Recommend: Yes / Rating: 10/10
Pros: Sharp, Fast AF, Great Contrast, Best SuperTele to actually hike
with
Cons: IS is a little old, It's a little heavier than I'd like and is
pretty spendy.
I used to feel that my 135 F2 L was my sharpest and best lens, and I'm
starting to think that the 500 beats it. It's more likely to have
atmospheric effects affect the image than the 135 but that's just
physics... With a clear day it looks like you walked up a lot closer
and took the shot with the 135.
I handhold it just fine and for walking around prefer to use it
without a monopod. When light gets low or I'm setting up in one spot
I'll break out the tripod with gimble style mount and it's so much
better than a monopod when shutter speeds get low anyways.
I thought I would only use it for birds and wildlife but it's actually
becoming a favorite for some landscape shots as well... When you see a
nice scene but it's off in the distance or across a valley, the 500
really brings it in and you can get angles that hiking closer would
lose. The isolation and flatness it can bring has a very nice style
for some images.
The only think you'll regret is not buying it sooner and that you feel
the need to use it all the time since you spent so much on it. :)