Do I just L O V E this lens!

Nikkor 200-400mm f/4 G VRII AF-S

Having made the decision to move away from  shooting film in my Hasselblad “V” series cameras I spent over a year agonizing “do I go Hasselblad H4D or Nikon D3X?”.  A key reason for choosing the Nikon path was that I could (eventually) get long lenses and return to Wildlife photography.  Since making the switch to Nikon I have also re-discovered my first love in photography namely Air Shows and Warbirds, which coincidentally calls for long lenses too.

The Occasion

So I am off to the Florida International Air Show, my first air show in over 40 years and I need a longer lens to shoot the warbirds.  The Nikor 200-400mm F/4 is an obvious choice as I understand that at the Florida International Air Show you can get very close to the flight-line.  So with great excitement a very large parcel arrives via UPS – the lens! Having carefully and lovingly unpacked the lens, I suddenly realize that this is the heaviest lens I have ever held – so with only three days to go before leaving I am frantically working my left arm with a 10lb dumbel!!

I am completely blown away by the detail in the images, the sharpness even at the edges of the frame and the images I can get on its first outing. W O W !!

A Sample of the Warbird images (a lot more to follow):

Black Diamond Aerobatic Display Team

F8F Bearcat in Blue Angels finish. (The Blue Angels adopted the Bearcat as their team aircraft during their inaugural year, 1946)

F-4U Corsair by Vought.

Navy F/A- 18 Hornet, a multi-role aircraft that can switch between fighter and attack function.

The Blue Angels Aerobatic Display Team in Double Fervel formation. Flying Navy F/A-18 Hornet aircraft.

Twin Beech 18 - never designed for aerobatics

Equipment: D3X; 200-400mm f/4 VRII AF-S; Lexar 600X Digital Film

 The Bonus:

During the air show another photographer asked where I was staying.  I said that I was miles away in Venice as I could not get accommodation near the Punta Gorda airport.  He immediately said that I had to go to “The Rookery” in Venice, a fantastic spot for shooting birds.

Louise had located “The Rookery” while I was at the air show so we went there just after sunrise on our last morning before breakfast and heading to the airport.

So the Nikor 200-400mm f/4 proved that it was just as sharp and clear when photographing feathered birds as it was in shooting warbirds – as you can see below.

Early light illuminating a Great Egret at The Rookery, Venice, Florida

Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) at The Rookery, Venice, Florida

Great Blue Heron (Ardea hernias) and interloping Great Egret (Ardea alba)

A juvenile Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) goes fishing

A nest building male Great Egret (Ardea alba) warning everyone off!

The male Great Egret (Ardea alba) showing discretion as the better part of valor!

Equipment: D3X; 200-400mm f/4 VRII AF-S; TC-17EII AF-S; Gitzo tripod & head; Lexar 600X Digital Film

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 3rd, 2012 at 2:47 pm. It is filed under Aviation Photography, Birds, Color Images, Gear, Warbirds, Wildlife and tagged with (Ardea alba), (Ardea herodias), Arctic Camouflage, Beechcraft, Black Diamonds, Blue Angels, Blue Sky, Boeing, clouds, color, Common Egret, D3X, dawn, F-4U Corsair, F/A-18 Hornet, F8F Bearcat, fine art print, FL, Florida, Florida International Air Show, formation, Golden Hour, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Great White Egret, Grumman, Korean War, L-39 Albatros, Lexar Professional 32GB 600X Digital Film, mating plumage, Mig-17, military aircraft, Nikkor 200-400mm f/4 VRII, Nikon, photograph, Photography, Punta Gorda, Richard King Photography, Russian, spring, sunrise, The Rookery, Trainer, Twin Beech 18, U.S. Navy, United States, USA, Venice, Vought, war plane, Warbird, WWII. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.