I use the incomparable RF 100-500 for work but the RF 100-400 along with the RF 24-240 are my travel bag fun lenses and I've taken plenty of my personal favorite photos with them and would recommend them without hesitation to anyone on a budget or with weight conscious/easy carry needs. When I unboxed the 100-400 the first time I was stunned and I'm still impressed every time I put it on a body that it is truly featherweight. Yes it has slightly slower autofocus and can't quite 3D pop like my RF f2.8s but I can carry it forever and it is a joy to use.
I'm attaching a few 100-400 photos from a walk around New Orleans when I was at a conference last fall. These are all JPG out of the camera and the low light performance is remarkable despite not being a wide aperture lens AND it was on my R7 (not my best low light body). Really nice shots that bring back great memories.
Go RF 100-400 Go!!
~Chris
Website would only let me add 5 photos and since I was taking a walk down the photo memory lane I had to reply once more to add another 5 I really liked.
I have taken the same photos with the RF 100-500 & 100-400 for comparison and you can tell the difference in color vibrancy but these show that for the money the 100-400 is no distance second, especially considering the size and weight difference. They are basically two distinctly different classes and styles of lenses and I don't think any comparison needs to be made. Each is a perfect fit for their role.
For inconspicuous long lens street photography nothing beats the RF 100-400! The 100-500 gathers all sorts of attention.
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