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MFDB Telephoto Field Report: Mamiya 300mm f/2.8 APO and Mamiya 500mm f/4.5 APO Lens

MB100

New member
Finally finished my long in the works article on the Mamiya 300mm f/2.8 APO lens and the Mamiya 500mm f/4.5 APO lens. I got to take both of these beauties with my to Costa Rica after recently acquiring a Mamiya 500mm f/4.5 APO lens (approximately three weeks before the trip). I shoot these lenses in all sorts of wild-life settings along with the Mamiya M645 2x N TC Teleconverter as well as extension tubes to great effect.

This article follows me apparently developing style of reviews focusing on discussions of images (both good and bad) driving the article forward and creating the narrative for me. I hope you enjoy this article and please give me feedback and feel free to ask questions here and leave me comments on my website!

Field Report: Mamiya 300mm f/2.8 APO and Mamiya 500mm f/4.5 APO Lenses in Costa Rica | Brian Hirschfeld Photography

~ BH
 

Jack

Sr. Administrator
Staff member
Your web images look overall pretty green on my monitor -- are you properly color managed in your workflow?
 

MB100

New member
Hi, I don't have my monitor color calibrated, and also most of the time I work on my laptop, however I have not experienced this issue before, and when I do prints they don't come out especially green or anything. Is it possible that this is happening because you have a color calibrated monitor and that I don't?

Just wondering, has anyone else found this to be an issue?

Could you recommend the most efficient / best way to go about color managing my workflow?

Best,
BH
 

Ed Hurst

Well-known member
Green here as well - but some very nice shots. And well done for shooting nature with MF... I have a Pentax 600 (non-AF) and can only marvel at how hard it is...
 

MB100

New member
Green here as well - but some very nice shots. And well done for shooting nature with MF... I have a Pent
Code:
ax 600 (non-AF) and can only marvel at how hard it is...
Indeed, it is very difficult, and there are certainly a larger percentage in the trash then there would have been with an AF telephoto on say my Nikons. But I console myself with the fact that people still achieved some absolutely amazing wildlife shots with manual focus cameras, and I mean if its a manual focus lens on any camera that pretty much evens up the playing field in that respect so the 645DF/IQ180 pairing shouldn't yield any worse results then you could in the same situation with a 35mm dslr
 

Ed Hurst

Well-known member
I have come to the conclusion (reluctantly) that doing moving wildlife or action stuff on a super-tele is not a good sport for a manual focus lens. Although good shots can be had of course, the keeper rate is much lower. I think AF is a big benefit. Now if the Pentax 600 were available in AF (without costing much more), it would be a golden solution for me. As it is, I use the manual focus 600 for other sorts of subject (compressions within landscapes, close-ups of the moon, that sort of thing) and would have to hire an AF lens for the D800E if I wanted action or rapidly moving wildlife. Compromises as always!
 

pesto

Active member
Hello Brian,
Thanks for posting your report here. I have been using the 500 APO for a long time and have had great success with it on both P1 bodies and Leica S2 via Leicas adapter. I do agree that there is a learning curve with this lens and my "keeper rate" has always been lower than had I been shooting with a current auto focus Canon or Nikon, but that said the good ones are in a whole different realm and have always justified the inherent associated difficulties this lens presents...patience and perserverence are sometimes rewarded.

Douglas Benson.
 

tsjanik

Well-known member
I have come to the conclusion (reluctantly) that doing moving wildlife or action stuff on a super-tele is not a good sport for a manual focus lens. Although good shots can be had of course, the keeper rate is much lower. I think AF is a big benefit. Now if the Pentax 600 were available in AF (without costing much more), it would be a golden solution for me. As it is, I use the manual focus 600 for other sorts of subject (compressions within landscapes, close-ups of the moon, that sort of thing) and would have to hire an AF lens for the D800E if I wanted action or rapidly moving wildlife. Compromises as always!
Ed, as much as I would prefer AF, I don't find the MF 600mm hard to focus. What is a problem for me with the 645D is vibration at slow speeds (shutter induced I think). I assembled the stabilizer shown below which includes attachment at the body to lessen any movement caused by the shutter. It works very well and allows rapid repositioning. I sometimes add a Manfrotto long lens suport as well, but that really slows down any readjustment.

Tom


_IGP1179 by tsjanik47, on Flickr
 
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Ed Hurst

Well-known member
Hi Tom,

Thanks for your message and picture. I have assembled a very similar arrangement for my 600mm lens. The lens is off being serviced at the moment, but when I get it back, I will post a picture of the arrangement. As a matter of interest, what does the Manfrotto long lens support consist of (I am intrigued about what it would add to the excellent arrangement visible in your photo)? Presumably it is the device that attaches from the camera body down directly to one of the tripod legs (no. 359 I think it is called)? Do you attach that in addition to the device in your picture attaching to the camera, or in place of it? Do you see much improvement through its use?

All the best, as always,

Ed
 

tsjanik

Well-known member
........... what does the Manfrotto long lens support consist of (I am intrigued about what it would add to the excellent arrangement visible in your photo)? Presumably it is the device that attaches from the camera body down directly to one of the tripod legs (no. 359 I think it is called)? Do you attach that in addition to the device in your picture attaching to the camera, or in place of it? Do you see much improvement through its use?

All the best, as always,

Ed
Ed, That's the one. It's really just an adjustable tube that attaches to a tripod leg and the camera body. I use it in addition to the assembly shown above. The Manfrotto attaches to the RRS plate on the side, which is visible in the photo above (it's convenient that the 645D has both landscape and portrait mounts). There is improvement, the whole assembly of camera and tripod is quite rigid; repositioning is more difficult as there are now three knobs to loosen (and tighten) rather than just one.

Regards,

Tom
 

Ed Hurst

Well-known member
Drat! This is the problem with knowledgeable people being on this group. I keep discovering great ideas that cost money and complicate things. Because now I know about this, I will have to do it, and just put up with the improved pictures as a result ;-)
 
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