Originally posted by normhead A host of things were going on today, looking at the 55-300 and DA*60-250 but ended up going to the Tamron 300 300 2.8 and F 1.7x.
First off, Iussed the 1.4 TC on both lenses, deciding it would be abetter comparison if magnified.
The results, the DA 55-300 PLM produced a larger subject, even though I had to enlarge the 60-250 to match the extra reach, IMHO the 60-250 image was still better.
PLM+ 1.4 TC for 420mm
DA* 60-250 + 1.4 TC for 350mm
Answers the question 60-250 or 55-300 for straight up image quality. Mind you for squirrel shots , do you really care? Also with a 9.5 minimum aperture there were some birds with finer feathers (like the White Breasted Nuthatch) the PLM simply would not lock focus on. Yet no problem for the 60-250. What a difference 1.5 stops makes.
I did however finally manage a PLM image at 420mm image of this bird.
A downy wood pecker visited for a bit. Absolutely no problem for the PLM.
Norm,
Nice shots all round, to answer your questions and also make some observations , for squirrel shots, while Rupert is sadly gone, Otis is still out there going strong, watch yourself as you have already announced to the world that you are going out in the woods for an extended period
As to the difference between the 55-300 and 60-250, I get the impression that the real difference I see between the shots is contrast not actually sharpness of the image , have you looked at adding contrast (just a little tweek) to the 55-300 shot?
Also your lead in suggests you were going to try the 300/2.8, but no shots?
Lastly, I detect a hint of lateral CA on the 55-300 shot, look closely at the right hand side of the tree on the left side of the frame, if you have a lateral CA tool that change the magnification ratio of the three color layers,(as opposed to a fringe removal tool) I would be willing to bet the 55-300 would get a much sharper appearance.
As a second thought, what if you have the camera use lens correction curves for both? Just a last minute thought here, but if you can correct for the lateral CA, the weight advantage you mention in the 300mm plus thread where you share these images, make the 55-300 the one to take, assuming the loss of 1.5 stops lets you focus.