Canadian Tundra

You haven't told us some important information: was this shot in raw or as a jpeg; is this full frame or cropped (and if so, how much): what sharpening steps have you taken in post processing. I'm also curious about the lens (is this the AF-S 300/4) and the 2x (is this a TC20E, an older Nikon 2x, or from an independent manufacturer)? Did you use a solid tripod, a not so stable monopod, or simply hand hold for this shot?

I shoot my D300 all the time with the AF-S 300/2.8 (vintage 1998) and a Nikon TC20E (also from 1998). I need to be careful in order to get good sharpness. It is great for close birds, and not so great the farther away the subjects are. I always work from a solid Gitzo 1325 carbon fibre tripod with a Really Right Stuff BH-55 head and a Whimberly Sidekick.

Not knowing how you've processed this I tried adding some Smart Sharpen to the larger image and I think the swan looks better in this cropped portion. Strength was 150 (always judfged for each image and adjusted as needed).

Thanks Richard, you'r's certainly looks better than mine!! Post processing - not really anything to sharpen as I an not great on photoshop yet. Now that you have given me a hint or two, I will try that! Shot in raw, Nikon equipment af-s 300/4 with the nikon teleconverter TC 20E- not the new one) with a RRS BH55 on tripod, without the sidekick.

Sounds like you have the fundamentals for sharpness and just need to learn the bits of photoshop necessary to polish your images. NPN is a great place to learn so don't hold back on any questions you have as you try things out.