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Lens upgrade for an F80


santosh_ravi

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Hello,I started photography about two years back and my main interest

lies in wildlife photography.I am currently using a Nikon F80 with

the nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6 ED.I would like to upgrade to a better

lens such as the 80-400mm VR.Can existing users of this lens share

your experiences with it based on its performance.I also want to add

1.4x TC to my lens as i cannot afford a good lens above 400mm.

Which is the best Nikon TC(irrespective of the price) for the 80-400

VR.will i lose anything more than One f stop,such as AF speed,

shaprness, contrast,etc.Will VR function.please mention model no of

the TC.I also want a good standard zoom of any make costing less than

$350.Please

help.Thanks,

-Santosh

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The AF Teleconverters produced by Nikon are for the AF-S lenses and will not work with non-S lenses. Nikon does produce Teleconverters that will work with the other lenses but you lose AF, VR, and (I think) metering with any body that cannot meter with manual focus lenses. These TC units (TC14x, TC200/201, and TC300/301) do not have electrical contacts and cannot pass any electronic information between the lens and the body.

 

Tokina manufactures a line (300 Pro) of TC units that maintain AF. From what I've read, these TCs also maintain VR. The downside is that AF can be sporadic in low light conditions when the max aperture of the lens/TC combo exceeds f/5.6.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Vernon

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I can provide my experience for part of your question. I own the 80-400 VR. This is a very sharp lens. The VR adds three stops and works very well. The 5x range of the lens is a lot of fun. The lens is long when extended but not very heavy. The AF speed is slow because the lens lacks a silent wave motor. However, the lens focused quickly enough for most photography.
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I too own the 70-300 and an F80. I find the autofocus of the 70-300 sluggish, and have just bought Sigma's 70-200 2.8 HSM which is a stunning lens. I am going to buy Sigma's own x2 converter which will give me a 140-400 5.6 - which, apart from lacking the VR, you will find very comparable to the 80-400, and a whole lot cheaper. The 70-200 is a stunner - ultra fast and sharp as. You might also consider Sigma's 50-500 lens - I've not used it myself, but if its as good as the 70-200 it could be a good option - you'd definitely need a monopod above 500 though - even with, say Fuji 800 NPZ, but I guess if you're into wildlife, you're using Velvia / Provia?? The VR is a very expensive lens - I'd certainly buy one tomorrow if I could afford it, but I really recommend those Sigmas. If you want a standard zoom, again, Sigma do a 28-70 EX 2.8 which is razor sharp and fast, also I think the smallest lens of its type in the world. Using any teleconverter will mean you lose a little bit of optical quality. Depending on how you process your slides, you might be better off getting a sharp image at 400mm and scanning, zooming and cropping digitally to get your close up. bear in mind with the 80-400, it'll become an f8 or 11 I think with a x2 converter - that will mean shooting with very fast film and plenty of light. Good luck!
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