Santa arrived early here too!

Thiago Sigrist

Hi friends!
This post is a little bit directed at the fellow Nikonians. Have you guys ever tried the AF Nikkor 80-200mm f/2.8D ED lens (the one with 2 rings, not the push-pull version)?

Santa brought me one of these, and all I can say is WOW! The sharpness level of this thing at any focal length or aperture is just insane! It certainly delivers the goods, so if one of you is thinking of a zoom in that range, I can wholeheartedly recommend this one.

Below you can see a photo (not a very good one) that I took from my window, as a kind of a sharpness/focus test. It was taken at 200mm, f/2.8! Take a look:


My only minor complaints so far:
- weight (jeez, it's heavy);
- AF's not up to the best AF-S lenses;
- 'bokeh' is very good but not *excellent*;
- it's not cheap.

Thanks so much for your attention!

Merry Christmas (in advance)!

-- thiago

Harryb

Hey Thiago
Congrats on the lens. I was going for that one myself. I lost the auction for it on E-bay end ended up with the Sigma 70-200/2.8 instead. Its supposed to be a very sweet hunk of glass.

I just got the 300mm/f4 lens and so far I'm thrilled with it.

Harry

Andy

Thiago Sigrist wrote:

Hi friends!
This post is a little bit directed at the fellow Nikonians. Have you guys ever tried the AF Nikkor 80-200mm f/2.8D ED lens (the one with 2 rings, not the push-pull version)?

Santa brought me one of these, and all I can say is WOW! The sharpness level of this thing at any focal length or aperture is just insane! It certainly delivers the goods, so if one of you is thinking of a zoom in that range, I can wholeheartedly recommend this one.

Below you can see a photo (not a very good one) that I took from my window, as a kind of a sharpness/focus test. It was taken at 200mm, f/2.8!

My only minor complaints so far:
- weight (jeez, it's heavy);
- AF's not up to the best AF-S lenses;
- 'bokeh' is very good but not *excellent*;
- it's not cheap.

Thanks so much for your attention!

Merry Christmas (in advance)!

-- thiago

awesome - enjoy (even with a nikon) photography,

Thiago Sigrist

Harry:

Harryb wrote:

Congrats on the lens. I was going for that one myself. I lost the auction for it on E-bay end ended up with the Sigma 70-200/2.8 instead. Its supposed to be a very sweet hunk of glass.

I just got the 300mm/f4 lens and so far I'm thrilled with it.

Harry

Ya know, the Nikkor was a no-brainer for me. I got it second-hand for 'round 500~600 USD. It was used in *only one* assignment, so it looks (and even smells) like new!

But hey, I had taken a look at this Sigma, and it seems to be great too! If I had to buy new, I'd definitely get the Sigma. The greater AF speed of it doesn't hurt, also!

About the 300mm f/4: I held it today (the latest AF-S version)! Beautiful lens, ultra sharp, contrasty etc. A bit too long for me, but great nonetheless. I saw your posts and noticed it's already working wonders for you... all that sharpness!!!

Thanks so much for the response, and have an excellent Christmas!
Take care!

-- thiago

Thiago Sigrist

Andy:

andy wrote:

awesome - enjoy (even with a nikon) photography,

You know, Canon/Nikon jokes simply *rock*! :-)
Lots of people seems to like them here at dgrin, and that's what makes this place an extremely healthy forum to participate!

Thanks for that, and have an amazing Christmas!
Take care!

-- thiago

fish

thiago,

Congrats on the new glass. is that the VR version?

I'm surprised the bokeh isn't a bit smoother at f2.8. My 70-200/4L produces amazing bokeh even up to f8.

luckyrwe

Thiago Sigrist wrote:

You know, Canon/Nikon jokes simply *rock*! :-)
Lots of people seems to like them here at dgrin, and that's what makes this place an extremely healthy forum to participate!

-- thiago

As one who owns Nikon for film and Canon for digital, I can whole heartedly say it is not easy! Ever see those movies about the guy who has two wives in different towns and he manages to juggle his life between them? Owning Canon AND Nion is just like that!

cletus

thiago,

Congrats on the lens! I've got one of the older push-pull 80-200 2.8s. Amazing lens... razor sharp. I think mine spends 90% of it's time wide open at f2.8.

Thiago Sigrist

Hey fish!

fish wrote:

thiago,

Congrats on the new glass. is that the VR version?

I'm surprised the bokeh isn't a bit smoother at f2.8. My 70-200/4L produces amazing bokeh even up to f8.

Hiya!

Unfortunately, the 70-200 VR lens was only available new, and it cost 3-4x the price I've paid for the 80-200!

From the pictures I've seen on the web, the 70-200 VR has the best bokeh of *any* zoom lens, save perhaps the amazing 200-400 f/4 VR.

As for the bokeh on that shot, I must say I was definitely in a 'bokeh killer' situation: several punctual sources of bright light in the background, which tend to make bokeh a mess. However, it's silky smooth when not on this situation.

Thanks for your attention!
Take care!

-- thiago

Thiago Sigrist

Lucky,

luckyrwe wrote:

As one who owns Nikon for film and Canon for digital, I can whole heartedly say it is not easy! Ever see those movies about the guy who has two wives in different towns and he manages to juggle his life between them? Owning Canon AND Nion is just like that!

Erm... I agree... owning both systems must make you feel really awkward every once in a while!

Thanks for your attention!
Take care!

-- thiago

Thiago Sigrist

Agree with you, Cletus!

cletus wrote:

thiago,

Congrats on the lens! I've got one of the older push-pull 80-200 2.8s. Amazing lens... razor sharp. I think mine spends 90% of it's time wide open at f2.8.

Agree 100%. I bought this lens to shoot wide open, so I'm really glad to see my money well spent: it's really sharp at f/2.8!

I'll post some shots later!

Thanks so much for your attention!
Take care!

-- thiago