Well, I succumbed. Drove down to Henry's and put in an order; it should be arriving on Thursday. Fingers crossed that it is a good copy.
I am just a bit curious......the lens in an earlier post is not the lighter PF version. The PF version will not come with a tripod mount. The AF-S NIKKOR 300mm f/4E PF ED VR weighs in at 26.6 oz, whereas the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 300mm f/4D IF-ED weighs 50.8 oz.
By all accounts, the heavier version may be a little sharper, has a nice bokeh, but does weigh nearly twice as much. I have the PF version and like it quite a bit. The bokeh can get a little weird with a linear background.
3" gecko pair from 12' away with PF and 1.4 tc
George, I will be sure to let you know how I like it.
Yes, Randy, it is the PF version I am looking at, precisely because of the weight factor. I already have a collar for my 70-200 f/4 that is supposed to fit, but the user reviews I have read say the PF version mounts well on a tripod without. Glad to know you like your lens; I'd be quite happy to get the quality you have with the TC.
For those who are interested, here is a description of Nikon's Phase Fresnel technology, with pros and cons: https://petapixel.com/2015/01/10/clo...ns-technology/.
I am skeptical about the degree to which the software can reduce the flare issue, so I am just going to do my best to put light sources behind me.
I really have not had a problem with flare. I think that most use of this lens tends to be with sun at one's back or to the side, which makes flare a moot issue.
I think that you will have fun with this lens, I use mine for 'close-ups' as often as telephoto. As you stated, there are times when getting close to some flora is a bit dicey; I remember one particularly fine stand of marsh marigold on the opposite bank of an icy, raging river....focal length was a definite asset.
Picked the lens up last night; first few shots in the fading light at f/4 and ISO 3200 pretty impressive. Can't wait to put it to work; watch this space.
Have fun with your new lens! I look forward to seeing what you end up doing with it.
I do like this setup....I will not lie. How do you like the balance of the setup?
So far, I am quite impressed. I am able to shoot handheld quite comfortably, and at surprisingly (for me) low shutter speeds (down to a .25 sec. at least). The VR is living up to its advertising, though that was not a prime selling feature for me. With the teleconverter on, I felt I needed my monopod, but perhaps in time, I will be able to do without. The narrower field of view is certainly going to take getting used to, and I missed all of my shots of the above bird in flight. But that is the only negative, so far. I am still cropping on most of the bird shots, but I am able to get close to insects and animals and people without them noticing me, and so I think this lens is going to be expanding my horizons. I am going to take it along to an outdoor music festival this weekend and perhaps steal some souls. I will have the little Sony (18-70 mm) with me for the wider angle shots, but it would be nice to finally get some decent closeups of the performers.
Speaking of close-ups, this was shot just at the edge of the 300 mm's closest focusing distance (1.4 m).
f/5.6 @ 1/200, 640 ISO
It's a lot of money for not that much more distance, but that little bit more does make a difference and I do love me the quality of a good prime.
My brother's new dog, a rescue named Kona.
f/5.6 @ 1/400, 400 ISO
Last edited by purplehaze; 6th July 2017 at 06:03 AM.
Looks good. In the first picture the corrected focal length is mentioned, 420mm.
And in the second one a nice fall off of the sharpness.
That dog walks like a model.
How is the weight?
George
Hi, George. Yes, with the 1.4 TC, the focal length is 420 mm, and the effective length on my 1.5 crop sensor camera is 630 mm. The weight is 755 g or 1.6 lbs. It actually weighs less than my Sigma 18-35 mm.