i kinda need sharp pictures...

[Sniket]

Ok, 3x is obviously too much!! non of the pictures is sharp.
When your shooting wildlife etc, you kinda want sharp pictures.

basicly 1,4X converter is the only one who can gice you "sharp". 2x is a bit soft, 3x...hehe


Do anyone know if prime lenses are better for using converters?
Will the pictures get sharp(er) than if am using ex. 80-200 AFS or a 300mm afs 4,0

thanks Robert

[JayG]

I don't know if prime lenses are any better then 3rd party lenses. I have used the Sigma lenses "EX" mainly because at the time it was the best lenses I could buy for my money.
If I were you, I would look at the 50-500 EX or the 170 to 400 EX lenses. You might be happily surprised. Besides, with a 1.5 conversion, that would get you right up there.


Jay/Connecticut:D

[SunbirdPhotos]

I think there's some confusion over the definition of prime lenses.

It is my understanding that prime lenses are fixed focal length, not variable zoom lenses. Prime has nothing to do with the brand of lens. Sigma, Tokina, Tamron, etc. all make prime lenses, along with a variety of zoom lenses.

Prime lenses still produce higher quality than zoom lenses from what I've read in different photography forums. However, a top-notch pro zoom lense will produce results that are indistinguishable from a pro prime lens unless magnified beyond realistic normal use.

Don
www.pbase.com/airlinerphotos

[Tom V]

Prime lenses are fixed focal length. A prime lens can be well-made or poorly made.

Zoom lenses are variable focal length lenses. They are not prime lenses.

If you use a zoom lens as your main lens, you might consider it "your prime lens," but that is a different definition.

Which lens is sharper?

Making a sharp lens takes a lot of work. It probably is impossible to make a perfect lens because different light wavelenghts bend at different angles when they go through glass. To correct for thay, manufacturers use more glass, or better glass, aspheric shapes, and other tricks. Getting all those divergent light waves to line back up on the film (or sensor) requires a lot of computer design, high-quality materials, precision machining, etc. to make all the light end up on the film in focus without distortion of any kind. Somewhere along the line, compromises are made to either sharpness, features, or price.

The best prime lens is sharper than the best zoom lens, simply because there fewer parts, less compromise, less glass, etc. A zoom lens adds so many variables to the design, that some sharpness has to be traded away in order to make the lense portable and affordable.

Nikon, Sigma, and others make prime and zoom lenses of various qualities. Some of their are compact, cheap, feature-laden, and light, and others are heavy, fast, sharp and expensive. Don't spend $100 on a compact, plastic, 28 ~300mm, ƒ2.8 macro zoom and expect the greatest sharpness.

If zoom lenses were as sharp as prime lenses, why would anyone make, sell, or buy prime lenses?

You can buy a zoom lens that is sharper than a prime lens, and visa versa. Unfortunately, better lenses usually cost more, but price alone does not determine how sharp a lens is.