Dragonophile wrote:
Sony & Nikon & Canon put out 600mm prime lenses in the $13,000 range. I can get a Fujifilm or Tamron or Sigma 150-600 mm lens for $2000 or less. I would love to see the same distant object taken at 600mm with one of the primes and one of the lesser telephotos at differing levels of cropping to see the difference in detail/sharpness. Any website show this or does someone here have such photos? I am not expecting a dramatic difference as I understand you pay a high premium for incremental improvements generally. I am not planning on any $13K purchase (unless I win Mega Millions lottery), but just curious.
Sony & Nikon & Canon put out 600mm prime l... (
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YOU will not see that much difference. For example, I shoot with both the Sony 200-600 and 600 f4. If I take the same bird with both lenses wide open the back ground on the 600 f4 will be more out of focus than with the 200-600. Now the 600 will focus a nano second faster but in most cases YOU will not notice the difference for the price.
The 600 will acquire focus nano seconds faster than the 200-600, YOU will not notice a difference for the price.
In early morning light the 600 will lock on nano seconds before the 200-600, YOU will not notice the difference for the price.
If both images are put into post processing and enlarged 10 times, the 600 will hold the image better than the 200-600, but with Topaz Denoise and Sharpen YOU may not notice the difference for the price.
If you have the money for the 600, I say go ahead and buy it, as a former professional photographer, I like the results I get with the 600 over the 200-600.
The 600 does not focus as close as the 200-600, if a bird is close I might be out of luck with the 600. So I usually carry the Sony 70-200 for closer birds. My 70-200 is strapped to my waist with a Spider holster.
Now the new Nikon 180-600 will focus very close, I have ordered it through Nikon Professional Services, I have not tested it but I will compare results against my Sony 600.
For the price I like Sony, Nikon, and Canon glass for my tele zooms, I generally stay away from third party glass from Tamron and Sigma, for the price point there is a difference in price that favors the quality and manufacturing process of Sony, Nikon and Canon over third party glass.
So, bottom line, if I were you I would buy the Fuji 100-400, the price point is excellent and it is lighter than most 600 primes. I have seen the results with the Fuji 100-400.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1210897-REG/fujifilm_16501109_xf_100_400mm_f_4_5_5_6_r.htmlBut I will stick with my full frame camera's sensor over the 4/3 sensor. Personal choice here.