Nikon 600PF - Share Photos & Discuss!!!

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MatthewK

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I'll start it off!

The 180-600 is spectacular, so I was sorta starting to second guess my 600PF pre-order, until it landed and I was able to take it out on its first session... wow. To me, this fills the hole left in my heart after selling my 500PF. The new lens handles the same, it's so light and maneuverable, I can hold it up to my eye for countless minutes without burning out my arms. The AF is the fastest I've experienced yet on a Z mount lens. But the thing that pushed it over the top for me was when I got the shots home into LR:

The sharpness. Holy. Crap. This puppy is a step up from the 500 and 800PF lenses that have been the benchmark for me. Sharpness isn't everything, but for birding and fine feather detail, it's a huge difference maker. This lens produces effortless acuity.

It's only the first few hours of the first few days with this 600PF, and I am 100% thrilled with it already. I didn't have much stock in it being a lens I'd keep, but it really does re-kindle that 500PF feeling, and I think going forward that will be its calling card. This is a special lens.

Check out these initial shots, which were taken in probably the worst light. It’s been very overcast and rainy, I wasn’t expecting anything from the shots, yet there's just gobs of detail captured. Of course, photos resized and uploaded won't do these full justice, but I hope it conveys what I'm attempting to impart.
NIKON Z 8untitled_20231027_08-Enhanced-NR-Edit-3.jpg
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NIKON Z 8untitled_20231027_34-Enhanced-NR.jpg
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MatthewK said:
I'll start it off!

The 180-600 is spectacular, so I was sorta starting to second guess my 600PF pre-order, until it landed and I was able to take it out on its first session... wow. To me, this fills the hole left in my heart after selling my 500PF. The new lens handles the same, it's so light and maneuverable, I can hold it up to my eye for countless minutes without burning out my arms. The AF is the fastest I've experienced yet on a Z mount lens. But the thing that pushed it over the top for me was when I got the shots home into LR:

The sharpness. Holy. Crap. This puppy is a step up from the 500 and 800PF lenses that have been the benchmark for me. Sharpness isn't everything, but for birding and fine feather detail, it's a huge difference maker. This lens produces effortless acuity.

Check out these initial shots, which were taken in probably the worst light, and there's just gobs of detail captured. Of course, photos resized and uploaded won't do these full justice, but I hope it conveys what I'm attempting to impart.
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NICE Mathew! That is the classic nuthatch pose. Well done👍👍👍
 
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flashpixx said:
Silvereye with a snack
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Punch in, and you can make out some fine details, could even determine the species of spider it has.


NorthernFocus said:
Wow. Sounds and looks like you've found Nirvana, Matthew. I've got a feeling demand for this lens is going to ramp up over the next few weeks and it will join the ranks of the impossible to get....
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It’ll be interesting to follow its trajectory these next few months. So much good stuff coming from Nikon, and they’ve perfectly segmented the features that it’s not difficult to justify getting them all 🤑
 
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Just wondering if anybody has compared the new Z 600PF with the Nikon Z 400mm f/4.5 with 1.4 teleconverter? The latter gets you to 560mm at f6.3 so very similiar. I am undecided between the two.
 
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Ad Astra said:
Just wondering if anybody has compared the new Z 600PF with the Nikon Z 400mm f/4.5 with 1.4 teleconverter? The latter gets you to 560mm at f6.3 so very similiar. I am undecided between the two.
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I know Steve is planning to do just that and I'd assume he got a 600PF in the first batch as seems like everyone who wanted one got it. I bet he is out working on it this weekend!!

But even without a comparison, it is a sure bet the IQ will be better, AF will be better and consistency of in focus shots during fast action will be better with the 600PF because it doesn't use a TC. TCs are a big compromise and if one wants to be at 600 most of the time, the 600PF is the better buy IMO. If one is fighting the light and needs the f/4.5 AND 400mm is actually enough reach then the 400 still makes sense.
 
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arbitrage said:
I know Steve is planning to do just that and I'd assume he got a 600PF in the first batch as seems like everyone who wanted one got it. I bet he is out working on it this weekend!!
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That would be great if @Steve is working on such a comparision. I am having serious second thoughts on the 600PF now, I am sure it is a great len, but I shoot a lot of sea birds so now getting concerned how a PF would handle all those specular highlights in the water.
 
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Ad Astra said:
That would be great if @Steve is working on such a comparision. I am having serious second thoughts on the 600PF now, I am sure it is a great len, but I shoot a lot of sea birds so now getting concerned how a PF would handle all those specular highlights in the water.
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That is a good point....that may be the one downfall of the 600PF....how does the bokeh look in tough situations like specular highlights??
 
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Ad Astra said:
Just wondering if anybody has compared the new Z 600PF with the Nikon Z 400mm f/4.5 with 1.4 teleconverter? The latter gets you to 560mm at f6.3 so very similiar. I am undecided between the two.
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If you need a kick-ass 400mm, and are occasionally using the 1.4TC to reach 560, easy choice to go with the 400 4.5.

If you will glue the TC onto the 400 4.5, then I suggest the 600PF.

From what I’ve personally experienced having owned both, the 600PF is light years beyond the 400 4.5 + 1.4TC combo, which I found just average even in great conditions; when shot in not-so-great light, the combo was not acceptable for me. I wish I still had the lens so I could compare, but I moved on from it earlier this year.

Is it nearly $2k better? Yet to be determined 😉
 
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MatthewK said:
If you need a kick-ass 400mm, and are occasionally using the 1.4TC to reach 560, easy choice to go with the 400 4.5.

If you will glue the TC onto the 400 4.5, then I suggest the 600PF.

From what I’ve personally experienced having owned both, the 600PF is light years beyond the 400 4.5 + 1.4TC combo, which I found just average even in great conditions; when shot in not-so-great light, the combo was not acceptable for me. I wish I still had the lens so I could compare, but I moved on from it earlier this year.

Is it nearly $2k better? Yet to be determined 😉
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My query is really about how well does the 600PF manage specular highlights? E.g. shotting sea birds against a sunlit sea. Does anybody have any such example photos to share?
 
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Received my Z600 PF yesterday and an hour later took it to Bolsa Chica and ran it through its paces (954 shots). Loved it. Basically same size and weight as my AFS 500 PF with FTZ. I was in DX mode when I had a fly by of White Pelicans. Attached is a sample.
White Pelicans Z600 DX mode.jpg
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MatthewK said:
I can get you examples of specular highlights on snow, best I can do here in Wisconsin 🤗
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Yes please, I am interested to see how the 600PF renders specular highlights. I phoned the shop I purchased from to put my order on hold, but they had already dispatched it. They said I had 45 days to return it unopened so I still have time to make my mind up.
 
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I got my lens today but my walk about revealed no birds or even squirrels.....I did get to try it out with my terrier tho.
My impressions: I love this lens. It's everything MatthewK said about it. Pleasantly surprised at how fast it focuses (it's notably faster than my 500/4 E lens). Any yeah, sharpness won't be a concern. Love the handling. Nothing but positives for me so far...
 
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I have both 400 f4.5 and now 600 f6.3.
The 600 has surprised me with it's sharpness and ability to render fine detail - I would say equal to if not better than the 400.
I'm not going to do a 400 + TC vs 600 comparison as there are many others much more qualified than me to do it, however I will say, side by side, without TC, the 600 is a strong competitor to the 400.
As to whether there are issues with OOF areas, all I will say is that, in my very limited experience with the 600, the bokeh from the 600 appears less "confused" than that of the 500 f5.6.
 
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On Friday, I did not find any birds.
I tried shooting up to the sun. See the resultsThe pictures below have no post-processing. Just straight out of the camera
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Close focus vs. infinity focus

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And some macro..

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