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Wildlife Shots

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RifleDude View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RifleDude Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/13/2014 at 08:29
Very nice, Matt!
Ted


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Peddler Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/13/2014 at 16:39
Indeed!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Sgt. D Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/13/2014 at 17:50
Couldn't ask for a better bow shot!!!!!!!! What an awesome animal!! And well fed I might add!
Take care of Soldiers, Show em how its done and do it with em, Run to the Fight & and hold your ground! I die my men go home! If you're a NCO and this ain't you. GET OUT! GOD BLESS AMERICA!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote cheaptrick Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/13/2014 at 18:18
Originally posted by Skylar McMahon Skylar McMahon wrote:

Wow!!!!

Concur!! I never tire of looking at pictures of wapiti. 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RifleDude Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/13/2014 at 20:53
Originally posted by Bitterroot Bulls Bitterroot Bulls wrote:

Ted,

I am saving for a lens, as I have discussed. The 70-200 f4 and 300 f4 are my finalists. Reach is important, as it is for wildlife primarily, but the amazing VR of the 70-200 had me leaning that way.

Having both, what do you think?


OK, back home now, so I have a grown-up size keyboard to type on.Big Grin

My thoughts on this...

300mm (equivalent) is about the minimum useful focal length for wildlife photos in my opinion. Even so, you will do a lot of heavy cropping unless the animals are pretty close... something like 50-75 yds, so 300mm is IMO a barely adequate wildlife lens. As you no doubt have seen, stuff starts getting crazy expensive really quick beyond 300mm, and even the f/2.8 VR version of the 300 will set you back a hefty $5800.00 or more! That'll leave a mark!

You can get by with 200mm if you have a high res sensor (so you still have decent pixel density when cropped), and you're mainly taking photos of big game animals. 200mm isn't enough for good bird shots in most situations, as you'll seldom have enough reach to fill the frame... unless you're REALLY stealthy or you're shooting from a blind and get lucky.

The above minimums are my observations when used on 35mm equiv / full frame sensors. You get a bit of a break on crop sensor cameras. If I'm not mistaken, I believe you told me you have a D7000 and one of the Nikon 1 variations. So, with the 70-200 f/4 @ 200mm, you'll have 300 equiv with the D7000 and 540 equiv on the Nikon 1. With the 300 f/4, you'll have 450 equiv/D7000 and a whopping 810 equiv on the Nikon 1.

But you no doubt know all the technical aspects. As for my thoughts on the lenses themselves:

This is a tough one, as I can make the case for either, depending on how they'll be used and your style of shooting.

If your intent is to use the new lens solely for wildlife, there's no substitute for reach, and the 300mm f/4 obviously wins out there. It's a very sharp lens, rivaling the 70-200 when your technique and the conditions are right. The problem there is it's a rather unforgiving lens to use. It doesn't have VR so you either have to use a tripod for everything or you have to use pretty fast shutter speed if handheld, which means you either have to bump ISO really high or you need really good light, the latter frequently incompatible with wildlife sightings. Despite this, you can take good handheld shots with it as long as you pay close attention to your shutter speed, focus accurately, and either have rock solid technique or support the lens against something. Some may actually enjoy the challenge of getting all the IQ this lens is capable of delivering without a tripod. I use a tripod or rest the lens on a steady object whenever possible when using this lens. One negative characteristic it has is the rearmost lens element (on the mount side) is really far up inside the body of the lens, so you have to be really careful to prevent dust from getting inside, as it's hard to clean if this happens. This fact, along with the desire for more reach on my D800 is why I leave a TC-14EII teleconverter permanently attached to this lens, giving me 420mm. This is a common setup among wildlife photographers who don't want to pay the breathtaking $9500+ price for the 400 f/2.8 VR. Fortunately, and believe it or not, you will not notice any discernible loss in IQ with the 1.4X teleconverter attached. Really; it works that well! The downside is, of course, you do lose 1 stop of light, so your max aperture is only f/5.6 with the TC attached. The good news is today's DSLRs handle high ISO pretty well, and today's newer PP software have really good noise reduction features, so you can still produce some very high quality images in somewhat low light with this pairing. I'm willing to live with the 1 stop of light loss in exchange for 40% more reach. Because of this, I pretty much shoot at f/5.6 almost exclusively with this lens, which is just fine for how I use it. The 300 f/4 + TC-14 tele can thus be thought of as the "poor man's" 400 f/2.8 (if spending "only" $2K for lens and TC can be considered a "poor man's" option)... except with a 2 stop light penalty and no VR. The other downsides to this lens: First, I think the autofocus speed is a bit on the slow side. That, and the lack of VR mean this isn't a good fast action lens. Second, the OEM tripod mount collar is a little weak, so if you buy this lens, I would get the Kirk replacement collar for it. I did, and I'm really pleased with it.

Despite those disadvantages, the 300 f/4 is a very sharp lens, it's VERY solidly built, and it has a built-in sliding lens hood. Though it isn't exactly light or compact, compared to the alternative lenses at this focal length, it is comparatively lighter and more compact. It's a great value for the image quality and reach you get, as long as you can live with the tradeoffs.

On the 70-200 f/4 VRII:
I love this lens! All things considered, it's probably my favorite Nikon lens. If I was forced to only have 2 SLR lenses, I'd have a hard time deciding on the "wide to regular" coverage lens, but the 70-200 f/4 would definitely be my medium to tele choice. I would actually rather have the f/4 version over the f/2.8 version even if they were the same price, because the f/4 is MUCH lighter and shorter, with the same or better IQ, and with slightly better VR technology. According to Nikon's own MTR charts, this lens actually has slightly better resolution at mid apertures than the f/2.8 version, yet it's roughly HALF the price!

I can ONLY think of 2 negatives with this lens. It doesn't quite have enough reach for a dedicated wildlife lens (on an FX body) and it "only" has f/4 max aperture, though that's a constant f/4 across the full zoom range. I can make up the 1 stop of light loss when I need to by bumping ISO up slightly, with very little IQ penalty. Due to the incredibly effective VR, you frequently don't even have to do that until the light gets really dim. I rarely shoot wide open with this lens anyway. On the D7000, you have 300mm equiv, so it still has o.k. reach for most wildlife that's not too far away, though not the best choice for birds. You'll have plenty of reach for almost anything on your Nikon 1, however.

There are several obvious advantages to this lens over the 300 f/4. As mentioned, the VR on this lens is absolutely amazing! Being a relatively new offering, it has Nikon's latest and greatest VR tech. Because of this, it's a very forgiving handheld lens. If you're not singularly interested in reach, it has much greater flexibility than the 300 prime. With its zoom range, it's a great portrait lens, a great long range "travel" lens, and a good sports lens. It can be a great dedicated wildlife lens on the D7000 as long as either your wildlife photography interest tends toward larger animals, you're able to sneak a little closer, or you plan to use a teleconverter. It wouldn't be the best choice for taking photos of birds or other small critters, unless you use it on your Nikon 1. Although it is considered a "pro" level lens in terms of features and performance, it has a polycarbonate body rather than the "mostly metal" build of Nikon's f/2.8 "pro" lenses. This could be viewed as either a positive or a negative, depending on your perspective. It doesn't have the "solid" feel of the all-metal lenses, but then it's also pretty light for its size. Despite the polycarbonate body, I don't have any gripes with its build quality and have no reason to suspect it wouldn't hold up to many years of use. It's light enough that you don't really need a tripod collar. It really is a fantastic lens!

The short version:
If you want a lens exclusively for wildlife and you're willing to live with the limitations mentioned to get the extra reach, buy the 300 f/4. If you want a great all-purpose telephoto zoom with superb VR that can double as a great wildlife lens with a crop camera and/or a teleconverter, and you value the much lighter weight and shorter length, get the 70-200 f/4 VRII.


Edited by RifleDude - July/13/2014 at 21:01
Ted


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Bitterroot Bulls Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/13/2014 at 23:39

Thanks for the thoughtful response Ted.  

Still on the fence, but luckily Nikon priced me out of the new 80-400 VR.  Wink




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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Peddler Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/14/2014 at 06:24
Ted , you are amazing, I think I got a hernia reading your answer to Skylar. Wow! As you can tell I'm not only puter challenged but even more so photography challenged.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Skylar McMahon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/14/2014 at 12:42
Originally posted by Bitterroot Bulls Bitterroot Bulls wrote:

Still on the fence, but luckily Nikon priced me out of the new 80-400 VR.  Wink 
 
Whoa!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Bitterroot Bulls Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/14/2014 at 17:38
Some crows harrassing a bald eagle:


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Peddler Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/14/2014 at 19:48
Nice!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote 8shots Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/17/2014 at 07:06
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote 8shots Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/17/2014 at 07:10
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Skylar McMahon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July/17/2014 at 08:00
Matt, that is a very cool shot!
 
Wouter, I really like the Zebra picture.  Excellent shots guys.
 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RifleDude Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: August/24/2014 at 14:18
Some nice whitetail bucks in velvet from the past couple weeks:






Ted


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Peddler Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: August/24/2014 at 18:58
 HOLY S**t!!!

WOW.

Excellent Excellent Excellent
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Urimaginaryfrnd Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: August/24/2014 at 21:31
Nice Job


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote REP Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: August/24/2014 at 22:04
Wow wow wow he's a monster. Nice job!
Enough is to much.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RifleDude Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September/01/2014 at 00:16
Some more I took at various times this month while passing by a game ranch about 15 miles from my house...










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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Peddler Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: September/01/2014 at 04:38
The only thing like that in NY are some Elk and Deer farms. Great pics Ted.
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