Lon Williamson said: > Greg, > > I've notice grain gets butt-ugly on any speed of color > neg film if that film is underexposed. I have also > noticed that using a 2x TC on a consumer zoom (in my > case, a Sigma APO 70-300) gives horrible sharpness no > matter what tripod tricks I use (take your pick: any > combination of MLU/Timer/CableRelease/HandOnLens/Face > AgainstCamera).
Since I don't have a lot of experience, until now I've been working on the assumption that I'm a bigger limitation than my equipment is. In a sense it's reassuring to think that I don't need to spend more money than I have. But even when I thought I'd done everything right, I don't seem to get the sharpness I want. > > I own two 500mm mirror lenses, both of which give better > results than the Sigma @ 300mm with TC. The trick with > mirror lenses is: don't use them with slide film. The > contrast and saturation loss can be depressing. Use neg > film and darkroom contrast control or Photoshop to put the > "snap" back in. > > You might want to try an old mirror lens. The Spiratone > ones labled Plura-Coat can be had for under $100 (same cost > as a cheap new 2x TC) and deliver acceptable 8x10s, as far > as I am concerned. I have a Kalimar 500mm reflex, and all that telephoto was exciting at first, especially with a TC. But all the photos I take with it seem to be grayish and low contrast. Longer shutter speed helps, with all the side effects of a long shutter speed on 500mm or 1000mm of telephoto. I wanted to try pushing film to see if that improves contrast, but none of the shops near me can do that. It's summer now, and our extended rain seems to have passed along. I should take it out again in the sunshine and try some birds.
