Good air . . .

An hour or so of bright, overcast weather following a long morning rain afforded me a chance to shoot the Sigma 100-400mm in relatively clear air for the first time. It was eye-opening.

First with known targets and then on distant critters, it showed itself to be as sharp as the Lumix + 2X, but with superior contrast and no veiling flare. Overall, it’s a much better choice for bird-chasing than the Lumix. Further, a review of some shots from the a7R IV and Sony G 100-400mm show it to be not merely equal, but superior to the much-vaunted FE lens. Actually, the thing I disliked most about the Sony setup was that the a7R IV cooked too much sharpening into the files with that lens, resulting in feather details that had an unnatural, too-brittle texture.

The superior Sigma can be had for about a third of the price of each the other two.

The Panleica 100-400mm had to be sourced from another vendor, the good part being that it should get here sooner than the previously-anticipated arrival of the other copy.

Add to that a surprise sighting of a lone lapwing when I wasn’t even looking for birds, and it’s been a good day.