughts with you in the next blog post.
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Composite #1: All with the a-1 ii Mirrorless Camera body.
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The a-1 ii for General Bird Photography
I have found that eye-tracking for general bird photography with the a-1 ii is far, far better than with the original Sony a-1. It grabs the eye and tracks it faster and far more consistently and focus is rarely lost, even with backgrounds other than sky.
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Composite #2: All with the a-1 ii Mirrorless Camera body.
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The a-1 ii for Birds in Flight
For birds in flight, the a-1 ii Mirrorless Camera body has no equal. As Arash Hazeghi says, “It is better than the a-1.” When I am late getting on a bird in flight, I have consistently been amazed at how often the AF system of the a-1 ii finds and tracks the bird’s eye.
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Composite #3: All the result of using Pre-Capture with the a-1 ii Mirrorless Camera body.
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Pre-Capture with the Sony a-1 ii
When it comes to Pre-Capture with the a-1 ii Mirrorless Camera body, Arash and I agree 100%. And with my slower reflexes, Pre-Capture is more important for me than it is for Arash. Understand that in each of the images in Composite #3, I did not push the shutter button until after the bird took flight!
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All with the a-1 ii Mirrorless Camera body.
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Purchasing or Upgrading to a Sony a-1 ii
The Sony a-1 ii e-Mail Set-up and Info Guide
I now own and use two Sony a-1 ii bodies. Every day that I use them, the more I am amazed by speed and accuracy of the Bird Face-Eye tracking in AF-C and the overall performance of the camera.
Aside from the improved ergonomics as compared to the a-1, other nice features include the fact that the rear screen tilts both ways — the lack of a tilting rear screen on the original a-1 always ticked me off. Pre-capture has proven to be a huge plus almost exclusively for take-off flight images. In my opinion, the Speed Boost feature is a total waste for bird photography because you should always be utilizing the maximum frame rate. In addition, the resolution on the rear monitor has been improved dramatically. I must mention again that Bird Face-Eye tracking on the a-1 ii is vastly improved as compared to both the a-1 and the a9 iii and that the 51MP files are to die for.
So, the big question is, is the a-1 ii “worth” a gear upgrade. Remembering that I can never know whether or not something is worth it to you, I can say that I was not floored when first using my a-1 ii. The differences between the a-1 ii and the original a-1, seemed to be neither huge nor eye-opening. But over time, I have come to realize that I was 100% wrong. The huge difference between the new camera body and the a9 iii is, of course, the 51MP a-1 raw files (as compared to the 24MP files rendered by the a9 iii).
The price of a new a-1 is $5,898.00. The price of a new a-1 ii is $1,100.00 more: $6,998.00. As the a-1 ii is clearly far superior for bird photography to the original a-1, the choice for folks new to Sony or for those upgrading from lesser Sony camera bodies is an easy one. Prices for used a-1 bodies has not dropped drastically as I anticipated. At this point, a-1 folks who like showing flight and action and can afford an a-1 ii, are advised to purchase an a-1 ii. Please remember that life is short; we only get one ride on the merry-go-round.
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All with the a-1 ii Mirrorless Camera body.
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If you do purchase an a-1 ii, be sure to use one of my two affiliate links so that you will receive my a-1 ii settings (in the form of a CAMSEa1ii.DAT file), the Buttons and Dials Guide, and an Info Sheet for free. Using my links will never cost you one penny and may actually save you some money. Folks who do not purchase their new a-i using my B&H link or from Bedfords here and entering the BIRDSASART discount code at checkout will be able to purchase the a-1 ii guide for $244.93. If you are at all confused and do not want to screw up your order, please get in touch via e-mail. If you would like to chat about upgrading, shoot me a text to 863-221-2372 and LMK a good time to call you.
Typos
With all blog posts, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors.
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