p.153 #5 · Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR
HCE HCE wrote:
I am having resolution problems at 500mm f/5.6 at around 90 yards and further, and wonder if anyone else is experiencing similar trouble?
Attached are 3 views of the same frame taken with my D850, manual mode, VR off, 1/3200 @ f/5.6, 500mm, hand held on Bushhawk resting on the window frame of my van used as a blind. This is one of 12 exposures and all show the same blur.
The full frame shot shows slight front focusing but no branches or part of the bird is critically sharp, and the sun's specular reflection shows peculiar diffraction rays.
I have had similar results with specular reflections off water drops on ducks at the same distance and mushy overall photos.
I did some testing and at 20 yards using live view with EFC and found the lens is quite sharp at 200mm and 500mm but _very_ soft at 300mm and 400mm!
p.153 #6 · Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR
HCE HCE wrote:
I am having resolution problems at 500mm f/5.6 at around 90 yards and further, and wonder if anyone else is experiencing similar trouble?
Attached are 3 views of the same frame taken with my D850, manual mode, VR off, 1/3200 @ f/5.6, 500mm, hand held on Bushhawk resting on the window frame of my van used as a blind. This is one of 12 exposures and all show the same blur.
The full frame shot shows slight front focusing but no branches or part of the bird is critically sharp, and the sun's specular reflection shows peculiar diffraction rays.
I have had similar results with specular reflections off water drops on ducks at the same distance and mushy overall photos.
I did some testing and at 20 yards using live view with EFC and found the lens is quite sharp at 200mm and 500mm but _very_ soft at 300mm and 400mm!
I'm fairly certain that at least in this shot what you are seeing is atmospheric effects. Very common shooting out a car window but even if not from the car/outside temp difference could also be other temp differences especially shooting upwards.
p.153 #16 · Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR
arbitrage wrote:
I'm fairly certain that at least in this shot what you are seeing is atmospheric effects. Very common shooting out a car window but even if not from the car/outside temp difference could also be other temp differences especially shooting upwards.
1. You mention here, the affect of a temperature differential.
I experienced a similar, peculiar phenomenon, while shooting out the open window of my warm house, on a very cold January day in Maine..
I could not get a sharp image for the life of me. It did not make sense to me. How could that affect the sharpness of the image? I still don't understand it.
I tried different variations that day, like backing up, so that the entire rig was inside the warm house. I do not recall every detail now. However, the steep temperature difference, over a short distance, sure seemed to be the cause of the softness.
I wonder if anyone else has had a similar experience.
p.153 #17 · Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR
Heat shimmer, also called heat haze, is not a peculiar phenomenon. It happens everywhere all the time. Most photographers have been affected by it, whether or not they were aware of it.
It occurs in Death Valley and in the Antarctic. It can affect subjects that are only a few hundred yards away, and it is more noticeable when subjects are further away, and telephoto lenses magnify the problem.
You can't do anything about it except shoot at a different time, or shorten the distance to your subject. Even Lawrence of Arabia knew about heat shimmer.
p.153 #18 · Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR
On that day:
If I was within a medium that was the same temperature as my house, I would not have experienced it.
Or, if I went into the cold and began shooting outside on that day, I also would not have experienced it.
It seemed to me that the softness was caused by the dramatic temperature *differential* or dramatic temperature gradient, that occurred between where my rig was, to where the subject was.
Just wondering if anyone else experienced that specifically.
p.153 #19 · Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR
bs kite wrote:
On that day:
If I was within a medium that was the same temperature as my house, I would not have experienced it.
Or, if I went into the cold and began shooting outside on that day, I also would not have experienced it.
It seemed to me that the softness was caused by the dramatic temperature *differential* or dramatic temperature gradient, that occurred between where my rig was, to where the subject was.
Just wondering if anyone else experienced that specifically.
Yes, all the time if I shoot out my car window and the conditions are right (temp is different from inside to outside or if the car itself is throwing off too much heat).
p.153 #20 · Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR
palmor wrote:
Yes, all the time if I shoot out my car window and the conditions are right (temp is different from inside to outside or if the car itself is throwing off too much heat).
Ditto.
Another factor is the difference in humidity. Try taking your gear from allow-humidity & below-zero scenario into a high-humidity & warm-temperature building and see how much condensation forms on your lens and how long it takes to disappear. Even the slightest amount of condensation on the front element of your lens will result in blur in your photos.
