Jorgen Udvang
Subscriber Member
To call the Nikkor Reflex 500mm f/8 pocketable may be to stretch things a bit, but compared to other 500mm lenses, it's lightweight as well as compact.
I acquired this lens a few weeks ago for two reasons: I'd heard so many negative things about it that I simply had to try it, and it was rather cheap.
Most of the critics are right of course, but there are positive things as well, and the better digital cameras become, with clean high ISO and in-body IS (can't wait to try it on an Olympus E-3), the easier the 500mm is to use.
The first thing I found out was that a tripod is no use, unless it's made of concrete and bolted to the ground. Mirror-slap is probably the worst enemy of this lens, since it has little inertia of its own (another argument for the E-3, which has a smaller mirror than any Nikon DSLR).
Below are a few shots from yesterday, all with the Fuji S3 (hopeless viewfinder for manual focus) at ISO 800, 1/4000th second and f/8, handheld. Bokeh is as funky as it gets, so watching the background is important. The full shots have a little bit USM (120%, 0.4) and curves adjustment, while the crops are untouched by human hand. All photos are taken around mid-day under tropical sun, but the lens isn't very contrasty, and handled the situation well, even without a proper sunshade.
Slow-moving object
100% crop (from 6MP file)
Fast-moving object
100% crop (from 6MP file)
Intruding into the private sphere :angel:
I'm looking forward to having lots of fun with this lens, and the better digital cameras get, the easier this lens will be to handle.
I acquired this lens a few weeks ago for two reasons: I'd heard so many negative things about it that I simply had to try it, and it was rather cheap.
Most of the critics are right of course, but there are positive things as well, and the better digital cameras become, with clean high ISO and in-body IS (can't wait to try it on an Olympus E-3), the easier the 500mm is to use.
The first thing I found out was that a tripod is no use, unless it's made of concrete and bolted to the ground. Mirror-slap is probably the worst enemy of this lens, since it has little inertia of its own (another argument for the E-3, which has a smaller mirror than any Nikon DSLR).
Below are a few shots from yesterday, all with the Fuji S3 (hopeless viewfinder for manual focus) at ISO 800, 1/4000th second and f/8, handheld. Bokeh is as funky as it gets, so watching the background is important. The full shots have a little bit USM (120%, 0.4) and curves adjustment, while the crops are untouched by human hand. All photos are taken around mid-day under tropical sun, but the lens isn't very contrasty, and handled the situation well, even without a proper sunshade.
Slow-moving object
100% crop (from 6MP file)
Fast-moving object
100% crop (from 6MP file)
Intruding into the private sphere :angel:
I'm looking forward to having lots of fun with this lens, and the better digital cameras get, the easier this lens will be to handle.