One For The Birders

Andysnap

Andysnap

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Andy Grant
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Howdy,

I've recently bought a Nikon 300mm f4 and now I want a teleconverter. My question is this, a 1.4 TC = 420mm at f5.6 and a 1.7 TC = 510mm at f6 (ish) so is the gain in reach worth the slight loss in IQ and the 1/2 a stop of aperture?
I'm really struggling to make my mind up about this so any help or examples would be appreciated. :thumbs:

Cheers

Andy
 
Same question i'm asking myself though i'm leaning more to the 1.7 TC, Martyn... has several examples of the 300 f4 with 1.7 TC so might be worth PM'ing him.
 
Thanks Mark, will do.

Andy
 
:wave: someone call :D

It focuses quicker with the 1.4, but is no real problem with the 1.7 ... to be honest I cannot tell any difference in IQ between them.

D300 300AF-S f4 + 1.7TC @ f7.1 ISO3200

161_120.jpg


158_063.jpg
 
Andy

300 + 1.4 = 420mm f5.6, 300 + 1.7 + 520mm f6.7

I would suggest getting the 1.4 first, as the 1.7 does better when the light has improved, you can always add the 1.7 later in the year.

I cannot fault the IQ with either, the 300 + 1.4 is a great lightweight combo for Butterfly and Dragonfly images as you still have the 5 feet (1.35m) minimum focus distance.
 
Martyn... said:
Andy

300 + 1.4 = 420mm f5.6, 300 + 1.7 + 520mm f6.7

I would suggest getting the 1.4 first, as the 1.7 does better when the light has improved, you can always add the 1.7 later in the year.

I cannot fault the IQ with either, the 300 + 1.4 is a great lightweight combo for Butterfly and Dragonfly images as you still have the 5 feet (1.35m) minimum focus distance.
Click to expand...

Thanks Martyn, good point about the light at this time of year. Just need to decide whether to keep the 70-300mm or not, if it goes I may just be able to get both (secondhand).
Great images by the way.

Cheers

Andy

Just noticed those were shot at ISO3200, amazing, where's the noise....?
 
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You could almost say it's daft to buy a quality long prime but deny yourself the flexiblity which coverters bring for very little loss in IQ - often imperceptible, especially with a modest 1.4X TC.
 
Andysnap said:
Thanks Martyn, good point about the light at this time of year. Just need to decide whether to keep the 70-300mm or not, if it goes I may just be able to get both (secondhand).
Great images by the way.

Cheers

Andy

Just noticed those were shot at ISO3200, amazing, where's the noise....?
Click to expand...

Once you have shot the 300f4 AF-S you will not use the 70-300 ;)

Those have been through noiseware on default setting once

Here is the Bluetit before it went through noiseware

161_120a.jpg
 
Martyn... said:
:wave: someone call :D

It focuses quicker with the 1.4, but is no real problem with the 1.7 ... to be honest I cannot tell any difference in IQ between them.

D300 300AF-S f4 + 1.7TC @ f7.1 ISO3200

161_120.jpg


158_063.jpg
Click to expand...

The birds may be sharp but the bokeh is really awful. :thumbsdown:
 
Blimey, there's not much noise there in the first place. Right, decision is made, sell 70-300mm get at least the 1.4 asap and the 1.7 as and when funds become available.

Thanks guys, I'm getting a bit excited now.

Andy
 
Jackwow said:
The birds may be sharp but the bokeh is really awful. :thumbsdown:
Click to expand...

Not the best example I have to agree, however they were taken purely to test the ability of the combination to focus in difficult conditions, which it did with out any problem.

The Tree Sparrow in particular was deep in side the bush, with a multitude of stems in front and behind at varying distances, producing a smooth out of focus background in those conditions would be a challenge, especially at an ISO of 3200.

Here is another image this time with the 1.4 TC on the 300, in better conditions.

80-022a.jpg
 
Stop it now I'm getting over excited and its not good for me at my age......

Andy
 
Well I've just sold the 70-300 in less than 10 minutes so I reckon I have enough for a good secondhand one, could be set by the end of the week.

And please don't show me anything with the D700 I could just explode.

Andy
 
Just a quick supplementary question after the starter for 10 but why do Nikon say autofocus is not available with the 1.7 TC when it quite obviously is? :thinking:

Andy
 
You could always hire a TC-17E from lensesforhire and see how you like it? I did so last year and was impressed with the results, though I ended up buying a TC-14E as I managed to get one really cheap. Can't say I could see much difference in image quality between them.

I'd still like to get a TC-17 of my own at some point - may even try stacking the two on a bright day..

John
 
Andysnap said:
Just a quick supplementary question after the starter for 10 but why do Nikon say autofocus is not available with the 1.7 TC when it quite obviously is? :thinking:

Andy
Click to expand...

Often wondered that myself, it says the same for the 200-400VR and 500 f4, yet they both work perfectly, and AF fine with the 1.7TC mounted.
 
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