Nikon V2 for wildlife ?

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gary43

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Hi, I was wondering whether or not anyone here uses the Nikon V2 for wildlife shooting ?

I desperately need a lightweight wildlife-shooting set-up so think that the V2 with the x2.7 crop factor might well do a decent job in good light so I purchased one used from here on TP.

Question is though what lenses would people recommend to use with it ?

I have the Siggy 120-300f2.8 Sport plus TCs and that is great for expeditions when weight is not such an issue but I would like something with 300mm+ of native focal length for when I go out with the dog so do not want to carry heavy gear but maybe will see some wildlife.

Any suggestions or user experiences very welcome.

Regards

Gary
 
Gary, as it's my V2 you purchased :D it's only fitting I reply first.

I did quite a bit of shooting with the V2 and my legacy lenses with the FT1 adapter, and had great success with both the Nikon 70-200 F2.8 (effective 189-540 eqv), the 300mm F4 AFS (810 Eqv) and, when I had it, my Nikon 300mm F2.8. I would say the 300mm F4 AFS is made for the V2 as it combines great focal length on the V2, fairly fast aperture, and superb image quality but isn't too large or heavy. Added bonus is that it will take the TC14E II without much (if any) perceived loss of quality and even the TC17E II at a pinch for a truly massive 1,377mm F6.7 monster !

Focus is pretty snappy on all of them, although you are limited to the central focus point using the FT1 only. To be honest, the only down side to using a 1 Series, is that unless it's a good bright day, here in the UK it tends to be a bit gloomy, and once you are past ISO 800 and cropping, the pictures do start to breakdown quite quickly. However, if you can fill the frame with your subject to reduce cropping, Keep the ISO at 800 or lower (the lower the better obviously), and run the high ISO pics through a noise reduction program (I use Topaz Denoise and find it brilliant), then you can get some pretty fine images.

Obviously it goes without saying at these extreme effective focal lengths, even the best VR systems can struggle, especially when shutter speeds start to fall, so a good support (Tripod or Monopod) is pretty much essential.

Hope this helps.
 
Hi Andrew

Thanks for the reply and I am REALLY looking forward to having a play with our V2. I had seriously considered the 300f4 but baulked at using such a long FL lens without VR. The early morning walks can be pretty dim light-wise. I do use Denoize 5 so that might help me live with a bumped-up iso though as you mention. A mate of mine has a fabulously sharp Sigma 50-500 os, which he will not part with but I could buy new if pushed, and was wondering whether that lens might do a job ? It is quite light and with very, very effective VR/IS/OS ?

Thanks again for the advice above.

Gary
 
I'm not sure the situation on a V2 but I've got a V1 and unfortunately it won't play with my Sigma lenses and reports an Err when I mount them, even though physically they will fit.

Had some great results with my 70-200 though as Andrew mentions above.
 
Thanks for the information Matt. I will test my V2/FT1 out with my Sigma 120-300 then to see whether there are compatibility issues with Sigma lenses. Pity that the 70-200VRs are so expensive !
 
I m thinking the same. I m going to use a Nikon 1 V camera with my 70-200mm F4. I m going to have a look at the V3 tomorrow if it's out?
 
Hi Fadi

The V3 is definitely out. A mate of mine has been using one for some weeks. That said, I am not sure they are widely-available and cost over a grand for the body plus eyepiece plus kit lens. The images are great though and I suspect the AF and high ISO performance is better than the V1 or 2 ?
 
I've used the V1 with a 70-300 to some effect as a zoo combo. My avatar was taken with the lens on a 1AW (same difference) and was only cropped to get it square. Also had a quick play with a 600mm f/4 and 1.4x telecon... The V1, FT-1 and 70-300 is very lightweight and gives an EFL of 810mm on the 1 series bodies. Better quality than similar lengths from superzoom bridges.
 
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