OK....I tried the A*1200 with birds I found it hard to find it let alone track a duck slowly moving across the water. So what better than head out with Warren to try to use it with something moving fast..... These pics won't the the sharpest but hey, I had to shoot wide open so you deal with a razer edge of what is in focus and these guys were way off shore. I'll add a few shots from warren's 50-135 for comparison if he doesn't mind passing them along.










And the shot that I wish I had made....




and the monster....

Hi, smc.

Wild pictures!! I can see that there is certainly a learning curve involved with that beast, perhaps more so than other lenses. Considering how far out you were, the sharpness is mighty impressive. I would love to take it out to a baseball game. A day game, of course.

How about catch-in-focus? I realize it is rather an unorthodox way of using it, but I wonder if that would work . . . . .

[SteveM]

Thanks Nubi!

Catch in focus sounds like a plan. It's basically a telescope, so wind or any bump and it it moves wildly, but it sure opens up all sort of possibilities for photos that were not there before.

Some shots were a little easier when using it for what it was designed for....from today as well....and yes, still needs to be sharper..lol



Steve

[jct us101]

These are all great! Well at least for the last one mostly, which is just not really in focus that much. I've never seen this much detail though on surfing and windsurfing photos, so these are truly great, at least to me.

[Pentaxie]

Great shots, smc.
Not easy getting such sharp pictures under that tricky condition.
Picture #3 showed the subject facial expression clearly and this I must say is due to the lens used.
Finally, I like the bird picture, as it is very sharp and in focus. The colours is beautiful as well.
Thanks for sharing.

Cheers.

[Tuner571]

These are all very nice photos! The A* 1200mm is a great lens and I really wish to use it someday. Out of your set I really like the bird shot actually, it really draws my interest and looks very sharp as well. Thanks for sharing these great photos!

[BlueBubbleBoy]

I can imagine those shots were tough, but they look good. I love surfing pics too. Although that water looks a little cold for my tastes!

[dcmsox2004]

that's quite a setup you've got there!! i give a lot of credit to those surfers in those conditions!!
hoping to see more from you !! dave m

[Blue]

SMC, What kind of tripod are you using for that set up? Didn't those come from Pentax with a tripod? I have a large telescope tripod that I use for my Tak 500mm.

[SteveM]

Thanks for the comments everyone. jct us101...yes, I wish I had made that last shot and would have been happy if the water had been in focus with the surfer blurred. Trying to track these guys with basically what amounts to a telescope...while focusing, was tricky. It's only the second time out with the beast so hopefully it'll get a little easier. I could have picked up sharper shots with the DA*300 but I wouldn't have been up close without extensively cropping the pic. 1200mm basically opens up a number of options that wouldn't be there otherwise.

Blue...here is a pic of the setup (I added it to the top as well). It's heavy...I'm guessing over 30 lbs with the tripod, but I don't know how I could manage otherwise. We were standing on top of a small cliff and it was really windy and gusty (hence the wind surfing). I tried to dampen the setup down by keeping some tension on the head, but the wind would move me up to 10 feet of target back and forth. Everything was moving all the time so we shot wide open and cranked up the ISO a bit.

[seanix]

Here is one of my windsurfer shots taken with the DA* 50-135 at 135mm. I'll post some more tonight!

Warren

[SteveM]

Thanks Warren! We were both standing in the same spot so it puts some perspective between 135mm and 1200mm.....

Great shot of the mountains btw...

Steve

[Blue]

I am surprised that the Canadian Airforce didn't do a fly-by to see what kind of artillery you had mounted on that cliff! Maybe you need to use the artillery manual to deal with the wind issues. Or maybe some sort of "Kentucky windage."

Thanks for the comments everyone. jct us101...yes, I wish I had made that last shot and would have been happy if the water had been in focus with the surfer blurred. Trying to track these guys with basically what amounts to a telescope...while focusing, was tricky. It's only the second time out with the beast so hopefully it'll get a little easier. I could have picked up sharper shots with the DA*300 but I wouldn't have been up close without extensively cropping the pic. 1200mm basically opens up a number of options that wouldn't be there otherwise.

Blue...here is a pic of the setup (I added it to the top as well). It's heavy...I'm guessing over 30 lbs with the tripod, but I don't know how I could manage otherwise. We were standing on top of a small cliff and it was really windy and gusty (hence the wind surfing). I tried to dampen the setup down by keeping some tension on the head, but the wind would move me up to 10 feet of target back and forth. Everything was moving all the time so we shot wide open and cranked up the ISO a bit.

[SteveM]

I am surprised that the Canadian Airforce didn't do a fly-by to see what kind of artillery you had mounted on that cliff! Maybe you need to use the artillery manual to deal with the wind issues. Or maybe some sort of "Kentucky windage."

One of the wind surfers came up top to find out what the hell I had pointed at him....

[monochrome]

Hi Steve: Great sots! Nice to see you can live the dream. It's almost as good as . . .

As my wife's OB once whispered to me in the hall, "Keep practicing, son. Keep practicing - every day!"