Photographing 2 Chainz opening up for Nicki Minaj was the first real test of the Nikon 500mm f/4 VR and Nikon D800 combination. Hit the jump for my shooting notes on this gig – and maybe even a 100% crop to show just how well this lens and DSLR combo delivered.
Photographer's Notes:
Cameras Used:
Lenses Used:
- Nikon 500mm f/4 VR
Photographing 2 Chainz opening for Nicki Minaj on her Pink Friday Tour was the first real challenge for the Nikon 500mm f/4 VR and the Nikon D800. Anyone who has ever photographed hip hop can attest to the massive amount of movement on the stage that so often occurs with live shows, and 2 Chainz's performance was no exception. In other words, a great test for the autofocus performance of the Nikon 500mm f/4 VR and D800 combo.
But talk is cheap, so here are some 100% crops of a sample image. Here's we go.
Nikon D800. ISO 3200. 1/500 sec at f/4.
Crop #1:
Crop #2:
OK, two things. First, this is the D800 at ISO 3200. Um, yeah. This is way cleaner than my normal Nikon D3 and Nikon D700 under the same circumstances – converted from RAW with the stock noise/sharpening settings
Regarding sharpness and detail, I think the Nikon 500mm f/4 VR is doing a killer job here. When looking at the these crops, another factor you have to consider is that this is on the ridiculously high resolution Nikon D800 that weighs in at 36 megapixels.
Even at this very high resolution, the Nikon 500m f/4 is offering extremely good detail here – wide open at f/4, no less!
As I mentioned in my preview photo post for Nicki Minaj, I grabbed the 500mm f/4 and D800 from my friends at LensProToGo.com. Awesome folks, awesome service.
Stay tuned for the set from Nicki Minaj and my full post on the Nikon 500mm f/4 VR and Nikon D800.
