First experience with TC1.4 lll and 500mm PF

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DanG said:
The results are really nice so it’s great to see that you can get that added distance.

Would the 1.4 work on the z50 plus 500~pf in a similar manner? Someone told me I would need to focus manually even on stationary targets. I hope that isn’t true. thanks For any input.
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No, you will not have to focus manually with the Z50 and 1.4x/500PF combo. I actually find the combo works better with mirroless bodies, what I mean by that is its more constantly in focus with mirrorless. Obviously AF-C is not as good as the D500 but that is a given.

I have a handful of shots in here with the Z50 and 1.4xTC/500PF combo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/johnw_trishw/albums/72157714464631063
 
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mbunak said:
I ordered my 1.4TC back in May & I still haven't been able to get it. Where did you purchase yours?
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I ordered it directly from Nikon. When I ordered it (Sept.23) it was not in stock . It was on backorder. But Nikon received a new batch on Oct. 8 and shipped it to me. I received it on Oct. 11. I had been looking for months to get one but no one had it. I figured that my best shot was to order it directly from Nikon. I did the same when I purchased my 500 PF and a battery both of which at the time were on back order everywhere.
 
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OldFart said:
Just a money saving question..is the 1.4 TC III really that much better than the 1.4 TC II which I already own? (D500/D850 500pf)
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I honestly don’t know. But everything I’ve read says that it is the best choice on the 500pf . I guess in your situation, you are the best judge of whether the 1.4ll is good enough. If you like the results than you are good to go. Hopefully someone on the forum has both and can clarify the situation for you.
 
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OldFart said:
Just a money saving question..is the 1.4 TC III really that much better than the 1.4 TC II which I already own? (D500/D850 500pf)
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I found the III version just a bit better when pixel peeping on my 600mm f/4 E FL and 70-200mm E FL. On my other lenses including the 500mm PF and 300mm PF I really can't tell a difference between the II and III versions of the TC-14E teleconverter. At least to my eyes when closely inspecting images I wouldn't buy the latest model for the 500mm PF alone.

That said, I agree with @Ralph Bruno, if you are getting images sharp enough and contrasty enough for your uses there's probably not a lot of reason to get on a waiting list to spend a bunch of cash.
 
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It looks like it is working great for you Ralph, I have it and used it with the 300pf. I haven't used it with the 500pf much. After seeing your shots I'll most likely use it more often.
 
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As per my comment above about my recent purchase of a used TC 114 E III Im loving that reach with the D500 with a 300mm PF. Light weight 630mm Prime f5.6 if the math is correct. I have not tried it on my D850 yet but I’m very pleased with the Focus acquisition speed and I don’t see any IQ issues so far.
 
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Irap said:
It looks like it is working great for you Ralph, I have it and used it with the 300pf. I haven't used it with the 500pf much. After seeing your shots I'll most likely use it more often.
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Give it a try. Really helps when the subject is just a little too far off. Definitely need good light for quality results.
 
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Ralph Bruno said:
This past summer I had been trying to decide whether to purchase a 1.4TC to use with my 500pf. Many of the comments on this forum didn’t speak highly of the 500 PF with a tc so I had been struggling as to whether I should give it a try. Last week I purchased one with the intention of using it with static subjects which were impossible to get close to. Many times I found myself looking at a bird that may be 200 feet or 300 feet away with no possible way of getting any closer.
Well today I tried it for the first time trying to shoot the elusive kingfisher. And I will tell that I am very pleased with the results. I found the autofocus to be very snappy and the results are very good even with a small crop. Today the lighting was really good and that is the type of conditions I would plan to the TC in. Granted , their not as sharp as without the tc but they are very, very good. I am using a D500 . I have no real intension of using it for BIF.
Here are 3 shots I took today. Obviously the last one is not a kingfisher
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View attachment 26027My experience as well. D600 500PF and an OLD Nikon TC 14e ( the first one)…
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My experience as well. D500, 500PF and an OLD Nikon TC 14e ( the first one)…
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Thanks Ralph! I have the 1.4 lll TC, 500pf, and D500. I haven’t tried the TC on the 500pf, as I had tried it on my 200-500 f5.6 Nikon, with decidedly mixed results. The camera struggled with AF, and most of the images were soft. It pretty much has stayed married to my 300pf, where it performs really well. After seeing yours, I’m going to have to give that combination a try when I want more reach.😎
 
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Fishboy1952 said:
Thanks Ralph! I have the 1.4 lll TC, 500pf, and D500. I haven’t tried the TC on the 500pf, as I had tried it on my 200-500 f5.6 Nikon, with decidedly mixed results. The camera struggled with AF, and most of the images were soft. It pretty much has stayed married to my 300pf, where it performs really well. After seeing yours, I’m going to have to give that combination a try when I want more reach.😎
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👍 Doug I just posted two and I think they are even better than the others. I was able to get a little closer. Probably around 75 ft away.
 
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I like the second image of the kingfisher, a nice composition. I have only used the TEC-14 III on one occasion with the 500mm PF lens and it was critical to get the image size I wanted. I found that I needed to use a monopod to stabilize the lens so I could manually focus on my subjects and as I was shooting from a small boat the 600mm and a tripod was not an option.
 
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Calson said:
I like the second image of the kingfisher, a nice composition. I have only used the TEC-14 III on one occasion with the 500mm PF lens and it was critical to get the image size I wanted. I found that I needed to use a monopod to stabilize the lens so I could manually focus on my subjects and as I was shooting from a small boat the 600mm and a tripod was not an option.
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Me to. The second one has a better angle. Just posted two more. She was a little closer. Best yet with the tc.
 
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Ralph Bruno said:
This past summer I had been trying to decide whether to purchase a 1.4TC to use with my 500pf. Many of the comments on this forum didn’t speak highly of the 500 PF with a tc so I had been struggling as to whether I should give it a try. Last week I purchased one with the intention of using it with static subjects which were impossible to get close to. Many times I found myself looking at a bird that may be 200 feet or 300 feet away with no possible way of getting any closer.
Well today I tried it for the first time trying to shoot the elusive kingfisher. And I will tell that I am very pleased with the results. I found the autofocus to be very snappy and the results are very good even with a small crop. Today the lighting was really good and that is the type of conditions I would plan to the TC in. Granted , their not as sharp as without the tc but they are very, very good. I am using a D500 . I have no real intension of using it for BIF.
Here are 3 shots I took today. Obviously the last one is not a kingfisher
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Ralph,

Your results show that the TC 1.4 III works quite well with the D500. However, if you have a high resolution sensor such as the D850, a slight crop also works well.

Bill
 
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Yup. Bill, The D850 is a tremendous camera. But I am shooting the D500 which does pretty well cropping but sometimes you need a little extra and that’s why I got the tc. If I were shooting the D850, my logic wouldn’t change. If the subject were beyond a decent crop I would throw it on. 👍
 
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