For the Birds 600 AF-S AF-SII or AF-I

[raymond_burner]

I shoot songbirds, mostly from a blind. I previously had a 500 f4P,

which I almost always used with an extension tube and/or converter,

but sold it to go to a 600 and autofocus. Here's the question:

Knowing that Nikon has never come up with an autofocus extension

tube, would it be a great advantage to have the newest 600 AFS II

which focuses a couple of feet closer than the original AFS and the

AFI. I'm after frame filling shots of small birds. I've heard people

say that the Kenko tubes will work with these lenses, but my Kenko

tube causes a 300 AFS lens to hunt all over the place. Of course, if

money was not a problem, I would go right for the 600 AFSII (it's

lighter, focuses closer), but I can probably pick up an AF-I (does it

focus as fast?)for a couple of thousand less. Look into the future

and tell me. Will I be happy with the AF-I?

[b. edward sandifer]

Hi Raymond, I think it's a crime that Nikon does not make an

autofocus extension tube. One of my biggest disappointments

with Nikon. Anyways.... I own the 600/4 AF-S and the 300/2.8 AF-I

lenses. There is no appreciable difference in the focus speed

between the two. The AF-I lens is a bit slower to manually 'tweak'

the focus as there is a small degree of slack or takeup in the

manual focus ring before focus begins to be changed. On the

AF-S lens it's immediate. The AF-I lenses have great reputations

regarding sharpness and, interestingly enough, I did read

somewhere that the AF-I focus motor was more expensive for

Nikon to make than the AF-S. I don't shoot lots of very small

birds, but what I've experienced so far points out how important

close focus is. Is a two foot difference worth $1000 per foot? I

think that even then you would probably still use a tube behind

the lens. Have the prices on used original type 600/4 AF-S

lenses come down a bit? When I shoot small birds I use the 600

+ 1.4 tele + Kenko tube and manually focus (quietly cursing at

Nikon management under my breath).

[rick_falck]

FYI, the extension tubes do not change the minimum focusing distance. So if you were to use one of the Nikon TC-14E II you could get more of the bird from the same distance.

[ShunCheung]

Rick, could you clarify what you wrote? It sounds like you are suggesting that the TC-14E II is an "extension tube" that doesn't change the minimum focus distance, or I misunderstand what you wrote.

 

I agree that Nikon merely made small incremental changes when they went from AF-I to AF-S to AF-S II. If money isn't a concern, obviously you should get the latest and greatest. Otherwise, if you can get an excellent deal from an older AF-I, that may be a good alternative. But nobody else can tell you whether you'll be happy with either choice.

[Two23]

I think there is some confusion here. An extension tube is simple a hollow metal tube with no glass in it. Think of it as a spacer that goes between the lens and camera. I think Nikon designates their's with the "PK" prefix. I have a set of Vivitars (12mm, 24mm, 36mm as I recall) for my Nikon but mostly use the Bronica 28mm tube as that's the system I shoot most. They most definitely DO change the point of focus by reducing the minimum focus distance but making inifinity focus impossible. This not only helps you to be able to focus much more closely, but also has the effect of making the subject appear larger in the frame. Because of this extension tubes are usually thought of as macro gear. Ext. tubes will eat up some light, but a TTL camera meter adjusts for it. They don't normally eat up as much as a stop; more like a quarter stop for the shorter ones.

 

OTOH, a teleconverter is a metal tube that goes between the camera and lens that DOES contain glass elements. Common types are the 1.4X and the 2X. Nikon doesn't make a non-"S" autofocus TC but the excellent Tamron SP/Kenko Pro series do AF, and are APO design. They are both the same product BTW. Even though they insert a tube between lens and body, they do not affect the minimum focus distance. They do increase the magnification of the lens of course. They also take one or two stops of light depending on strength, and again the TTL meter on the camera adjusts for this. If you meterby hand they need to be taken into account. I've heard of bird photographers using an extension tube and a TC at the same time because of the different properties of each.

 

 

Kent in SD

[birdsofearth]

Just a note. You can force Nikon PK-11A extention tube to focus to infinity by stacking two Nikon TC's. You put this PK-11A tube between Nikon TC-14b and TC-301 and this setup will let you focus to infinity.

[Brian P Bower CamraScapes]

If you really need a Nikon AF extension tube, there is one expensive option that has already been done. Get yourself a TC14E or TC20E AF tele-converter and remove the glass elements and the metal that supported them. You must be careful not to damage the electronic connectors or the wires between them. Keep an eye out for any damaged converters for this modification or buy gray market.

[ShunCheung]

If an AF extension tube is something a lot of people need, they (we) should provide some feedback to Nikon. Apparently their focus is on digital cameras, especially those Coolpixes, in these days, as they should focus on the hot sector of the market where they can make a profit. But if there is enough demand, Nikon will listen although frequently very slowly. They finally produced a 80-200mm/f2.8 with tripod collar and an AF-S 300mm/f4 after several years of user complaints.

 

Otherwise, we are talking about something with no optics. It is not that difficult for third parties to provide some hollow metal tubes with some electronic contacts.

[alain hogue]

Hi,

 

Brian B. Bower has suggested to take a TC14E or TC20E AF tele-converter and remove the glass elements and the metal that supported them. I did this, but it dosn't work ! I took a cheap TC and I removed the glass element. Then I use the TC with a Sigma 400mm f5,6. All the photo came out with dark corners, like if I took the pictures through a tube. Since it is impossible to remove the metal that supported the glass element because it is in a one block contruction, the overall diameter of the modified TC is just to narrow.

 

Alain Hogue

 

photo@oiseaux.ca