[Kameko]

This pair of Northern Pintails couldn't seem to figure out where they were going

[manntax]

This pair of Northern Pintails couldn't seem to figure out where they were going

Well done.. could be nice to know the lens though

[Kameko]

Well done.. could be nice to know the lens though

Whoops, sorry. Shot with the FA* 400mm f5.6 on a K3

[manntax]

Whoops, sorry. Shot with the FA* 400mm f5.6 on a K3

I knew it must have been a quality lens ... how do you find manual focusing with this AF lens ?

[Kameko]

I knew it must have been a quality lens ... how do you find manual focusing with this AF lens ?

manual focusing with it is easy peasy! I think in the past 9 months I've only used this and my 31 so I've got a good idea as to it's sweet spot and handling.

[cooltouch]

I just found out about this thread. Right up my alley, it is, in many ways. I still shoot mostly with manual focus lenses, even with my interchangeable lens digital cameras. I'm afraid I don't have any pics from my Pentax gear that would meet the criteria, but I do have lots from my Canon FD and Nikon F film days. Also quite a few from more recent times, shooting with a digital with mf lenses. Pardon if some of the pics I post here have been posted in other areas. I don't keep track of what I've posted where.

A US Navy F/A-18 fighter jet pushing the sound barrier. As a jet approaches the sound barrier, right when it's on the edge of going over, huge bursts of vapor often spring off an airplane's control surfaces. This was a good one. So, yeah, the F/A-18 was doing about 700 mph when I snagged this shot. Canon XS (1000D), Tamron SP 60-300mm f/3.8-5.4, ISO 100


Another shot of an F/A-18. Note the vapor bursts lifting off from the wings. This was taken back sometime during the 1980s. Canon F-1, the same Tamron SP 60-300mm f/3.8-5.4 lens, Kodachrome 64.


Blue Angels Flyby. This slide dates back to the early 1990s. Nikon F3, Tamron SP 300mm f/2.8 LDIF, Fujichrome 100.


A P-38 Lightning WWII fighter. This shot was taken in about 1991 or 1992, Nikon F3, Tamron SP 300mm f/2.8 LDIF, Fujichrome 100.


Here's one of my favorite motorsports photos. Often the trick to getting a sharp pic of a racer traveling at speed is to prefocus on a spot of the track. Or else, with a mf lens, you're chasing after the car for a shot and its gone before you know it.


Porsche-powered March 83g at the 1986 IMSA road race at Riverside International Raceway. Taken at Riverside's famed back stretch, the car was doing in excess of 200 mph when I took this shot. Canon F-1, Tamron SP 60-300mm f/3.8-5.4. Fujichrome 100.


EDIT: Something I learned from experience when shooting both motorsports and airshows is that shutter speed is critical. You can't shoot with a high shutter speed when you're photographing a car zooming by you at a high rate of speed because if you do, it'll just look as if the car is parked on the track -- you've stopped motion with that high shutter speed. With airshows, this applies to prop-driven aircraft as well, and for the same reason. Too high of a shutter speed and the plane looks like it's just "parked" up there in the air with its prop frozen and all. I learned that the best shutter speeds to shoot at are usually 1/60 or 1/125. These speeds give a convincing blur to the prop of an aircraft and with a race car, they blur the wheels nicely, plus if you're panning (and I always pan when I'm shooting race cars or aircraft), you'll blur the background nicely. Given that it's often a bright sunny day at air shows and car races, even with slow slide film -- like Kodachrome 64 -- you're looking at a sunny f/16 rule of 1/60 at f/16 or 1/125 at f/11. Sometimes I was using an f/8 mirror lens, so I had to watch for overexposure when shooting with it, if I still wanted to blur the wheels or the prop. Of the photos I've submitted here, the shot of the P-38 Lightning and all of the motorsports shots were taken ad slower speeds -- no faster than 1/125. The shots of the F/A-18 and the Blue Angels, I can't really say, but I suspect they were at higher speeds. But all the others were not only taken at slower speeds, but with telephotos, or the zoom set to the long end of its range.

Now, I will submit to you that it is this aspect of shooting these subjects -- having to use a slow shutter speed -- often when using long telephotos -- that makes many of the shots I've pulled off "they said it couldn't be done" shots. Just cranking up the shutter speed to 1/4000 and freezing motion doesn't really count, seems to me. One is relying on a camera's abilities and not ones own in those cases.

A Porsche 962 at the same IMSA race as above, taken on a short straight right after the big sweeping Turn 9 and just before the esses. The cars are doing "only" about 120 mph through this section. Canon F-1, Canon FD 200mm f/2.8, Fujichrome 100.



Now here's something a bit different: hummingbirds. In fact, I was using an AF lens, and it still couldn't keep up! Which is why I'm including them at all.




That's all for now. I've got lots more where these came from.

[stevebrot]

This pair of Northern Pintails couldn't seem to figure out where they were going

Whoops, sorry. Shot with the FA* 400mm f5.6 on a K3

manual focusing with it is easy peasy! I think in the past 9 months I've only used this and my 31 so I've got a good idea as to it's sweet spot and handling.

So many of the people I know who shoot BIF (birds in flight) do so with manual focus and manual exposure control. It may seem counter-intuitive to disable the bells and whistles that are supposed to make that type of photography "easy", but you can't argue with results.


Steve

[stevebrot]

Here's one of my favorite motorsports photos. Often the trick to getting a sharp pic of a racer traveling at speed is to prefocus on a spot of the track. Or else, with a mf lens, you're chasing after the car for a shot and its gone before you know it.

Yep, that is how it works. The same is true for photographing bicycle races where AF is unable to track due to all the conflicting moving objects in the frame.


Steve

[carpents]

Not only manual focus, but f/1.2 and using someone else's flash!

[manntax]

Not only manual focus, but f/1.2 and using someone else's flash!

This is what happens when an opportunity meets preparation
well done !!

[UncleVanya]

Man after all this I feel like this isn't all that tough to capture...

A* 85 f/1.4 with AF540fgz:

View image in gallery

[Kameko]

I can't believe it's been over a year since anyone's posted in here. Cross posted from the 300 club.

[stevebrot]

I can't believe it's been over a year since anyone's posted in here. Cross posted from the 300 club.

Woo! Hoo! What a great way to revive a thread!


Steve

[Kameko]

Woo! Hoo! What a great way to revive a thread!


Steve

Well, try at least...

Here's a Northern Harrier going after a Short-eared Owl from the other month

[wtlwdwgn]

Looks good to me!