I went out to see the results of my testing/distance settings. It was challenging because it's dark/rainy/misty/drizzly here, and that is great for macro and landscapes, but a challenge for any lens and camera body for wildlife (particularly at distance). In any case, I wanted to go shoot so...I did.
I'm pretty happy with what I see. For the conditions, the IQ was better than I had hoped for, especially with the tc (this tc happiness trend continues).
Interestingly (or not...it is to me), I opened the images and began viewing. Initially my thought was...this isn't too bad considering the day. Then I realized I was viewing at 200%. At 100%, I was REALLY happy with the results. I did that once before with a lens test...another Sigma. That was the 180 OS 2.8 macro...it's also pretty impressive.
I was able to find a Great Blue Heron that was wading in the spot that I put my kayak into the water. It's a good place for that, and for lens testing. I'd estimate the first episode was at 50-70M...then maybe 100-150M...ballpark. Found some Canadian geese at another spot along the river. First at 8-20M and then a pile of them in the distance...not sure...far though. From what I see so far I will not hesitate to shoot this lens at f4, and I am super-happy about the distance performance...again...especially given the conditions. I think I feel the same about the converter...f5.6 without hesitation, but down to 6.3 bumps the contrast back up, and it was tough to tell, but I might want 6.3 at distances over a few hundred feet. I don't know that I shoot that far away very often...have to think about it. I just like to know what to expect rather than come home from an opportunity and realize I should have gotten closer or stopped down.
My calibration seems pretty good overall. I was shooting handheld at 1/125-1/1000...mostly 1/400 or 500 though. I didn't get anything worth putting on my site...I don't think. I wasn't thinking about composition. Hopefully I'll get some more tele-friendly weather to really see how we do.
That's it for now...I don't want to sound like one of those folks who post to justify a purchase, but I am really excited about the potential for this lens!
Feb 15, 2021 at 05:44 PM
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