I can die happy now Geoff. This is absolutely the best video regarding Nikon teleconverters on UA-cam. It answers all the questions and nuances that people may have/think of. I am satisfied END to END and will be now able to sleep well not asking myself questions because ALL OF THEM were answered. Thank you Geoff! Absolute blast! All the best to you and your family. Subscribing you now! Oh... I've been a subscriber for a long time now :D
This is a superb overview, Geoff! The best on UA-cam, even two years after publication. I’ve just ordered a 300 2.8 to go on my Z7 and/or my D500, and I’m looking at teleconverters for the odd Airshow. Thanks so much for the fantastic video! Really appreciate the time and effort put into this, and hope parenthood is treating you well!
And 9 months later, I am soo happy with my 500pf on my Z6, I went to deer's slab yesterday, in forest at 9am with rain and poor light conditions, not a problem, great pictures. I now will add a 1.4 TC, thanks again for the video again Geoff!
Millions of parents out there & they haven't discovered your channel yet Geoff. I enjoyed it to the last. I thought I had bought all the equipment I needed. Nice to see you still making great video.
Hi Geoff. Really interesting comparrisons & a very interesting topic👍. I own both lenses and the 1.4ii converter. As you say both these lenses need to be stabilised especially when using the TC”s - i run both my lenses on a d500 and find the images and reach are producing very satisfactory images. I also sometimes use the Tamron 150 -600mm g2 lens with a Tamron x2 tc which is also giving some great results considering the vaiables at play.
Thanks very much, glad you found it interesting :) I feel that a lot of the bad rep that seems to surround teleconverters comes from users /not/ 'considering the variables at play' and hoping for some kind of magic!!
Excellent in depth review Geoff. I've just tested a 1.4x Nikon converter with my 200-500mm Nikon zoom and was pleasantly surprised by the image quality.
Oh thank you so much for this vid I had the Kenko x2 tele on a D5600 then used it on my D610 and I was getting the same issue with auto focus, I ended up just manually focusing to get a ok image sharpness. How you explained it made perfect sense to me so the Kenko is not faulty or rubbish it's just the nature of the beast. The cropping use said made perfect sense and kind of obvious when you think about it when you crop to get closer to the subject the cropped subject will always have less data contained in it. I love all your nature vlogs and every so often when you get all technical I find it easy to understand and it's an eye opener.
What a brilliant video. All the tests were done a scientific manner and it answered my questions on whether I would be better off to get a Z6 + 1.4 teleconverter or a Z7 and crop the images.
Amazing video! This is exactly the kind of stuff I'm always wondering about. I have another video idea for you since you have all the equipment you need for it: The 300mm f2.8 on a DX body (or z7 in crop mode) vs the 500mm f4 (or PF in your case) on an FX body. I'm mostly interested in the differences in bokeh quality and sharpness.
@@sinetwo Still waiting for a video! I'm currently using something totally different; a Lumix g9 (m4/3) and Lieca 200mm 2.8. It gives me a similar total focal length to the Nikon setups, with excellent sharpness. Bokeh is likely a little busier, and continuous autofocus is likely worse, but I do enjoy using it. Cost is lower, and weight is much less.
Hi Geoff - Very good review. Your methodology was sound and conclusions accurate. It was very well balanced and considered the tradeoffs using a teleconverter. Thanks for the time and effort to put together this review.
Hi, Geoff! I'm talking from Brazil. And I have to say that you did a very nice content, man! Congratulations. You help me a lot and for sure all the photography community. So, I was really interested to know how the TCs works with the FTZ converters. I have for now a Nikon Z7II. And a 70-200mm f/2.8 AF-S ED VR. So, I use the FTZ II tô plug it. Natively I can use the DX format to get a 300mm vision. But it's not enough to me, because I photograph a lot outdoor subjects, like sports, landscapes and photojournalism. And watching your video I understood more abou the quality of the files. And also about the lost of light when you plug the TC. I am very interested to get a Nikon Z TC 2.0x. Thanks for you video!
Thanks :) Glad you like the videos! First off, the Z-teleconverters DO NOT work with the FTZ adapter, so if you want to do this with an f-mount lens you'll need an f-mount teleconverter, and they work absolutely fine with the FTZ adapter as long as the lens is compatible (your 70-200mm should be fine). Be aware though that the f-mount 2x TC does drop the image quality a little more than the newer Z-mount one. Depending on what you shoot, and assuming you're not in a position to upgrade to the Z 70-200mm or 100-400mm, you might do well with a used AF-S 80-400mm VR lens, which would probably be chedaper or similar to a Z TC-2.0x teleconverter...
Great in depth test and review Geoff. Although I am not a Nikon user I often have the same dilemma as to the crop vs 1.4x converter. You have inspired me to go out and do some more tests. Cheers Keith
Very interesting video Geoff, i have found much the same result with my Fuji xt3 and 100/4400 lens even with a non prime lens, thanks for sharing and all the best for 2021
Thanks! Interesting - the XT3 seems to be really good from what I've heard.. also with adapted non-Fuji lenses as well! All the best for 2021 to you too :)
I think 300 f2.8 is more versatile. It can be used from 2.8 to 5.6 with a teleconverter. Autofocus works very wel. In my opinion, TC 1.4 and 1.7 are working great. However, for bird photography, you will need longer primes, which are quite expensive.
Hi Georg, Yes, I completely agree that the 300mm f/2.8 is really versatile! I actually sold mine because I had the opportunity for a great deal on a similar era 400mm f/2.8G VR and honestly, while I love the image quality of the 400, I really miss that 300mm! I suspect the AF findings were at least partly due to the Z7 being quite slow with F-mount lenses - the 400mm is considerably faster on the Z9 even with teleconverters, and I suspect the 300mm would have been too... Now of course for the Z-mount, if you want a really long yet light lens, there is an 800mm f/6.3 coming..!
I have a 1.4 but don't use it all that often because of the loss of light buuuuuut I may just use it to try to capture my favorite animal, the owl. Great video brother 👍
This cleared up exactly what I was trying to find out before buying a tc. Also using a z6 here so very glad to hear it doesn't affect AF, very cool. Just bought a used 300mm f4 nikkor lens and want to extend it. Tc's must be the best option for this when not being a millionaire :) Also a way to save money is to get a sigma tc instead I think. Someone said that what the tc is magnifying is more important than what brand you use or (to some extend) the quality of the tc itself. Thanks again
By the way have you tried using the dx image area on your z7. It will give you a 1.5 crop and 20 mp. Even though I get like 11 mp on the z6 it’s still not bad
Glad you found the video useful :) Re. the Sigma teleconverters, be careful that they are compatible - using the same brand is always recommended as sometimes the ones from different companies won't even mount. Actually the reason I went for the Z7 over the Z6 in the first place was so that the crop mode would be similar to the D500 which I'd used for the previous few years. I do find the crop mode very nice, especially in mirrorless where the viewfinder changes to match. However, I really onyl use it in video these days and prefer to crop in post since I get more framing flexibility that way
@@GeoffCooper Cheers :) Oh boy did I just learn what you just said about sigma converters haha. Anyway a Nikon is on the way so yeah, can confirm that - Be careful. Yes it definitely must be useful on the z7, such great cameras I think. what do you recon the max focal length would be shooting handheld with only the built in ibis and no vr in the lens? :) maybe i'm about to find out when my 300 becomes a 600. expect to use tripod a lot more for some things.
Yeah, if I remember correctly the only ‘universal’ one is the Kenko DG 1.4x, and it’s not even close to the optical performance of the Nikon teleconverters.. best to stick with the Nikon ones - I got mine in decent condition for reasonable money by haunting eBay for a few weeks... Re. Focal lengths without lens VR - I’ve definitely got good handheld images at 500mm with the VR turned off, but he keeper rate was lower and of course it depends on subject distance and shutter speed etc.
Hi, Geoff, love your approach to gear testing and your wildlife videos. You bring the essence of wildlife photography home and the real joy and challenges of being out in the wild and observing birds and mammals. I am watching from Canada in the foothills of the Rockies and totally connect with the thrill and issues of being out in nature. My current gear is the D500 and 500PF. Please review the Nikon Z7 ii as a bird/wildlife camera as soon as possible.I think that the switch to mirrorless would offer much, my question to you, is this the right time to switch to the Z7 ii?.
Thanks very much Stephen - glad you're enjoying the channel :) I sometimes wish my ownership of the D500 had overlapped with having the 500mm PF - it must be a fantastic combination! I would love to review the Z7 II and after a few months when the price drops a bit or used copies start to become available I suspect I'll be very tempted to get one to try out against my current Z7...
@@GeoffCooper Looking forward to it. If you ever get to Calgary in Alberta. Let me know and I'll try to point you in the right direction for our mammals and birds. Keep making great videos and look forward to the Z7 ii review.
@@stephenboucher4121 thanks - in some currently distant-seeming non-Covid time I might actually take you up on that since my partner's parents actually live in Calgary and we are planning to visit at some point!!
The 300mm is a fantastic lens but with a TC is going to be softened down to the 500mm PF sharpness levels. The 300mm and 500mm PF lenses are great to carry around but lack high end optical performance. I've found that focus on my long glass is already about half as fast on my Z cameras compared to my D850 cameras. Until now I haven't had the will to try teleconverters on my Z cameras...
I have the 300 and the 500pf... this is my second 300... the first one was soft... but this one is very sharp... and the 500pf is not soft at all... may be you have a soft copy... (tried on D850, Z6 and Z7ii)...I also have the new 1.4... very good, but the 500 is more sharp than the 300 + tc1.4
Hi Roy, I've found both the 300mm f/2.8 and the 500mm PF to be very sharp, but I can imagine the 300 to be sharper. That said, the reach and the portability count for a lot, and maybe as Skye PRF said, you have a softer lens / it needs calibrated? For the AF speed, I accept it's faster on a DSLR, but still think the advantages if mirrorless override that for me... though I certainly hope future iterations are quicker!
If you’re shooting aperture priority and adjusting shutter speed to keep your base iso on a tripod, that works with still subjects but don’t think it’s what most people do in the field. It’s good for testing or landscape but not for most wildlife. Point is if you’re exploring the cropping vs TC question, it’s also good to test the 1.4x with doubling the iso and the 2x with quadrupling the iso. I’m still guessing the edge would go to the TC
Yeah, and I was, I hope, clear about the tests not being that realistic... I agree those 'real shutterspeed' tests would be pretty interesting and will probably have a try at some point - like you, I suspect the TC will still have the edge but it may be more marginal.
Thanks :) Yes, the Z9, TC14e III and 500mm PF work very well together. The AF is nearly as fast as native Z-mount lenses and the image quality is great!
Hello Geoff. I really like the detailed reviews and comparisons you do. I get the inpression you sold your 200-500 but I am wondering if you could or have already done a direct comparion with the 500 PF and the 200-500 with and without the 1.4TC. I am trying to find out if Its worth upgrading to the 500PF from the 200-500 other than the weight. We will ignore the zoom capabilites for now.......since most shots are at 500mm anyways. Your response would be a big help.....There other comparisons on youtube but I think your detailed approach is the best and it seems more sincere. Thanks for your time.
Hello, thanks very much - glad you like the videos! I did sell the 200-500mm soon after getting the 500 PF so I can't do that comparison as a video unfortunately.. I did use the 1.4x on the 200-500mm previously and it worked reasonably well. Steve Hedges has a recent video where he find that too: ua-cam.com/video/M_3QGJtPEoM/v-deo.html ... I have a feeling from my own usage that it works better on the 500 PF because the AF is faster and the lens is sharper. Regarding the 500 PF, it's definitely better than the 200-500mm optically, but maybe not ~350% better as it would need to be for the price difference! The real advantage is the portability and how easy it is to use handheld - it's much better balanced than the 200-500 at 500mm, it focusses faster, and I've found it's been possible to get more shots in more situations since I've had it This video by Rob Blight is interesting as a comparison: ua-cam.com/video/nvafcnaKk_o/v-deo.html
Cool video, very informative. May I ask you, which replacement tripod foot do you use on the 300mm 2.8? How do you mount the Peak Design anchor on it and also, what is the brand of the tripod you used? Thank you. Have a nice time.
Thanks Stefan, glad you enjoyed it :) I used a Kirk LP-47 replacement foot on the 300mm f/2.8 lens. The Peak anchors were not attached to the foot but instead were directly on the lens - it had strap loops built in. On my 500mm f/5.6 PF lens, which has no strap attachments, I have drilled holes into the replacement lens foot from Hejnar Photo for the anchors to fit into. I've done the same on my 70-200mm too. The tripod I use is a Gitzo GT3543LS with either a Really Right Stuff BH-55 ballhead or a Gitzo GHFG1 Fluid Gimbal, depending on what I am doing. Hope all that helps - if you're interested you can find a full kit list at www.tapiopix.com and I try to keep that fairly up-to date :)
That was an interesting roundup, thanks. Should you ever use the native Z lenses with the native teleconverters, I'd be interested in hearing your toughts.
Great in depht review, Geoff 😊 And it really sums up my experience with the same two lenses. Now I’m looking forward to see how the 500/4 fl works with teleconverters, seems that the 2x converter works surprisingly well from the limited testing I’ve been doing so far. Cheers!
Glad you found it useful? I sometimes use the DX mode because it can be easier placing the focus point in the enlarged view on the EVF, but usually I just stick to full frame and crop later because it gives me more framing flexability...
Thanks very much - glad you enjoyed it! It would really depend on your intended usage / subject, but for 500mm I would mostly recommend the 1.4x. In real-world usage anything longer is going to be really hard to use and incredibly prone to atmospheric distortions... Then again, if you have a specific use case for longer focal length, the TCs can all work pretty well.
@@GeoffCooper I have a Nikon d810 and a Nikon 500mm f4 p lens. To photograph birds, I shoot in the crop mode of the sensor and crop some of the photo in Photoshop so that it reaches 1000mm. But again, there is not much loss of quality. That's why I asked if it is really necessary to prepare TC? In some cases, cropping may be better than converter, especially in filming.
@@thecreatorshutter sure, with DSLR and depending on the camera, the way focussing is separate from the sensor might actually mean that cropping is better if you have enough resolution to do it. In filming the requirement for resolution is usually lower so then definitely cropping gets you a long way...
While using the Z7 II and FTZ/F mount lens. Is it suggested to use the F or Z teleconverters? Any additional benefits from using the Z teleconverter? Otherwise, I’m leaning towards the F mount teleconverter so that I can still use on my DSLR. Thanks in advance.
The new Z-mount teleconverters currently only work with the new Z 70-200mm lens, though more compatible lenses will become available in time. They cannot be used with the FTZ adapter, so if you want to use teleconverters on F-mount lenses with the Z cameras, you'll need to use F-mount converters.. This makes sense becuase the optics of the teleconverter are designed to be right behind the lens, not on the other side of an adapter.
Hi Geoff, I know it’s an old video but I thought I’d ask just incase! I’ve been using the d500 with the 300mm f2.8 (vr1) for a while, and have previously tried the 2x with very mixed results wide open (a bit of a necessity for me as like you I often shoot in murky British evenings). I’d like to add a teleconverter to the mix but would like a bit more reach than the 1.4 for some of the more sensitive waders, and the 1.7 in principal seems like the perfect balance but I’ve heard that there’s absolutely no benefit to it in terms of sharpness wide open over the 2x. Did you notice any difference wide open between the two? Thanks, love the video :)
Thanks very much, glad you liked the video :) I don't think there was really much difference in the image quality with the 1.7x vs the 2x TC on my 300mm. Obviously the 1.7x + 300mm wide open was faster, but the 2x gives more reach. If you have a 1.4x already then I would get a 2x to go with it, but I guess if you were going to only have one teleconverter and really wanted the extra reach then the 1.7x might be a good compromise..
Geott, what Teleconverter would you recommend for a Sigma 60-600? A Nikon or a Sigma. I’ve read that is better to use a teleconverter as the same brand as the lens. What is your opinion? Thanks!
I would always go for a teleconverter made by the manufacturer of the lens where that's possible - in this case the Sigma TC, though I have no idea how well the superzoom would perform with the TC or if it is even compatible..
merci pour ce bon test . Nikon D500 +Nikon AF-S Télé-convertisseur TC-17E II 1.7x + 500mm f/5.6E PF je vais tenter j'ai acheté un TC 1.7 d'occasion pour 190 € j'espère que cela va faire de belles photos
Hi Geoff, thanks for your work 🙂 question: I am also using Nikon z6 for wildlife field videos and vlogging. I find in some footage that very sharp zone of the image are weirdly clipping for example your woolen sweater in your video. I have the same behavior on videos of foliage, grass, etc in my case. I don't know if this is a Nikon encoding issue, i tred to test on several formats as flat, neutral, manual with no added sharpness. Did you note this ?
Thanks Nicolas :) I'm not sure I understand what you mean about the clipping - can you tell me where in the video there's a clear example and I'll have a look...
@@GeoffCooper hi Geoff ! I made my research and I found that the problem of (not clipping but blinking sorry for my English) was in fact a bad configuration of my tv which add too much of sharpness. So after set to 0, the problem disappeared, thanks technology 😂 anyway I love your videos keep going on best regards !
@@NicolasBlanc Ahaa, glad you got it sorted (and that it wasn't something wrong with the video)! Thanks very much - I've got plenty of ideas for 2021 so I hope you enjoy the next videos too :)
With the 300mm f2.8 and the x2 tc,, shorter end focal lengths (10-20 yards, 9-18 meters), you can get crisp images and low noise all day long. Anything further out, not so much. The images seem nicer with the d850, though I've gotten good results with the d500 too. Just have to fight more with the DX crop bodies when using the TC's. Strait on the 300mm f2.8, with no tc, the dx camera is pretty good. Still, the d850 full frame is hard to beat.
Need suggestions for TC 17 II vs TC 20 III for 70-200 FL on Z6 II (Primary) & D750 as current bodies. Need as affordable as possible & mobile solution for reaching barely in the range for capturing bird & wildlife occasionally. Even though I am photographer, I am also going to shoot video clips around 50% of the time taking full advantage of 4k 60 & DX crop:)
I would go for the 2x TC-20e III for the maximum reach, certainly on the Z6 II the extra half stop isn't going to make a lot of difference practically and I've found the 2x on the 70-200mm FL to be pretty good even at 400mm and f/5.6...
@@GeoffCooper thank you so much for quick response & suggestion. I am leaning more towards 1.7x because of almost 200$ equivalent price difference which is a lot in Indian economy & earning scale & better compatibility of 1.7x with any f/4 or f/5.6 telephoto lens if I buy any eventually. But I will keep your point in mind :)
I've not - it's been reported by others that the FTZ will not mount onto (or otherwise work with?) the Z-mount teleconverters, and the only lens that can work with them currently is the new S-Line 70-200mm f/2.8... It would be interesting if they did work, since they're supposedly 'lossless' in image quality, but it actually makes sense that they wouldn't work correctly with an adapter (ie FTZ) between them and a lens...
@@GeoffCooper I'm going to rent the new TC when I get a chance and give it a go..Nikon uses a 'foot' on the bottom of adapters (FTZ and the one for the J1) to keep some things from actually mounting. There is a switch where the FTZ attaches to the Z body and it may not be manually detented on the new TC...a piece of tape might just solve that....we'll see. Thanks for the response....sorry I didn't say in my first comment that I really like your videos!
I'm not sure how the incompatability manifests itself, and it could simply be at the software level, but I recall that Ricci says in his review that he tested the FTZ on the new Z- converters and found it unusable... Glad you like the videos :)
Yes, it's called AF Fine Tuning and is recommended for long glass with teleconverters with DSLRs, where there exists the possibility of miscalibration between the AF sensor and the image sensor... There are plenty of guides here on UA-cam that will show you how to do it. Having said that, the other thing to note is that a 1.7x TC on the 200-500mm will have a maximum aperture greater than f/8, which is the published limit for the DSLR AF system, so even calibrated, you might find it struggles in situations where the lighting isn't optimal.
Yes, they do, I have them, and they are by far the best teleconverters Nikon has ever had - I guess they can really take advantage of the bigger Z-mount for their optics..
Yes, I expect it’ll work fine. It won’t be as sharp as with a prime, and obviously it’ll be fairly slow after losing 1.5 stops, but on mirrorless that shouldn’t be a problem as long as the conditions allow…
@@GeoffCooper yes, I've been having a very difficult time choosing to go with an older 600mm AFS F4 II D or this 500mm f5.6 - some say it's very slow and I am an aviation photographer. I wanted the big telephoto lens but this seems nice. Not sure which to choose.
@@joeyalbergo it’s a hard choice for sure. Personally I find the 500mm PF is a touch slower at focussing compared to my older model 400mm f/2.8, but it’s really not much slower. The important point for me is the massive weight difference - the PF is so easy to hand hold and swing around after moving subjects. I like the big prime for situations where I am stopped and can set up a tripod and gimbal, but the preparation time before being able to shoot is way longer than with the PF. If I /had/ to choose one, I think it would be the PF…
Hi, I take birds photos and I recently bought the Nikon 500 pfs 5.6 Can I use the 1.4x Nikon teleconverter with ? Is the autofocus good with this teleconverter ? Thanks for your response
Hi Roland, the answer to your question really depends on the camera you’re using it with, but in general the optical quality with the 500mm PF and 1.4x teleconverter is really good. Of course you’ll be limited to f/8 so you’ll need the conditions to permit shooting at that aperture and, depending on the camera, the autofocus might be limited and you might also need to do some AF fine tuning to get the best results…
@@harrisonhallphotography I’ve used both the 1,4 ii and 1,4 iii and I think they both are really good. But I find that the colours and contrast in the images is a little better with the version iii. I would recomend buying the version iii.
I think Kjell has pretty much answered this but I'll add that the type III converters supposedly work better with the newest lenses compared to the older versions too...
Question about your technique when cropping and scaling, do you use smart object on PS when you scale up the cropped image, if you do not you will definitely lose sharpness with scaling, if you do then your argument stands right...
Yes, smart scaling in photoshop was exactly what I used for the comparison. Realistically unless the teleconverter is really bad, in a controlled test the optical setup will always win... the question is really whether the conditions allow you to use the teleconverted combination effectively enough in the field...
Excellent video but using somewhat dated technology. The Nikon Z7 ll offers faster AF speeds and when used with the 500mm PF and 2.0-TC provides exceptional results as seen in the work of Michelle Valberg, a Nikon Ambassador, who shoots birds handheld from her kayak.
Thanks - I think really that just highlights what I said in that the future of teleconverters with mirrorless is a bright one! I should say that at the point of recording this, there was no availability of the Z7 II to anyone /except/ Nikon Ambassadors ;), ans also, since the sensors are basically the same in the Z7 and Z7 II, the results here would have been unchanged...
nice video, BUT the native teleconvertor for the Z system is meant, and reviewed to be, a no-loss joint, ie, there is just as much sharpness with it, as compared to just the lens, aperture is lost, for a 1.4 x, 1 stop, etc.; however NO quality is lost, as well as the fact of the z series low light ISO performance, gives some of this iris loss back, brightening the image, and giving a higher shutter speed.
Thanks Andy - well, that's even better then and reinforces that teleconverters are going to be much more useful in the Z-system going forward.. (I already said they're good but having not had them to try, I couldn't say more)
@@GeoffCooper yes, and the fact that they are just as rare to buy as the 70-200 f 2.8 z lens they are ONLY compatible with( as of 2020 release of the converters),think only Nikon Ricci has had a reasonable enough time with them :-)
Indeed... perhaps by the time they release the suggested Z 400mm f/2.8 I'll have won the lottery and therefore be able to afford it and a set of Z teleconverters ;)
Canon DSLR s have autofocus at f11 at least ....in live view ,i suppose my nikons too. but i need glasses in live view my fantastic afs 300mm f2.8 DII perfect at 600 with dslrs doesn't AF on my z50 and z6 unfortunately for some reason ,so I'm more into Canon that has 3 very good 400mm cheep the 5.6 ,the 100 400 is2 and RF 100 400
The AF in Canon cameras live view has been far ahead of Nikon for many years.. So yeah, I guess with a Canon that could be a way to self-check the AF calibration.. I used to try and do video through the live view of Nikon DSLRs and for that I ended up using a loupe. I agree it's very sad that older Nikon 'big glass' doesn't really behave well with the Z cameras - not even the flagship Z9 came with a 'screwdriver' for AF with older lenses...
No, I thought that would have made the video too long so the 50m shots are not shown in the video but they're discussed - generally the story was similar, though there was more distortion due to air mass etc (as expected). However, the 300mm with the 1.7x and 2x suffered more than I might have expected at the longer range (I would need to do more tests though to make any real conclusion about that)...
In the case of the DX crop mode, that reduces the available pixels for later cropping or processing, so if you can get the settings to successfully do the magnification optically (ie use a teleconverter) you’ll have more detail to work with. In the field it can however often be simpler to just rely on post process cropping, especially on the Z7 where the resolution is higher. That said, I would tend to avoid using the DX mode for stills since I get more framing flexibility to do the crop afterwards if I stay in FX...
@@GeoffCooper I just bought a Z6ii, for budgetary reasons I chose that over a Z7, but I agree if I could've, I tend to crop landscapes and I've never attempted wildlife photos before, 70-200 f4 being my longest lens. But now I am very interested and I see Nikons S lens roadmap coming out with a 100-400, that sounds sweet! Thanks for the feedback! I'm very happy with my Z camera. It's brought a whole new inspiration to me over my old dslr
Thanks Glen :) Yeah, I think even then, if I have to choose it'd be the 500mm - just so easy to take everywhere! In Canon-land I think it would be an easier choice with their lightweight 400mm f/4 DO...
Tamron recently introduced a 100-500 F/4-6.7 lens for Sony mirrorless which looks good. I hope that it will be available for Nikon and Canon mirrorless someday. This lens may make the 300 2.8 lens obsolete for using with the 1.7x and 2x teleconverters. I will still be using my 300 F/2.8 for the theater though.
Yeah, I've seen that - quite interesting, and of course there are also rumors that Nikon will release some telephoto zoom lenses for the Z-mount as well...
It wouldn't be too daft (I used a 1.4x on my 200-500mm a few times) but the loss of quality if more obvious. There are very just few zoom lenses that work well with teleconverters.. Generally though, if the combination gets you the shot you wouldn't otherwise have, then it's worth doing!
No, I don't say that - with a D3500 (and other DSLRs) there are some more disadvantages usinf the TC with lenses that don't have fast apertures. Depending on the lens you use, you could have perfectly good results with the D3500 and teleconverters
I can die happy now Geoff. This is absolutely the best video regarding Nikon teleconverters on UA-cam. It answers all the questions and nuances that people may have/think of. I am satisfied END to END and will be now able to sleep well not asking myself questions because ALL OF THEM were answered.
Thank you Geoff! Absolute blast! All the best to you and your family.
Subscribing you now! Oh... I've been a subscriber for a long time now :D
Hehe, thanks :) Well, I'm glad to hear it, but also hope you stick around a while longer yet!!
@@GeoffCooper Sure thing Geoff! Looking forward to meet you out in the field when circumstances allow that :)
This is a superb overview, Geoff! The best on UA-cam, even two years after publication. I’ve just ordered a 300 2.8 to go on my Z7 and/or my D500, and I’m looking at teleconverters for the odd Airshow. Thanks so much for the fantastic video! Really appreciate the time and effort put into this, and hope parenthood is treating you well!
Thanks very much Olly, glad you found it useful! ..and yes, fatherhood is (mostly) awesome :D
how is the sharpness on 2.8?
And 9 months later, I am soo happy with my 500pf on my Z6, I went to deer's slab yesterday, in forest at 9am with rain and poor light conditions, not a problem, great pictures. I now will add a 1.4 TC, thanks again for the video again Geoff!
Great stuff Julien, congratulations on the new lens :) Hope you get many great images with and without the teleconverter!
Wow, what a through review, I'm just speechless, subscribed!
Thanks very much Hamid, glad you liked it!
Millions of parents out there & they haven't discovered your channel yet Geoff. I enjoyed it to the last. I thought I had bought all the equipment I needed. Nice to see you still making great video.
Thanks Steve - glad you enjoyed it! Yeah, surely an untapped market... like white noise, but more informative ;)
Thanks for this video! After seen this I bought a used TC17 and paired it with my z6ii and 500mm pf. Very sharp from f/9.5. Very pleased!
Thanks ABE, glad you found it helpful! Hoope you get some great images from your 500mm and 1.7x TC :)
Got my coffee on a snowy, Ohio day and looking forward to this Geoff :-)
Very informative video,
i'm still waiting for the native long lenses. I hear Z Mount telecon. are even better.
Hi Geoff. Really interesting comparrisons & a very interesting topic👍. I own both lenses and the 1.4ii converter. As you say both these lenses need to be stabilised especially when using the TC”s - i run both my lenses on a d500 and find the images and reach are producing very satisfactory images. I also sometimes use the Tamron 150 -600mm g2 lens with a Tamron x2 tc which is also giving some great results considering the vaiables at play.
Thanks very much, glad you found it interesting :) I feel that a lot of the bad rep that seems to surround teleconverters comes from users /not/ 'considering the variables at play' and hoping for some kind of magic!!
Excellent in depth review Geoff. I've just tested a 1.4x Nikon converter with my 200-500mm Nikon zoom and was pleasantly surprised by the image quality.
Thanks Steve - yeah, I found the 200-500mm worked surprisingly well with the 1.4x Nikon TC in the right conditions when I had that combination too..
Excellent video. Very clear all the testing that you did, and your comments. Very, very useful. Congratulations for this work!
Thank you very much Martin :)
Great information! Well designed and thought out experiments that addressed questions I've wondered about. Many thanks!
Glad it was helpful!
Oh thank you so much for this vid I had the Kenko x2 tele on a D5600 then used it on my D610 and I was getting the same issue with auto focus, I ended up just manually focusing to get a ok image sharpness. How you explained it made perfect sense to me so the Kenko is not faulty or rubbish it's just the nature of the beast. The cropping use said made perfect sense and kind of obvious when you think about it when you crop to get closer to the subject the cropped subject will always have less data contained in it. I love all your nature vlogs and every so often when you get all technical I find it easy to understand and it's an eye opener.
Thanks - really glad this was helpful :)
very useful video with this comparisons!!!
Great review, well thought out. Answered my questions.
Thanks very much :) Glad it was helpful!
That was exactly the video I was awaiting!!!!! Geoff, I am in France, so far away, but I love you! big thanks.
Very nice video Mr Cooper👌
Very complete video. All what I was wondering is here. Congratulation for this study,
What a brilliant video. All the tests were done a scientific manner and it answered my questions on whether I would be better off to get a Z6 + 1.4 teleconverter or a Z7 and crop the images.
Thanks - glad it was useful and best of luck with the new camera :)
Amazing video! This is exactly the kind of stuff I'm always wondering about. I have another video idea for you since you have all the equipment you need for it: The 300mm f2.8 on a DX body (or z7 in crop mode) vs the 500mm f4 (or PF in your case) on an FX body. I'm mostly interested in the differences in bokeh quality and sharpness.
Thanks for the idea Brandon! That would be pretty interesting to try out...
Brandon, did you manage to make a decision?
@@sinetwo Still waiting for a video! I'm currently using something totally different; a Lumix g9 (m4/3) and Lieca 200mm 2.8. It gives me a similar total focal length to the Nikon setups, with excellent sharpness. Bokeh is likely a little busier, and continuous autofocus is likely worse, but I do enjoy using it. Cost is lower, and weight is much less.
@@husbyb86 i just got the 300 2.8 ☺
Hi Geoff - Very good review. Your methodology was sound and conclusions accurate. It was very well balanced and considered the tradeoffs using a teleconverter. Thanks for the time and effort to put together this review.
Thanks very much Eric :)
Always a brilliant vlog
Thanks so much for your great work Geoff. I really enjoyed your comparison and now I'm jealous. That 500 Pf just looks so lovely..
Thanks very much :) Yeah, it's a fantastic bit of kit!
at this price its look is not an argument... some birders told me 10 times better for bif is the Sony 200 600
Very useful - only with a PF lens would I use a 2x converter, 1.4x ok with a non-PF, say 200-800mm.
Very informative, well put together video, great work.
Thanks Ryan, glad you enjoyed it :)
thanks for this Geoff
Hi, Geoff! I'm talking from Brazil. And I have to say that you did a very nice content, man! Congratulations. You help me a lot and for sure all the photography community.
So, I was really interested to know how the TCs works with the FTZ converters.
I have for now a Nikon Z7II. And a 70-200mm f/2.8 AF-S ED VR. So, I use the FTZ II tô plug it. Natively I can use the DX format to get a 300mm vision. But it's not enough to me, because I photograph a lot outdoor subjects, like sports, landscapes and photojournalism.
And watching your video I understood more abou the quality of the files. And also about the lost of light when you plug the TC.
I am very interested to get a Nikon Z TC 2.0x.
Thanks for you video!
Thanks :) Glad you like the videos!
First off, the Z-teleconverters DO NOT work with the FTZ adapter, so if you want to do this with an f-mount lens you'll need an f-mount teleconverter, and they work absolutely fine with the FTZ adapter as long as the lens is compatible (your 70-200mm should be fine). Be aware though that the f-mount 2x TC does drop the image quality a little more than the newer Z-mount one. Depending on what you shoot, and assuming you're not in a position to upgrade to the Z 70-200mm or 100-400mm, you might do well with a used AF-S 80-400mm VR lens, which would probably be chedaper or similar to a Z TC-2.0x teleconverter...
@@GeoffCooper one more time tanks so much to light up my mind about the teleconverters e the FTZ adapters. I'll check your tips about the 80-400mm VR.
@@marcellodantas2983 great stuff - I wish you good luck with whatever you choose to go with!
Great in depth test and review Geoff. Although I am not a Nikon user I often have the same dilemma as to the crop vs 1.4x converter. You have inspired me to go out and do some more tests. Cheers Keith
Thanks Keith - I'll be interested to hear how that test works out with your kit...
Great video mate, thanks for doing this!
Thanks Rob, glad it was useful :)
Thanks for a great detailed comparison. Very much enjoyed.
Thanks Bill :)
Great discussion and video. Very informative and well thought out. Thanks
Thanks very much - glad you liked it!
Excellent test that was i looking for.
Very interesting video Geoff, i have found much the same result with my Fuji xt3 and 100/4400 lens even with a non prime lens, thanks for sharing and all the best for 2021
Thanks! Interesting - the XT3 seems to be really good from what I've heard.. also with adapted non-Fuji lenses as well! All the best for 2021 to you too :)
I think 300 f2.8 is more versatile. It can be used from 2.8 to 5.6 with a teleconverter. Autofocus works very wel. In my opinion, TC 1.4 and 1.7 are working great. However, for bird photography, you will need longer primes, which are quite expensive.
Hi Georg, Yes, I completely agree that the 300mm f/2.8 is really versatile! I actually sold mine because I had the opportunity for a great deal on a similar era 400mm f/2.8G VR and honestly, while I love the image quality of the 400, I really miss that 300mm! I suspect the AF findings were at least partly due to the Z7 being quite slow with F-mount lenses - the 400mm is considerably faster on the Z9 even with teleconverters, and I suspect the 300mm would have been too... Now of course for the Z-mount, if you want a really long yet light lens, there is an 800mm f/6.3 coming..!
Thank you very much for the thorough review(s).
Thanks very much Kevin, glad it was helpful!
I have a 1.4 but don't use it all that often because of the loss of light buuuuuut I may just use it to try to capture my favorite animal, the owl. Great video brother 👍
Thanks - yeah, sometimes the extra reach outweighs the disadvantages... Looking forward to seeing the images / video if you find your owl!
This cleared up exactly what I was trying to find out before buying a tc. Also using a z6 here so very glad to hear it doesn't affect AF, very cool. Just bought a used 300mm f4 nikkor lens and want to extend it. Tc's must be the best option for this when not being a millionaire :) Also a way to save money is to get a sigma tc instead I think. Someone said that what the tc is magnifying is more important than what brand you use or (to some extend) the quality of the tc itself. Thanks again
By the way have you tried using the dx image area on your z7. It will give you a 1.5 crop and 20 mp. Even though I get like 11 mp on the z6 it’s still not bad
Glad you found the video useful :)
Re. the Sigma teleconverters, be careful that they are compatible - using the same brand is always recommended as sometimes the ones from different companies won't even mount.
Actually the reason I went for the Z7 over the Z6 in the first place was so that the crop mode would be similar to the D500 which I'd used for the previous few years. I do find the crop mode very nice, especially in mirrorless where the viewfinder changes to match. However, I really onyl use it in video these days and prefer to crop in post since I get more framing flexibility that way
@@GeoffCooper
Cheers :)
Oh boy did I just learn what you just said about sigma converters haha. Anyway a Nikon is on the way so yeah, can confirm that - Be careful.
Yes it definitely must be useful on the z7, such great cameras I think. what do you recon the max focal length would be shooting handheld with only the built in ibis and no vr in the lens? :) maybe i'm about to find out when my 300 becomes a 600. expect to use tripod a lot more for some things.
Yeah, if I remember correctly the only ‘universal’ one is the Kenko DG 1.4x, and it’s not even close to the optical performance of the Nikon teleconverters.. best to stick with the Nikon ones - I got mine in decent condition for reasonable money by haunting eBay for a few weeks...
Re. Focal lengths without lens VR - I’ve definitely got good handheld images at 500mm with the VR turned off, but he keeper rate was lower and of course it depends on subject distance and shutter speed etc.
Great stuff, I have the 500pf ordered the tc-17, looked like tc-20 seemed a little too unsharp. Thanks.
Awesome - I hope you get some great results with the TC-17 :)
Good work Geoff and thank you, this is really helpful 👍
Hi, Geoff, love your approach to gear testing and your wildlife videos. You bring the essence of wildlife photography home and the real joy and challenges of being out in the wild and observing birds and mammals. I am watching from Canada in the foothills of the Rockies and totally connect with the thrill and issues of being out in nature. My current gear is the D500 and 500PF. Please review the Nikon Z7 ii as a bird/wildlife camera as soon as possible.I think that the switch to mirrorless would offer much, my question to you, is this the right time to switch to the Z7 ii?.
Thanks very much Stephen - glad you're enjoying the channel :) I sometimes wish my ownership of the D500 had overlapped with having the 500mm PF - it must be a fantastic combination! I would love to review the Z7 II and after a few months when the price drops a bit or used copies start to become available I suspect I'll be very tempted to get one to try out against my current Z7...
@@GeoffCooper Looking forward to it. If you ever get to Calgary in Alberta. Let me know and I'll try to point you in the right direction for our mammals and birds. Keep making great videos and look forward to the Z7 ii review.
@@stephenboucher4121 thanks - in some currently distant-seeming non-Covid time I might actually take you up on that since my partner's parents actually live in Calgary and we are planning to visit at some point!!
@@GeoffCooper Look forward to it. Out yesterday N. Goshawk and N. Pigmy Owl...fantastic.
Thank you for these tests, for this very interesting video!
The 300mm is a fantastic lens but with a TC is going to be softened down to the 500mm PF sharpness levels.
The 300mm and 500mm PF lenses are great to carry around but lack high end optical performance.
I've found that focus on my long glass is already about half as fast on my Z cameras compared to my D850 cameras.
Until now I haven't had the will to try teleconverters on my Z cameras...
I have the 300 and the 500pf... this is my second 300... the first one was soft... but this one is very sharp... and the 500pf is not soft at all... may be you have a soft copy... (tried on D850, Z6 and Z7ii)...I also have the new 1.4... very good, but the 500 is more sharp than the 300 + tc1.4
Hi Roy, I've found both the 300mm f/2.8 and the 500mm PF to be very sharp, but I can imagine the 300 to be sharper. That said, the reach and the portability count for a lot, and maybe as Skye PRF said, you have a softer lens / it needs calibrated?
For the AF speed, I accept it's faster on a DSLR, but still think the advantages if mirrorless override that for me... though I certainly hope future iterations are quicker!
@@GeoffCooper I calibrated the 500 pf without any change. So I returned it.
I'm probably spoilt by my 600mm f4 Nikkor...
@@roybixby6135 Hah, yeah, that's a difficult level of 'sharpness appreciation' for any other lens to live up to for sure!!
Very interesting,.... thank you for this video..
Thanks - glad it was of interest :)
For a small kit try the Nikkor 300mm PF lens with the new 2.0 lll converter on an aps-c camera (900mm f8.0) Need good light.
Yes, I've heard that is a great combination - the 1.7x with the 300PF is particularly popular I believe as a 500mm f/6.3 compromise
If you’re shooting aperture priority and adjusting shutter speed to keep your base iso on a tripod, that works with still subjects but don’t think it’s what most people do in the field. It’s good for testing or landscape but not for most wildlife. Point is if you’re exploring the cropping vs TC question, it’s also good to test the 1.4x with doubling the iso and the 2x with quadrupling the iso. I’m still guessing the edge would go to the TC
Yeah, and I was, I hope, clear about the tests not being that realistic... I agree those 'real shutterspeed' tests would be pretty interesting and will probably have a try at some point - like you, I suspect the TC will still have the edge but it may be more marginal.
Hola, muy bien el video, mi pregunta es, puedo poner un teleconvertidor 1'4 z con el 500pf y la Nikon z 9.??? Gracias
Thanks :) Yes, the Z9, TC14e III and 500mm PF work very well together. The AF is nearly as fast as native Z-mount lenses and the image quality is great!
Thanks for Your opinion
Hello Geoff. I really like the detailed reviews and comparisons you do. I get the inpression you sold your 200-500 but I am wondering if you could or have already done a direct comparion with the 500 PF and the 200-500 with and without the 1.4TC. I am trying to find out if Its worth upgrading to the 500PF from the 200-500 other than the weight. We will ignore the zoom capabilites for now.......since most shots are at 500mm anyways. Your response would be a big help.....There other comparisons on youtube but I think your detailed approach is the best and it seems more sincere. Thanks for your time.
Hello, thanks very much - glad you like the videos! I did sell the 200-500mm soon after getting the 500 PF so I can't do that comparison as a video unfortunately.. I did use the 1.4x on the 200-500mm previously and it worked reasonably well. Steve Hedges has a recent video where he find that too: ua-cam.com/video/M_3QGJtPEoM/v-deo.html ... I have a feeling from my own usage that it works better on the 500 PF because the AF is faster and the lens is sharper.
Regarding the 500 PF, it's definitely better than the 200-500mm optically, but maybe not ~350% better as it would need to be for the price difference! The real advantage is the portability and how easy it is to use handheld - it's much better balanced than the 200-500 at 500mm, it focusses faster, and I've found it's been possible to get more shots in more situations since I've had it
This video by Rob Blight is interesting as a comparison: ua-cam.com/video/nvafcnaKk_o/v-deo.html
Cool video, very informative. May I ask you, which replacement tripod foot do you use on the 300mm 2.8? How do you mount the Peak Design anchor on it and also, what is the brand of the tripod you used? Thank you. Have a nice time.
Thanks Stefan, glad you enjoyed it :)
I used a Kirk LP-47 replacement foot on the 300mm f/2.8 lens. The Peak anchors were not attached to the foot but instead were directly on the lens - it had strap loops built in.
On my 500mm f/5.6 PF lens, which has no strap attachments, I have drilled holes into the replacement lens foot from Hejnar Photo for the anchors to fit into. I've done the same on my 70-200mm too.
The tripod I use is a Gitzo GT3543LS with either a Really Right Stuff BH-55 ballhead or a Gitzo GHFG1 Fluid Gimbal, depending on what I am doing.
Hope all that helps - if you're interested you can find a full kit list at www.tapiopix.com and I try to keep that fairly up-to date :)
@@GeoffCooper Thanks a lot, this helps me a lot. Very kind.
That was an interesting roundup, thanks. Should you ever use the native Z lenses with the native teleconverters, I'd be interested in hearing your toughts.
Thanks :) One day maybe..!
Thank ypu, great video!
What camouflage do you use on those two lenses please. Loved your video a lot.Abdul
Thanks Abdul :) Both have Lenscoat covers with the 'Realtree Max4' pattern..
@@GeoffCooper Thank you Geoff for the help
Great in depht review, Geoff 😊 And it really sums up my experience with the same two lenses. Now I’m looking forward to see how the 500/4 fl works with teleconverters, seems that the 2x converter works surprisingly well from the limited testing I’ve been doing so far. Cheers!
Thanks Kjell - glad you liked it and also that our results agree with each other :) Looking forward to seeing some images with that 1000mm f/8 setup!
Grateful for comparative review. Geoff, would you use DX/APS C on the Nikon z7 together with a teleconverter? or just crop afterwards?
Glad you found it useful? I sometimes use the DX mode because it can be easier placing the focus point in the enlarged view on the EVF, but usually I just stick to full frame and crop later because it gives me more framing flexability...
Hi. Thanks for your wonderful video.
I have a question, which teleconverter is more suitable for a 500mm lens and do you recommend it?
Thanks very much - glad you enjoyed it! It would really depend on your intended usage / subject, but for 500mm I would mostly recommend the 1.4x. In real-world usage anything longer is going to be really hard to use and incredibly prone to atmospheric distortions... Then again, if you have a specific use case for longer focal length, the TCs can all work pretty well.
@@GeoffCooper I have a Nikon d810 and a Nikon 500mm f4 p lens. To photograph birds, I shoot in the crop mode of the sensor and crop some of the photo in Photoshop so that it reaches 1000mm. But again, there is not much loss of quality. That's why I asked if it is really necessary to prepare TC? In some cases, cropping may be better than converter, especially in filming.
@@thecreatorshutter sure, with DSLR and depending on the camera, the way focussing is separate from the sensor might actually mean that cropping is better if you have enough resolution to do it. In filming the requirement for resolution is usually lower so then definitely cropping gets you a long way...
@@GeoffCooper Yes, you are absolutely right. Thank you for your time. You make really great videos. I wish I could talk to you more
Great review. Well done.
While using the Z7 II and FTZ/F mount lens. Is it suggested to use the F or Z teleconverters? Any additional benefits from using the Z teleconverter? Otherwise, I’m leaning towards the F mount teleconverter so that I can still use on my DSLR. Thanks in advance.
The new Z-mount teleconverters currently only work with the new Z 70-200mm lens, though more compatible lenses will become available in time. They cannot be used with the FTZ adapter, so if you want to use teleconverters on F-mount lenses with the Z cameras, you'll need to use F-mount converters.. This makes sense becuase the optics of the teleconverter are designed to be right behind the lens, not on the other side of an adapter.
@@GeoffCooper Ok, that makes sense now and appreciate your feedback.
Good , Interesting with Technical information
Hi Geoff, I know it’s an old video but I thought I’d ask just incase! I’ve been using the d500 with the 300mm f2.8 (vr1) for a while, and have previously tried the 2x with very mixed results wide open (a bit of a necessity for me as like you I often shoot in murky British evenings). I’d like to add a teleconverter to the mix but would like a bit more reach than the 1.4 for some of the more sensitive waders, and the 1.7 in principal seems like the perfect balance but I’ve heard that there’s absolutely no benefit to it in terms of sharpness wide open over the 2x. Did you notice any difference wide open between the two? Thanks, love the video :)
Thanks very much, glad you liked the video :) I don't think there was really much difference in the image quality with the 1.7x vs the 2x TC on my 300mm. Obviously the 1.7x + 300mm wide open was faster, but the 2x gives more reach. If you have a 1.4x already then I would get a 2x to go with it, but I guess if you were going to only have one teleconverter and really wanted the extra reach then the 1.7x might be a good compromise..
Geott, what Teleconverter would you recommend for a Sigma 60-600? A Nikon or a Sigma. I’ve read that is better to use a teleconverter as the same brand as the lens. What is your opinion? Thanks!
I would always go for a teleconverter made by the manufacturer of the lens where that's possible - in this case the Sigma TC, though I have no idea how well the superzoom would perform with the TC or if it is even compatible..
merci pour ce bon test .
Nikon D500 +Nikon AF-S Télé-convertisseur TC-17E II 1.7x + 500mm f/5.6E PF je vais tenter j'ai acheté un TC 1.7 d'occasion pour 190 € j'espère que cela va faire de belles photos
Merci :) Bonne chance - j'espère que vous aurez de belles images!
Hi Geoff, thanks for your work 🙂 question: I am also using Nikon z6 for wildlife field videos and vlogging. I find in some footage that very sharp zone of the image are weirdly clipping for example your woolen sweater in your video. I have the same behavior on videos of foliage, grass, etc in my case. I don't know if this is a Nikon encoding issue, i tred to test on several formats as flat, neutral, manual with no added sharpness. Did you note this ?
Thanks Nicolas :) I'm not sure I understand what you mean about the clipping - can you tell me where in the video there's a clear example and I'll have a look...
@@GeoffCooper hi Geoff ! I made my research and I found that the problem of (not clipping but blinking sorry for my English) was in fact a bad configuration of my tv which add too much of sharpness. So after set to 0, the problem disappeared, thanks technology 😂 anyway I love your videos keep going on best regards !
@@NicolasBlanc Ahaa, glad you got it sorted (and that it wasn't something wrong with the video)! Thanks very much - I've got plenty of ideas for 2021 so I hope you enjoy the next videos too :)
With the 300mm f2.8 and the x2 tc,, shorter end focal lengths (10-20 yards, 9-18 meters), you can get crisp images and low noise all day long. Anything further out, not so much. The images seem nicer with the d850, though I've gotten good results with the d500 too. Just have to fight more with the DX crop bodies when using the TC's. Strait on the 300mm f2.8, with no tc, the dx camera is pretty good. Still, the d850 full frame is hard to beat.
Why do you need to "fight more" with DX crop bodies when using TCs?
Need suggestions for TC 17 II vs TC 20 III for 70-200 FL on Z6 II (Primary) & D750 as current bodies. Need as affordable as possible & mobile solution for reaching barely in the range for capturing bird & wildlife occasionally. Even though I am photographer, I am also going to shoot video clips around 50% of the time taking full advantage of 4k 60 & DX crop:)
I would go for the 2x TC-20e III for the maximum reach, certainly on the Z6 II the extra half stop isn't going to make a lot of difference practically and I've found the 2x on the 70-200mm FL to be pretty good even at 400mm and f/5.6...
@@GeoffCooper thank you so much for quick response & suggestion. I am leaning more towards 1.7x because of almost 200$ equivalent price difference which is a lot in Indian economy & earning scale & better compatibility of 1.7x with any f/4 or f/5.6 telephoto lens if I buy any eventually. But I will keep your point in mind :)
@@harshpatel4158 that's a fair point, and I guess even in the used market there's probably quite a difference..
Geoff....have you tried the s-mount teleconverter with the ftz and then the telephoto lens?
I've not - it's been reported by others that the FTZ will not mount onto (or otherwise work with?) the Z-mount teleconverters, and the only lens that can work with them currently is the new S-Line 70-200mm f/2.8... It would be interesting if they did work, since they're supposedly 'lossless' in image quality, but it actually makes sense that they wouldn't work correctly with an adapter (ie FTZ) between them and a lens...
@@GeoffCooper I'm going to rent the new TC when I get a chance and give it a go..Nikon uses a 'foot' on the bottom of adapters (FTZ and the one for the J1) to keep some things from actually mounting. There is a switch where the FTZ attaches to the Z body and it may not be manually detented on the new TC...a piece of tape might just solve that....we'll see. Thanks for the response....sorry I didn't say in my first comment that I really like your videos!
I'm not sure how the incompatability manifests itself, and it could simply be at the software level, but I recall that Ricci says in his review that he tested the FTZ on the new Z- converters and found it unusable... Glad you like the videos :)
@@GeoffCooper thanks for mentioning Ricci...i hadn't viewed that one until just now, and see that I should spend any money on this experiment.
@@dambekpapa yeah, his is a good channel to get down-to-earth detailed information on the new Nikon kit
I have an 850 with the 200-500 and the 1.7
however, I notice that there is a failure in focusing. can some calibration be done?
Yes, it's called AF Fine Tuning and is recommended for long glass with teleconverters with DSLRs, where there exists the possibility of miscalibration between the AF sensor and the image sensor... There are plenty of guides here on UA-cam that will show you how to do it.
Having said that, the other thing to note is that a 1.7x TC on the 200-500mm will have a maximum aperture greater than f/8, which is the published limit for the DSLR AF system, so even calibrated, you might find it struggles in situations where the lighting isn't optimal.
I just saw they have specific Z teleconverters wondering if they work any better. Possible new topic for a future video ❤
Yes, they do, I have them, and they are by far the best teleconverters Nikon has ever had - I guess they can really take advantage of the bigger Z-mount for their optics..
cheers for a great informative video
Just watched your video will a 1.7 teleconverter work with my 200-500 zoom on my NIKON Z7ii ??
Yes, I expect it’ll work fine. It won’t be as sharp as with a prime, and obviously it’ll be fairly slow after losing 1.5 stops, but on mirrorless that shouldn’t be a problem as long as the conditions allow…
Amazing video. Wish I found you sooner. Thank you
Thanks very much Joe, glad you enjoyed it :)
@@GeoffCooper yes, I've been having a very difficult time choosing to go with an older 600mm AFS F4 II D or this 500mm f5.6 - some say it's very slow and I am an aviation photographer. I wanted the big telephoto lens but this seems nice. Not sure which to choose.
@@joeyalbergo it’s a hard choice for sure. Personally I find the 500mm PF is a touch slower at focussing compared to my older model 400mm f/2.8, but it’s really not much slower. The important point for me is the massive weight difference - the PF is so easy to hand hold and swing around after moving subjects. I like the big prime for situations where I am stopped and can set up a tripod and gimbal, but the preparation time before being able to shoot is way longer than with the PF. If I /had/ to choose one, I think it would be the PF…
Thanks great tests
Hi, I take birds photos and I recently bought the Nikon 500 pfs 5.6
Can I use the 1.4x Nikon teleconverter with ? Is the autofocus good with this teleconverter ?
Thanks for your response
Hi Roland, the answer to your question really depends on the camera you’re using it with, but in general the optical quality with the 500mm PF and 1.4x teleconverter is really good. Of course you’ll be limited to f/8 so you’ll need the conditions to permit shooting at that aperture and, depending on the camera, the autofocus might be limited and you might also need to do some AF fine tuning to get the best results…
What tripod foot do you use for the 500mm pf?
I use this one: www.hejnarphotostore.com/product-p/h129..htm
@@GeoffCooper great thanks 👍🏻☺️
Is the type iii 1.4 nikon teleconverter worth the money or the is the 1.4 ii just as good ?
The new one is very good... but not better than your main lens! The 300 with the Tc 1.4 still a very light gear!
@@Skye_the_toller I’m currently using a 500mm f4G prime so was just wondering weather to buy the 1.4 iii or the 1.4 ii
@@harrisonhallphotography I’ve used both the 1,4 ii and 1,4 iii and I think they both are really good. But I find that the colours and contrast in the images is a little better with the version iii. I would recomend buying the version iii.
I think Kjell has pretty much answered this but I'll add that the type III converters supposedly work better with the newest lenses compared to the older versions too...
very useful thanks
Question about your technique when cropping and scaling, do you use smart object on PS when you scale up the cropped image, if you do not you will definitely lose sharpness with scaling, if you do then your argument stands right...
Yes, smart scaling in photoshop was exactly what I used for the comparison. Realistically unless the teleconverter is really bad, in a controlled test the optical setup will always win... the question is really whether the conditions allow you to use the teleconverted combination effectively enough in the field...
Excellent video but using somewhat dated technology. The Nikon Z7 ll offers faster AF speeds and when used with the 500mm PF and 2.0-TC provides exceptional results as seen in the work of Michelle Valberg, a Nikon Ambassador, who shoots birds handheld from her kayak.
Thanks - I think really that just highlights what I said in that the future of teleconverters with mirrorless is a bright one! I should say that at the point of recording this, there was no availability of the Z7 II to anyone /except/ Nikon Ambassadors ;), ans also, since the sensors are basically the same in the Z7 and Z7 II, the results here would have been unchanged...
nice video, BUT the native teleconvertor for the Z system is meant, and reviewed to be, a no-loss joint, ie, there is just as much sharpness with it, as compared to just the lens, aperture is lost, for a 1.4 x, 1 stop, etc.; however NO quality is lost, as well as the fact of the z series low light ISO performance, gives some of this iris loss back, brightening the image, and giving a higher shutter speed.
Thanks Andy - well, that's even better then and reinforces that teleconverters are going to be much more useful in the Z-system going forward.. (I already said they're good but having not had them to try, I couldn't say more)
@@GeoffCooper yes, and the fact that they are just as rare to buy as the 70-200 f 2.8 z lens they are ONLY compatible with( as of 2020 release of the converters),think only Nikon Ricci has had a reasonable enough time with them :-)
Indeed... perhaps by the time they release the suggested Z 400mm f/2.8 I'll have won the lottery and therefore be able to afford it and a set of Z teleconverters ;)
Canon DSLR s have autofocus at f11 at least ....in live view ,i suppose my nikons too. but i need glasses in live view
my fantastic afs 300mm f2.8 DII perfect at 600 with dslrs doesn't AF on my z50 and z6 unfortunately for some reason ,so I'm more into Canon that has 3 very good 400mm cheep the 5.6 ,the 100 400 is2 and RF 100 400
The AF in Canon cameras live view has been far ahead of Nikon for many years.. So yeah, I guess with a Canon that could be a way to self-check the AF calibration.. I used to try and do video through the live view of Nikon DSLRs and for that I ended up using a loupe.
I agree it's very sad that older Nikon 'big glass' doesn't really behave well with the Z cameras - not even the flagship Z9 came with a 'screwdriver' for AF with older lenses...
@@GeoffCooper my 300 is AFS but still don't work with Z because of the focus ring i suppose
@@jeromeThailande AF-S lenses should all work with Z cameras through the FTZ... Which generation / model of the 300mm is it you have?
@@GeoffCooper i wrote it already ...on z6 and z50 it doesn't autofocus
sometimes it autofocus but not consistently, the error n1 comes, even without extender
Are the images shown from 50m?
No, I thought that would have made the video too long so the 50m shots are not shown in the video but they're discussed - generally the story was similar, though there was more distortion due to air mass etc (as expected). However, the 300mm with the 1.7x and 2x suffered more than I might have expected at the longer range (I would need to do more tests though to make any real conclusion about that)...
Why don't you just put the Z6 into DX shot?
In the case of the DX crop mode, that reduces the available pixels for later cropping or processing, so if you can get the settings to successfully do the magnification optically (ie use a teleconverter) you’ll have more detail to work with. In the field it can however often be simpler to just rely on post process cropping, especially on the Z7 where the resolution is higher. That said, I would tend to avoid using the DX mode for stills since I get more framing flexibility to do the crop afterwards if I stay in FX...
@@GeoffCooper I just bought a Z6ii, for budgetary reasons I chose that over a Z7, but I agree if I could've, I tend to crop landscapes and I've never attempted wildlife photos before, 70-200 f4 being my longest lens. But now I am very interested and I see Nikons S lens roadmap coming out with a 100-400, that sounds sweet!
Thanks for the feedback!
I'm very happy with my Z camera. It's brought a whole new inspiration to me over my old dslr
@@coltoncyr2283 I've also found the move to mirrorless was a real game changer and the 100-400 does look very interesting...
Nice one
Thanks Geoff and nice work. Useful info. The “if one lens” question? I think I see your answer...? Although it’s Scotland and winter is coming....?
Thanks Glen :) Yeah, I think even then, if I have to choose it'd be the 500mm - just so easy to take everywhere! In Canon-land I think it would be an easier choice with their lightweight 400mm f/4 DO...
Tamron recently introduced a 100-500 F/4-6.7 lens for Sony mirrorless which looks good. I hope that it will be available for Nikon and Canon mirrorless someday. This lens may make the 300 2.8 lens obsolete for using with the 1.7x and 2x teleconverters. I will still be using my 300 F/2.8 for the theater though.
Yeah, I've seen that - quite interesting, and of course there are also rumors that Nikon will release some telephoto zoom lenses for the Z-mount as well...
So, would it be really stupid to use a 1.7 with a 200mm-500mm on a APS-C DSLR? I'm asking for a friend, obviously!
It wouldn't be too daft (I used a 1.4x on my 200-500mm a few times) but the loss of quality if more obvious. There are very just few zoom lenses that work well with teleconverters.. Generally though, if the combination gets you the shot you wouldn't otherwise have, then it's worth doing!
@@GeoffCooper apparently only the 1.4 will work with the AF of the lens and it's a lot of money so will have to wait for now. Thanks for replying.
I use nikon D3500... according to you I can not use teleconverter . I have to depend on my lens..
No, I don't say that - with a D3500 (and other DSLRs) there are some more disadvantages usinf the TC with lenses that don't have fast apertures. Depending on the lens you use, you could have perfectly good results with the D3500 and teleconverters