It’s never enough! (or is it?)

[Stephen Berger]

I was thinking yesterday while out my rig how I couldn’t believe I used to shoot wildlife including BIF with a 300mm lens. About how I then moved to a 500mm (which felt like the holy grail) and now shoot with 600mm on which I often use a 1.4TC. And how even now I often wind up too far away!

Then I thought about this: with each lens I captured images I was and am still happy with.

 

[jhallettbc]

That is such a good reminder when we get caught up in thinking we need better equipment.

 

[FB101]

I have developed the theory, years ago, that critters in general (and small birds especially) have the ability to calculate the magnification power of our gear (based on focal length, crop factor and resolution) and adjust their distance from us to be just annoyingly too far regardless of that magnification. I now have 36 years of first hand experience that confirm my theory

 

[Whiskeyman]

I have developed the theory, years ago, that critters in general (and small birds especially) have the ability to calculate the magnification power of our gear (based on focal length, crop factor and resolution) and adjust their distance from us to be just annoyingly too far regardless of that magnification. I now have 36 years of first hand experience that confirm my theory

This is absolutely true. Bigfoot told me so! And in Bigfoot's case, they remain hidden from any photographers in foliage until they hear the shutter of the camera, and then they know just how fast they have to be moving in order to be blurry in any photos of them.

 

[DavidT]

I’m with you. 600 with 2x isn’t enough sometimes. Little birds take a lot of lens.

 

[IainD]

I tried to shoot a beautiful Brahminy Kite many times. He was there soaring out of reach of my 300. Then I got a 500. He stayed just a bit further away. I walked back and forward miles on that beach. Distant shots of a black spot. Then one day, I decode it was never going to happen. We just went for a walk on the beach and I didn't bring a camera at all. I gave up. Then he appeared. Soaring over head then down to about 20 feet high, and flew with us as we walked. I could see his individual feathers. Then his mate appeared and they flew over us together. Watching us. From literally 20 feet away. Too close for the 500, really. Nasty bird.

 

[Stephen Berger]

I tried to shoot a beautiful Brahminy Kite many times. He was there soaring out of reach of my 300. Then I got a 500. He stayed just a bit further away. I walked back and forward miles on that beach. Distant shots of a black spot. Then one day, I decode it was never going to happen. We just went for a walk on the beach and I didn't bring a camera at all. I gave up. Then he appeared. Soaring over head then down to about 20 feet high, and flew with us as we walked. I could see his individual feathers. Then his mate appeared and they flew over us together. Watching us. From literally 20 feet away. Too close for the 500, really. Nasty bird.

I have not yet (camera or no camera) had the privilege of kites flying that close to me. But when I have seen them camera in hand they for sure are one creature that’s always been the same dot in the sky whether it’s 300mm or 840mm version of my set up.

 

[IainD]

That is what they do. They are nasty creatures put on the planet to tease us!

 

[Lance B]

I tried to shoot a beautiful Brahminy Kite many times. He was there soaring out of reach of my 300. Then I got a 500. He stayed just a bit further away. I walked back and forward miles on that beach. Distant shots of a black spot. Then one day, I decode it was never going to happen. We just went for a walk on the beach and I didn't bring a camera at all. I gave up. Then he appeared. Soaring over head then down to about 20 feet high, and flew with us as we walked. I could see his individual feathers. Then his mate appeared and they flew over us together. Watching us. From literally 20 feet away. Too close for the 500, really. Nasty bird.

This happens to you also, Iain??!! I thought it was only me that this sort of thing happened to.

 

[IainD]

Oh yes. Whales do it too.

 

[fcotterill]

Too often, the clandestine and shy subjects do not cooperate. I meet this challenge when out in suitable habitat trying to increase encounters with carnivores and other small to medium sized mammals. Even 700mm on FX still requires cropping: Caracal and it just managed with an adult Leopard

Leopard through 500 f5.6 PF on D850

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TC14 III added for 700 f8....the same Leopard after I'd stalked closer, catching him up as he was strolling slowly

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Caracal, adult Male, cropped with 700 f8 combination on Nikon Z7. I placed out the distance afterwards ar ~70m

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[fcotterill]

The experiences cited above are uncommon, but when I consider average subject distances for my sought after subjects, I often need 800mm at a minimum, but a 1000mm will be better with the option for 1600mm; this is for tight framing besides elusive subjects.
I compiled this cheat sheet to compare the demands for sufficient magnification (calculated with this online app) of a range of subjects.
For my situations, these are the extremes in subjects: from tiny birds (also dragonflies, lepidoptera) up to megafauna.... projected to the outer and smaller sized images on the sensor. The colour codes for the 6 subjects magnified to a ~15 or ~20mm image, respectively.

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[ElenaH]

very interesting table, @fcotterill
I assume, the distance is in meters?
For mammals: I noticed when I am in Africa I stop taking pictures when I am more than 50m away... (I have D850+500PF)
I find it also interesting that you have 58mm in the table. I take often take my 58mm Voigtländer to game drives ;-) Sometimes I even think I need 24mm when animals come close to the vehicle ;-)

 

[fcotterill]

Yes Elena, sorry, it's been compiled for personal use, so I updated the graphic to show the units in metres
The 58mm f1.4G is my primary "normal" lens, ideal for elephants close up, as well as some Animalscapes (when a UWude is too short !). The NeoNoct works as 3 primes in One: wideopen; f2.8 and optimum sharpness at f8-f11 with wider DoF.

These tend to be the rarer occasions, unless I can setup remote triggers etc

The first in this sequence taken with

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15mm f2.8AIP Zeiss Distagon

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Nikon Z7 18-35 G Nikkor @18mm f11

Fenton Woody Cotterill on Instagram: "It's not often I have had to change lenses from a telephoto to an ultra wide - when birds and larger mammals are your subjects. This mother Cape Spurfowl with her family settled down for a rest and dustbaths, to

30 likes, 0 comments - chambeshiphoto on January 24, 2020: "It's not often I have had to change lenses from a telephoto to an ultra wide - when birds and larger mammals are your subjects. This moth...".

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very interesting table, @fcotterill
I assume, the distance is in meters?
For mammals: I noticed when I am in Africa I stop taking pictures when I am more than 50m away... (I have D850+500PF)
I find it also interesting that you have 58mm in the table. I take often take my 58mm Voigtländer to game drives ;-) Sometimes I even think I need 24mm when animals come close to the vehicle ;-)

 

[RichF]

I was thinking yesterday while out my rig how I couldn’t believe I used to shoot wildlife including BIF with a 300mm lens. About how I then moved to a 500mm (which felt like the holy grail) and now shoot with 600mm on which I often use a 1.4TC. And how even now I often wind up too far away!

Then I thought about this: with each lens I captured images I was and am still happy with.

For boaters, it is called 2 footitize. You want a boat 2 feet longer. For photographers, you want either a lens 100mm longer or 2 mm wider.

 

[ElenaH]

NeoNoct

you mean Voigtländer Nocton? Or something else? (there are some of 58ths) You even have Zeiss 15mm! For me it looked like people in BCG use and have rather native lenses.... I am nicely suprised that somebody else is using something else!

you want either a lens 100mm longer or 2 mm wider

interestingly, I analyse the last Bird Photographer of the Year and a few other birds and wildlife contests and must they the tendency is going wider. So, the pictures of the birds shoot with wideangle lens win against the tele.

 

[fcotterill]

you mean Voigtländer Nocton? Or something else? (there are some of 58ths) You even have Zeiss 15mm! For me it looked like people in BCG use and have rather native lenses.... I am nicely suprised that somebody else is using something else!

Actually this 58 is one of the 3 Nikkor Noct's, the 58 f1.4G (this thread) but I've read many glowing reports about the Voigt', which photographers prefer over the Neo-Noct
Yes, with the 15 f2.8, I also use the 21 f2.8AIP. Both excellent and pleasing saturation and very very solidly built, so also heavy. There's no reason to trade these in, especially as much work lies ahead for these ultrawide witha zed camera and D850.... ideal for remotes and/or shooting at very tight subject distances exploiting the huge depth of field etc. Both are Distagons, and I found them Used as likely traded in after Zeiss upgraded these primes to Milvus.
I cut the integral hood off the 15mm with a dremel and cleaned it up to fit filters, but it needs a 105mm CPL because vignetting is bad with a 95mm , and it has to use the big 150 grad filters. Recently, NiSi released a filter adapter which simplifies this, as I wasted too much time and money trying to make my own solution.

interestingly, I analyse the last Bird Photographer of the Year and a few other birds and wildlife contests and must they the tendency is going wider. So, the pictures of the birds shoot with wideangle lens win against the tele.

You are absolutely correct, these trends are clear. But success demands investing in fieldwork and above all much patience

 

[Roy]

I was thinking yesterday while out my rig how I couldn’t believe I used to shoot wildlife including BIF with a 300mm lens. About how I then moved to a 500mm (which felt like the holy grail) and now shoot with 600mm on which I often use a 1.4TC. And how even now I often wind up too far away!

Then I thought about this: with each lens I captured images I was and am still happy with.

The main thing about long glass is that you get images that you wouldn't have even tried for before.