Question???

Firehouses of Ohio

Other than the cost what is the real difference between a 2.8 70-200mm & 80-200mm?

ziggy53

I see that you shoot Nikon, so which 70-200mm zoom are you wanting to compare? Please be specific as there have been quite a few versions.

Firehouses of Ohio

ziggy53 wrote: »

I see that you shoot Nikon, so which 70-200mm zoom are you wanting to compare? Please be specific as there have been quite a few versions.

I'm probably looking at picking up a version that has VR on it however, I'm not sure what difference between the 2 lens' are other than one has a minimum range of 70 mm versus 80mm.

It's easy to get one through Adorama or B&H I'm just curious what the difference is that makes the price difference so distinct.

ziggy53

The Nikkor 80-200mm, f2.8 AF-D ED is the current version of the 80-200mm zoom and it lacks both a built-in AF motor and VR. If you have a Nikon body with an AF screw-drive then the 80-200mm zoom is an excellent value, and if you have a D3 or above it is also very fast to focus. There is some anecdotal evidence to indicate that there are different motors used in different camera bodies so some bodies may not be fast enough for sports/action, but for most other activities they should be fine. If you have a camera without an AF screw-drive motor then you will need to manually focus the lens.

The Nikkor 70-200mm, f2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR and Nikkor 70-200mm, f2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR II are similar to each other except that I believe the model II is better suited for a full-frame camera body in that I believe it has better edge and corner image quality. On a crop body I believe there is less optical difference and either are very good.

I also believe that the VR II is somewhat better stabilization than the original version. Both versions have AF-S motors (in the lens) and they should work well on any modern Nikon body.

The honest truth is that all of these lenses are capable of professional results and there is not a dog in the bunch.

Firehouses of Ohio

ziggy53 wrote: »

The Nikkor 80-200mm, f2.8 AF-D ED is the current version of the 80-200mm zoom and it lacks both a built-in AF motor and VR. If you have a Nikon body with an AF screw-drive then the 80-200mm zoom is an excellent value, and if you have a D3 or above it is also very fast to focus. There is some anecdotal evidence to indicate that there are different motors used in different camera bodies so some bodies may not be fast enough for sports/action, but for most other activities they should be fine. If you have a camera without an AF screw-drive motor then you will need to manually focus the lens.

The Nikkor 70-200mm, f2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR and Nikkor 70-200mm, f2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR II are similar except that I believe the model II is better suited for a full-frame camera body in that I believe it has better edge and corner image quality. On a crop body I believe there is less optical difference and either are very good.

I also believe that the VR II is somewhat better stabilization than the original version. Both versions have AF-S motors (in the lens) and they should work well on any modern Nikon body.

The honest truth is that all of these lenses are capable of professional results and there is not a dog in the bunch.

I'm not worried about my bodies they both have a battery pack. While we don't run the most current bodies and after this lens we'll be moving to a full frame body there is a method to my madness....lol

cab.in.boston

Firehouses of Ohio wrote: »

I'm not worried about my bodies they both have a battery pack. While we don't run the most current bodies and after this lens we'll be moving to a full frame body there is a method to my madness....lol

Whether a "D" lens will AF isn't a question of a battery grip, it's whether your body has an in-body focus motor. Of the current bodies, the D90, 7000, 300/s, 700, 3/s/x have screw drives. The D5000 and D3100 do not. I'm not completely sure about the older bodies, but I'd be willing to bet your D200 does have a screw drive. It's been mostly the "entry level" bodies that cannot AF older lenses and require AF-S. The higher-end bodies do have the in body screw drive.

I'm almost positive with your D200 you can use the older 80-200 with no worries, but just confirm that you do for sure have the screw drive. When you remove a lens, is there a little screw that pops up from the lens mount interface?

angevin1

cab.in.boston wrote: »

Whether a "D" lens will AF isn't a question of a battery grip, it's whether your body has an in-body focus motor. Of the current bodies, the D90, 7000, 300/s, 700, 3/s/x have screw drives. The D5000 and D3100 do not. I'm not completely sure about the older bodies, but I'd be willing to bet your D200 does have a screw drive. It's been mostly the "entry level" bodies that cannot AF older lenses and require AF-S. The higher-end bodies do have the in body screw drive.

I'm almost positive with your D200 you can use the older 80-200 with no worries, but just confirm that you do for sure have the screw drive. When you remove a lens, is there a little screw that pops up from the lens mount interface?

Exactly!

And yes, the D200 will AF the 80-200 having an in-body screw-drive!

And if it is worth anything, I've had the older 80-200 and now have the 70-200VR2 Both are stellar lenses!

time2smile

Firehouses of Ohio wrote: »

I'm probably looking at picking up a version that has VR on it however, I'm not sure what difference between the 2 lens' are other than one has a minimum range of 70 mm versus 80mm.

It's easy to get one through Adorama or B&H I'm just curious what the difference is that makes the price difference so distinct.

80mm are the older ones, latest version still sold, i think their are four different versions.
70mm VR replaced the 80mm
70mm VRII just replaced the 70MM VR

Have to support ART, dont forget to look into the new Sigma 70-200, its suppose to be good..

all these lens are very good, you can read some stuff here.
http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/nikkor.htm#af

good luck