First Effort

Well you didn't expect me not to go out and try out the new lens, did you?

Poor lighting conditions meant a high ISO and relatively low shutter speed. I had no expectation of acuity when I downloaded the image into Lightroom so imagine my pleasure when it snapped into focus after loading. This was amplified when I realised that the vast majority of the images taken where keepers. I wasn't used to this, at least in relation to my experiences with the Sigma 500mm. My initial reaction is that this lens is awesome!

I'd had to carry the lens down a path to the feed station at the local nature reserve, no mean feat, this lens weighs a ton. Mounted on tripod and gimbal head, using all of my acquired knowledge of "long lens" technique, I am 'chuffed' at my first outing, even if the nuthatches, woodpeckers and kingfishers did not oblige. So instead you have a small blue tit, that was willing to pose for me.

Critically, the focus is slightly behind the head, but in many ways I am happier because the depth of field seems wider than expected. OK, this is a crop, but when you've got 36M pixels you may as well use them.