How to get tack sharp images using long lenses

[wotan1]

I am a relative newcomer to long focal length lenses in nature photography.

As a newcomer I had naive ideas about shooting with long lenses. I thought that excellent VR means you are beating the laws of physics and everything taken with this lens is going to be tack sharp.

So I recently spent a lot of money (too much according to my wife) to buy the Z 600mm pf. I took it out to a very popular birding area. When I got back I thought most of the images were rather poor.

As a newcomer I am full of self-doubt. I blamed myself for what went wrong. Or maybe there was something wrong with the lens.

I have since learned that a lot of what I encountered in that first shoot is pretty typical. You can't shoot these lenses like shorter focal length lenses.

So I read Steve's guides and videos.

Now I try to shoot more with a tripod and gimbal. Shutter speed goes higher and I also shoot in 20 fps bursts. I try to get closer. I end up with higher ISO and I denoise.

So I am inviting feedback on what works for you to get tack sharp images with a long lens.

 

[Cameron T]

You don't even need a tripod or gimbal.

Shooting bursts and higher shutter speed is great, but if you're shooting hand held, brace yourself against something if possible, keep your elbows tucked to your sides more instead of chicken winged out, and lift some weights to help your arms stay stable longer instead of shaking more from the weight of the camera/lens combo when it's extended from your body.

Not every is still capable of the weight part, so that's a limiting factor for most people.

I can shoot hand held down to 1/100th at 840mm and get the majority of shots in a burst sharp most of the time. Going down past that I get fewer shots sharp, with my real limit about 1/50th where I give up on shooting if I can't push my ISO higher (since I usually shoot wide open) unless there's something really cool/special.

 

[EricKlees]

I tell people when new to long lenses and mirrorless, you should start 2-3 clicks faster than normal. So if people say shoot eagles no shooter than 1/1600, I usually tell people start 1/2500 or 1/3200 to start and as you long lens technique improves you can lower that.

I shoot the Z9+800PF combo virtually exclusively and always hand held. I can shoot Eagles at low as 1/250 (head, eyes, body and feet are sharp wings blurred) but my usual low is 1/640 or 1/800. Normally i still shoot as high as i can 1/3200 to 1/6400 depending the light.

So just get the shutter speed up, practice on everything. When a day isn't going well with subjects I'll shoot terns, gulls you name it just to keep my panning skills sharp and homed.

Also if using the Z9, make sure you using Bird subject detection, Auto Area AF mode is superior right now in Bird SD over 3D and wide area AF modes. Keep your exposure a bit in the brighter side (not one exposed, not not dark) and shoot in the flat picture control even in raw as that helps the AF system.

 

[jcollins]

You don't even need a tripod or gimbal.

Shooting bursts and higher shutter speed is great, but if you're shooting hand held, brace yourself against something if possible, keep your elbows tucked to your sides more instead of chicken winged out, and lift some weights to help your arms stay stable longer instead of shaking more from the weight of the camera/lens combo when it's extended from your body.

Not every is still capable of the weight part, so that's a limiting factor for most people.

I can shoot hand held down to 1/100th at 840mm and get the majority of shots in a burst sharp most of the time. Going down past that I get fewer shots sharp, with my real limit about 1/50th where I give up on shooting if I can't push my ISO higher (since I usually shoot wide open) unless there's something really cool/special.

Agree with most of this, but 1/100th at 840mm? I find 1/200th at 600mm (or generally SS @ 1/3rd the focal length) the lowest I can go, usually reserving that for low light situations where the potential for motion blur is more than made up for by the drop in ISO / decrease in noise. Either way, it's a lovely treat getting IBIS coming from a very old mirrorless body, so much more potential for pushing the shutter speed down.

 

[Cameron T]

Agree with most of this, but 1/100th at 840mm? I find 1/200th at 600mm (or generally SS @ 1/3rd the focal length) the lowest I can go, usually reserving that for low light situations where the potential for motion blur is more than made up for by the drop in ISO / decrease in noise. Either way, it's a lovely treat getting IBIS coming from a very old mirrorless body, so much more potential for pushing the shutter speed down.

Yep. I can dig up examples and post them later with exif data as well to prove it if that's a major concern. I recognize I might be steadier than a lot of people, so that's why I think everyone should find their level of acceptable sharp shots, and test it. I'm not you who isn't Steve etc.

I'd say at 1/100th I've got a 60% sharpness rate (where the shot is acceptably sharp), unless it's real cold and windy and I'm more shaky.

 

[Ralph]

I am a relative newcomer to long focal length lenses in nature photography.

As a newcomer I had naive ideas about shooting with long lenses. I thought that excellent VR means you are beating the laws of physics and everything taken with this lens is going to be tack sharp.

So I recently spent a lot of money (too much according to my wife) to buy the Z 600mm pf. I took it out to a very popular birding area. When I got back I thought most of the images were rather poor.

As a newcomer I am full of self-doubt. I blamed myself for what went wrong. Or maybe there was something wrong with the lens.

I have since learned that a lot of what I encountered in that first shoot is pretty typical. You can't shoot these lenses like shorter focal length lenses.

So I read Steve's guides and videos.

Now I try to shoot more with a tripod and gimbal. Shutter speed goes higher and I also shoot in 20 fps bursts. I try to get closer. I end up with higher ISO and I denoise.

So I am inviting feedback on what works for you to get tack sharp images with a long lens.

Since you’re new at this, shoot as fast as you can. In the case of the 600mm don’t go any lower than 1/600 PF a sec. Don‘t be concerned right now with noise. Get you technique down first.

 

[TurtleCat]

I’ll point out that not all lenses are sharp at all focal distances. Some lenses are sharper or less sharp at the extremes of focal distance. Knowing where your lens is strong (focal distance, subject types, etc) is key.

 

[DRwyoming]

So I read Steve's guides and videos.

Sounds like you may already have watched this, but if and when you do shoot from a tripod the techniques discussed in this video can help quite a bit:

But even when shooting hand held some of the tips like rolling your finger over the shutter release rather than jabbing down with the end of your finger can help a lot.

 

[NatureBoy]

I find tripods have their place for me getting sharp photos and better photos meaning less movement to spook the bird.
In the case of cavity nesters like Wood Ducks, Pilliated, Blue bird etc. when setting up on the entrance. Studying where the adults land, how long they are in for and things like that I can really have everything set and just press the shutter when they show up. No arm fatigue and very ltitle movement.
Another time is under the Lens Coat Lens Hide. The tripod minimizes movement of the cover big time. Perfect for winter duck's on small water and deer.
I shoot-handheld a lot but the tripod has its place for me. Not as much maybe with the 500PF but with the Z9 and 4002.8 TC, I can only hold that steady so long. It is heavy.

 

[Larry S.]

Yo wotan1, Expect a lot of responses, suggestions and advice from your post. It’s an excellent topic. Last things first on this subject… You can reduce all the variables down to two things… SETTINGS and TECHNIQUE. A great movie line in Dances with Wolves from Kevin Costner…. ” I learn more from my failures than my successes“. It’s very true. Make adjustments to your camera settings that can get the results you want. As an example, are you using the shutter release for focusing or the “back-button“ method? Steve’s books are excellent guides to making decisions on settings. You do not have to start with the 20 frames a second. Cut it down to 5-10 until your results improve.

There are several ways to “track” birds in flight with “Continuous Mode” focus. (You are using continuous mode, right?) There are various shapes and sizes of focus areas, essentially squares and rectangles that aid in staying on target. Then look at what “subject detection” can do. If you have “HDR” on, cut it off. This defeats the continuous mode function.….(not telling you how I know this )… I’m assuming you’re working in “M” manual mode…(?)

Start with bigger slow flying birds like herons, egrets, gulls and pelicans. Generally 1000-1600/sec. works here. Ospreys, eagles and geese are usually in the 1600-3000/sec. range depending on what they’re doing. Hummers and smaller birds will drive you crazy… 3000/sec.+. If you want to truly annoy your family, practice on them as they go about their day..

Open that lens up! It’s the Z/600PF 6.3, right? ISO auto?…….We’ve all been through this, trial and error method…. Damn technology keeps staying ahead of me! Most importantly…. Don’t give up! Get out there and shoot a card full…..

 

[Lance B]

Hold your breath, be very still, gently press the shutter and then practice, practice, practice. You will end up seeing what works and what doesn't as you can see it in your review shots on the rear screen at 100%. You will probably need to check shots on your computer for critical sharpness results and this is why I always rattle off a number of shots with high fps. I have managed to get sharp shots handheld with the 800 pf at 1/40sec completely unsupported. It helps to have a very stationary subject as well!

Z9 + 800 pf, 1/40s f/6.3 at 800.0mm iso720

Here is the crop I wanted:

With VR/IBIS I usually will go for a shutter speed of about 2-3 stops under 1/focal length but may venture lower if I know I nailed a few at that speed. I only do this if I want to keep ISO low or where I am sure the subject will be still for a second or so. If I am shooting a moving bird, then I go above 1/focal length. If I am shooting BIF than it may be 1/3200 or more.

After a while, you can get the feel for what you can get away with on a particular lens and what the subject is doing. These are probably cropped a little as well. All free standing no support.

Z9 + 800 pf, 1/320s f/6.3 at 800.0mm iso800

Z8 + 800 pf, 1/160s f/6.3 at 800.0mm iso450

Z8 + 800 pf, 1/125s f/6.3 at 800.0mm iso450

 

[wotan1]

I don't want this to be a cry for help. just a venue for sharing ideas. I have been following a lot of the tips in the Perry videos and have gotten some great results.

 

[wotan1]

Thanks everyone great stuff in here.

 

[Larry S.]

I don't want this to be a cry for help. just a venue for sharing ideas. I have been following a lot of the tips in the Perry videos and have gotten some great results.

Read you loud and clear…. Wasn’t sure about your level of frustration and disappointment. Everyone just wants to be helpful… all’s good.

 

[Woody Meristem]

Seldom do I use a tripod unless I'm sitting for a long time and don't want to hold a long lens for hours. When I have time I use a monopod or beanbag, but can get pretty darn good photos hand-holding at 1120mm. I take a lot of photos so I never have to practice, but if l only used my camera and long lens one day a week I'd want to practice, practice, practice every chance I got -- including the dog, birds out the window, cars on the road.

 

[Doug Herr]

Sometimes atmospheric distortion will make your photos blurry no matter how good your technique is.

a few things can help in some circumstances:

Get away from your car. Heat from the engine and warm air from the car's interior mixing with colder ambient air will cause distortion and blurring.
Get closer. Less distance = fewer opportunities for atmospheric distortion
Avoid shooting across asphalt on sunny days because the sun warming the asphalt causes a pocket of warm air above the asphalt.
Sometimes taking the lens hood off helps, especially when the lens isn't at ambient temperature. The hood traps a bubble of air next to the lens and if the lens temperature differs much from ambient, the bubble temperature will differ from ambient. There's potential for distortion where the bubble and ambient air mix at the front of the hood.

 

[RichF]

great video. downside is I may have to toss most of my images

 

[ARClark]

Sometimes atmospheric distortion will make your photos blurry no matter how good your technique is.

a few things can help in some circumstances:

Get away from your car. Heat from the engine and warm air from the car's interior mixing with colder ambient air will cause distortion and blurring.
Get closer. Less distance = fewer opportunities for atmospheric distortion
Avoid shooting across asphalt on sunny days because the sun warming the asphalt causes a pocket of warm air above the asphalt.
Sometimes taking the lens hood off helps, especially when the lens isn't at ambient temperature. The hood traps a bubble of air next to the lens and if the lens temperature differs much from ambient, the bubble temperature will differ from ambient. There's potential for distortion where the bubble and ambient air mix at the front of the hood.

I was going to mention this as well. Unfavorable atmospheric conditions can ruin an entire shoot. It took me years to really grasp the significance of this and to recognize the conditions. So to the OP, there’s lots of good advice in the posts above about shutter speeds and stabilization when shooting with long lenses, but you can do everything right and still get soft images if the air between you and the subject causes distortion.

 

[MrFotoFool]

As the most recent posts state, atmospheric haze is often a factor when shooting across long distances and if it is there is virtually nothing you can do about it.

Even with a modest aperture of f6.3, the depth of field is still very shallow at that long of a focal length. When shooting animals, you may need to stop down even further to f8 or f9 to get a reasonable amount of the animal in focus. At large aperture focus must be pinpoint on the eye or image is ruined.

Focal length magnifies everything, including subject movement. Even if you have the camera steady (with vibration reduction and/or tripod), a slight movement of the animal at 600mm can cause softness where it might not at, say, 300mm.

 

[PhotoLover]

I am a relative newcomer to long focal length lenses in nature photography.

As a newcomer I had naive ideas about shooting with long lenses. I thought that excellent VR means you are beating the laws of physics and everything taken with this lens is going to be tack sharp.

So I recently spent a lot of money (too much according to my wife) to buy the Z 600mm pf. I took it out to a very popular birding area. When I got back I thought most of the images were rather poor.

As a newcomer I am full of self-doubt. I blamed myself for what went wrong. Or maybe there was something wrong with the lens.

I have since learned that a lot of what I encountered in that first shoot is pretty typical. You can't shoot these lenses like shorter focal length lenses.

So I read Steve's guides and videos.

Now I try to shoot more with a tripod and gimbal. Shutter speed goes higher and I also shoot in 20 fps bursts. I try to get closer. I end up with higher ISO and I denoise.

So I am inviting feedback on what works for you to get tack sharp images with a long lens.

You are getting lots of input, but personally I couldn't say what to fix without seeing a sample photo and the EXIF data. I will make a few general comments:

1. You don't need a tripod to get sharp images with this gear. (A Z9 and 600 pf?). I can shoot just fine handheld with a D500 + 500pf + 1.4 teleconverter (which is a lot of magnification). At the shutter speeds needed for wildlife (even birds on a branch) the VR will be more than good enough for sharp images. This is good news. It means you just need to hone your technique.
2. I don't have a Z Nikon, but there are lots of AF options. (This is true to a lessor extent in Nikon dSLRS). What AF modes are you using?
3. Are you using continuous AF tracking?
4. Are you shooting in manual mode, manual + auto ISO, aperture priority, etc. Which one?
5. What time of day are you shooting? Morning and afternoon really are better. How much light is there?
6. Are you shooting RAW images and post-processing them? Or are you shooting jpgs? If the latter, what size jpgs?
7. What VR mode are you using on the lens?
8. Exactly what is wrong with the images that you are getting?
9. What shutter speeds, aperture, and ISO levels are you using?

One thing you might do is try a bit of walking before running. Can you get a sharp, in focus shot of a rock 30 yards away? I.e. a non-moving object where you can take all day to compose and take the shot?

 

[Rassie]

There is something we don't talk about enough IMO, and that is the IBIS built into the mirrorless bodies. That helps stabilize the camera, and coupling that with a lens that also has VR built in, enables us to use shutter speeds of 3-4 stops lower than we would be able to with a DSLR and VR lens.

I must add that I've been shooting long lenses with reach of 700mm and longer for years, so I guess some practice also comes in here. I have the TC-14E III on my 500mm PF lens the great majority of the time when I'm shooting birds with my Z8. The only time I've used a tripod with the Z8 was for family portraits a few months ago. For wildlife it's always hand-held and I'm successful enough down to 1/250 sec for stationary birds most of the time. I'm not sure I would have had this image at this sharpness if using a DSLR body with the same settings.

You can only see EXIF info for this image if you are logged in.

 

[BLev65]

There are a lot of good nature and wildlife photographers on this forum, so you are likely to be inundated with many ideas and opinions. First I definitely recommend that you watch Steve's videos on the subject because they are spot on. Rather than talk about technique, as I have my opinions... which include tripods, I want to add the following to your calculus:

Many people buy a new, long, and expensive lens and think that this will lead to professional quality wildlife photos. There is this very strong and FALSE BELIEF that the lens is what makes the picture. Without being disrespectful to you, I am 100% confident that if @Steve were shooting a 200-500 F-mount lens on an old Nikon D7200, he would produce more compelling and interesting pictures than most of us would make even if we were armed with a Z9 and 600PF. Good wildlife photographers have spent years in the field learning how to approach wildlife, distinguishing good angles from bad, and being selective about light and time of day. The concept of "field craft" is a critical component that is overlooked. I've been shooting wildlife since 1987 when I was doing fieldwork on the Pribilof Islands, AK, but I continue to learn something new every time I am out in the field.

So... I'm going to offer you some advice about long lens photography and how to make your images better... this is the advice I give my clients when I'm teaching them how to use their gear.
1. Use a tripod and choose appropriate shutter speeds.
2. Begin by working in a relatively controlled setting like: zoos, bird feeders, blinds, and wildlife sanctuaries that are target rich. Use these places to practice your technique so you can learn where your points of failure will be.
3. When shooting at the above locations, work on composition and subject response to light. Light interacts with feathers and fur in ways that are different from mountain landscapes, macro images, and human portraits. Working in relatively controlled situations will give you confidence in your gear, and remind you that your gear works as it should. When shooting serendipitously, you may be plagued by heat differentials, picking the wrong focus point, and exposure issues... controlled shoots teach you what is possible. By adhering to this, you can return from a serendipitous shoot and be more objective about why an image might have failed... This prevents you from blaming the gear.
4. Don't blame the gear (note my redundancy )... gear failures are rare. While there are small differences between similar items, more times than not, the problem is with the photographer expecting too much from the equipment. We judge somethings as poor, but fail to acknowledge heavy cropping, high ISO, heat haze, low shutter speeds, or poor stability due to intrinsic excitement about the encounter. I've blown wolf shoots because I was too excited about seeing a wolf.... practice helps mitigate the latter as does the occasional moments of success.
5. Practice and be a critical editor... this will force you to be better. After every shoot, think to yourself... "Next time I will..."

Don't give up... I highly doubt there is anything wrong with your lens, you just need to practice... We all need to practice!
cheers,
bruce

 

[PhotoLover]

There is something we don't talk about enough IMO, and that is the IBIS built into the mirrorless bodies. That helps stabilize the camera, and coupling that with a lens that also has VR built in, enables us to use shutter speeds of 3-4 stops lower than we would be able to with a DSLR and VR lens.

I must add that I've been shooting long lenses with reach of 700mm and longer for years, so I guess some practice also comes in here. I have the TC-14E III on my 500mm PF lens the great majority of the time when I'm shooting birds with my Z8. The only time I've used a tripod with the Z8 was for family portraits a few months ago. For wildlife it's always hand-held and I'm successful enough down to 1/250 sec for stationary birds most of the time. I'm not sure I would have had this image at this sharpness if using a DSLR body with the same settings.



View attachment 78877

For what it is worth, I go down to 320 at times with the D7500/D500 and the 500 pf (no teleconverter, but about the same magnification as the 500 and 1.4 on a full frame). I have good shots as low as 125 with that combo. I believe you that the Z cameras are better, but you can go pretty low with the dSLRs also.

I like that shot quite a bit incidentally.

 

[dorthzyx]

I don't think anyone mentioned a heavy duty monopod with wimberly mh100 gimbal head. It has made a big difference for me.

 

[wotan1]

Thanks for the many good ideas in here.

I agree that Steve knows his stuff and I respect and follow his advice. I joined this forum as a sustaining member because I value the information and advice that can be found here.

I think it is important for people new to these long lenses to have an understanding of the unique challenges you will encounter with these lenses.

My friend who has the 500mm pf recently purchased the 600mm pf. It is of course winter here in Seattle and lately quite rainy He has a nice yard for bird photography and supports it with bird and hummingbird feeders so he always has lots of subjects to work with; He had not gotten an ARCA foot for the lens yet so was shooting handheld and did not at all like the initial results.

So I was over there this week with a foot he could use and we ran some test shots and fairly quickly found the sweet spot. Yes the 600mm pf is an incredibly sharp lens when handled correctly.

If you are new to this like I was trust your instincts don't expect miracles right out the gate. Take a look at Steve's e-books on wildlife and bird in flight photography and follow his advice. It really works and you will soon get the results these incredible lenses are capable of producing.