Miss The 300 PF

<p>Sent my 300PF to Nikon Torrence on 2/24, it arrived at Torrence on 3/2, and today, 3/16, still no word from NikonUSA.</p>

<p>The e-mails are all marked "DO NOT REPLY", so I called NikonUSA Service late last week. When I finally got through to a human and ask if they could find anything about my lens, they informed me that they were a call center contracted by NikonUSA so no information other than the standard message I already received on 3/2. Tried NikonUSA.com web access and made an inquiry, and got an exact duplicate statement from the e-mail they sent me on 3/2 when the lens first arrived at Torrence, and what the call center guy told me. The web response (a DO NOT REPLY email) did say they would give me a status update within 24-48 hours, and that was about 120 hours ago.</p>

<p>Not a pleasing experience in any way. Wish my $2200 was still in my bank account, and not NikonUSA's pocket.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Dan, when you purchase a new model, unfortunately you need to be a little more patient. I would give them another week. If there is still no update, give them another call and talk to a supervisor.</p>

<p>A two-week repair is common and expected. If it goes beyond 3 to 4 weeks, I would press for some information.</p>

<p>I am debating sending mine as I can repeat the VR issue others have talked about. Unless I shoot in the 1/100s to 1/250s range the lens is working ok.<br>

It seems Nikon is still working on the issue as I haven't not seen any 300mm PF available since I bought mine on 2/13 (eBay, B&H, Adorama, Amazon...).<br>

So I suppose the service centers are waiting for some feedback from the Nikon engineers.</p>

<p>Sure, I will wait, what other option is there? I suspect there is an issue in the VR module, and NikonUSA is waiting on Nikon Japan for instructions or parts. Pretty sure they will get it straightened out.</p>

<p>I purchased the Df as an early adopter and that went well, for this PF, not so much. In the future, I'll be more reluctant to purchase early. NikonUSA tech support is probably under strict instructions not to say anything about this issue, lest it explode on the Internet forums.</p>

<p>Gosh, I would love to be shooting this lens today, as the weather has finally turned to spring in Texas.</p>

<p>George: Suggest you hold off until you hear that a fix is in hand at Nikon USA, which news might first appear in this very thread.</p>

<p><<Sure, I will wait, what other option is there? I suspect there is an issue in the VR module, >></p>

<p>No no no. It's almost certainly going to be "impact damage." ;-)</p>

<p>Kent in SD</p>

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<p>The web response (a DO NOT REPLY email) did say they would give me a status update within 24-48 hours, and that was about 120 hours ago</p>

 

</blockquote>

<p>That's the issue right there.</p>

<p>Why bother promising something you either can't or have no intention of delivering on?</p>

<p>If they said 2 - 4 days, they could play the 'Oh, we meant <em><strong>working</strong></em> days' if it's over 4 days.</p>

<p>If they <strong><em>DO</em></strong> reply in 'just' 24hrs, you'd feel well served!</p>

<p>This way results in cross customers posting, quite rightly, on web forums....and giving Nikon an even worse Customer Satisfaction rating.<br>

_____________</p>

<p>Nice one Kent!...:-)</p>

<p>I would much rather have Nikon use its resources to actually fix lenses and cameras rather than hold the customer's hand while they're waiting (all of that costs money which translates into higher cost for the end user). In Nute Gunray's words "There is no need to report that until we have something to report". If they're waiting for information and/or parts from Japan it could take some time.</p>

<p>I would wait a few weeks and then call them to see what's going on. I suppose there is the possibility that with this lightweight lens, the vibration from the shutter and mirror may cause additional shake at some speeds which would then affect the outcome. Whether they can "fix" it is anybody's guess.</p>

<p>I fully agree with the better use of resources arguement, but I for one wouldn't expect a client to be too impressed if I said I'd contact then within 24>48hrs about their upcoming wedding shoot and I hadn't done anything for 4 days.</p>

<p>Not surprisingly, they'd start to get a bit nervous about my reliability! Kinda like the wedding starts at 10.00 and I wonder in at 11.30..:-)</p>

<p>Hopefully, it'll be a easy fix...I quite like the look of this lens. From the reviews I've seen, the AF isn't that quick, but the limiter helps. What I don't get is that it's FULL or 3m > Infinty? 3m seems an awfully 'close', near end. For BIF or airshows, 10m > Infinity would be much nicer. Of course, if this was a new Sigma 300mm you could designate your own limits.....;-)</p>

<p>WRT modern focus limiters, are they hardware or purely software? ie, the rotating helix reaches a physical microswitch and shuts off the AF OR the camera body tells the lens's AF-S motor the D-info it needs to know when to stop?</p>

<p>Yes, agreed. If NikonUSA had a technician talk to a whining customer every time they called, they'd never get anything repaired. That's why I whined here LOL.</p>

<p>There are considerably lighter lenses with VR, so I doubt that is the issue here.</p>

<p>Got a reply from NikonUSA today, they are doing what they can.</p>

 

<blockquote>

<p>Dear Mr. Brown,<br /><br />I have been asked to contact you regarding your lens on xxxxxxx. We are in the process of researching the issue that you are having with your lens, and are asking for help from Nikon Japan. Once we receive an update from them, I will contact you back with information. <br /><br />Thank you for your patience while we assist you with this.</p>

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<p><em>There are considerably lighter lenses with VR</em></p>

<p>Right, but the key is the light weight and the angular magnification of the 300mm PF. It is easy inadvertently shake it because it is so light weight and even a small amount of rotational shake blurs the image significantly because the image (and any angular movement) is magnified by the long focal length.</p>

<p>So the positioning and pushing of the shutter button ~50mm to the right of the lens centre line can produce a rotational lens movement that the Up/Down & L/R prisms of the VR cannot deal with? And it's exacerbated by the light weight....not something that could be said for other long toms with VR.</p>

<p>So maybe it would be significantly reduced by (hand held) self timer or Shutter Delay mode ie de-couple the finger press with the shutter movement.</p>

<p>Not saying this is a cure, BIF with shutter delay sounds frustrating, but it would possibly help identify the issue.</p>

<p>Dan, if I am allowed to translate the reply you received from Nikon into English, it sounds like Nikon is still determining the best way to correct the VR issue for the 300mm/f4 PF. Of course, they could come to a conclusion quickly, but most likely, it will take some time. I think that also explains why it appears (again, APPEARS) that Nikon hasn't been shipping a lot of that lens and there are waiting lists all over the place. When I called my local store about 3 weeks ago, they couldn't quote me any delivery date, so I decided not to put down any deposit.</p>

<p>As we discussed before, sometimes that is the price to pay to adopt new technology/new product models. Over the weekend, I used the GPS unit GP-1 for the first time on the D750 I bought last December, and that combo doesn't work. However, the GPS works just fine on the D7100. So it looks like my D750 is going back for warranty repair after all, even though I think the D750 flare really is unnecessary and am resisting it.</p>

<p>No, Mike, rolling is not the kind of rotation I mean; the effect of pitch and yaw on the image are the kind of rotations that the VR system can compensate for, but since the lens is super light weight for the focal length, the lens is likely to shake more (than a heavier lens; a = F/m) and the effect of that shake in the image plane is greater than when using a shorter focal length lens. So the VR has to move the image faster and have greater range of correction to be effective. Thus the problem of reducing the shake <em>may be</em> more challenging for the VR system. I don't know whether this issue with the 1/160ish speeds that some of us have observed with the VR 300/4 PF is a consequence of the low mass and high magnification of the lens, or if it is simply a defect that can be corrected. Hopefully the VR can be improved / fixed but even if it can't, it's still a superb and very useful lens.</p>

<p>Ilkka, I never noticed the VR issue with the 70-300VR zoom, which weighs just slightly less than the PF.</p>

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<p>some of us have observed with the VR 300/4 PF is a consequence of the low mass and high magnification of the lens</p>

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<p>In that case VR should also work poorly at 1/20 sec on that same lens.</p>

<p>Fair enough.</p>

<p>I thought I read that some people who received early copies of the lens have not reported ANY issue with VR at ~1/160 shutter speed, even when they try hard to make the problem happen. This suggests to me that the problem <em>can</em> be fixed, as long as they can figure out why some lenses show the problem and some don't...<br /> I've also seen some rather encouraging results from the few people who have the lens.<br /> So I'm hopeful.<br /> <br /> But I also think Nikon needs to be more forthcoming about the problem at this point. If they are not ready to make any meaningful announcement, fine. But any idiot can tell something is delaying the delivery of this product. So they should just come out and admit it. I'm tired of Nikon's general posture of <em>total secrecy</em> about everything. To me Nikon seems out of touch with their customers; I get the idea they could care less about our needs as photographers or our desire for even vague hints about their "road map." It seems the<em> only</em> communication we get from Nikon is at the time a product is announced OR subsequently when they are finally forced to explain a problem. I don't need them to answer every whine. Just be a little more <em>present.</em><br /> Dave</p>

<p>I agree with part of David McMullen's comment. By now, it is quite apparent that some samples of the 300mm/f4 PF AF-S VR have this VR problem around those shutter speeds in the 1/100 to 1/160 sec area. The end result is that not many 300mm/f4 PF have been shipped such that every store is out of stock, and not many people actually own it. In this case the shortage is more a supply issue rather than demand issue. And early owners such as Dan Brown who have sent their lens in for repair are kept waiting for a long time. It would be great if Nikon could at least acknowledge the issue, although they may not have a firm solution yet.</p>

<p>Another interesting point is that Roger Cicala of Lens Rentals reported that his first sample of that lens has some de-center issues and then quickly posted a follow up: http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2015/02/addendum-to-the-nikon-300-f4e-pf-ed-vr-test<br>

However, he hasn't posted anything on that lens for a month and hasn't commented on any VR issue (as far as I know).</p>

<p>The problem with "VR issues" is that it is not clear cut, unlike e.g. a circuit broad problem where a camera just dies. For those who already own this lens and are experiencing this issue, I would wait a bit until Nikon has a successful fix so that the turn around time for the repair is more definite. Otherwise, your lens could stay in the shop for a long time as Dan's, leading to a lot of frustration. In the mean time, those lenses are still mostly fine and useable.</p>

<p>As far as future product roadmps goes, the Osborne Effect is a well known case: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osborne_effect, leading to the demise of that entire company. Unless it is a start up brand (or new product line) trying to project a bright future to attract early adapters, few established companies would reveal their hands about future products.</p>

<p>I understand the Osborne Effect. I could be wrong but it seems like Nikon is even more secretive than their competitors when it comes to divulging anything. For example both the D7200 and D750 were almost not leaked at all until <em>days</em> before they were announced. But really I'm talking about much more than that. IMHO, Nikon could do a much better job simply maintaining better contact with loyal customers. Understanding and listening to customers is an <em>investment</em> that can help create a competitive advantage. Maybe because most of Nikon's revenue comes from selling cheap consumer cameras, mostly to people who buy 1 camera with a kit lens, or maybe 1 extra lens at the most, maybe those are the only customers they care about.<br /> Dave</p>

<p>I think Nikon is focusing more of their product development on enthusiast and specialty professional equipment than consumer gear; they realize the consumer camera market is in rapid decline and while they try to address it by reacting to the changed ways in which ordinary people use their cameras (wifi features, mobile connectivity and touchscreens are to this effect, as well as lighter weight equipment), I think they realize the fall in consumer dedicated camera sales is partly irreversible and are thus focusing more on the more stable and less price sensitive professional and high end enthusiast market.</p>

<p>I don't think one-on-one chatlines between customers and product designers are a realistic expectation. Nikon's tradition is that they try to resolve problems quietly without making a public fuss about it.</p>

<blockquote>

<p>Nikon's tradition is that they try to resolve problems quietly without making a public fuss about it.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>That is not a strategy that is going to work in this internet era.</p>

<p>Today, information spread quickly. As soon as a few people run into one issue, they'll post to forums. In no time lots of people will scrutinize their equipment as Dan did here. And the fact that Dan's lens is now in the shop for fairly long with no end date in sight is also quickly shared. The longer Nikon keeps quiet, the more rumors and innuendos will spread.</p>

<p>Meanwhile, no store has the 300mm/f4 PF in stock. It is not clear to me whether anybody is receiving delivery recently. It looks like there isn't much sale at all to be affected anyway. Of course, it is also not in Nikon's interest to sell more defective units that will only lead to more costly warranty repairs.</p>

<p>It's now been three weeks, and the Nikon USA status has been changed to "Parts Hold".</p>

<p>Keeping fingers crossed for good luck.</p>

The Nikon Service Point in the Netherlands reconfirmed the same to me: "investigation pending". I also started my case early february, but I only submitted NEFs to support it and keep the lens for the moment. Outside the 1/60 - 1/160 seconds shutter speed range the lens is great and I am still confident Nikon will solve the VR issue.

Forgot tot add that I get sharper pictures with my V1 in the 1/60 - 1/160 seconde using the electronic schutter than with my D7100. So shutter vibrations influencing the VR unit at certain shutter speeds seem to make VR less effectieve.