Nikon Announces a New 70-300mm/f4.5-5.6 E AF-P ED VR

The current Nikon 70-300mm AF-S VR has been around since August 2006, i.e. the design is about 11 years old, and it is about time to update the design. This update is Nikon's first FX-format AF-P lens with a stepping AF motor (pulse), which produces better results for video capture. This new lens is also an E lens with electromagnetic aperture control, i.e. only Nikon DSLR bodies introduced since the D3 and D300 on August 23, 2007 can control the aperture (except for the D60, D90, and D3000 being the only three bodies introduced after 2007 but cannot control E lenses). On older Nikon SLRs and DSLRs, this lens will always be wide open.

 

The attached image doesn't show whether this new lens has a VR on/off switch. I received confirmation from Nikon that there is a VR switch on the barrel.

 

The new lens continues to use 67mm front filters and can focus down to 3.94 feet/1.2 meters. It weights 1 lb 8 oz/680 grams.

 

In the US, the suggested retail price is US$699.95.

 

New product image copyright Nikon USA Inc.

 

News article from Nikon headquarter web site: Nikon | News | Nikon releases the AF-P NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6E ED VR, a telephoto zoom lens compatible with the Nikon FX format

 

And Nikon USA: Nikon AF-P NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6E ED VR Lens | Interchangeable lens from Nikon

 

BTW, earlier, Nikon had announced a DX 70-300mm/f4.5-6.3 AF-P VR lens that is $399.95: AF-P DX NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-6.3G ED VR | Interchangeable Lens from Nikon

First of all that is a DX lens that doesn't cover the entire full 35mm frame, and it is a slower f6.3 instead of f5.6 on the long, 300mm, end. And that DX lens is not an E lens.

Nikon USA lists quite a few cameras as incompatible. "Incompatible models: D4 series, D3 series, D2 series, D1 series, D800 series, D700, D610, D600, D300 series, D200, D100, D7000, D5100, D5000, D90, D80, D70 series, D3200, D3100, D3000, D60, D50, D40 series, film cameras" "Compatible models with limited functions: D5, D810 series, Df, D750, D7200, D7100, D5200, Nikon 1 series with the FT1" "Fully compatible models: D7500, D5600, D5500, D5300*, D3400, D3300*, D500 and later models"

 

However, apparently there is different information on Nikon Japan's site.

Nikon USA lists quite a few cameras as incompatible. "Incompatible models: D4 series, D3 series, D2 series, D1 series, D800 series, D700, D610, D600, D300 series, D200, D100, D7000, D5100, D5000, D90, D80, D70 series, D3200, D3100, D3000, D60, D50, D40 series, film cameras" "Compatible models with limited functions: D5, D810 series, Df, D750, D7200, D7100, D5200, Nikon 1 series with the FT1" "Fully compatible models: D7500, D5600, D5500, D5300*, D3400, D3300*, D500 and later models"

 

However, apparently there is different information on Nikon Japan's site.

Right, those compatibility limitations are originally listed for the earlier, DX-format AF-P 70-300mm/f5.6-6.3 G ED VR: AF-P DX NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-6.3G ED VR | Interchangeable Lens from Nikon

 

Again, the other is a slower DX lens that is max f6.3 at 300mm, and that is a G lens instead of E. That DX lens does not have a VR on/off switch on the lens barrel to save cost. The only way to switch off VR is from a compatible Nikon body. On those fully compatible DSLRs, you can do exactly that from the body, switch VR on and off. On those compatible models with limited functions, you won't be able to switch off VR.

 

However, all of these apply to the DX AF-P 70-300. Since I had received info about this new FX AF-P lens a little earlier, I have checked with Nikon USA about compatibility issues. Since this new FX lens indeed has a VR on/off switch on the barrel, switching off VR shouldn't be an issue, and I wonder those compatibility limitations is merely some cut-and-paste error from the DX AF-P 70-300mm VR page to the page for the new FX lens.

 

To be verified.

Edited July 11, 2017 by ShunCheung

Not sure if it is compatible with the D800? Can the F6 be modified to be compatible with electronic aperture lenses.

Akira on the nikongear.com forum stated the limitations as described on the Nikon Japan pages are

 

"With D3 and D4 series, D8x0 series, Df, D700, D300 series, D7x00 series and D5200, when the camera is turned off (either manually or automatically by the battery saving function) after the lens is focused, the focus will be off when the camera is turned on again.

 

D5, D750, D6x0 series, D5500, D5300 and D3300 needs the firmware to be of the latest version to use the lens."

 

I can imagine it being a bit of a nuisance to have to watch out for the standby timer if using the lens on tripod for landscape photography, for example, but (if this information is correct), at least the lens can be used. Nikon should really pay attention to these details as the compatibility in the F mount is already complicated without conflicting information on Nikon's various different web sites.

I suspect the recent compatibility issues have a lot more to do with AF-P than E. So I trust you'd get manual focus (unless it's focus by wire) on a D800, but I'm less clear on how well autofocus would work, especially without a firmware update.

 

> Can the F6 be modified to be compatible with electronic aperture lenses.

 

I've never heard of anyone doing this. While the connections are probably(?) there in the lens mount, I doubt the firmware is in any state to tell the lens what to do; I don't know whether there's any feedback in the aperture lever which would need to be overridden if it's just flapping around (although I could believe not). Is there a hack-the-F6-firmware project out there? Frankly if we're going to rewrite the firmware on any Nikon, I'd rather do it to a DSLR - but that might be a bigger ask!

As far as I know, manual focus on AF-P lenses is by wire.

Nikon USA has confirmed that it was some kind of cut-and-paste error on the web page earlier. They have updated it now:

Nikon AF-P NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6E ED VR Lens | Interchangeable lens from Nikon

 

Below is the updated compatibility information. Seems to be consistent with what Ilkka posted via Nikon Japan's web site:

The number of cameras compatible with this lens is limited. Even for compatible cameras, a firmware update may be required. Fully compatible models: D7500, D5600, D3400, D500.

Fully compatible models (without limitations) after available firmware update: D5, D750, D610, D600, D5500, D5300, D3300. Download firmware updates at: http://downloadcenter.nikonimglib.com/en/index.html

Regardless of firmware update, these models will still have some limitations:* D4, D4S, D3, D3X, D3S, D810, D810A, D800, D800E, Df, D700, D300, D300S, D7200, D7100, D7000, D5200.

*Because these models reset focus when reverting from standby status (timer off), pre-focus shooting is not available.

Incompatible models: D2 series, D1 series, D200, D100, D90, D80, D70 series, D60, D50, D40 series, D5100, D5000, D3200, D3100, D3000, film SLR cameras.

I was close to buying a used 70-200 f4, but paused when I seen this announced. But after reading about the limitations of the lens on a D810, I think I will pass. I shoot 99% from a tripod, often waiting for the right light before pressing the shutter after composing and focusing. If I'm understanding the limitation correctly,I can't imagine having to refocus every time the camera goes into standby mode.

Mike, for landscape on a tripod, you could be using manual focus anyway, this annoying glitch for AF-P may not be that big a deal. However, a 70-200mm/f4 is quite different from a 70-300mm/f5.6. I would imagine that the 70-200mm/f4 will still be better optically (of course I haven't had a chance to use the new lens), and 300mm is not as important for landscape; i.e. 200mm is probably sufficient.

 

However, the 70-200mm/f4 AF-S VR is still the more expensive lens.

I am not entirely sure what the focus issue is here. I gather that, because there is no ( mechanical) manual focus, the AF re-starts after a time-out. But it's not clear what actually happens. It sounds as if, in single servo AF mode, the lens refocuses after it wakes up. How does this work with back button focus? Does it refocus then too? How does the manual override cope with back button?

 

e.t.a. I added "mechanical" here. Can the lens function with AF off at the camera?

 

Further ETA, I realize that the issue is with cameras that reset focus after standby, so presumably focus, once set, stays set if the camera does not reset it, and that would make BBF work all right in one sense, but still does not quite answer whether manual override works with BBF if no focus can occur without power.

Edited July 11, 2017 by Matthew Currie

I always use the back button for focusing. I would have thought when the camera goes into standby or even if turning it off completely, once you set the focus point, it doesn't then refocus' when the camera is turned back on. But there's a lot I don't know about how these things work.

I see the latest Firmware upgrade for the d5 specifically mentions the AF of AF-P lenses.

 

Nikon | Download center | D5 Firmware

 

• Added the support for the following features of AF-P lenses:

- If the standby timer expires after the camera has focused, the focus position will not change when the timer is reactivated.

 

- In manual focus mode, the focus indicator in the viewfinder (or in live view, the focus point selected in the monitor) will flash to show that infinity or the minimum focus distance has been reached by rotating the focus ring.

There is a D500 firmware update, but doesn't mention this issue (AF-P) but does apparently correct the Snapbridge mess.

Shun, thanks for the update/correction on compatibility. I just compared the language in your post to the language at NikonUSA for the 300mm f/4E PF ED VR lens. It states:

"The lens incorporates an electromagnetic diaphragm mechanism. The following cameras are compatible with this lens:

D5, D4 series, D3 series, Df, D810, D810A, D800 series, D750, D700, D610, D600, D500, D300 series, D7500, D7200, D7100, D7000, D5600, D5500, D5300, D5200, D5100, D5000, D3400, D3300, D3200, D3100, Nikon 1 J1, J2, J3, J4, J5 with FT-1, Nikon 1 V1, V2, V3 with FT-1, Nikon 1 S1, S2 with FT-1"

 

Why is the language different for the 300mm f4 P vs the 70-300mm E P?

 

I own the 300mm f4 P and use it on my D 800e and D 810 without any issues as best as I can determine. .

 

Joseph: The 300mm f/4E PF ED VR is a "PF" (phase fresnel) lens - which may or may not be quite what Canon call "diffractive optics" (I've never quite been clear whether that's as simple as a fresnel lens).

 

The 70-300mm E P isn't a phase fresnel lens, the P indicates a stepper motor rather than an AF-S SWM. Allegedly this kind of P helps with video, possibly due to the type of motion needed for contrast-detect AF. I can't vouch from personal experience. The stepper motor is the thing that causes the compatibility issue here (assuming you can already handle "E" electronic aperture).

 

This "P" should also not be confused with the "Ai-P" lenses (500mm f/4, 45mm f/2.8, 1200-1700 f/5.6-f/8) or the "P" 5-element early lenses, if that helps. And "E" electronic aperture isn't the same as the E-series manual focus lenses...

 

I don't think Nikon have run out of letters yet. I don't know why they're re-using them.

Joseph and everybody else, please keep in mind that the new 70-300mm is the very first AF-P lens that covers the full 35mm frame. (Last year, Nikon had introduced low-end 18-55mm and 70-300mm AF-P DX lenses.) Therefore, this is the first time an AF-P lens that is scrutinized.

 

In other words, the earlier 300mm/f4 PF lens is actually a regular AF-S VR lens that has nothing to do with AF-P (stepping AF motor). It is an E lens so that everybody prior to the D3/D300 from August 2007 cannot control its aperture.

 

And thanks to Andrew's comment above, also.

So a lot of us here Andrew included don't have a fully compatible camera for that lens.

As Shun rightly points out, this is the first FX lens of this type. However, there are very similar problems with DX bodies and AF-P lenses.

 

A friend asked me to suggest a long zoom for his D3200. He had the kit short zoom and 50mm standard. I found a couple of good deals on the

DX 70-300mm/f4.5-6.3 AF-P VR and only spotted at the last minute that it won't work with his body. I was surprised a 5 yr old camera was becoming obsolete with regard to new lenses.

 

Does this herald a line-in-the-sand to all 'new' lenses being incompatible with 'old' bodies, ie anything before 1Q 2014 for DX (D3300) or 4Q 2012 for FX (D600)

 

Are all new lenses going to be AF-P? (Maybe excepting oddities like PC lenses)

Look at this camera lens really some heart, but do not want to change the camera for the time being, or my card easy to use Edited July 13, 2017 by nlfyskiod

Does this herald a line-in-the-sand to all 'new' lenses being incompatible with 'old' bodies, ie anything before 1Q 2014 for DX (D3300) or 4Q 2012 for FX (D600)

 

If you can live with focus loss due to the camera going into standby mode, then it seems that this lens is compatible with all FX DSLR models. If you cannot put up with this inconvenience then there are some 2012-2014 models don't have this issue but some (D810, Df etc.) do. So I guess one has to just check from the compatibility tables (once they are updated properly) for the specific combinations.

 

However, I don't think AF-P will be the new standard in new lenses. I think stepper motors will be used for some relatively compact lenses mainly.

For what it's worth, it does suggest a new philosophy at Nikon. Historically they've ensured camera compatibility for several years before rolling out lenses that relied on the functionality - like the E electronic aperture, which didn't appear in a lens that needed it other than the tilt-shifts (for which the need was obvious, and which had a manual override button for older bodies). AF-S lenses work on the F4. G lenses and VR work on the F5. For AF-P not to work properly on the D810, which is still current, indicates a departure for Nikon - possibly just someone dropping the ball on the protocol design, but if this is a new policy, colour me unimpressed. Nikon have a lot of reputation on their extensive lens compatibility history; Canon's "nothing before 1987 works" policy is increasingly a disadvantage as time goes by, and when everything after 1987 does work, perfectly, without having to check the small print for which body you've got and whether the lens has been modified.

I did a bit of googling on how Canon's STM lenses work and there are some slight inconveniences as well. If I understood correctly, for manual focus override the shutter or AF-ON button has to be held depressed to be able to apply the override (otherwise switch the lens to MF and turn off standby timer to permit manual focusing without interruption). Also if the (Canon) camera goes into standby and is woken up, some users say that you can't trust the focus to be restored to where it was before power down. I discussed this with a friend who has a relatively new 50mm STM lens and he said the focus of that lens doesn't move at all upon standby or power cycling, so perhaps this depends on which lens and camera body are in question.

 

For video use, this standby focus reset issue in Nikons shouldn't be relevant since the camera isn't going to go into standby during video recording (I should hope it does not!). If one is working on stills using a tripod and wants to keep the focus over a longer time then turning the standby timer to the longest setting would be of some help. Power drain is likely though.

possibly just someone dropping the ball on the protocol design

Yes, something like that. However, the focus control protocol must have been in place in 1988 when the F4 came out since that camera can autofocus lenses with in-lens motors. I guess they didn't think of stepper motors back then.

 

Overall the compatibility situation in the Nikon mount is getting very complicated.

Edited July 13, 2017 by ilkka_nissila

> Overall the compatibility situation in the Nikon mount is getting very complicated.

 

No doubt. But that's why Nikon are paid the big bucks! They've done a very good job on compatibility so far, partly by being very conservative, so I just think it's disappointing that this latest change have the same behaviour. Perhaps Nikon felt they lost out in waiting for so long to match USM and the EF aperture mechanism, and decided that keeping up with STM was a higher priority.

For what it's worth, it does suggest a new philosophy at Nikon. Historically they've ensured camera compatibility for several years before rolling out lenses that relied on the functionality - like the E electronic aperture, which didn't appear in a lens that needed it other than the tilt-shifts (for which the need was obvious, and which had a manual override button for older bodies). AF-S lenses work on the F4. G lenses and VR work on the F5. For AF-P not to work properly on the D810, which is still current, indicates a departure for Nikon - possibly just someone dropping the ball on the protocol design, but if this is a new policy, colour me unimpressed. Nikon have a lot of reputation on their extensive lens compatibility history; Canon's "nothing before 1987 works" policy is increasingly a disadvantage as time goes by, and when everything after 1987 does work, perfectly, without having to check the small print for which body you've got and whether the lens has been modified.

I think it has to do with the new philosophy of concentrating of profit and not revenue. The AF-P to me may work better but I am sure it's a less expensive way and thus can provide greater profit margin although sales may slow and hurt revenue.