Full-Frame Sony FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS Image Thread

[Clide]

Just received the new 400-800mm. I do not normally like to post more than one photo. These are straight out of the A7R5, no crop or post process. Handheld, partly cloudy day and a lot of wind. I personally did not notice a difference in weight compared to the 200-600.

• ILCE-7RM5
• FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS
• 800.0 mm
• ƒ/8
• 1/2000 sec
• ISO 1000

• ILCE-7RM5
• FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS + 1.4X Teleconverter
• 1,113.0 mm
• ƒ/11
• 1/400 sec
• ISO 400

• ILCE-7RM5
• FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS
• 600.0 mm
• ƒ/8
• 1/2000 sec
• ISO 1000

• ILCE-7RM5
• FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS
• 591.0 mm
• ƒ/7.1
• 1/2000 sec
• ISO 800

• ILCE-7RM5
• FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS
• 800.0 mm
• ƒ/8
• 1/2000 sec
• ISO 1250

 

[Tim Mayo]

Great shots! Good to hear that you didn't notice the weight difference. I'm definitely tempted to swap my 200-600 for this.

 

[Clide]

Great shots! Good to hear that you didn't notice the weight difference. I'm definitely tempted to swap my 200-600 for this.

Thanks, I cannot wait to pair this lens with the Sony A1 ii. If Sony ever chooses to release it!

 

[iamdlewis]

Thanks, I cannot wait to pair this lens with the Sony A1 ii. If Sony ever chooses to release it!

I haven't made a move for the 400-800 because I am still waiting on Amazon to start shipping orders. I have seen people saying that B&H has been shipping orders taken in late December and random small camera shops getting bodies in stock.

 

[Clide]

I haven't made a move for the 400-800 because I am still waiting on Amazon to start shipping orders. I have seen people saying that B&H has been shipping orders taken in late December and random small camera shops getting bodies in stock.

Thanks!

 

[THXGEEK]

I haven't made a move for the 400-800 because I am still waiting on Amazon to start shipping orders. I have seen people saying that B&H has been shipping orders taken in late December and random small camera shops getting bodies in stock.

I placed my order for the 400-800 from Amazon on March 15th. I just received an estimated shipping date of April 8th. We'll see.

I spoke with B&H the other day and they confirmed that Sony is currently releasing the A1 ii to some channels, but they expect much larger stock to be available in April/May. Again, we'll see.

 

[iamdlewis]

I placed my order for the 400-800 from Amazon on March 15th. I just received an estimated shipping date of April 8th. We'll see.

I spoke with B&H the other day and they confirmed that Sony is currently releasing the A1 ii to some channels, but they expect much larger stock to be available in April/May. Again, we'll see.

Amazon just sent me that they expect to ship my A1ii between April 15 and May 10

 

[Clide]

Went out this morning with the 400-800 mm. The weight is comparable to the 200-600. It is heavy when one needs to hold up at shoulder length for a period of time, same as the 200-600. I find it to be a fun lens to work with the additional stretch out to 800mm is very noticeable to me. Birds in flight photos are not sharp, and I relate that to poor technique on my part. The manual controls are smooth. I want the precapture! These photos were cropped and denoise.

• ILCE-7RM5
• FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS
• 400.0 mm
• ƒ/6.3
• 1/3200 sec
• ISO 1250

• ILCE-7RM5
• FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS
• 534.0 mm
• ƒ/7.1
• 1/3200 sec
• ISO 1250

• ILCE-7RM5
• FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS
• 600.0 mm
• ƒ/8
• 1/3200 sec
• ISO 800

• ILCE-7RM5
• FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS + 1.4X Teleconverter
• 980.0 mm
• ƒ/11
• 1/2000 sec
• ISO 1600

 

[THXGEEK]

Amazon just sent me that they expect to ship my A1ii between April 15 and May 10

Great to hear!

I wish Amazon would open up a pre-order link for the A1 ii. I have been saving up my Amazon credits and want to apply them to this new camera.

(Oops! Sorry - didn't mean to hijack this thread!)

 

[AlphaWorld]

I'm not going to compete with Clide's images, but I took my shiny new 400-800mm out to Werribee Zoo today (I got the lens on Thursday) - Werribee has just opened their Elephant Trail (having moved a herd of elephants from Melbourne Zoo not long ago) - the elephants have had time to settle into their spacious new areas.

Saturday was heavily overcast, and I may post a shot or two from Saturday - maybe I can claim I was trying the lens out under simulated UK lighting conditions?

Today we had some light cloud but ample sunshine. A fair bit of wind, which I hoped would encourage birds in flight.

First shot, however, is a simple one:

a gorilla enjoying a light breakfast of lettuce (A9 III with the 400-800mm G at 800mm, f/8, 1/2000, ISO 1600) - image scaled to 2000 pixels wide.

and now cropping a 2000 pixel square from the image to assess sharpness:

I'd say that the eye AF did its job, and that the lens is sharp at 800mm.

The lens is a bit heavier than the 200-600, but I can shoot it handheld (that was part of the objective this weekend - how readily could I use the lens handheld). I do struggle to use it shooting birds overhead - my grip starts to tremble almost immediately. It's no more trouble to carry from place to place, though. The tripod foot is a convenient handle . I have a Peak Design Slide strap attached to the lugs on the lens (they are on the tripod collar).

 

[AlphaWorld]

Here's an image of something in flight (there was an air show going on not far from the zoo)

Shot at 800mm, f/8, 1/2000, ISO 640

I know I'm supposed to use a slower shutter speed to show the blades in motion, but I was aiming to photograph birds Even at 1/2000, though the blades do show a little bit of blur. No rolling shutter though (A9 III).

 

[AlphaWorld]

The only bird I have for you - this is an Orange Bellied Parrot (part of a breeding programme at Werribee Zoo). This image was shot through foliage (you can see one of the branches in the shot) in an aviary.

Shot with the 400-800mm at 785mm, f/8, ISO 8000 (no de-noise applied), 1/2000.

Cropped to 3700 pixels wide to get rid other pieces of foliage, then scaled to 2000 for this site.

The orange belly is just that small patch between its legs.

 

[AlphaWorld]

This one is more of a technical achievement than an attractive image

I could hear a kookaburra (the distinctive "laugh"), but had trouble seeing it.

Shot with the 400-800 at 402mm, the lens wide-open at f/6.3, 1/500, ISO 3000.

Here's the full frame, scaled to 2000 pixels high for this site:

I can't crop it down to 2000x2000 and still include the whole bird.

Here is a 3000x3000 crop, scaled to 2000x2000:

I'd say that focus is pretty solidly on the eye, through a maze of foliage. I'm impressed that the camera managed to grab focus. I can assume you that this was not manually focussed by me.

I promise my next shot will be a good one

 

[AlphaWorld]

Here we have a Kangaroo Island kangaroo (yes, that's a real thing - they are a bit smaller than red kangaroos and grey kangaroos, and they are furrier that the others, because Kangaroo Island is somewhat colder).

Unfortunately, there had been rain before I arrived, so this kangaroo is looking damp and dishevelled. and so she is looking at me, and I think she is saying to me "Watch where you are pointing that lens, camera boy!".

The whole frame, scaled to 2000 for here:

Oh, and you know how people have claimed that the A9 III cannot handle higher ISOs? This is shot at ISO 6400 under a heavily overcast sky. No denoising applied.

Full details: f/8, 452mm, 1/500. ISO 6400.

 

[Clide]

Here we have a Kangaroo Island kangaroo (yes, that's a real thing - they are a bit smaller than red kangaroos and grey kangaroos, and they are furrier that the others, because Kangaroo Island is somewhat colder).

Unfortunately, there had been rain before I arrived, so this kangaroo is looking damp and dishevelled. and so she is looking at me, and I think she is saying to me "Watch where you are pointing that lens, camera boy!".

The whole frame, scaled to 2000 for here:

Oh, and you know how people have claimed that the A9 III cannot handle higher ISOs? This is shot at ISO 6400 under a heavily overcast sky. No denoising applied.

Full details: f/8, 452mm, 1/500. ISO 6400.

View attachment 72958

Well done, good photos!

 

[sfiron]

Not sure I understand this lens.

 

[AlphaWorld]

Not sure I understand this lens.

I am learning about it as I go.

I have found I stand a much better chance of finding the bird with the lens zoomed out to 400mm, then start tracking the bird, and zoom to 800mm (tracking continues while zooming, unlike the problems Jared Polin reported with the Sigma 300-600mm).

I'm finding the 800mm is really useful with small birds, because it lets you stand off further, and therefore run less risk of frightening the bird.

 

[AlphaWorld]

I believe I have identified this bird, which I do not recall seeing before, as a Buff-Banded Rail. Happy to be told that I'm wrong!

This is the entire frame (scaled to fit the site limitations), shot at f/8, 1/2000, ISO 3200, at 800mm

 

[AlphaWorld]

A couple of water birds:

The easy one first: a Pacific Black Duck:

I quite liked the reflection of the head, where the water was ripple free because this duck was paddling forwards firmly - a duck on a mission.

That was shot at 800mm, f/8, 1/2000, ISO 8000 on the A9III. The shot above is a bit cropped to remove a piece of rubbish floating in the water.

..........

And now a bird I've never seen before and have been unable to identify - I'd be grateful if someone could identify this one. It's quite small - much smaller than the duck, at a guess, about hand-sized. It was sitting still, but its head was in motion (so it's not a toy!)

Edited to add after more looking at bird photos: I wonder if this is a young Australasian Grebe? It did eventually duck underwater, and the colouring matches.

Shot at 800mm, f/8, 1/2000, ISO 3200 on the A9!!!. This image is uncropped.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

I promise my next shot will be a good one

Well, I think this one is excellent! I love all that blurred foliage with the bird's head sharp in the middle

 

[AlphaWorld]

Not an image, but I have just learned that the Leofoto replacement foot with Arca dovetail is likely to be coming into stock in the Australian dealer next week.

Leofoto SF-04 Arca Lens Foot for Sony FE 400-800mm f6.3-8 G OSS Telephoto Lens

Buy Leofoto SF-04 Arca Lens Foot for Sony FE 400-800mm f6.3-8 G OSS Telephoto Lens - direct from the official Australian Leofoto store. Free shipping on orders over $99.

leofoto.com.au

Looks very pretty, except that it’s black however, my head and monopod are black…

 

[Unframed Dave]

A couple of water birds:

The easy one first: a Pacific Black Duck:
View attachment 72997

I quite liked the reflection of the head, where the water was ripple free because this duck was paddling forwards firmly - a duck on a mission.

That was shot at 800mm, f/8, 1/2000, ISO 8000 on the A9III. The shot above is a bit cropped to remove a piece of rubbish floating in the water.

..........

And now a bird I've never seen before and have been unable to identify - I'd be grateful if someone could identify this one. It's quite small - much smaller than the duck, at a guess, about hand-sized. It was sitting still, but its head was in motion (so it's not a toy!)

Edited to add after more looking at bird photos: I wonder if this is a young Australasian Grebe? It did eventually duck underwater, and the colouring matches.

Shot at 800mm, f/8, 1/2000, ISO 3200 on the A9!!!. This image is uncropped.

View attachment 72998

It's a grebe. Very similar to our little grebe, but the spot behind the bill is white on ours. I've just googled australian grebes and that's what it is.

 

[AlphaWorld]

A superb fairy wren - probably female (plenty of males still in breeding blue). These balls of fluff are small and fast. I'm surprised to get this image this sharp at 1/500.

This is at 800mm f/8 (wide open) ISO 800 1/500. This is straight out of camera - not even a tone curve. No de-noise. Cropped to 3600 x 2600 from 6000 x 4000 (A9 III), then scaled to 2000 for this site.

The 400-800 is a lovely lens for little birds.

 

[Richard A]

Yep, that's a female. Nice shot. Well done.

 

[Clide]

Red Shoulder Hawk dining on evening meal. I am still adapting to this lens. Photo taken on my knees to get a relatively clear shot. Very high ISO cleaned up with Topas.

• ILCE-7RM5
• FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS
• 659.0 mm
• ƒ/10
• 1/4000 sec
• ISO 16000

 

[AlphaWorld]

Visited a local wetland in the middle of a suburb today.

I believe this is a white-faced heron (partly because the sign at the entry to the wetland boardwalk said they were local).

I must get better at zooming in to fill the frame. This was shot at 588mm, and this 2k square is a 100% crop from the frame. Still, the bonus to shooting at 588mm was the wide open was f/7.1 IS0 2000 1/2000.

 

[AlphaWorld]

"Yeah, but is it sharp at 800mm f/8? XYZ said it's not sharp at f/8!"

I was photographing Pacific black ducks today (ducks can be calming to watch). One duck flicked its head up and I shot a burst. I didn't see what it caught, but I think this answers "is it sharp?".

This was shot at 800mm, f/8, 1/2000, ISO 1600 using the A9 III.

This is the full frame (resized to 2000 wide for this site:

and the detail around its beak? This is at 100%

I'm happy enough with that.

 

[Tim Mayo]

Great shots guys, thanks for sharing them. I spotted the 400-800 in stock over here on the weekend and couldn't resist adding it to my basket. My 200-600 doesn't really see any use since I picked up the Sigma 500 but I have been craving a little extra reach for small birds. I guess I'll just have to get used to the additional weight over my Sigma.

 

[Richard A]

You're looking a bit telephoto heavy over there Tim.

 

[Tim Mayo]

You're looking a bit telephoto heavy over there Tim.

I do like my telephoto lenses