105mm VR Lens Questions

<p>I recently acquired a used version of this lens and am in the process of checking it out. As there is a short time period in which I'd be allowed to return it, I'd very much appreciate timely responses. I should mention that all VR testing was done with the subject > 10 ft away as the manual said VR would be less effective at shorter distances and I am mainly interested in VR using the 105mm as a telephoto lens.<br>

I have been concerned about the VR as test shots showed only occasional improvement over not using the VR. Then I determined that if I hold the shutter button down halfway for a second or so before taking the shot, the results are much more consistent. With my other lenses I never gave this any consideration as the VR works well without any delay. Is it just that this lens requires more time for VR to settle down and so what I am finding is normal, or might there be an issue with the VR that is causing it to be less responsive than it should be?<br>

Some people mention a clicking/clunking noise when VR is engaged and disengaged. I remember only one time after taking a shot that I heard a fairly noticeable clunking noise and was rather surprised and confused as to what it might be. Does such an intermittent noise indicate a problem?<br>

Thank you.</p>

 

<p>The 'clunking' is normal. Sorry that I have not experimented with different methods of engaging the VR prior to shooting. </p>

<p>some versions of nikon VR do require it to 'lock in' with a half-press depress of the shutter. my 70-200 VRII does the same thing. </p>

<p>>> Only occasional improvement...</p>

<p>Ordinarily, there would not be much camera shake blur at shutter speeds of 1/150 second or faster (with a 105mm lens on a DX body), so there would be no improvement to show.<br>

<br />But test the 105mm lens hand-held at say 1/10 second shutter, and there will probably be many occasions of very significant improvement. Not every time, but the odds improve drastically. VR CANNOT affect subject motion, but it can improve camera shake.</p>

<p>1/10 sec shutter puts you into the realm of mirror slap. Would that possibly mask any improvement due to VR?</p>

<p>I doubt mirror slap is the biggest problem of hand-holding, but since it is vibration, why not? That is exactly what VR does... Vibration Reduction. :)</p>

<p>Barry, if you have not already done so, this article may be a useful and interesting read: <br /> http://www.dslrbodies.com/lenses/lens-articles/lens-technique/all-about-nikon-vr.html</p>

<p>Enjoy.</p>

<p>So after using the lens some more, I'm thinking it's okay. If I just allow a little delay for the VR to stabilize, I'm getting fairly consistent results, even down to about 1/15 sec shutter speed. Someone on another forum indicated that VR on this particular lens is a bit slow to stabilize. Maybe it's because it's a macro lens, or maybe because it's not the most recent implementation of VR. I just know that on my 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5 lens I never gave it a second thought and always get good VR without any waiting.<br>

Nick - thanks, I am familiar with Thom's writings on VR.</p>