Bufflehead

[wendell westfall]

D90 70-200VR+2X@400 1/2500 f7.1 ISO400 -1EV handheld

I got many chances at a bufflehead this cold morning, as he swam and dived . . . just a bit below me. I believe this is the best one (and I believe I managed the whites ok (?) with my minus EV setting).

Wendell

[Karl Egressy]

Nice colours but looks a little soft on my monitor.

[gail bisson]

Hi Wendall,
I am afraid the bird is soft,
Gail

[Marina Scarr]

What a gorgeous bird, and a nice pose and head turn toward you. The angle is a little steep but still works. I like the catchlight.

The bird looks soft. What is the aperture of your 70-200 lens please? Were you hand holding? Were you using a Nikon TC?

[wendell westfall]

Hi Marina, thanks for your comments! My 70-200VR lens is a 2.8 . . . Here are the settings for this image: D90 70-200VR+2X@400 1/2500 f7.1 ISO400 -1EV handheld. And my TC is a Tamron . . .

[Marina Scarr]

Thank you for posting your info, Wendell. I have a strong suspicion that the Tamron 2x is your biggest problem here, and I am speaking from personal experience. I returned mine the day after I received it after a little testing. The glass is simply not up to par and you get what you pay for I am afraid to say. If I were in your shoes, I would buy the 1.7TC by Nikon and your results would be much better, assuming your handholding skills were good.

Also with a 2.8 lens, the 2xTC puts you at F5.6 and your best bet is shooting at a stop under which would put you at F8 or even stop down more if you can.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

[Miguel Palaviccini]

Wendell,

A beautiful bird, and one that I've yet to capture on camera. The image looks like it's suffering quite a bit. Do you happen to have more in the series that aren't as soft? If not, I would have to suspect that Marina is right about the TC. If you absolutely need the reach, the Nikon 2x is a great fit as well. I've never tried the 1.7x, just the 1.4 and the 2.0.

Miguel

[wendell westfall]

Marina and Miguel:
Info I can use. Really appreciate your advice. I'm going to rent a TC per your recommendations and hope for better results. I do hate to give up the reach that a 2X gives me, but we'll see . . .

[Marina Scarr]

Marina and Miguel:
Info I can use. Really appreciate your advice. I'm going to rent a TC per your recommendations and hope for better results. I do hate to give up the reach that a 2X gives me, but we'll see . . .

You won't be giving up anything, Wendell. You will be gaining. With better quality glass of a Nikon 1.4 or 1.7, you will have better quality images which will have more details and allow for bigger crops. You will be happy. I understand now how you feel about the reach, but you won't be missing it when you see the difference in quality of your images.