In this one I got out around Chattanooga and did what I always tell people to do—go shoot. I brought my Nikon D850 and the Nikon 200-500mm and went looking for birds and whatever wildlife would cooperate. I originally bought the D850 for landscape work, but I wanted to see how it holds up in 2026 for wildlife, especially when you don’t have modern stuff like eye-detect AF doing the heavy lifting. The big takeaway is the D850 can absolutely still deliver if you use solid technique. I had to lean on “older” methods—things like focus and recompose on some shots—and just be more intentional about how I acquire focus and time the moment. It’s honestly a good reminder that gear isn’t everything, and shooting an older DSLR every now and then makes me appreciate the newer cameras I own. If you’ve got a D850 sitting around (or you’re thinking about picking one up used), this combo with the 200-500mm is still a very real way to get bird and wildlife photos without breaking the bank.