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Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR
Focal Length: 55mm
Shutter: 1/60
Aperture: f/11
ISO: 560
Flash: SB-600 (w/ Gary Fong Lightsphere) |
Not all of us can afford the latest greatest lenses Nikon has to offer, so sometimes we have to make due. When I go to sporting events I like to shoot them. I happened to be going to a Phoenix Suns game but I was in the real nose bleed seats, 12 rows from the very top. Not really a premiere vantage point for shooting the game, but I wanted to anyway. I had nothing near long enough to do anything decent, so I snagged this Nikkor 300mm f/4.5 Ai for a steal of $159 through
Adorama's used site.
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Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR
Focal Length: 55mm
Shutter: 1/60
Aperture: f/11
ISO: 140
Flash: SB-600 (w/ Gary Fong Lightsphere) |
On my Nikon F4 that I paired it with for that game it works very well. It is of course manual focus, but it will operate in all the PSAM modes just fine. My Nikon D80 that I use most often now is a different story. You don't get any metering at all, so you are on your own with full manual exposure. That being said, I can safely and successfully use this lens whenever the need arises.
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Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR
Focal Length: 55mm
Shutter: 1/60
Aperture: f/11
ISO: 450
Flash: SB-600 (w/ Gary Fong Lightsphere) |
This lens isn't very fast, 4.5 is slow. Also, and probably the biggest detractor from this lens is close focusing. It only focuses down to 13 feet. So if you wanted to do any close-up work with it you will need to use extension tubes to do it. But, since there aren't any electronics or AF, you can use them just fine.
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Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR
Focal Length: 55mm
Shutter: 1/60
Aperture: f/11
ISO: 500
Flash: SB-600 (w/ Gary Fong Lightsphere) |
SPECS:
- Focal Length: 300mm
- Aperture: f/4.5 - f/22, 6 blades
- Close Focus: 13'
- Lens Type: Ai
- Filter Size: 52mm
- Weight: 39.8oz (1126g)
Shooting at my standard test target here. Not quite as square as I'd like, but it will get the job done. :-)
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Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: Nikkor 300mm f/4.5 Ai-S
Focal Length: 300mm
Shutter: 2 sec
Aperture: f/8
ISO: 100
Flash: None |
I really like the optics on this lens. They are definitely crisp as you can see on this center crop of our test image.
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Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: Nikkor 300mm f/4.5 Ai-S
Focal Length: 300mm
Shutter: 2 sec
Aperture: f/8
ISO: 100
Flash: None |
And that crispness goes right to the edge of a DX frame. A very slight red/green color shift can be seen at the edges of the black areas.
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Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: Nikkor 300mm f/4.5 Ai-S
Focal Length: 300mm
Shutter: 2 sec
Aperture: f/8
ISO: 100
Flash: None |
If you can deal with all manual operation then this lens can really add to your arsenal for nearly the same price as an 18-55mm VR. While I want to upgrade to a newer 300mm AF-S lens myself, I find it hard to justify when I look at what I can do with this lens. If you don't mind going full manual, or you intend on using a full manual film camera then go for it!
Thanks for reading.
This lense is slow but very sharp
ReplyDeleteYeah, the f/4.5 is definately difficult to work around sometimes. Especially since I generally break this out when going to a basketball game or one of my daughter's concerts. To have great results you'll need to have a steady hand and good technique focusing and shooting or you'll end up needing sky high ISO's. I can shoot my Beloved DiamondBacks at around 1/200 second and f/4.5 under stadium lighting with ISO 1600 and I have had some really terrific shots with it. It isn't for everyone, manual focus is a challenge and since it doesn't couple you'll be full manual exposure. Thanks for reading!
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