Kim said:
Well, I changed my mind. I ordered a 80-400VR to be delivered and the next day after I placed the order I got an e-mail to call the company and confirm. I called to confirm and at the last minute changed to a 70-200VR. I've been looking at everyones lens kits and this one seems to be a must have. It will be my first "pro glass". I would like to use a teleconverter with it at some point. I do realize it will make it slower, but will it change the quality of the shots I get with this lens? If so, will the change in quality be drastic? Since I'd like to get some bird shots I think I need a 2X. If I had my druthers I would get the 200-400VR along with the 70-200VR but since I'm just a hard working poor girl I've got to make do with what I can! Alot of ya'll suggested the 300 f/4 and I would love to have that too, but I decided to start with a good base lens and work with it. I hope I made a good decision. I do plan to shoot more than just birds. Everyone at the cafe has been great with their advice. Thanks ya'll!
Kim :
Great lens, and it works well with TCs, but...
... some TCs are better than others. I shoot with the TC14EII and the TC17E on this with solid results. I've tested the TC20E and been disappointed with the results.
I've used the Kenkos, and I didn't like them as much as the Nikon TCs. That's a very personal finding. The upside of the Kenkos is that they can be used with a wider variety of lenses. Have a look at Janet Zinn's shots and you can see the Kenkos can be made to shine quite brightly in service (but you'll need to learn to shoot like Janet - one of the best "teeney-tiny bird shooters" you can find anywhere !).
Sad to say, but if you're going to get serious about bird shooting, you'll either get your close-up stalking skills improved, or you'll eventually get longer glass. I had to do
both ! And I'm still working on getting to be a passable bird photographer.
One word of warning on your next lens choice, however. Now that you're going with a very snappy AFS lens, you'll be a bit chagrined about the speed of a non-AFS lens for birding. I ended up getting the 200-400mm AFS/VR, myself. This is an addictive and expensive thing !
Hope this helps.
John P.