Bigma + Kenko 2x TC at 840 mm f.l. by Miljenko Devcic

Miljenko Devcic | all galleries >> animals >> Birds (ptice) > Bigma + Kenko 2x TC at 840 mm f.l.


09-JAN-2005

Bigma + Kenko 2x TC at 840 mm f.l.

Shot with Sigma 50-500 set at 420 mm and f/6.3 with Kenko 300 Pro DG teleconverter. Tree was some 400 meters (1200 feet) away. Manual focus, of course due to f12.6 aperture. Shot from Manfrotto 680 monopod + 322RC2 head.

Nikon D70 ,Sigma 50-500mm f/4-6.3 EX APO RF
1/200s f/12.6 at 840.0mm iso200 Kenko 2x TC full exif

other sizes: small medium large original auto

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Fernando		04-Jul-2005 23:16
thanks for the useful advices and sorry for taking so long to reply. i finally bought the 1.4x and i've been testing it for the last 2 weeks. sweet spot, F9, F10, F14... i personally like F10 the most. AF is scary... i wonder if it could damage D70 or Bigma, so i've stopped using it. MF is ok!... but the metering info given is quite weird(always showing Too Dark. i'm ignoring this, since ISO is set to Auto... really hate high ISO though!), so for plane spotting, i usually use "Auto-ISO + F10 + 1/800 or 1/600" + super fine weather! i wonder why @1050mm, images are sometimes soft and sometimes sharp since using the same settings and under the same weather conditions(setting @ D70 sharpen to Normal all the time), any ideas? any other tips would be appreciated! thanks again!!!

Miljenko Devcic		03-Jun-2005 21:18
Fernando, most of today's DSLRs autofocus with lenses of f/5.6 max aperture or better. So adding ANY TC to Bigma will make AF not working. With Sigma TCs it is done automatically and with Kenkos camera hunts vigorously and erraticaly so you have to switch AF yourself. You are left to MF then which in the case of D70+Bigma+TC means unreliable focusing due to dark viewfinder. Keppers rate (in my case at least) was to low to keep using it. And when discussing the pic deterioration when using TCs, think of it in a mathematical way: TC is magnifying all the lens imperfections, including the resolution loss as much as it's conversion gain. So to use 1.4x TC you need very good lens (which Bigma certainly is), and to use 2x TC you need almost perfect lens, which Bigma certainly isn't.

Fernando		03-Jun-2005 03:02
Sorry, could you clarify what do you mean by "it is already on the AF edge with D70"? I mainly take photographs of airplanes(fast moving & from far distance) handheld. "steady", I believe I can't make it. he~he~ so, do you think TC is for non-moving object only? I really want to get a 2x TC since it costs almost the same as the 1.4x TC but image quality is still my biggest concern. tks again!

Miljenko Devcic		02-Jun-2005 12:27
Hi Fernando, Sigma 50-500 doesn't autofocus with any of the TC tried as it is already on the AF edge with D70. In general, pic quality with 2x TC is acceptable IF you manage to get your camera/lens combo VERY steady. And that excludes most of the tripod tried including otherwise excelent Manfrotto 055Pro/141RC and Sachtler professional carbon tripods. The only really sharp pics were shot using bean bags both below and over the camera and lens.

Fernando		01-Jun-2005 11:24
hello there, i was wondering if AF works on Bigma(not the new DG) + Kenko Pro300 DG 1.4x? have you encounter any problem at all with your Bigma + Kenko Pro300 DG 2x? vignetting, soft image, etc... thx

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