Yeah, it's always nicer to have no extenders and a really bright viewfinder. And the extenders (any type) do reduce image sharpness and contrast. The more (extra) glass between front of lens and film (or CCD), the less resolution, contrast and sharpness in general.
My Tokina 300mm manual focuses quickly and smoothly, so it is no big hassle not having AF, although I wouldn't say no to an FA 300mm F2.8 or a FA 600mm f4.0. Problem for us here in Oz is that a 600mm F4.0 would cost between $15,000 and $20,000 AUD, and I kinda want to keep my car! Cheers Shaun Dr. Shaun Canning Cultural Heritage Services 11 Lawrence Way Karratha, Western Australia, 6714 0414-967644 [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.heritageservices.com.au -----Original Message----- From: Herb Chong [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Sunday, May 16, 2004 8:54 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: Point Pelee-Lots of big glass they are pretty good, but i find that the 1.7 AF extender to be a bit low on contrast. i guess it flares more than the two L extenders that i also use some of the time. unfortunately, the L extenders don't add or support AF capabilities on any lens and really aren't compatible with much except A* lenses with focal length 300mm and up. i have used them on my FA* 400/5.6, but it's not supported. the small amount of AF that the extender gives helps get the sharpness through better focusing though, and Photoshop compensates some for the loss of contrast. i find it hard to manually focus quickly using the A2X-L extender, and tracking a fast moving subject that pauses only briefly makes it that much harder. of course, shooting without extenders, it's far faster to focus accurately because the viewfinder is brighter. Herb... ----- Original Message ----- From: "Shaun Canning" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Saturday, May 15, 2004 8:19 PM Subject: RE: Point Pelee-Lots of big glass > Wow Herb that gives you an effective focal length of about 1000mm at > f4.5 (ish). What are the results like? I have a Tokina 300mm f2.8 and a > 1.7 AF TC (765mm @f4.5) and the results are pretty good. The SMC glass > can only make it better...
