Coming from the excellent and affordable Nikon 70-300VR, this lens seemed like the natural upgrade to do.
Well, after using it for a few months now I'm a bit underwhelmed, and it doesn't feel like much of an upgrade anymore.
The optics and overall build quality are quite good. The lens feels solid, the hood is excellent, the controls work great, VR does a good job.
IQ-wise it's on the par with 70-300VR up to about 200mm. Over that setting it's visibly better, but at 400mm it does soften a bit. Stopping down helps, but it doesn't match the lower focal lengths.
So far so good.
In AF department this lens is more of a downgrade for me, and before getting the D300 (I had D80), acquisition was slow and prone to hunting in less than perfect light.
D300 solved half of the problem - it doesn't hunt nearly as much, but it's still on the slow side. The focus limiter is a real help and improves things further (IMO - every telephoto lens should have one!).
The tripod collar flexes, significantly decreasing sharpness. Replacements don't go cheap either.
Hopefully Nikon will come up with an improved design that would unleash the full potential of this lens
Well, after using it for a few months now I'm a bit underwhelmed, and it doesn't feel like much of an upgrade anymore.
The optics and overall build quality are quite good. The lens feels solid, the hood is excellent, the controls work great, VR does a good job.
IQ-wise it's on the par with 70-300VR up to about 200mm. Over that setting it's visibly better, but at 400mm it does soften a bit. Stopping down helps, but it doesn't match the lower focal lengths.
So far so good.
In AF department this lens is more of a downgrade for me, and before getting the D300 (I had D80), acquisition was slow and prone to hunting in less than perfect light.
D300 solved half of the problem - it doesn't hunt nearly as much, but it's still on the slow side. The focus limiter is a real help and improves things further (IMO - every telephoto lens should have one!).
The tripod collar flexes, significantly decreasing sharpness. Replacements don't go cheap either.
Hopefully Nikon will come up with an improved design that would unleash the full potential of this lens