Super Telephoto Lens Conversation

haroldp

I often shoot wildlife (birds, Dolphins, Whales) with 80-400G handheld, usually at shutter speeds well over 1/1000, and VR on / off mostly looks the same, but I noticed that with VR on, occasionally a shot will be inexplicably soft, where with VR off I get better consistency.

At 1/500th or below, there is no question that VR produces better consistent results for me.

Now I usually turn VR off over 1/1000 (when I remember), and on below 1/500 (when I remember).

I have no absolute proof that VR is causing this, but it is consistent with the observations of bloggers in this space who I believe to be expert like Thom Hogan.

... H

dissent

It appears to me that the Nikon 300/4 with yc-14eii is a dandy 420mm F5.6

+1
Love mine for shooting wildlife or kids sports, at least in decent light. 300/4+TC (Kirk collar) on a monopod and 70-300 on a strap is my kit for that. Get's me everything but the action that's literally right in front of me. Wouldn't mind having one of those sweet 400/2.8's though. I'll dream about treating myself to one of those when I retire in a few years (if I can still lift it).

Golf007sd

Just to be clear, I have been using my monopod with my longer lenses. It is for this reason that I have kept VR off while shooting.

If I was to handhold the lens, I agree with haroldp comment: Hence, I would keep VR on at 1/500 or slower.

spraynpray

Just to be clear, I have been using my monopod with my longer lenses. It is for this reason that I have kept VR off while shooting.

If I was to handhold the lens, I agree with haroldp comment: Hence, I would keep VR on at 1/500 or slower.

The rule is VR on for monopods and off for tripods because you will still get movement with a monopod, just less movement than hand-held.

Golf007sd

The rule is VR on for monopods and off for tripods because you will still get movement with a monopod, just less movement than hand-held.

You are quite right; Nikon does recommend that VR should be on while using any of their lenses with VR on a monopod. However, I have found that with proper technique, while using a monopod at the shutter speed I mentioned, have made this rule not applicable to me in the results of my shots.

On my next shoot, I will do more testing to see if I'm mistaken....

sevencrossing

Just done some more test shots hand held vs monopod
D800 80 -400 @400mm
at 1/250 - 1/1000 no difference
but at 1/125 - 1/60 results are variable
like Golf007sd more testing needed

manhattanboy

Just for clarity, can folks state what camera (DX or FX and high MP versus lower MP) they are doing their tests on. A 24MP DX sensor is a lot more demanding than a 24mp FX sensor when it comes to sharpness and resulting required shutter speed.
For example, I find almost a 2-fold difference in shutter speed is required for razor sharp photos between the two, which kind of makes sense considering shooting 1.3 DX crop is approximately double the FX focal length.

haroldp

All of my comments on this thread are based on either D800e or D810, both 36mp FX sensors.

I often crop to about a DX frame since an 800mm is often still not long enough, in those cases (about 80% of my bird shots) think of it as a 16mp DX camera. I still shoot FX since he DX crop is not always centered and doing so gives me some framing latitude.

Even the 24mp D3x quickly showed me what was wrong with my lenses (and technique).

.... H

Elvishefer

It would be neat if the camera body could control VR, so there could be a menu setting where one could set an automatic VR cutoff based on shutter speed for shooters who prefer using aperture priority.

haroldp

@Elvishefer

good idea

... H

Ironheart

Just picked up an 800mm f/5.6 with VR and ED for under $1K! I will post some handheld shots shortly. Awesome lens.

Actually I'm kidding, sort of. I just grabbed the Nikon 1 70-300 and on my V3 this puppy is fast and sharp, and you can handhold all day long.

HipShot

I had an 800mm Nikkor lens, but I sold it because all my neighbors have window blinds.

Edit: I did NOT insert the preceding hyperlinks.

Pavvyben

The new 400mm F2.8E FL ED VR is an absolute gem of a lens. It's a shame that it costs so much!!

The autofocus is literally instant - it's the fastest I've ever seen on a Nikon lens, and the 'VR Sport' mode works extremely well at keeping everything steady/smooth!

manhattanboy

Just picked up an 800mm f/5.6 with VR and ED for under $1K! I will post some handheld shots shortly. Awesome lens.

Actually I'm kidding, sort of. I just grabbed the Nikon 1 70-300 and on my V3 this puppy is fast and sharp, and you can handhold all day long.

Let us know how the lens performs. My 1V1 has been collecting dust recently and am tempted to try to find another reason to carry it again. I used to use it with the 10mm lens as a point and shoot, but now have an iPhone for that LOL. Also how is the 1V3 in general for pics? I have been thinking about a 1J4, which has the same sensor and focusing but costs half the price. In your humble opinion is the electronic viewfinder and battery grip of the 1V3 worth the $700 price differential? It might be for shooting with the 70-300, but am wondering nonetheless. Thanks.

Ironheart

Well, so far the focus is snappy, just like it was in the store on the sample. I'd say at least 50% faster than my 70-300 FX model. I'll know for sure tomorrow when the sun comes up. What is almost magical is the VR; I'll post some handheld shots at speeds like 1/15 that are sharp, seems like at least a 4 stop gain. One bummer is that the tripod foot isn't included and is not yet available. Not that the lens at 550g really needs it, but it really acts as a spacer to get beyond the body. Oh, and it's the sharpest lens in the 1 lineup that I have. The only 1 lenses I don't have are the 10mm and the 32mm.

I love the V3 for its extra features like 1200 fps movies and 60fps, and it takes great photos with pretty good color. Yeah, the higher ISOs aren't as great as a d750 but, the noise has a very interesting almost grain quality that you either love or hate I suppose.

The grip is really useful for the larger lenses especially with the FT-1, which was also included in my price. The EVF is on most of the time. I take it off when I want to look more like a P&S.

heartyfisher

LOL at the main blog on the N1 70-300 .. man some people are so ... anyway I am enjoying my N1V1 + 70-200 F4 (when the lens gets off my D610!) I am sure the 70-300 + n1V3 is nice ..

@Ironheart go straighten them out !!! ;-)

snorbo

First off i know nothing about teleconverters. My question is can you use these teleconverters on smaller lenses such as a 24-120 or a 105 prime ect.?

sevencrossing

Here is nikon compatibility chart
http://en.nikon.ca/en_INC/IMG/Assets/Common-Assets/Images/Teleconverter-Compatibility/EN_Comp_chart.html

proudgeek

The short answer is that you can. I've used a 105mm macro along with a TC14 with some decent results.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/gdanford/11713287446/in/set-72157639295351024

However, there's a school of that the wider the focal length, the less effective a TC can be. One of the best tutorials on TCs can be found here:
http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/?p=754

If you don't feel like reading the whole article, here's a good quote:
The end result of all this is that the best teleconverters are ‘tuned’ optically to work best with supertelephoto prime lenses. They are OK with telephoto lenses, and not very good with standard range lenses. Adding a 1.4x converter to a 400mm f/2.8 lens has almost no effect on image quality. Put the same converter on a 70-200 f/2.8 zoom and the image will be affected a bit more, although it will probably be acceptable. But put it on a 24-70 f/2.8 zoom and the image will be noticeably soft and a bit distorted. 2x converters have more effect on image quality than a 1.4x converter—noticeable on a supertelephoto prime, quite noticeable on a telephoto zoom.

snorbo

Thamks for the info guys

Golf007sd

But put it on a 24-70 f/2.8 zoom and the image will be noticeably soft and a bit distorted. 2x converters have more effect on image quality than a 1.4x converter—noticeable on a supertelephoto prime, quite noticeable on a telephoto zoom.

For the record, you CAN NOT put a teleconverter on the Nikon 24-70 2.8.

proudgeek

For the record, you CAN NOT put a teleconverter on the Nikon 24-70 2.8.

Really? Is there a physical limitation that prevents you from doing it (other than common sense)? I would think that there would be no difference between the 24-70 and 70-200 mounts. But I've been wrong before.

haroldp

I have not tried it, but even with the same mount, rear element extension could be an issue, tc's stick their front elements out.

... H

Golf007sd

@proudgeek: the 24-70 2.8 lens elements are placed in such a way that none of the teleconverters are able to mount to it. Have a look at your 105 Macro and you will see the indentation that exist between the final element and say one of your other prime lenses.

heartyfisher

It appears to me that the Nikon 300/4 with yc-14eii is a dandy 420mm F5.6

I thought about that for a while .. you may be right ... it does seem a nice alternative.. the D version is only about 600 the afs version is about 1100.. and although they have no VR and about 10 years old ..it does seem good value and provides more flexibility(+ TC1.4 or TC 1.7) dontt you think its up for an update soon?? the 300 f4 + DX camera seems like a very nice setup for birding if we had better AF and VR. What would be nice is if D7200 came with an updated 300 F4 VR !! esp the tc1.4iii provides better AF.