Sunday, February 14, 2010

Nikkor 70mm-200mm AFS ED VR II review

So here are my thoughts on the new Nikon 70mm-200mm VRII.

Ive been shooting with this for a week, and so far I am impressed! I owned the previous version so I must say that the new version is a lot sharper and better. I am not going to go into full detail about the full specs of the lens, but just my thoughts on both Version 1 and Version 2.

Below are samples images with NO POST PRODUCTION.

Photo 1
Equipment Used:
D700 w/ 70-200mm VR II
1/20s hand held, ISO 6400 @ F2.8 at 200mm



Photo 2
Equipment Used:
D700 w/ 70-200mm VR II
1/1600s hand held, ISO 3200 @ F4.5 at 200mm



In low light, I am impressed at how sharp the image turned out, and the fact that I can use the lens at 1/20s and still have sharp usable images is impressive! Lately I have been shooting Engagement Sessions at night without flash, so this improvement with the VR system will benefit me.

2nd picture was taken with the Sun in the back, and as you can see this lens does better with back lit subjects. Bokeh at f4.5 is great and there is little or no vignetting. With my clients making large prints, I do not have to worry about them complaining about dark corners.

Focal Length Issue? It does not affect my type of shooting too much be cause my ideal length for portraits is between 85mm-135mm. The advantages of having sharper images, ability to shoot better with back lit subjects, less flare, with a better VR system out weighs the issue of the lens contracting at shorter distances. At 30ft away, you do get your full 200mm, so technically it is still a 70-200mm lens.

Overall I am impressed with this lens, and is becoming one of my favorites! Is it worth to upgrade? My opinion, YES. But your opinion may differ depending on the type of shooting you do.

Here are other samples taken with my D700 & 70-200 VRII



No comments:

Post a Comment