I started to use telephoto flash with the F3 utilizing the latest technology in 1981, the Norman 200B. We’ve come a long ways in flash technology but my goal still remains the same. Get the color accurate for birds when I’m behind the camera. I’ve recently incorporated the Profoto A10 into my kit which is whole new world of gorgeous light. I recently was in Australia at O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat where I put the new system to a helluva field test. The results still light my imagination to what I can go capture next!

The video is a longie – twenty-five minutes broken down into three chapters. I go over the Profoto A10, its operation and use with the Nikon Z 9. I then go through the process of getting ready to actually shoot. And finally I look at the results and explain the thought process behind the capture and how I made it happen. The gear I used were:

Nikon Z 9
Nikkor Z400f4.5
Really Right Stuff lens foot
Really Right Stuff 87-B
Profoto A10

Video shot with
Nikon Z 9
Nikkor Z70-200f2.8
Senal Shotgun Mic

The vast majority of the photographs in the video were shot with -1/3 Exp Comp shot at ISO 800. All images were taken at f/4.5.

The Z400f4.5 for me has four major attributes endearing it to my style of photography. Its physical size and weight (4.1 in. (104 mm) x 9.3 in. (234.5 mm) / 41 oz. (1160 g) ) make it very portable and easy to handhold all day long. Its MFD (8.21 ft (2.5m) from focal plane) produces outstanding image size. And finally, it is sooooo sharp by itself or with either Z teleconverters. One aspect of this lens that is truly personal that I didn’t know I had been missing so much is being able to bebop around with a bird lens on my shoulder! That was something I did for many, many years bringing a ton of enjoyment and filling my library with many bird images still earning money today. I am very grateful the Z400f4.5 has brought that back to our lives!

Here are links to items mentioned in the video:

Z400f4.5 VCM
LensCoat
Really Right Stuff
SmallRig Lightweight Fluid Head

If you have questions or comments, you can leave them on the YouTube page for this video and I will get them answered for you!
Enjoy!

Cutting right to the chase, the Z400f4.5 / Z1.4x creating a 560f6.3 is a spectacularly sharp combo! And to answer a couple who asked, yes, it’s a whole lot sharper than the old 400f5.6 / TC-14 combo I so loved. And to answer a couple of others, yes, the Z400f4.5 / Z1.4x is producing the same spectacular results as the 180-400 with its 1.4x engaged. I am still working on my Field Report video of the Z400f4.5 but wanted to answer this incredibly common question of late. “Sly” has been incredibly cooperative and in this rare moment when he’s not ambushing another hummer, you can count the barbs on his primaries and secondaries with all the information the Z400f4.5 / Z1.4x deliver. There is a very good reason why both are hard to find right now, demand is vastly out stripping delivery. I’m not the only one enjoying these gorgeous results. Because oh yeah, it’s very sharp!

Had the most enjoyable weekend working the critters of The Ranch with the new Nikkor Z400f4.5! Shooting hand-held the entire time, I simply walked about photographing whoever stood still with the Z400f4.5 on the Z 9. It is everything I was counting on and more. This is by no means a field report or a review but just an exclamation of oh my, whata lens. A number of you have emailed asking my thoughts about the Z400f4.5. Saying it’s sharp, light and wonderful seems to sell it short. mtc

Can we work and succeed with just one lens, just one? I don’t think so but you sure can accomplish a helluva alot with just the one, right lens. I’ve talked about the Z24-120 already, that’s not the point of this post. It’s about helping you find that “one lens” that when you wonder which to grab, it’s the first that comes to mind and solves so many problems, but not all, in your photography. Is the answer a zoom? It might not be for your photography, it just happens to be for mine. The key in finding that one lens is looking inward, at your own strengths that you can apply to your photography. One example is simply your feet, zooming with your feet works with a prime just it does with a zoom lens. Zooming to 120mm and getting physically closer by “zooming with my feet” to the Kodiak Brown and then folding out the monitor on the Z 9 for a lower angle for the click made the photograph happen. Could another lens have accomplished the same thing? Why of course but this is just one example of how I make the Z24-120 that one lens for my visual storytelling.

I’ve been depending on the Z24-120 now for a number of months. I’ve used it for macro, portraits, landscapes, critters, air-to-air photo missions, projects and family events, being the primary lens on the Z 9 either on the primary body or second body on a strap on my shoulder the majority of the time. The focal length range of 24mm to 120mm in part makes the Z24-120 that one lens for me. It’s f4 helps a lot with that as well and that’s because I rarely close the lens down shooting the majority of the time wide open. The one exception is when doing an air-to-air and I’m working with really slow shutter speeds so the aperture is closed down. What focals lengths do you find yourself shooting at most of the time? What’s your preference for DoF and does it require a fast lens? Asking these questions can help in the search for the one lens. The really small size and light weight of the Z24-120 is another attribute I depend on. When working on a project like the NAF N3N-3, being able to get in a corner of the hangar, out of the way yet able to shoot is critical. There is one last attribute that you need to add into the equation in finding that one lens for yourself. Sharpness! Nikon has created some truly brilliant glass for the Z family and the Z24-120 is one of those. Throughout its entire range, the Z24-120 has delivered my story I’m telling convincingly sharp. It’s so sharp that I have to think about the portraits I take as some folks well, shouldn’t be captured with that much detail while others require it. And that kinda sums up that one lens you pick and use over and over again. It has those attributes you need to tell your story with as much depth as your photography covers. I wrote about how much I loved the 24-120 and couldn’t wait until it was in the Z line. Well, the Z24-120 is a lens delivering on a promise.

And the hits just keep on coming! The AF performance for critters just got even sweeter!! Nikon has dropped Firmware 2.10 and you’ll want it!! Here are the updates

• [High-frequency flicker reduction] has been added to the roles that can be assigned to camera controls using Custom Setting f2 [Custom controls (shooting)]. For more information, see the Supplementary Firmware Update Manual.
• Autofocus is now better at tracking small subjects.
• Autofocus now produces more accurate results with human portrait subjects detected via eye/face-detection AF with [Continuous AF] selected for [Focus mode].
• Fixed an issue that resulted in the camera focusing on the background when [Single-point AF], [Dynamic-area AF (S)], or [Dynamic-area AF (M)] was selected for [AF-area mode], or when [Wide-area AF (C1)] or [Wide-area AF (C2)] was selected with a custom focus-area size of [1×1].
• You can now expect better results from vibration reduction during panning shots taken with the camera pointing up or down and an option other than [Off] selected for [Vibration reduction].
• Fixed the following issues:
– With certain Z mount lenses, choosing [Focus] for Custom Setting a1 [AF-C priority selection] with [Continuous AF] selected for [Focus mode] would sometimes disable the shutter release even when the subject was in focus.
– [Aperture lock] could not be selected for Custom Setting f4 [Control lock] in modes M and A when an F mount lens was attached.
– Assigning [Recall shooting functions] to a control using Custom Setting f2 [Custom controls (shooting)] would render [Save current settings] unavailable when an F mount lens equipped with an aperture ring and power contacts was attached.
– Auto distortion control would sometimes not be applied to pictures taken with [ON] selected for [Auto distortion control] in the [PHOTO SHOOTING MENU].
– The camera would not recognize custom Picture Controls saved to a memory card using the Mac edition of Picture Control Utility 2.
– Recalling shooting functions would sometimes result in unexpected changes to exposure if:
▸ ISO sensitivity was set to a fixed value in mode M,
▸ an option other than [Exposure maintenance off] was selected for Custom Setting b7 [Keep exp. when f/ changes], and
▸ [Recall shooting functions] or [Recall shooting functions (hold)] was assigned to a control using Custom Setting f2 [Custom controls (shooting)] both with no option (or mode M only) selected for [Shooting mode] and with no check next to any of [Shutter speed], [Aperture], and [ISO sensitivity settings].
– When [Recall shooting functions] or [Recall shooting functions (hold)] was assigned to a control using Custom Setting f2 [Custom controls (shooting)], subject detection would not function as expected if the setting for [AF subject detection options] recalled by pressing the control differed from the option currently selected for [AF subject detection options] in the [PHOTO SHOOTING MENU].

My updated settings for 2.10