Nikon Zoom-Nikkor AF 70-300mm Lens – Initial Thoughts

So my new toy finally arrived. It’s taken me ages to get my hands on one of these lenses but since Allison has the same one and is really happy with it I wanted to get one too. My very first reaction was one of disappointment. This lens doesn’t do auto-focus. Mind you, had I actually read the spec properly before buying it that wouldn’t have come as such a surprise I was a bit worried about the lack of auto focus for about 5 seconds, till I gave the lens a go! I’ve been using manual focus for years on my old Olympus OM1 so it’s not a problem to use it again. I think I’ve been a bit spoiled by the great 18-55mm zoom that came with my D40 though.

[tags]Nikon, Zoom Lens[/tags]

I haven’t really had much need for the lens but that didn’t stop my playing with it a bit. Overall I’m very happy with it though I really think a tripod is needed when working at 300mm. However, when there is no wind and enough light to allow the exposure time be low you can just get away with using it hand-held at 300mm. Mind you, you’re rarely going to need to zoom quite that high and at lower focal lengths you can easily use it without a tripod.

The image below shows the same view at 70mm and 300mm. This gives you some idea of the power of the zoom. Also bear in mind that the wind turbines were barely visible to the naked eye and that it was impossible to make out the individual blades without looking through the zoom lens.

The range of zoom is similar to what I get with the standard 18-55mm lens that comes with the D40. The image below shows the same view again but this time at 18mm and 55mm.

Now with both these lenses I have an amazing range at my disposal. The image below is the same scene yet again but this time showing the view as wide as possible (18mm) and as magnified as possible (300mm).