KyleE

<p>I haven't used the Tamron but I absolutely love the Nikon 200-500mm paired with the D500. The AF speed can be slow at times and sometimes it focus hunts when you try to focus on a small object in front of a busy background however I take a lot of photos of humming birds both perched and in flight.<br> My setup works very well for that type of photography even with the focus hunting (which is a minor issue that only occasionally happens) and the focus speed which despite being on the slower side compared to other lens/camera combos is fast enough for me to get photos of the birds in flight.</p>

<p>I wish the photo.net forums had an easier way to reply to someones comment or like a comment. Shun though your post is off topic I appreciate the humor and I personally do think it is relevant. </p> <p>I know that I can get the same photos with a different camera than I do but I chose the camera I have because not only does it help me get the photographs I want but it is FUN to use. I enjoy holding it in my hands. I like how the controls are. Could I adapt and use a cheap camera and still get great photos? Sure. I just don't think I would be as motivated to go out and take photos because I wouldn't enjoy my camera as much. Though maybe there is a cheap camera out there that I would enjoy just as much. </p>

<p>I am in California and my work has a very large garden in front of my office area. Last year there were humming birds out all the time and the garden was full of them. I could sit in the garden and photograph humming birds all day long. </p> <p>This year we have a lot of flowers blooming in the garden but very few humming birds. Now I am lucky if I see 1 or 2 humming birds in the garden.</p>

<p>I live in the Monterey Bay Area and my favorites are Fast Raft and Monterey Bay Whale Watch.<br> <br /> http://fastraft.com/ little bit more expensive but it is a more close to the water safari type tour with less people in each boat. They are also very good with photographers. Their main captain Kate is a good photographer herself as well as a great naturalist.</p> <p>If you want something a little bit less expensive on a larger boat go with Monterey Bay Whale Watch. I work with their main photographer regularly and they do great tours. http://www.gowhales.com/ <br /> I took my wife out on one of their tours for our anniversary and it was the afternoon tour and we got to watch the sunset out on the water. It was really great. They also have a very knowledgable naturalist on board and a skilled captain.</p> <p>Word to the wise if you visit that area please make sure you pull over to let faster traffic go by you and if you pull over pull all the way off the road. We have a lot of accidents happen because of poor driving and parking habits from visitors. Also if you go down the coast there are not many bathrooms so make sure you go when you can and not on the side of the road that is becoming a major issue in the area as well.</p>

<p>Well I finally took the plunge and ordered this lens. I debated for a very long time and decided that the 70-200mm f4 plus this lens would make a nice round kit for me to use. I will be using this lens for wildlife photography. </p> <p>It is on back order currently (presumably due to demand and to fix the firmware issue before sending more out into the world) but as soon as I get it I hopefully will post some images here.</p>

<p>Kent,</p> <p>I totally agree with your assessment. I am less of a traveler since I have a three year old son and more of a wildlife guy living in an area that lends itself to that so the extra reach of the new lens would be nice.</p>

<p>I am still on the fence between the 80-400mm AF-S the sigma 150-600mm sport and this new lens. However I am starting to lean more and more towards the new nikon lens as details and user accounts come out. It is sharp and would be a great addition for me for wildlife photos. </p> <p>Thank you everyone for sharing all of your experiences with this lens.</p>

<p>I have seen some compare this lens to the Tamron 150-500mm and obviously the Nikon 80-400mm but does anyone here own the Sigma 150-600mm Sport that also purchased this lens? I would be curious to see a comparison between those. <br> Though in general it has been very difficult for me to find any concrete reviews on the Sigma 150-600mm Sport from a source that I recognize.</p>

<p>I am really anticipating this lens. I have not ordered one yet as I want to see how it stacks up against the 80-400mm and the Sigma 150-600mm though I have not seen very many reviews about the sigma 150-600 C or S. </p> <p>I am in need of a new telephoto and my three options right now are the Sigma 150-600 Sport, Nikon 80-400mm, and the new Nikon 200-500mm.</p>

<p>I am very intrigued by the 200-500mm myself. Though it does feel like a too good to be true scenario. Right now I am using a 55-300mm AF-S for wildlife and I was going to upgrade to the sigma 150-600mm Sport though I was reluctant as that would leave me with no "walkaround" zoom lens. For not too much more than the 150-600mm Sigma Sport costs I can pick up the 70-200mm f4 Nikon and the 200-500mm f5.6 Nikon. That might be a good kit to cover my basis. I will go with the latter if the 200-500mm Nikon stacks up well against the 150-600 Sport Sigma which I have heard good things about.</p> <p>Currently shooting on a D7000. </p>

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<p>I recently acquired a mindshift pro and I absolutely love it. I haven't put it through its paces for hiking yet but for regular traveling I have gone on several weekend road trips and I fit a D7000 body, 35mm prime, 55-300mm zoom, 10-24mm sigma and 105 macro in the belt pack, a gorilla pod tripod on the back, flash bracket in the side pocket, batteries, memory cards and charger in the top pocket, and other accessories. <br /><br />In addition to that I was also able to fit 4 days worth of clothes in the top part of the back pack. It is extremely well made and very comfortable to wear. Not only that but you can get a padded insert for the top part of the backpack so if you need to cary more gear you can. <br /><br />The belt pack is detachable so for quick day trips you can grab it and go if you don't want to bring the whole backpack with you. It is a very large backpack though. I believe it is made by the same people who design and make the Thinktank bags. <br /><br />The quality is superb. You can fit a bigger tripod on the back if you want and it has plenty of loops to attach more stuff to the outside if you want. It also doesn't scream camera bag. Most of my family and friends who have seen it have no idea it has camera gear in it.<br> My favorite thing about it is that I don't have to use it as a full backpack if I don't want. I can fit a lot of photo gear in the bottom belt pack and I can take out the padded insert on the top and use the top for hiking gear or food.</p> <p>The one I have:<br> http://www.mindshiftgear.com/products/rotation180-professional </p> <p>Their smaller bag:<br> http://www.mindshiftgear.com/products/rotation180-panorama</p>