Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Photographers Are Shooting The Moon With This Camera's Insane Zoom

7
Sean Hollister
Filed to:  6/29/15 11:00pm
Photographers Are Shooting The Moon With This Camera's Insane Zoom12
Trust us, you really don’t need a camera with a built-in telescope. But in the right hands, the insane 83x optical zoom on the new Nikon P900 is mindblowing.
Let’s take a look at a few examples, shall we?

The Moon

When was the last time you took a trip to space just by looking through a lens—and could record it for posterity?

Neighborhood Watch

Except the entire town is your neighborhood. Yep, we showed you this one last week.

Mountain Climbing

Without ever leaving the ground. (Though to be fair, this South Korean gent seems to be doinga lot of actual climbing, too.)

Birdwatching

What kind of bird do we have here?

Enhance!

Think he’s zoomed in? There’s more zoom where that came from. And more. And more. And even a bit more.

Castles In The Sky

Would you have even noticed it with your naked eye?

Spying on Skyscrapers in Japan

Yes, those are people in those windows.

How Far Is Too Far?

This videographer took the trouble of measuring the distance to these snowy peaks. Or would it be “those” peaks? With this lens, it’s hard to tell the difference.
Again, this probably isn’t the best camera for capturing shots at your kid’s soccer game, or most anywhere else really. Even in some of the best-stabilized videos here, you can see that these pictures aren’t particularly clear and sharp. But if you’d rather have a telescope that records 1080p rather than just a camera for day-to-day use, the Nikon P900 sounds pretty awesome.
Contact the author at sean.hollister@gizmodo.com.
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  •  avbodenSean Hollister
    6/29/15 11:06pm
    With impressive zoom, comes tiny image sensors and poor optics. The photos are nice, but nothing more. Put it in low light and it’s donezo compared to anything else in the price range. Neat camera for people who want the crazy zoom, but for anyone desiring quality images beyond facebook, look elsewhere.
    2Reply
      • Resolute Blueavboden
        6/30/15 12:12am
        I see this as just another tool in the toolbox. For daytime shooting that requires an exceptionally large optical zoom this seems like a great option. Zooming motor’s a bit loud for video but it’s not terrible. For everything else, you have either your smartphone for normal situations (to satisfy your P&S needs) and your DSLR for everything else.
        Reply
        • jglonekSean Hollister
          6/29/15 11:35pm
          Pretty sure I will be buying this camera soon. We have an SLR, but only a 75-300mm lens. We aren't pro photographers, but my wife likes to go to parks and preserves and take photos of birds. I've seen photos and videos of nature done with the P900 and it seems fantastic. No more of my wife complaining she can't make out what the bird is because it was too far away from the path we are on!
          Reply
          • superknoppixjglonek
            6/29/15 11:56pm
            What I got last night. Not sure how the resolution will turn out on here but you can see some pretty good detail if you zoom in abit.
            You can get some decent shots with a dslr and a budget lense. (Canon EOS REBEL T3i 250mm)
            Reply
          • redroab2Sean Hollister
            6/30/15 12:44am
            I’m sure the moon one is impressive, but I find the the neighborhood ones much more illustrative. I have no idea what a typical optical zoom can do when looking at the moon, but I have plenty of experience with zooming in on things in my neighbo.... erm, nevermind. The moon one is cool.
            3Reply
            • theimmcSean Hollister
              6/29/15 11:25pm
              “You don’t need a super crazy zoom, but look at all these fun things people are doing with it”.
              Personally, I wouldn’t mind spending the few hundred bucks on it just to play with it. My macro lens cost more than that, and I probably don’t need that either (since I don’t make money from my photos).
              2Reply
              • Mumblix_GrumphSean Hollister
                6/30/15 1:52am
                If this camera had a remote controlled shutter, I’d get it. At that level of zoom, it’s impossible (for me at least) to click the shutter button without shaking the camera making the shot blurry.
                1Reply
                • SonOfSisyphusSean Hollister
                  6/30/15 1:06am
                  I saw a love feed from one of our Navy Helos with those really facny cameras. Apparently the crew member in charge of it’s camera got really bored, because dude was dicking around looking at the moon with it. Absolutely stunning shots.
                  Reply
                  • Assassin_KenseiSean Hollister
                    6/30/15 12:39am
                    That is pretty good for a $600 camera. I actually would like to pick one of these up just to play around with. I mean i have lens’ that price.
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