Hello,
I am thinking of buying the Nikon 70-300 VR lens for general wildlife and bird photography. Aside from the reach limitations of this lens, would you recommend it? I can't afford to spend much more money, so the 80-400 VR is out of the picture. Image quality is my main question. Can it get sharp images on the 300mm end? The 70mm end? Is the contrast good? I've already read tons of reviews, but I didn't find many of them to be very helpful, so I am hoping for someone who has had experience with this lens in my area to comment.
First time poster but i saw your tread and i felt like i had to post.
The 70-300 VR is a fantastic lens to use for general wildlife and bird photography. On a dx body (ie D90) it reaches to an equivalent of 450mm.
Optically it is very sharp to ~200mm and drops off slightly (honestly i can barely tell).
Contrast is great!
Most of my animal photos on my flickr page are taken with this lens.
I have the Nikkor 70-300mm VR, the 80-400mm VR and the 200-400mm VR.
The 70-300mm VR is easily a nice walkaround lens. It is light weight and you can carry it all day long without wearing yourself down. If you plan on doing wildlife or bird photography you may want to brush up on your stalking skills so you will be able to approach the birds a little closer than some one with a focal length in the range of 400mm to 600mm. It would also benefit you to know the habits of the subject you wish to photograph.
Location with a shorter lens might also be important. If birds are habituated to people being close to them you will stand a better chance of getting frame filling images. If you are out on the plains where there are far fewer people many of those birds will not allow close approach, which is why here in Utah I primarily use the 200-400mm VR with a matching 1.4x TC.
The 70-300mm VR is easily handheld, I do not believe I ever used mine on a tripod.
I had thought about selling my 70-300mm VR lens in FL prior to having to send my 80-400mm VR on for repair. I didn't like taking my 200-400mm VR to the beaches there so I opted to use my 70-300mm VR for the month my 80-400mm VR was off being fixed. After using the 70-300mm VR for that time period I decided not to sell it and use it for times I don't want to carry either of my bigger lenses.
In my gallery you can find images taken with the Nikkor 70-300mm VR lens:
One more thing, it is important to remember it is not always the equipment that will give you a great shot, it is the photographers skill behind the lens that will help with that.
In my opinion, it's a rather good lens for the price & weight. I like mine. However, there seems to be quite pronounced sample variation with this lens - I had two that were useless at 300 mm, and only the third one performed well (and actually, it performs better than I'd have expected from a consumer zoom).
Executive Summary: If you are upgrading to this lens from a Nikon kit lens (and have not had much or any experience with Nikon's best lenses), you will probably love this lens. It is small, light, easy-to-use, and will produce acceptably sharp images over a variety of situations and with many subject types. Combine this with it's low price and you'll likely feel this lens offers great value! But...if you are accustomed to using some of Nikon's best lenses you will probably immediately notice this lens's optical limitations and the compromises you have to make to squeeze acceptable image quality out of it. But it's still cheap! And, I will continue to use this lens as an acceptable "walking around" lens - it's just SO convenient!
3. Long answer: Go here: http://www.naturalart.ca/artist/cameragear.html#anchor_70-300mm
I was in a similar position a couple years ago - couldn't afford a big lens or pro-grade lens, but was anxious to shoot birds and other wildlife. I opted for a Sigma 70-300 which is less than half the price of the Nikon you are considering. You can view my gallery for some sample images, but honestly if I had the money, the Nikon would definitely have been the way to go.
As Mia's pictures demonstrate, you can get some great images with this lens, but technique plays a key role. The two biggest advantages, especially for your first telephoto, are its weight and VR. The weight will allow you to hand hold this lens and be very mobile. The VR will allow you to get sharp images even when the light is mediocre. As Brad mentioned, unless you're used to pro glass, you will likely be very pleased with this lens. The time it takes to save for your next lens will allow you to perfect your technique. So your skill and equipment have a tendency to grow at a similar rate (if your wallet can keep up ).
Discussion
5 repliesI am thinking of buying the Nikon 70-300 VR lens for general wildlife and bird photography. Aside from the reach limitations of this lens, would you recommend it? I can't afford to spend much more money, so the 80-400 VR is out of the picture. Image quality is my main question. Can it get sharp images on the 300mm end? The 70mm end? Is the contrast good? I've already read tons of reviews, but I didn't find many of them to be very helpful, so I am hoping for someone who has had experience with this lens in my area to comment.
Thanks,
Jaymes
First time poster but i saw your tread and i felt like i had to post.
The 70-300 VR is a fantastic lens to use for general wildlife and bird photography. On a dx body (ie D90) it reaches to an equivalent of 450mm.
Optically it is very sharp to ~200mm and drops off slightly (honestly i can barely tell).
Contrast is great!
Most of my animal photos on my flickr page are taken with this lens.
here is a link to all of my pictures with this lens, hopefully this helps you judge the quality of the lens.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/regularchaos/tags/70300/
-Mike
I have the Nikkor 70-300mm VR, the 80-400mm VR and the 200-400mm VR.
The 70-300mm VR is easily a nice walkaround lens. It is light weight and you can carry it all day long without wearing yourself down. If you plan on doing wildlife or bird photography you may want to brush up on your stalking skills so you will be able to approach the birds a little closer than some one with a focal length in the range of 400mm to 600mm. It would also benefit you to know the habits of the subject you wish to photograph.
Location with a shorter lens might also be important. If birds are habituated to people being close to them you will stand a better chance of getting frame filling images. If you are out on the plains where there are far fewer people many of those birds will not allow close approach, which is why here in Utah I primarily use the 200-400mm VR with a matching 1.4x TC.
The 70-300mm VR is easily handheld, I do not believe I ever used mine on a tripod.
I had thought about selling my 70-300mm VR lens in FL prior to having to send my 80-400mm VR on for repair. I didn't like taking my 200-400mm VR to the beaches there so I opted to use my 70-300mm VR for the month my 80-400mm VR was off being fixed. After using the 70-300mm VR for that time period I decided not to sell it and use it for times I don't want to carry either of my bigger lenses.
In my gallery you can find images taken with the Nikkor 70-300mm VR lens:
Sanderling
White Morph Reddish Egret
Willet
Reddish Egret
Dunlin
Tricolored Heron
Great Egret
Oil on a Reddish Egret
I hope that this has been helpful to you.
One more thing, it is important to remember it is not always the equipment that will give you a great shot, it is the photographers skill behind the lens that will help with that.
Here's one at 300 f/6.3...
http://basilgreber.smugmug.com/Travel/Thailand-2009-Southern/7354664_ksx6H#473424611_a5bqj
One man's opinion...
1. Short answer: Very good lens for the price.
2. Medium length answer:
Executive Summary: If you are upgrading to this lens from a Nikon kit lens (and have not had much or any experience with Nikon's best lenses), you will probably love this lens. It is small, light, easy-to-use, and will produce acceptably sharp images over a variety of situations and with many subject types. Combine this with it's low price and you'll likely feel this lens offers great value! But...if you are accustomed to using some of Nikon's best lenses you will probably immediately notice this lens's optical limitations and the compromises you have to make to squeeze acceptable image quality out of it. But it's still cheap! And, I will continue to use this lens as an acceptable "walking around" lens - it's just SO convenient!
3. Long answer: Go here: http://www.naturalart.ca/artist/cameragear.html#anchor_70-300mm
Hope this helps...
Brad
I was in a similar position a couple years ago - couldn't afford a big lens or pro-grade lens, but was anxious to shoot birds and other wildlife. I opted for a Sigma 70-300 which is less than half the price of the Nikon you are considering. You can view my gallery for some sample images, but honestly if I had the money, the Nikon would definitely have been the way to go.
As Mia's pictures demonstrate, you can get some great images with this lens, but technique plays a key role. The two biggest advantages, especially for your first telephoto, are its weight and VR. The weight will allow you to hand hold this lens and be very mobile. The VR will allow you to get sharp images even when the light is mediocre. As Brad mentioned, unless you're used to pro glass, you will likely be very pleased with this lens. The time it takes to save for your next lens will allow you to perfect your technique. So your skill and equipment have a tendency to grow at a similar rate (if your wallet can keep up