Nikon AF-S V Micro NIKKOR
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Nikon AF-S V Micro NIKKOR
Nikon AF-S V Micro NIKKOR
One of Nikon’s ‘gold ring’ lenses, the build quality is excellent, with a combination of metal and high-quality plastics used for much of the lens barrel. For it’s the size and focal length, this lens feels more substantial than you might expect at around 720g, even so, it balances well on the Nikon D600 body used for testing. The lens mount is metal and sports a rubber gasket, designed to prevent the ingress of dust and moisture via the lens mount, although Nikon appears to make no claims about the weather resistance of the lens.
Nikon AF-S VR Micro NIKKOR 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED Le
A silent wave motor powers autofocus, and it focuses very quickly at reasonable distances. Manual adjustments can apply at any time via the narrow focusing ring closest to the lens mount. It will be especially useful when exploiting the close focusing capabilities of this lens. The manual focusing action is smooth and well-damped, which makes fine adjustments easy to apply.
The closest focus distance is 31cm, and focusing performed internally, so the 62mm filter thread does not rotate, which makes this lens ideal for use with graduated filters and polarizers. The maximum aperture of the lens automatically adjusts as the lens focuses closer to ensure accurate flash exposures at close distances. A useful focus limiter switch provided for using the lens focused at distances of over half a meter. It improves the speed of focusing as the lens cannot hunt through the entire focus range.
Nikon’s Vibration Reduction system promises to allow handheld shooting at shutter speeds slower than the usual rule of thumb for sharp handheld photos might allow. With care and at typical focusing distances, sharp handheld shots are possible at shutter speeds as low as 1/13sec around half the time, which is around three stops slower than would usually be possible. The effectiveness of the VR system declines as you focus closer, though, so there will still be no real substitute for proper support when shooting macro images.
Product Description
Nikon AF-S VR Micro NIKKOR
The world’s first macro lens featuring Nikon’s exclusive Silent Wave Motor (SWM) and Vibration Reduction (VR) designed for close-up and macro photography; versatile for all photographic situations. Nikon VR II (Vibration Reduction) image stabilization, engineered specifically for each VR NIKKOR lens, enables handheld shooting at up to 4 shutter speeds slower than would otherwise be possible, assuring dramatically sharper still images and video capture.
Reviews.
Nikon AF-S VR Micro NIKKOR
It is significantly cheaper than the f/2.8, so it will not feel like it has cost you the Earth, although it is not cheap.
So what is no so good about this lens? Hmm! Nothing as far as the lens goes, but there is one little niggle, and that is Nikon only provides a soft pouch and not a professional case to protect this lens. A professional-grade glass at this price, that is a bit disappointing; Nikon delivers a piece of decent evidence with the f/2.8, but not for the f/4 model
This lens is simply superb, as you would expect from a Nikon pro series lens. Very sharp with detail, even at 100% crop. I took it to the croft racing circuit for the Dunlop BTCC racing weekend and was not disappointed. Very fast focusing, very steady for handheld panning with VR II enabled.
Please note this is a significant and bulky lens, especially when paired with the D810. That said, though, if you hand-held the camera and lens all day (9.30 am until 5 pm) with no problem as it is well balanced. Expensive yes but we will worth the investment if you want a zoom lens that shoots like a prime.