Nikon 300mm f/4E PF ED VR

Joeturner11

Joeturner11

Messages
6,427
Name
Joe
Edit My Images
No
Finally Nikon Release the new 300mm f/4 E PF ED VR

  • Perfect for fashion, portraits, nature, wildlife, sports, and more
  • Silent Wave Motor (SWM) provides quiet, fast autofocusing with seamless manual override
  • 30% shorter and 1.5lbs shorter than its predecessor due to Phase Fresnel (PF) lens element
  • For greater reach, this lens is compatible with most Nikon Teleconverters

http://www.europe-nikon.com/en_GB/p...-focal-length/af-s-nikkor-300mm-f-4e-pf-ed-vr

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...e=as2&tag=nikorumo-20&linkId=IAAAWSKVKG2ZALG4



View attachment 28079
 
Last edited:
Oh, that's a dead cert buy ……. I hope ……but probably £1,500+ here



Joe, out with my (new) Sigma DP3M this weekend
 
Last edited:
BillN_33 said:
Oh, that's a dead cert buy ……. I hope ……but probably £1,500+ here



Joe, out with my (new) Sigma DP3M this weekend
Click to expand...

Thought you would be first on the seen Bill :D I think the lens is a long time coming with Canon's long lens option the 100-400mm coming out along with Tamron and Sigmas new 150-600mm offerings I think it is now the right time for Nikon to start competing in this area where large amounts of trade could possibly be lost, as the 300mm f/4 is a highly popular choice of lens for many types of users.

Good to hear Bill, out with another one of your new toys! ;) Interested to see the results!
 
I wonder is this why I'm finding it impossible to sell my 300 f/4!?
 
I can live without VR, be happier if they brought out a 400 F4.
 
fracster said:
I can live without VR, be happier if they brought out a 400 F4.
Click to expand...

As a walk about the VR will be very helpful especially when used with the TC14Ell

The 400mm f4 would be just that bit bigger and maybe heavier and not as easy to use hand held, plus the price and maybe non VR

I just hope the IQ and build live up to current 300mm f4 which I use quite a lot
 
BillN_33 said:
As a walk about the VR will be very helpful especially when used with the TC14Ell
Click to expand...
Why would vr help as a walkabout over a non vr?....considering what you generally shoot.
BillN_33 said:
The 400mm f4 would be just that bit bigger and maybe heavier and not as easy to use hand held, plus the price and maybe non VR
Click to expand...
It need not be that big, it would also give a cracking 500 5.6 with the 1.4 on it.

BillN_33 said:
I just hope the IQ and build live up to current 300mm f4 which I use quite a lot
Click to expand...
Likewise Bill, use mine pretty much all the time now.
 
sk66 said:
I normally forget to turn VR on when the SS drops.
Shot this the other day at 800mm, 1/250, *handheld.

yummy by skersting66, on Flickr
Click to expand...

I cannot even hold the 300mm f2.8 VR with any success for more than a couple of shots, never mind going on a 1 or 2 hour "hike" with the lens - the 300mm f4 is my limit

Maybe I should get a 4 x 4 "wheelchair" with all weather tyres
 
BillN_33 said:
I cannot even hold the 300mm f2.8 VR with any success for more than a couple of shots, never mind going on a 1 or 2 hour "hike" with the lens - the 300mm f4 is my limit

Maybe I should get a 4 x 4 "wheelchair" with all weather tyres
Click to expand...
Do you not use a monopod Bill?
 
fracster said:
Do you not use a monopod Bill?
Click to expand...

I now usually carry a lightweight tripod, a Redged CF TSC-427K which has a very small ball head …… but when I walking around unless I have time, I use the camera on the end of a Black Rapid strap as the birds don't hang around and I seldom get to a hide as there are just none around at most of the places that I take shots - sometimes, just sometimes I can set up the tripod, (which can be used as a monopod), but this is the exception rather than the rule ……. if I take my 300mm f2.8VR and above I usually go by car to a chosen spot ….. set the tripod up and sit around and wait.
 
BillN_33 said:
I cannot even hold the 300mm f2.8 VR with any success for more than a couple of shots, never mind going on a 1 or 2 hour "hike" with the lens - the 300mm f4 is my limit

Maybe I should get a 4 x 4 "wheelchair" with all weather tyres
Click to expand...
Well, without VR and w/ that low SS my success rate was ~ 10%... VR would probably have helped some. But I seldom shoot below 1/500 and VR doesn't really help above that....that's why I forget about having it.
 
View attachment 28077

Well its finally here :
  • Perfect for fashion, portraits, nature, wildlife, sports, and more
  • Silent Wave Motor (SWM) provides quiet, fast autofocusing with seamless manual override
  • 30% shorter and 1.5lbs shorter than its predecessor due to Phase Fresnel (PF) lens element
  • For greater reach, this lens is compatible with most Nikon Teleconverters
 
Thanks Joe

How's was the Canary?

US$2,000 in the US ???? - so add UK VAT and a bit more profit for UK suppliers and you probably get £2,000 in the UK
 
I am looking forward for first test results, but keep my feet on the ground for now.

It will be difficult for the new lens to compete with the level of performance set by its predecessor (which was in exotic telephoto class already).

This must be why it took so long for Nikon to refresh this lens. They had to come up with something radically different than just VR or better coating.

I only hope the diffractive element won't damage the performance of the lens too much. I am also puzzled by the fact it is listed at Nikon's pages as a consumer lens. This probably means that all-metal design is no more now.
 
Last edited:
BillN_33 said:
£1639 at Wex on pre order

755g versus 1440g for older non VR ……………. ????

will they do this will the longer lenses?
Click to expand...

Good RRP price in all honestly for the lens, the weight loss is a massive gain! I'm sure they will do this with all long lenses in time to replace them with the FL, the 400mm & 800mm have already been done with massive differences to the weight of those, be interesting if/when they redo the line up how light lenses like the 300mm f/2.8 shall become as its light as it is!
 
Yep - should be interesting to see the first reviews especially when they expect it to take TC well

- no tripod mount? .. but they say that it is not needed ….. but I would have liked to have seen one as presumably using the camera socket is not too good even with a lens this light?

+ 4 stops of light - what does that really mean in the field?

perfect lens for me as I use the 300mm f4 quite a lot
 
Last edited:
BillN_33 said:
- no tripod mount? .. but they say that it is not needed ….. but I would have liked to have seen one as presumably using the camera socket is not too good even with a lens this light?
Click to expand...

It's only 10g heavier than my 70-300VR and I've never thought twice about using that without a mount. Ditto only being 75g or so heavier than my 16-35 too.
 
BillN_33 said:
Yep - should be interesting to see the first reviews especially when they expect it to take TC well

- no tripod mount? .. but they say that it is not needed ….. but I would have liked to have seen one as presumably using the camera socket is not too good even with a lens this light?

+ 4 stops of light - what does that really mean in the field?

perfect lens for me as I use the 300mm f4 quite a lot
Click to expand...

From the Technical Specs at Nikon...

RT-1 tripod collar ring (optional accessory): enables the lens to be rotated freely for smooth transition between vertical and horizontal orientation.
 
Same collar as the 70-200 f4 has Nikon gone soft,two uses for the same item :nikon:
 
stumeech said:
It's only 10g heavier than my 70-300VR and I've never thought twice about using that without a mount. Ditto only being 75g or so heavier than my 16-35 too.
Click to expand...

It's not the weight - it's the fact that sitting behind a gimbal is quite useful etc., plus low light

Thanks - optional extra …… at Nikon prices

anyone called anyone to see when they will be in? ……… just using my old Nikon 300 f4 and comparing it in poor light with the 300mm f2.8 to decide if I really need to take my f2.8 VR on my next trip
 
BillN_33 said:
Yep - should be interesting to see the first reviews especially when they expect it to take TC well

- no tripod mount? .. but they say that it is not needed ….. but I would have liked to have seen one as presumably using the camera socket is not too good even with a lens this light?

+ 4 stops of light - what does that really mean in the field?

perfect lens for me as I use the 300mm f4 quite a lot
Click to expand...

There is a tripod foot available Bill, you have to buy it separate like the Nikon 70-200mm f/4 lens, if you have a look at the Nikon rumours link top of this thread there is a link to the tripod foot on their site
 
Well this is an interesting announcement. Not sure what to make of it.

I've been toying with the idea of replacing my old Sigma 150 - 500mm and getting something with a bit more clout. The new Sigma 150 - 600mm had caught my eye but could this new 300mm be an option?

This 300mm plus a TC would weigh about 1KG, the Sigma 150 - 600mm weighs almost 3KG. That's an incredible weight saving if the quality is comparable. Heck, even my 150 - 500mm weighs in at almost 2KG.
 
BillN_33 said:
Yep - should be interesting to see the first reviews especially when they expect it to take TC well

- no tripod mount? .. but they say that it is not needed ….. but I would have liked to have seen one as presumably using the camera socket is not too good even with a lens this light?

+ 4 stops of light - what does that really mean in the field?

perfect lens for me as I use the 300mm f4 quite a lot
Click to expand...

It's the same weight as my 17-55... No issues at all with the mount.

Alejandro said:
Well this is an interesting announcement. Not sure what to make of it.

I've been toying with the idea of replacing my old Sigma 150 - 500mm and getting something with a bit more clout. The new Sigma 150 - 600mm had caught my eye but could this new 300mm be an option?

This 300mm plus a TC would weigh about 1KG, the Sigma 150 - 600mm weighs almost 3KG. That's an incredible weight saving if the quality is comparable. Heck, even my 150 - 500mm weighs in at almost 2KG.
Click to expand...

They are totally different lenses though.

A more reasonable comparison is the Canon 400 f/5.6 which weighs in at 1.25kg. The Canon 300 f/4 (IS and non IS) weigh in at less than 1.2kg. It's a definite weight saving but we have to remember the current Nikon 300 f/4 is just exceptionally heavy for what it is.

EDIT: I see you mean more for yourself, in which case you need to consider if a prime is what you want. Having gone from a 300 f/4 (canon) to a Sigma 120-300 at over twice the weight I prefer the Sigma for actual use because it has the added value of zoom.
 
Last edited:
Good to see nikon has replaced the 300mm f4. It looks to be a good replacement once the price drops a bit in the future. This move towards lighter, smaller lenses can only be a good thing. After selling my 70-200 f2.8 I've recently replaced it with a 70-200 f4, much lighter and smaller. Not yet put it through its paced but so far it's nice to have a lens that's so light and easy to use, it feels even smaller on a gripped d800. Perhaps this is why the d750 is a smaller body as lenses are going to get smaller.

A tripod mount isn't really required as it weighs so little. I prefer hand holding but I can't hand hold my 200-400 f4 for more than 5-10 minutes because of weight. The new 300mm f4 or 70-200 f4 wouldn't be a problem to hand hold all day for me. Also if the tripod mount position is like the 70-200 f4 it will likely be very close to the lend mount on the body.

If lenses are reducing in size the 500f4 replacement is going to interesting, perhaps the days of big lenses are numbered and we won't get so strange looks of the public went we are out photographing.
 
I rarely ever used the collar on my 300F4 - almost always shot with it hand-held, anyway. New version looks nice, tidy, VR would be sweet ... maybe some day. For now though, how does this affect the value of the old 300 F4? that's all i want to know really.
 
That weight loss is fairly dramatic! That's about half the weight of the current one.

Might this mean a new formulation 200-400mm f/4 similarly using diffractive optics, at the 300mm f/4D AF-S' weight? (And price =:)

I wonder if Sigma's working with Fresnel elements too.. I'd love to see what they could do to the 300-800mm f/5.6's length and weight, given it's not really the most handholdable lens out at the moment.

(Is anyone knowledgeable about optics materials science? I'm curious why polymers seem completely absent from SLR lenses, only found in phones. Do plastic elements not lend themselves to being ground, only molded?)
 
Porsupah said:
I wonder if Sigma's working with Fresnel elements too.. I'd love to see what they could do to the 300-800mm f/5.6's length and weight, given it's not really the most handholdable lens out at the moment.
Click to expand...

lol I can't imagine hand-holding mine!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top