chloesview wrote:
Barn Swallow Z 9 with bare lens late afternoon
Those guys are a real challenge to capture in flight - nice work! I think this lens with the Z9 are the perfect combination for such fast and erratic birds. IMO, anything much longer and heavier is just too challenging to swing back and forth with the fast and erratic nature of these types of birds.
During my regular stroll in South Burnaby today I had a very short encounter with the North American river otter. The animal swam up the local creek, looked at me and disappeared under the railway bridge. It happened so quickly that at first I thought it was a beaver. That's a first for me.
cvrle59 wrote:
Welcome to the Nikon world, Molson...nice capture!
Was it about this beautiful lens, or Z9, or both?
That sounds funny, considering I've been a Nikon owner since the 1970s... but the Z9 and 400 f4.5 are new to me. I'm still struggling with post-processing these files - I hope I don't have to go back to using Capture One.
Pileated Woodpecker
NIKON Z 9NIKKOR Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S lens400mmf/4.51/1000s4500 ISO0.0 EV
I've seen your images in Fuji, M43, and Sony forum, if I'm not mistaking, but this is first time I see your work here.
Sorry, but I wasn't aware what you used in your long photography history.
cvrle59 wrote:
Sorry, but I wasn't aware what you used in your long photography history.
Pretty much everything...
Most of my Nikon gear is older (pre-Z) and has been sitting in storage for the last 4 or 5 years, but after seeing so many great images coming from Z9 users, my curiosity got the better of me. I'm just astounded by how light this lens is!
Adobe LightRoom Classic
NIKON Z 9NIKKOR Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S lens400mmf/4.51/1000s5600 ISO0.0 EV
DxO PhotoLab 6
NIKON Z 9NIKKOR Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S lens400mmf/4.51/1000s5600 ISO0.0 EV
Most of my Nikon gear is older (pre-Z) and has been sitting in storage for the last 4 or 5 years, but after seeing so many great images coming from Z9 users, my curiosity got the better of me. I'm just astounded by how light this lens is!
Welcome back Cliff. Those pictures are great, although I think you'd be able to make good pictures with any 400 based on the looks of it. That's a lovely woodpecker shot.
My Nikon Z 1.4x teleconverter arrived yesterday, and from the initial test shots it seems to pair pretty well with the 400mm f4.5S.
One thing I found interesting is that the resulting 560mm focal length is actually greater than the 600mm end of my Sony FE 200-600mm G lens when tested at close distances (3-4m). It looks like the Sony zoom is actually only 540-550mm at these typical backyard bird distances, but I think that is typical of all of these telephoto zooms.
Most of my Nikon gear is older (pre-Z) and has been sitting in storage for the last 4 or 5 years, but after seeing so many great images coming from Z9 users, my curiosity got the better of me. I'm just astounded by how light this lens is!
Yesterday I was shooting this lens with 1.4x on my Z9 alongside my recently acquired ungripped A1 and 200-600mm, both handheld. The conditions were the ultimate test for AF (fast erratic hunting Welcome Swallows against very difficult BG) and I felt the A1 AF system had a somewhat noticeable performance edge over the Z9. Nonetheless I found myself putting the A1 down and using the Z9 much of the time, it is just so much more comfortable to hand hold. Whilst it is not that much lighter than the Sony combo, it feels a LOT lighter as the weight is all in the shooter's hands rather than cantilevered to the front and the Z9 grip is just so much more comfortable for my hand size and shape than the sharp and cramped little grip on the A1. The A1 may improve with the addition of a grip but then the weight would go up even more.
It really does sheet it home to me that one can read all the reviews, opinions and spec sheets one wants but not until the equipment is in your hands, attached to your body, attached to your grey matter, shooting in your locations and your subjects do you really understand how well a piece of equipment is going to work for you.
