Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
p.61 #1Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
Another set from Florida this past week. I went to Ft DeSoto on this day to see if I could find a Reddish Egret, I did! 
Royal Tern
Marbeled Godwit (maybe?)
Reddish Egret
Reddish Egret
Then there were two Reddish Egrets
Royal Tern
NIKON Z 9 NIKKOR Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S lens 400mm f/2.8 1/3200s 72 ISO +0.3 EV
Marbeled Godwit (maybe?)
NIKON Z 9 NIKKOR Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S lens 400mm f/2.8 1/3200s 72 ISO +0.3 EV
Reddish Egret
NIKON Z 9 NIKKOR Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S lens 400mm f/2.8 1/3200s 90 ISO +0.3 EV
Reddish Egret
NIKON Z 9 NIKKOR Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S lens 400mm f/2.8 1/3200s 100 ISO +0.3 EV
Then there were two Reddish Egrets
NIKON Z 9 NIKKOR Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S lens 400mm f/2.8 1/3200s 90 ISO +0.3 EV
Feb 21, 2026 at 10:22 AM
p.61 #2Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
George DeCamp wrote:
Another set from Florida this past week. I went to Ft DeSoto on this day to see if I could find a Reddish Egret, I did!
Love your reddish egret shots, George! It’s so fun to watch their movements while fishing. That 400mm really shines at f/2.8.
Another set from Florida this past week. I went to Ft DeSoto on this day to see if I could find a Reddish Egret, I did!
Love your reddish egret shots, George! It’s so fun to watch their movements while fishing. That 400mm really shines at f/2.8.
Feb 21, 2026 at 11:08 AM
p.61 #3Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
Ross Martin wrote:
Love your reddish egret shots, George! It’s so fun to watch their movements while fishing. That 400mm really shines at f/2.8.
Hey thanks Ross I love seeing them let alone getting a up close chance at photographing them, always fun!!! The lens is so awesome!!
George DeCamp wrote
Another set from Florida this past week. I went to Ft DeSoto on this day to see if I could find a Reddish Egret, I did!Hey thanks Ross I love seeing them let alone getting a up close chance at photographing them, always fun!!! The lens is so awesome!!
Feb 21, 2026 at 01:57 PM
p.61 #4Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
George DeCamp wrote:
Another set from Florida this past week. I went to Ft DeSoto on this day to see if I could find a Reddish Egret, I did!
Superb shots, George!
Another set from Florida this past week. I went to Ft DeSoto on this day to see if I could find a Reddish Egret, I did!
Superb shots, George!
Feb 21, 2026 at 04:58 PM
p.61 #5Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
Lance B wrote:
George DeCamp wrote
Another set from Florida this past week. I went to Ft DeSoto on this day to see if I could find a Reddish Egret, I did!Thank you Lance!!
Feb 21, 2026 at 07:58 PM
p.61 #6Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
From Saturday morning... Allen's Hummingbird.
regards,
Bruce
regards,
Bruce
NIKON Z 9 NIKKOR Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S Z TC-1.4x lens 784mm f/5.6 1/3200s 6400 ISO +0.7 EV
Feb 22, 2026 at 08:27 PM
p.61 #7Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
Curious what percentage is the crop is this?
OwlsEyes wrote:
From Saturday morning... Allen's Hummingbird.
regards,
Bruce
Feb 23, 2026 at 12:20 AM
p.61 #8Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
fnzmf25 wrote:
Curious what percentage is the crop is this?
regards,
Bruce
The final photo is about 31MP... It's a crop, but not terribly deep. There are times when I need to do a DX crop, which results in slightly less than 20MP. If I'm trying to photograph these mighty mights in flight, I am better off shooting in FX and cropping in to meet my compositional goals.
You can see that I stacked converters here. To process the shot, I used DXO Pure Raw to reduce the noise a bit, I then used LR Classic to create a bird layer and background layer and worked the two independently. I needed to increase the exposure in the background to lighten it a bit. I then exported at 1800MP and 72DPI to share... before sharing, I put a bit of a reverse vignette to lighten the corners. It was early morning and I underexposed the whole shot to hold back the highlights.
bruce
Curious what percentage is the crop is this?
OwlsEyes wrote
From Saturday morning... Allen's Hummingbird.regards,
Bruce
The final photo is about 31MP... It's a crop, but not terribly deep. There are times when I need to do a DX crop, which results in slightly less than 20MP. If I'm trying to photograph these mighty mights in flight, I am better off shooting in FX and cropping in to meet my compositional goals.
You can see that I stacked converters here. To process the shot, I used DXO Pure Raw to reduce the noise a bit, I then used LR Classic to create a bird layer and background layer and worked the two independently. I needed to increase the exposure in the background to lighten it a bit. I then exported at 1800MP and 72DPI to share... before sharing, I put a bit of a reverse vignette to lighten the corners. It was early morning and I underexposed the whole shot to hold back the highlights.
bruce
Feb 23, 2026 at 09:22 AM
p.61 #9Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
I've been photographing this owl for a few months now and am looking for different ways to make interesting images. In this case, I decided to photograph it with some strong backlight. I was excited to see it stretch his/her body and rotate its head 180 degrees to look in my direction.
cheers,
bruce
cheers,
bruce
NIKON Z 9 NIKKOR Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S lens 560mm f/4.0 1/1000s 64 ISO -1.0 EV
Feb 25, 2026 at 10:23 PM
p.61 #10Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
It took only 35 years of nature photography, but I finally had the opportunity to see and photograph an American Badger.
It was an amazing opportunity to track, watch, and photograph this animal as it went about its business of foraging and digging burrows where it could get out of the hear.
cheers,
bruce
It was an amazing opportunity to track, watch, and photograph this animal as it went about its business of foraging and digging burrows where it could get out of the hear.
cheers,
bruce
© BruceLeventhal.com 2026
NIKON Z 9 NIKKOR Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S lens 560mm f/4.0 1/800s 280 ISO 0.0 EV
Mar 01, 2026 at 08:57 AM
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p.61 #11Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
Congratulations Bruce ! And a great shot on top of the sighting.
Mar 01, 2026 at 09:29 AM
p.61 #12Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
sum1sgrampa wrote:
Congratulations Bruce ! And a great shot on top of the sighting.
Thanks...
I was super excited to finally see and photograph this species. At first I thought I'd have to be content to make decent photos of it in high contrast lighting, but the little guy was so busy that I was able to wait out the high sun until the angle of light improved...
The 400mm f2.8TC is pure magic for this type of shooting, as the capacity to soften foreground and background foliage allows me to isolate the subject so nicely..
cheers,
bruce
Congratulations Bruce ! And a great shot on top of the sighting.
Thanks...
I was super excited to finally see and photograph this species. At first I thought I'd have to be content to make decent photos of it in high contrast lighting, but the little guy was so busy that I was able to wait out the high sun until the angle of light improved...
The 400mm f2.8TC is pure magic for this type of shooting, as the capacity to soften foreground and background foliage allows me to isolate the subject so nicely..
cheers,
bruce
Mar 02, 2026 at 10:04 AM
p.61 #14Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
Some shots from Ranthambore National Park, India this winter season. First 2 images are of a male tiger, marking his territory on a foggy morning and the third one is a young female exploring her mother’s territory.
Untitled by Ganesh B, on Flickr
Untitled by Ganesh B, on Flickr
Untitled by Ganesh B, on Flickr
Untitled by Ganesh B, on FlickrUntitled by Ganesh B, on FlickrUntitled by Ganesh B, on FlickrMar 06, 2026 at 01:56 AM
p.61 #15Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
Showing off in technicolor 
Allen's hummingbird and the 400 f2.8TC doing what it does best!
Allen's hummingbird and the 400 f2.8TC doing what it does best!
Mar 09, 2026 at 08:54 PM
p.61 #16Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
Brown Fish Owl, Z9, 400mm F2.8S TC with 2X TC, 800mm, F5.6, ISO1400, 1/640
Brown Fish Owl by Ganesh B, on Flickr
Brown Fish Owl by Ganesh B, on FlickrMar 12, 2026 at 07:58 AM
p.61 #17Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
Initially I was going to respond to just a couple of the posts on this page, but the work here by George, Bruce, and Ganesh is all stunning. Wow.
Mar 12, 2026 at 08:28 AM
p.61 #18Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
The 400mm f2.8TC helps me to push the limit when it comes to available light.
I visited a wetland last week to photograph breeding shorebirds... specifically avocets and stilts. While I did not see a lot of the prenuptial behaviors, I managed to photographic them in interesting pre-dawn light.
regards,
bruce
I visited a wetland last week to photograph breeding shorebirds... specifically avocets and stilts. While I did not see a lot of the prenuptial behaviors, I managed to photographic them in interesting pre-dawn light.
regards,
bruce
NIKON Z 9 NIKKOR Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S lens 560mm f/4.5 1/4000s 5600 ISO +1.0 EV
NIKON Z 9 NIKKOR Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S lens 560mm f/5.0 1/320s 6400 ISO -0.7 EV
Mar 16, 2026 at 09:16 AM
p.61 #19Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
Male Tiger, Tadoba National Park, Z9, 400mm f2.8 TC VR S, 560mm, F4, 1/1250, ISO 1800
Male Tiger, Tadoba National Park by Ganesh B, on Flickr
Male Tiger, Tadoba National Park by Ganesh B, on FlickrMar 20, 2026 at 11:33 AM
p.61 #20Official Nikon 400/2.8S image thread + some discussions
OwlsEyes wrote:
The 400mm f2.8TC helps me to push the limit when it comes to available light.
I visited a wetland last week to photograph breeding shorebirds... specifically avocets and stilts. While I did not see a lot of the prenuptial behaviors, I managed to photographic them in interesting pre-dawn light.
regards,
bruce
Damn Bruce, I'm jealous of these! Two of my favorite birds and yo get them in one spot! Very nice!!!
The 400mm f2.8TC helps me to push the limit when it comes to available light.
I visited a wetland last week to photograph breeding shorebirds... specifically avocets and stilts. While I did not see a lot of the prenuptial behaviors, I managed to photographic them in interesting pre-dawn light.
regards,
bruce
Damn Bruce, I'm jealous of these! Two of my favorite birds and yo get them in one spot! Very nice!!!
Mar 22, 2026 at 08:03 AM