PiF (Puffins in Flight)

[Anthony]

Panning shots at 1/60 second.

Z8/100-400/1.4tc

From my recent visit to Skomer Island (off the coast of south west Wales)

[Lars Hansen]

Very nice, Anthony - I like the motion blur.

Also very nice sharpness at 1/60 - is it at max focal length with the 1.4tc?

I've tried the Z 400/4.5 a few times and it's really great, but several times I missed the flexibility of a zoom, so I'm considering the Z 100-400 - as an all-rounder for nature, landscape etc. Would you care to share a few impressions? 

[Hans_S]

Very nice, Anthony - I like the motion blur.

+1 ...and the texture of the water.

[Anthony]

Thank you, Lars and Hans.

Lars, I was at full extension, so 560mm with the t/c.

The 400/4.5 is a lovely lens, with great image quality. It is better than the 100-400 at 400, but much worse at 100-300

The 100-400 is my most used lens for wildlife and sport because of its versatility. It has excellent close focussing, and can operate as a sort of faux macro. On this trip I was weight limited, so it was the ideal choice. I am very happy with the image quality, and while I would use the 400 where I knew most of my shots would be at that range, I knew that there would be many situations where the puffins were close up, and where 400 would be much too long. So just the 100-400 it was. Seeing some colleagues suffering from three days of hiking with too many lenses justified my decision.

So I am a big fan of the 100-400, but it is always worth renting a lens to try it out before buying.

[Ann]

Lovely work Anthony!

I have never been fortunate to see Puffins in the wild (only in captivity where they were not flying) and so I envy your experience.

[Anthony]

Lovely work Anthony!

I have never been fortunate to see Puffins in the wild (only in captivity where they were not flying) and so I envy your experience.

Thanks, Ann.

Skomer has over 40,000 puffins at the height of the season. They are unafraid of humans, and it is possible to go very close to them without creating any distress. You can visit on a day trip, for a maximum of four hours, or do what we did which was to stay three nights on the hostel on the island. The hostel takes fourteen guests, sleeping in dormitories and bringing their own food from the mainland. The advantage is that you can go out at any time, particularly useful at sunset, long after the day visitors have gone.

The weather can prevent boat crossings. On our second day all boat crossings were cancelled because of high winds. Had that happened two days later, we would not have been able to depart as scheduled. Because of that risk, you are advised to bring extra food with you in case you are trapped on the island. Fortunately, we had no such problems.

Both day visits and overnight stays have to be booked many months in advance.

[Hugh_3170]

+1

Puffins are sadly not a species that we see here in Australia.

Great job with the panning - have enjoyed these three.

Lovely work Anthony!

I have never been fortunate to see Puffins in the wild (only in captivity where they were not flying) and so I envy your experience.

[Nasos Kosmas]

Nice catch
And thank you for the info about Skomer Island!

[Birna Rørslett]

Puffins are like bumblebees -- you would hardly expect them to be able to take to the wing and fly -- until you see it for yourself

I'm not a bird watcher nor bird photographer by any stretch of imagination. However, I loved the little puffins, their beaks stuffed with small fish, returning from the fishing fields  in zig-zagging flight and one expected them to crash land, but by some miracle of nature they landed safe at their nest every time. It was so funny I almost forgot to snap a few pictures.

[Anthony]

Puffins are like bumblebees -- you would hardly expect them to be able to take to the wing and fly -- until you see it for yourself

I'm not a bird watcher nor bird photographer by any stretch of imagination. However, I loved the little puffins, their beaks stuffed with small fish, returning from the fishing fields  in zig-zagging flight and one expected them to crash land, but by some miracle of nature they landed safe at their nest every time. It was so funny I almost forgot to snap a few pictures.

More puffins to follow.

[Anthony]

Thanks, Hugh and Nasos.

[armando_m]

Anthony, thanks for sharing your beautiful photographs of the PiF

[Lars Hansen]

Thank you, Lars and Hans.

Lars, I was at full extension, so 560mm with the t/c.

The 400/4.5 is a lovely lens, with great image quality. It is better than the 100-400 at 400, but much worse at 100-300

The 100-400 is my most used lens for wildlife and sport because of its versatility. It has excellent close focussing, and can operate as a sort of faux macro. On this trip I was weight limited, so it was the ideal choice. I am very happy with the image quality, and while I would use the 400 where I knew most of my shots would be at that range, I knew that there would be many situations where the puffins were close up, and where 400 would be much too long. So just the 100-400 it was. Seeing some colleagues suffering from three days of hiking with too many lenses justified my decision.

So I am a big fan of the 100-400, but it is always worth renting a lens to try it out before buying.

A belated many thanks for taking time to share your experiences, Anthony.

Taken at 560mm with the t/c is even nicer at 1/60! 

Having seen your images here at NG over the years, it puts your recommendation into context. I've read reviews, but  your experiences are really great input - especially from the trip you mention. The 100-400 is compact enough to fit in my smallest photo backpack (Peak Design 20L) along with my Z7+24-70/4 - great for lighter hikes and on bike. 

The Z 400/4.5, also being lighter, balances really well on my Z7 - I hope that is also the case with the 100-400. The 100-400 is unfortunately not available as rental.                 

Great shots (and image quality) of the puffin with eels in your other thread - seems it was the ideal choice of lens for the trip.     

****** Removed some of this post .. this thread is about the PiF's 

[ColinM]

.... 3 kites were hovering close to me and I got a nice shot at 70mm .. at least one can see that it's a Kite at 100%. Would have been nicer to capture it at 400mm
 

Ahh, decisions decisions eh Lars?
I've also seen some really good wildlife results from people using the 180-600mm too.
I'm guessing the weight & compromised max aperture would rule that out for you .

I'm sure you've seen it, but some info here may be of benefit
https://www.zsystemuser.com/z-mount-lenses/nikkor-lenses/z-mount-lens-articles/best-telephoto-options-in.html

Finally, there seems to be something trailing behind the tail feathers in each of your kite pics if you zoom in.

Meanwhile lovely to see your puffins Anthony.
In the last week, I've seen lots of shots from Skomer - guess this coincides with holiday season
It's a great place to both visit and also sail around the coastline.

[Lars Hansen]

Many thanks for supporting my decisions, decisions.., Colin! 

A friend of mine has the 180-600 and it's really great (and cheaper), so I did consider it - I've ruled it out for the reasons you mention, but also because the 100-400 is more compact/portable and, as Anthony mentioned, "can operate as a sort of faux macro". Yes, I've seen the article you link to - very interesting - and also other recommendations by Thom Hogan.

The Kite seemed to have something in its claws - the Kites (and other raptors..) was hunting where a tractor was cutting tall grass along a river brink.

****** Removed some of this post .. this thread is about the PiF's