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Canon to Nikon - D500 + 200-500 (1 Viewer)

I've got a D500 and a Tamron 150-600mm. I'm growing more and more tempted by the 200-500mm in the hope that the tiny amount of movement which the Tamron (and the Sigma 50-500mm(s) I previously used) has between the body and the lens, and which is just enough to kill the autofocus - most often just when I really want/need it to work trouble-free, is something that would not occur as both camera and lens are from the same manufacturer. I know of others with the Tamron/Sigma lenses, and other Nikon bodies which have had the same issue. For that reason, I would be wary of going down the Tamron/Sigma route if I was starting again, but would be interested to know if it was an issue with the 200-500 and D500.
 
To further confuse the issue, the imminent arrival of the rumoured Nikon D850 looks to be a bit of a cracker! :t:

FF 46.5MP, AF system from the D5, 10fps, tiltable LCD screen twice the res of the outgoing D810, lighter, back illuminated buttons and 4K video at native FF (1.0x) http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=348601

Decisions, decisions, decisions ! :cat:

I had the opportunity the other week to get a new D500 for ~$2000 AUD (1600USD), but didn't pull the trigger because I wanted to compare with the new D850 at the Oz Bird Fair in a few months .....

With 46.5MP the DX mode of the D850 should have about the same resolution as the D500, but with greater ISO performance. I was always impressed by the 24MP APS-C sensor in the D7100/D7200, but struggled to see significant benefits of the D500's 20.7MP sensor. IQ looked worse to me up to 200 ISO and only seemed to offer 1/2 to 1 stop more at the cost of about ~15% resolution ....

If the D850 can match the D500's speed and AF in low light (supposedly the D810 was not great in this regard), and I find the viewfinder in DX mode up to snuff, then it could really be something to consider for me ....... :brains:


Chosun :gh:
 
I've got a D500 and a Tamron 150-600mm. I'm growing more and more tempted by the 200-500mm in the hope that the tiny amount of movement which the Tamron (and the Sigma 50-500mm(s) I previously used) has between the body and the lens, and which is just enough to kill the autofocus - most often just when I really want/need it to work trouble-free, is something that would not occur as both camera and lens are from the same manufacturer. I know of others with the Tamron/Sigma lenses, and other Nikon bodies which have had the same issue. For that reason, I would be wary of going down the Tamron/Sigma route if I was starting again, but would be interested to know if it was an issue with the 200-500 and D500.

My wife uses the Sigma 150-600 Sport on her D810 and she loves it. The only problem is that it's HEAVY.

She previously used the Tamron but often complained of it's performance in certain bright light conditions which should have been quite good. She is extremely happy with the Sigma and unless you have the dosh to shell out for a prime lens, it's arguably the best choice?


A
 
I've used my Nikon D7100 and D500 with my Nikon 300mm f2.8 vrii, Nikon 600mm and Sigma 150-600 sport. I also use 1.4, 1.7 and 2.0 teleconverters with them all. My brother (a devout canon user) came to visit and used my gear .. he went home, sold his canon equipment and went Nikon .. he is a far better photographer than me and his words were along the lines of .. "should have done it sooner" ...
I too looked at the 200-500 but decided to got the Sigma 150-600 sport route and have not been disappointed. I know it's heavy but you do get used to it (or use a monopod). It's also weather sealed and is a beast. If you do go Sigma though .. get the dock and calibrate your lens for the best results .. I thought mine was ok but the difference after calibration was phenomenal ... or you can send it off to Sigma and have it calibrated by them ..
 
Sorry for my late response once again, I lost this thread :)
Last Friday I went to the dealership with 200-500 on my mind. As I was buying it the salesman asked if I had considered Sigma Sports and said it was sharper than the Nikkor. So we decided to test both on a D500 body. I couldn't shoot any pics as there were no full batteries in the camera but I held and played with them for a while. I actually wanted to rent both to test each of them but they didn't allow that, however they did allow for an exchange within a week if I didn't like my lens.
Long story short I walked out with the 200-500 :) Both seemes quite heavy after my Canon prime 400mm but Sigma was still noticeably heavier. Also it was much longer on the long end and the center of gravity shifted toward the end of the lens making it even tougher to carry.
I am overall quite happy with the 200-500. The sharpness is no worse than 400mm 5.6 and AF tracking is well either. One problem is that it is a bit slow, at least compared to the 400mm, when focusing from infinity to a closer subject or vice versa. But I don't think I will do that action a lot while photographing birds :)
I found it adequate for BIF too. The longer end of 500mm makes it a bit challenging to find the bird in your viewfinder but once you get the bird the tracking is very good even through leaves and branches.

Anyways, I'm quite happy with the lens. The D500 is just a killer too!
 
Kuzey, good stuff! :t:

Let us know how it goes. What's the focus limiting range on the 200-500? Does this help? And how does the AF track during a burst of a second or two at full whack? Any slowing?

How do you find the handling balance fully extended?

And could you do some shooting in 1.3x crop mode, and also the cropped video? Do you have a 1.4xTC to try in concert? (ie. @f8)?

I Would be interested in how you find your setup ....... :cat:



Chosun :gh:
 
I am overall quite happy with the 200-500. The sharpness is no worse than 400mm 5.6 and AF tracking is well either. One problem is that it is a bit slow, at least compared to the 400mm, when focusing from infinity to a closer subject or vice versa. But I don't think I will do that action a lot while photographing birds :)
I found it adequate for BIF too. The longer end of 500mm makes it a bit challenging to find the bird in your viewfinder but once you get the bird the tracking is very good even through leaves and branches.

Anyways, I'm quite happy with the lens. The D500 is just a killer too!

Focus limiter set to infinity-6m will probably help you a bit, if possible, the limit can be annoying in some cases of course.

The close focus distance is 2.2 meters for the 200-500mm compared to the canon 400mm that is more like 3.5 m so the possible range for hunting is longer...
 
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