imagemeister wrote:
So, what are the options ? ...... 1. getting closer. 2. bigger heavier more expensive lens. 3. using a camera with high pixel density to facilitate cropping without loosing pixels. 4. using a tele-converter/extender - loosing some definition and LIGHT - some can be expensive (in my world) and there is always the compatibility issues - and the trouble of mounting and dismounting to use and the added weight and mass. 5. Crop and use pixel enlargement - either in camera ( CIZ - simple, quick and EASY) or in post (buy more software and spend time).
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So, what are the options ? ...... 1. getting close... (
show quote)
Well, in your world your 5 options make sense.
But in response to your 5 options . . .
1. & 2. Getting closer with a sharp, long lens is my first priority. I always get the best results that way, and I wouldn't have it any other way but sometimes I can't.
3. When shooting birds, particularly small ones, cropping is almost always part of the workflow. Cropping always involves losing pixels, but a full frame camera with at least 36 mp or higher will record the fine detail that can hold up under considerable cropping.
Heavily cropped Carolina Wren shot with a Sigma Sport:
_DSC3215-NIKON D810-3007990-(28-04-19)-Edit by
Gene Lugo, on Flickr
Heavily cropped Painted Bunting, 600mm F4 at minimum focus distance:
_DSC7179 by
Gene Lugo, on Flickr
4. Teleconverters - with certain lenses, when it is physically impossible to get close enough the combination is a great Plan B choice, especially if you use primes or zooms that are top-shelf-sharp to begin with. Putting a TC on a slow (F5.6 or slower) lens can work, like in the case of the Canon 100-400 II without giving away much image quality. In fact, the Canon 100-400 is as sharp or sharper with the 1.4TC than the 200-500 Nikkor, and the first round of 150-600s from Tamron and Sigma.
Heavily cropped nesting Herons with a D800 and 600mm+1.4X - distance was about 500 meters.
_DSC2409-Edit-2 by
Gene Lugo, on Flickr
Slightly cropped Immature Night Heron, D300, 600mmF4 and 1.4X TC
_DSC6630-Edit-Edit by
Gene Lugo, on Flickr
In general, for depth of field considerations, I am rarely impacted by the loss of one stop of light, and in most cases I am shooting at F7.1 or small actual aperture anyway. With an F2.8 300mm there is still a lot of room, even with the 2X TC, to still close the lens down one stop. A good camera with lots of pixels together with shooting raw and some simple recipes for noise, contrast and sharpening make child's play to get image quality that exceeds jpegs shot with CIZ. But you wouldn't have any first-hand experience with that.
5. Up-rezzing, or what you refer to as "pixel enlargement" is a last choice for many subjects that I shoot since it NEVER replaces fine detail not in the original capture - whether it is done in camera or with resizing software. Resizing in this manner provides a slight improvement over simple software resizing as is found in most editing applications (not dedicated apps like ON1 Resize). It works best when looking at larger prints or projected images, but for up close scrutiny, like an 8x12 print, resizing/interpolating doesn't hold up. "Pixel enlargement" is misleading - these applications do not change the size of any pixels, they just stretch the dimensions by first adding space between the original pixels, then just adding more pixels in the spaces, looking at adjacent ones and "predicting" what "should" be there. This is where a resized image starts to fall apart for me. Sometimes the added pixels just look awful, in the form of artifacts. You are not likely to see the artifacts or fine details or texture when you are looking at a 24x36 image or bigger - no one's eyes can see the small stuff - but up close - eww!
And FWIW, it is nearly impossible to do an image quality comparison between CIZ and TCs - using a live subject. Too many variables. So it is suffice to shoot a sign, preferably with some texture - which removes most of the variables - subject movement, changes in subject distance to camera, etc. If you have 2 bodies and two lenses with radio triggers firing both cameras simultaneously, maybe. But still, achieving focus at the same time with both cameras would be challenging.
As you can tell, I am neither a fan of CIZ NOR On1 Resize (and otherapps like it) - because of the quality loss and addition of artifacts. Trust me, if I could get an improvement with resizing, it would have become an integral part of my workflow long ago, when it was an independent product known as Genuine Fractals. It's good for what it does, but it does not replace good lenses and high mp cameras - ever.