First field experience with Nikon 500mm PF

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dtibbals said:
I bought a 500 PF a couple of weeks ago and other than a quick hour with it I hadn’t gotten it out in the field to try.

I spent this last weekend shooting Saturday and Sunday in 24-55 deg weather in north Texas. While the subjects were about as friendly as the cold morning temps I got a couple images that gave me a feel for the lens.

I shot everything wide open at 5.6 and with a D850. I wanted to see what detail it could provide, how well it focused and the kind of background it could render.

In summary I was damn impressed. For $3,300 it’s a lot of lens! I also have a Nikon 300f2.8 and the 200-500 5.6. It’s better than both of them. The 300 f2.8 might be slightly faster but image quality I think the 500pf gives it a solid run for its money.

The 500 PF is snappy, and seemed to compliment the D850. The lighting was a mixed bag over the weekend and iso ran between 800-3200 most of the day.

Here are a few examples from my first outing. They are down sampled to meet the file size. The full size files are a lot better!

PS don’t pick on me to much. I’m completing my first year of photography and been trying to apply what Steve teaches in his books. It’s a lot to learn!
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Great images. I have the 500PF which I use with my 850 and D500. Works very well with both. Love the light weight and has worked well handheld too. My go to lens now.
 
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I've just got one too, for the D500. It's great for mobile handheld shooting. It pays with that sensor to work hard to keep the ISO down, for maximum detail. I'd love to try the lens with a D850.
 
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