What 100-400mm at f/5.6 actually gives you
100-400mm is the classic portrait range — long enough to compress features flatteringly without forcing you across the room.
f/5.6 is a slow maximum aperture, so this leans on good light or on a stabilised body.
Size, close focus and filters
At 635g (1.40 lb) it sits in the middle for handling: substantial enough to feel planted, light enough not to dominate the kit.
Maximum magnification is 0.41x, enough for close-up work on flowers or detail shots without reaching genuine macro reproduction. It focuses as close as 88cm.
Filters are 67mm — worth checking against what you already own, since polarisers and ND filters at this size are reusable across any other lens sharing the thread.
Autofocus and stabilisation
Autofocus is driven by a Nano USM motor.
Optical stabilisation is built in, which stacks with in-body stabilisation on bodies that have it and does the work alone on bodies that do not.
