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Nikkor 70-300mm f4.5-5.6 Hunting Using AFFirst real use of this lens on Stickle Pike trip

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Posted by Robert: Wed Oct 11th, 2017 07:15

1^st Post

I used my Nikkor 70-300 for the first time in 'field conditions' on my recent trip to Stickle Pike, OK, I have had it for a while but not really used it much in the field, especially at the long end.

I took it in preference to my Nikkor 300mm f2.8 AI lens which is a bit heavy for these trips, when I am also carrying D3, 16mm f2.8mm fisheye, 18-35mm f3.5-4.5 zoom, and the slightly hefty 24-120 f4 Zoom, spare batteries, and water. I think the 300mm f2.8 would make the stiff climb a bit of an ordeal.

My disappointment was how slow it was to focus and how much the lens hunted for focus at the long end, even on contrasty and textured surfaces. In fact it was a real nuisance, because it would wind all the way back to closest focus, then dither and eventually, after some cussing from me, deign to experiment with a distant focus point, eventually settling on the correct focus point, close to infinity. :doh:

I admit there may have been some distance mist in some of the scenes but nothing to prevent ME seeing the subject clearly enough, it also does it on fairly close subjects, in the eight to ten Metre range when I tried to take some bird pix. Not one sharp image, nor even close. In fact I got the lens in focus manually then when I take the exposure the thing nudges it out of focus while momentarily hunting as I press the shutter release.

Eventually I turned AF off on the camera but that left it very stiff to focus manually, I realise now I should have turned it off on the lens...

I think I will take the 70-20mm f2.8, D300S, and the 300mm 2.8 AI (which NEVER hunts!) next time, sod the weight.

Unless of course it's operator error??? o.O

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Robert.

Posted by jk: Wed Oct 11th, 2017 08:25

2^nd Post

Is that the latest version of the 70-300 F4.5-5.6 AFS VR or the earlier model? The earlier model definitely does that but the latest AFs VR model seems to be much better.

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Posted by Robert: Wed Oct 11th, 2017 12:23

3^rd Post

jk wrote:
Is that the latest version of the 70-300 F4.5-5.6 AFS VR or the earlier model? The earlier model definitely does that but the latest AFs VR model seems to be much better.
As far as I know it's the latest model, with VR, AFS G with SWM, VR,ED and IF, filter ˜67mm. I think I was careful about that because I seem to remember the previous model was said to be a bit of a dog.

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Robert.

Posted by Eric: Wed Oct 11th, 2017 12:38

4^th Post

I would suspect a combination of low light and low contrast if the lighting was same as the other Stickle shots? But failing that, it sounds like a fault.

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Eric

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