Yes, a pity since they are a leader in this area. But it appears that Amazon still carries Thousand Oaks Optical SolarLite film for those interested in assembling their own filter and the Daystar Filters mentioned by others uses TOO SolarLite. Those who still need a filter should act soon.

Exactly what I was going to say, but one correction to clarify your comment: I think you meant "shutter speed of 1/focal length...". The rest of your comment follows naturally.

Correct -- midnight typo -- thanks for the catch!

It sounds like you were in AF-S and set to focus priority; you needed to be in AF-C with release priority. Using AF-S with focus priority will give you the results that you describe: AF-S locks focus onto the point where your subject is at the moment the shutter-release button is half-depressed; fast moving jets will move out of focus before you can release the shutter. In release priority, if the camera thinks the shot is out of focus, it will not allow the shutter to release. Hence, half the time the shutter won't release and when it does you get a blurred shot. Switch to AF-C and make sure it is on release priority -- that will have the camera continuously re-focus on your subject and allow you to take shots even if the camera thinks it is out of focus.

To change between AF-S to AF-C on the D500, push in the focus control button (located on the front by the lens, its on the A - M lever) and then rotate the main command dial by your right thumb. Also, go to the Menu > Custom Settings > A1 and make sure AF-C is in release priority (AF-S is on A2 and that can be focus priority). Then just remember AF-S for stationary shots, AF-C for moving objects.

To really master the Nikon focus system (with considerable info on the D500), try Steve Perry's book: https://backcountrygallery.com/secrets-nikon-autofocus-system/

Hope that helps!

I believe so, it's true for all my Nikon DX bodies as well as the Nikon P900 and my older Olympus bridge camera. Since the focal length is a technical specification, I'd be surprised to see anything other than the actual focal length reported in the EXIF. It would be a nice feature to have the "FF effective" focal length listed somewhere in the EXIF for high crop factor cameras, but I'm not aware of any that have that. Perhaps somebody else knows of one?

If you like music, check out who's playing at Red Rocks in Morrison -- great acoustics and a gorgeous venue, especially with an evening concert with a setting sun.

It's a fun camera, and the technology is amazing. Your photo provides a good example: you're at 357mm, or 2000mm FF equivalent, at 1/50s (through glass) and you got a good, clear shot. By rule of thumb, your shutter speed should have been 1/2000s but the vibration control on this camera is just stunning. It won't replace my DSLRs but when I need a LOT of reach, it's my go-to camera.

Shooting the moon gets old and you'll need to figure out what interests you. If you're shooting w/ Auto (green), check out the Scene Mode and all the different shooting styles -- by selecting the right one you should get better results than Auto. For critters and birds, try Bird Watching mode.

I have not used the technique in either program but I think this Affinity calls this Cloning -- here is a video on how it works in Affinity. Obviously, you would have the same person in different positions in the scene, but same concept.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oyVub5LFns

Nik Collection is now fully supported as well.

I recommend you go to the Nikon website and download their free Photo Browser (ViewNX-i) and free Raw Processor (NX Capture-D) along with their manuals. It's not a full photo editor but has some basic global editing (e.g., Levels, Curves, Sharpening, etc) that work for post-conversion files like JPGs. As a RAW converter, I like the way it handles my NEF files better than 3rd party software and the D-Lighting feature is a surprisingly powerful tool. It's free and a good place to start. Hope that helps!