ricardo00
Well-known member
How long is the weight for the 150-400mm? It can't be any longer than the 800mm PF.
Nikon Newbie looking for advice - OM-1 + 150-400 Pro zoom - system swap to Z9 or A1
- Thread starter wildlife_62
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12 1/2 inches. Lens does not extend during a zoom 4#. Apparently, an unbelievable lens but pricy and hard to get.
ricardo00
Well-known member
Thanks. I was actually asking about the time it takes to have the order filled. Sorry I put the wrong word, weight and meant wait (not sure if it was me or the computer). Price wise, it is about one thousand dollars more than the 800mm PF.
abc123brian
Well-known member
There is a lot to consider with background blur such as how far the subject is away from the background, how far the camera is from the subject, the aperture, the focal length, sensor size (unless adjusting for the differences. Looking at the badger photo, I think the camera missed focus as the grass looks more infects than the badgers eyes on my screen. I saw that mentioned in another comment as well. If the camera shifted focus further back, the grass is going to be more in focus than it would if the camera focused more in front and I think that is part of the reason there is less separation here. Regarding which lenses would have made the grass out of focus, I think you might be underestimating that some. Below is an uncropped shot of a warbler from last weekend with the 400mm 4.5S with the 1.4x TC making it a 560mm F/6.3 on the Z9 and you can see how shallow the depth of field is. A 600mm F/4 would have been even thinner.
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Calson
Well-known member
For macro the choice for me would be Nikon and in second place, Canon. For general wildlife Canon has the 100-500mm lens and Sony has the 200-600mm. More lightweight telephotos with Nikon, including using the 500mm PF with the FTZ adapter.
One thing I dislike about Sony is the extra $1000 for their flagship camera and its not using an oversize battery as with the Z9. Sony provides more options for a second camera at lower cost than Nikon.
Weight may seem unimportant but for me having a 600mm f/4E that weighed 8.4 lbs or 11 lbs with a D5 and TC-14, as compared to the 5 lb 800mm PF lens meant I could shoot hand held when necessary and make use of a monopod more readily.
My wife has been using the Olympus MFT cameras and lenses and their performance overall is better than that of my D850 with f-mount lenses in terms of autofocus and optical stabilization and the Olympus Pro Capture is better than what I can get with the Z9 at this time.
Traveling to places like Costa Rica my backpack weighed 37 lbs as compared to her equivalent MFT kit that weighed half as much. My gear fit in a 32L backpack while her kit fit in a 18L backpack.
One thing I dislike about Sony is the extra $1000 for their flagship camera and its not using an oversize battery as with the Z9. Sony provides more options for a second camera at lower cost than Nikon.
Weight may seem unimportant but for me having a 600mm f/4E that weighed 8.4 lbs or 11 lbs with a D5 and TC-14, as compared to the 5 lb 800mm PF lens meant I could shoot hand held when necessary and make use of a monopod more readily.
My wife has been using the Olympus MFT cameras and lenses and their performance overall is better than that of my D850 with f-mount lenses in terms of autofocus and optical stabilization and the Olympus Pro Capture is better than what I can get with the Z9 at this time.
Traveling to places like Costa Rica my backpack weighed 37 lbs as compared to her equivalent MFT kit that weighed half as much. My gear fit in a 32L backpack while her kit fit in a 18L backpack.
Does your wife use the OM-1. It is far advanced over other mFT bodies? The OM-1 with a 100-400 is probably as good of an international travel kit for wildlife as it gets. Remove the lens collar/foot and the entire kit is 3.75 pounds, less than a pound heavier than the Z-9 and cheaper.
wildlife_62
Member
I think it’s fair to say all systems have their pros and cons, it’s what works best for the individual and their circumstances .
No argument from me. What we don't know on the badger is how far away it was, how much, if any, was it cropped, etc. I was going on how much in front was acceptable focus and how much behind. Without knowing how far away the photographer was from the animal, it's hard to say. I've never photographed a badger. Going on deer, if I'm 40 feet from a deer, blowing out the background isn't that hard. If I'm 200 feet from the deer, much more of the background is going to be in focus.
Good points you made.
Jef
The Olympus 150-400 is in such short supply, you can probably get what you paid for it or nearly so on ebay. I got mine on ebay paid full retail for a barely used lens in absolutely pristine condition with all original pkg. etc. At the time I bought it on ebay had already gotten on wait lists with B&H, Adorama, and Roberts, that was six months ago. Got an email from Roberts today saying they had gotten a new one in. Of course, I didn't need it. There are advantages to full frame vs crop vs m43. The main thing I love about M43 is the fact I can get f4 or f4.5 glass that gives me 800mm to 1000mm at f4 to f5.6. For me that is huge as my yard is dark and I shoot a lot in my yard. The OM-1 stacked sensor is very very good. But if you want to change systems that 150-400 shouldn't be much of a loss if it's in perfect condition. You will take a hit on the OM-1. Good luck.
fcotterill
Well-known member
Reviews are no substitute for one's own hand-on tests and comparisons, as I and others suggested above. However, Mathieu Gasquet recently published a Z9 review some months after his OM1 review
mirrorlesscomparison.com
mirrorlesscomparison.com
Review of the Nikon Z9 and Settings for Bird Photography - Mirrorless Comparison
Finally! That’s the word that best describes this review. I’ve been trying to get my hands on the Nikon Z9 for a while now, but there was always something in the way, whether it was a private matter or camera / lens availability. December was the lucky month: I found ... Read more
mirrorlesscomparison.com
OM System OM-1 Review for Bird Photography / Birds in Flight - Mirrorless Comparison
Over the years, Olympus has built a very interesting system for wildlife and bird photographers, with reduced size and weight being the primary appeal for those tired of carrying heavy gear around. But despite the excellent portability, the unrivalled stabilisation and the impressive shooting...
mirrorlesscomparison.com
wildlife_62
Member
Thanks for the info. I have seen them both and they are full of useful information, but as you said there’s no substitute for handling the cameras and lensesReviews are no substitute for one's own hand-on tests and comparisons, as I and others suggested above. However, Mathieu Gasquet recently published a Z9 review some months after his OM1 review
Review of the Nikon Z9 and Settings for Bird Photography - Mirrorless Comparison
Finally! That’s the word that best describes this review. I’ve been trying to get my hands on the Nikon Z9 for a while now, but there was always something in the way, whether it was a private matter or camera / lens availability. December was the lucky month: I found ... Read more
OM System OM-1 Review for Bird Photography / Birds in Flight - Mirrorless Comparison
Over the years, Olympus has built a very interesting system for wildlife and bird photographers, with reduced size and weight being the primary appeal for those tired of carrying heavy gear around. But despite the excellent portability, the unrivalled stabilisation and the impressive shooting...
Confirms my thoughts about the system: it is the tallest midget. And if you need the utility of a tiny body, it's as good as it gets. I think OM has done an excellent job squeezing what can be squeezed out of an MFT sensor.Reviews are no substitute for one's own hand-on tests and comparisons, as I and others suggested above. However, Mathieu Gasquet recently published a Z9 review some months after his OM1 review
Review of the Nikon Z9 and Settings for Bird Photography - Mirrorless Comparison
Finally! That’s the word that best describes this review. I’ve been trying to get my hands on the Nikon Z9 for a while now, but there was always something in the way, whether it was a private matter or camera / lens availability. December was the lucky month: I found ... Read more
OM System OM-1 Review for Bird Photography / Birds in Flight - Mirrorless Comparison
Over the years, Olympus has built a very interesting system for wildlife and bird photographers, with reduced size and weight being the primary appeal for those tired of carrying heavy gear around. But despite the excellent portability, the unrivalled stabilisation and the impressive shooting...
I say this with all due respect to those who see this differently. I think far too much attention is paid to equipment and not enough to learning and fully understanding, optics, lighting, camera functions and most importantly creativity.
I believe the substantive differences between Nikon, Sony, Canon or Olympus top-of-the-line systems are negligible.
I believe the substantive differences between Nikon, Sony, Canon or Olympus top-of-the-line systems are negligible.
peter wolf
Member
I’m looking to swap the other way where are you in this world
Reminder we don’t allow items wanted or for sale.
please do private message (aka PM) when …..
thank you
MikeInMI
Active member
I see quite a few people knocking the selection of Sony lenses. IMHO, Sony has the greatest selection of mirrorless lenses out there. Sony not only has their native lenses, but also lense from Tamron and Sigma among others. Tamron, especially, has released quite a nice selection of lenses for Sony. Canon has ZERO third party lenses and Nikon has allowed exactly ONE Tamron lens (and rumor has it that Nikon has only licensed Tamron to produce that single 70-300mm lens, and has not provided a license more broadly than that). I’d also add that the 200-600mm Sony is a very highly regarded lens for both image quality and fast focus and Sony wildlife photographers are very pleased with that particular lens. Admittedly, there is no 800mm, and the 600mm f/4 is expensive. But nonetheless, the owners of those lense are very happy and those that put the 1.4x TC on the 600 f/4 have some pretty breathtaking images they take at 840mm.
Tamron's largest shareholder is Sony and it's open knowledge that some Sony-branded lenses are made by Tamron (which is why you don't see overlapping lenses). I think you’ll see more Nikon-branded Tamrons in similar fashion. Canon and Sony are true rivals, and Canon is also the only major camera manufacturer that doesn't use Sony sensors.
O
Well-known member
100% agree,
you can throw a blanket over them as there nearly all the same.
you cant buy a good photo,
95% of the result comes from you, if your a beginner with no real skill sets then 95% of what you end up with comes from the camera as these days they do everything automatically for you so to speak, a bit like a phone camera all most impossible to get a bad shot.
Only an opinion
Roy
Well-known member
I've come from a product photography background and now i'm looking at wildlife photography.
I tried the Sony A1 and Nikon Z9.
Although I found the Z9 slightly better at AF The Sony is much easier to just pick up and shoot.
The Z9 is much better built but isn't a camera I could recommend for everyone.
My Sony A7 was problematic from the start and eventually failed with poor support from Sony and this may have coloured my final decision.
For wildlife - although Nikon doesn't have a 200-600mm lens yet, the 800mm and 400mm f4.5 etc are great and are nice and light.
I went with the Z9 because of the better build quality bright viewfinder and I have many Nikon lenses and only a few Sony ones...
ricardo00
Well-known member
Hmmm, if you previously used the D850 and 400mm f/2.8, you are setting a very high bar for the OM system to match. Your shots of the fox and European badger are great, but probably would have been better with the D850 and 400mm f/2.8.Hi, thanks for the offer, I’ll hop on a planeThe OM system is great, however subject seperation can be an issue, low light AF and inherent noise can have an impact on the final image. Some can be processed with Topaz etc. I have previously shot with Nikon D850 and 400 f2.8 and those images with seperation and image quality seem to really pop. I’m looking for the wow factor and trying to combine all the best options together, the toughest one being my abilities. It’s a tough call
PS. If you do come over, we can go photograph the American badger, almost as cute as yours:
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O
Well-known member
Short answer RENT and experience it first hand.
It seems you can afford to rent, so rent each system for a week, evaluate the glass..........because before you know it the A1 II and Z9 S will be out by end of year as will the Z8, i mean really is 12 fps enough ??..will you be doing Video ???
There is a lot of good advice in this forum.
The gear is pretty much all similar............that's the least of the issue.
A good point raised is to see what Canon has coming.
Your investment and maximum benefits comes more from the glass, forget the bodies as the priority, they will be updated before you even finish reading the 1000 page manual LOL.
If you have experienced the D850 and a 400 2.8 then you have a pretty good indication of Nikon File Flavor.
You know what you do, you know what you want, the answer lies with in you as a photographer..........what will this new gear do for your photography ?,
again you will get much more benefit choosing the right glass............so that's where the decision making should be focused on.
Each system has its slight advantages/differences.
A good photographer can use anything and deliver.
Only an opinion
O
Well-known member
If your looking for POP my mantra is still glass, glass, glass, glass, glass, F2, F2.8, F4, nothing else, the right time light and speed combination making a photo hasn't changed since the Box Brownie and film was invented LOL.
Dynamic range,
Accurate colour,
POP,
DOF,
Low ISO needs,
Clarity,
Micro detail,
Micro contrast,
Light,
All relates to the Glass.
Yes the sensor has the resolution.
The D6 rivals all mirror less cameras for colour in very high ISO performance and in many cases for stickyness on a subject that is chalenging and in lower light.
Wild card, I feel you may not even need a Z9 or A1, get the perfect glass, then live with a D850 or Z7 II for a little while, i think the Z8 will be more your fit, 60mp 12 fps.
You could also as an interim do the same with Sony or Canon.
Higher resolution sensors and technology is coming, video says so LOL.
Only an opinion
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I completely disagree. Flagship FF bodies (and MF) are made for those who can get far better results than prior bodies and certainly smaller sensors. APS-C and to a lesser degree MFT and rarely 1in have their place and advantages, but if you have access to all those bodies (as I do), for mission-critical shoots you would never pick an MFT.
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wildlife_62
Member
I am so grateful for all your enthusiasm and advice, it's clear that one size does not fit all. Debate is fantastic but i'm not here to system bash. It is amazing that a micro four thirds system which is often dismissed can hold its head up high amongst the FF systems. Sometimes it feels like I just have the fear of missing out, however I am fortunate enough to have the choice of some awesome equipment to go along with my enthusiasm and passion for wildlife photography. The camera is the tool and the photographer is the passion, I must remember that when the next amazing camera is launched.
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Memorable fox n badger photos!!