Nikkor 500 f8 Reflex Lens
In case you've ever wondered about using a Nikkor 500mm f8 Reflex lens...
I've had one since June 1991. I haven't shot with it a lot, but when I use it, the focal length is great. The lens is "ok", but I'm finding that nothing compares like an all-glass lens.
The Lens
The Reflex lens is very light, and somewhat compact. But, the f8 aperture requires you to have bright sunlight to get a clear focus. If it's somewhat overcast, you'll have a harder time seeing the images brightly in the viewfinder.
The nice thing about the 500 f8 is that it close focuses to about 5 feet or so. And, the focusing ring travels around the lens 1-1/3 times around the lens barrel! The large amount of travel makes it much easier to focus the lens compared to many cheapie third-party lens, which focuses in 3/4 of a turn. Since the depth-of-focus is so shallow at 500mm, ease of focusing is very important.
(In fact, I'd be curious to hear from 400mm and 500mm owners to see how far the focusing ring travels around the lens barrel.)
It takes 82mm front filter accessories, and comes with some rear filters, especially the 39mm LC37c UV filter to keep fingers and dust out of the lens. Lens hood is an HN-27 (I think it was included).
It has a built-in tripod mount and a thumb screw that you can use to loosen the mount and rotate the lens to any desired orientation.
A 500mm lens makes people scenes look very flat from front to back. Almost as if you took the scene and put it under a stack of heavy books. Almost no depth between the foreground and background. People at 50 feet look paper thin -- almost like cardboard cut-outs.
Being very light and compact, it maybe possible to shoot it handheld in bright sunlight and fast film...ISO 200 and faster, especially if your subject is somewhat close (100 ft or so). As it gets farther away, the handheld shakes makes it more difficult to compose your shot, and a tripod or monopod is preferred.
Contrast and sharpness seems to be okay. Don't have any background to compare it to a 500mm all-glass lens.
Since it's a reflex lens, there is a "feature" present. When shooting into points of light that are out of focus, the normally fuzzy spots turn into fuzzy spots with a sharp hole in the middle -- very much like a doughnut. It can be artistic or annoying, depending on what you're shooting. I can definitely see that this would be undesirable for nature photos.
Price is between $500-$750 or so. You might be able to find used lenses as low as $300(?) or lower.
I'd be curious to hear from those who've compared the 500mm f8 reflex with a 300mm f4.5 ED and a 2x teleconverter. Which do you prefer? Is there a noticeable difference or consideration between slide and print film when you shoot these combinations?
Sample photos of the USS Missouri BB-63 taken with a 500mm Reflex.
since June 9, 1997
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