Zoom Telephoto Lenses for FM2and F3

I will be going on an African safari in October and need advice regarding a

zoom telephone lens in the 200 - 400 mm range that will work with both my FM2

and F3 bodies. Any advice on a good, yet inexpensive, lens for wildlife

shooting would be appreciated.

Any AI or AF, in MF mode, lens will work. Don't know what you consider 'inexpensive'. Tamron made a 200-400 AF, Sigma made a 135-400 AF, Tokina made a 80-400 AF, all available used, maybe still available new (the Tokina is, not sure of the others.) I've always liked the ATX Tokina lenses, very good for the money.

Usually can be found on the on line auction pretty cheap

 

80-200mm Kiron F4 zoom in Nikon mount. IMO as good as the Nikkors from that era.

 

80-200mm f2.8 Tokina zoom. It's fast enough you can strap a 2x or 1.4 extender on behind it and still have decent speed.

 

Actually there are plenty of Nikkor MF lenses from that period available for peanuts now that digital and AF have taken over.

that's the one you need/want.. http://www.photosynthesis.co.nz/nikon/ais200400.jpg good luck finding one.. ;)

 

Nikon 200-400mm f:4 AI-S

<img src="http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/cc112/Juanjo_Viagran/BS/200400mmf4s.jpg">

The Kiron 80-200 and Vivitar Series 1 70-210 zooms are excellent values.

 

Rather than a 200-400 zoom (I can't think of any that are affordable *and* good), consider a 300/4.5 Nikkor, either the AI ED or AI-S ED-IF. Don't bother with the earlier, non-ED versions. The ED versions are significantly sharper and sharp enough to use wide open (altho' careful focusing is needed due to the shallow DOF).

 

Beyond 300mm the only telephotos I can think of that are both good and affordable are mirror lenses. Normally a 500/8 mirror lens wouldn't be ideal, but chances are good that conditions will be very bright and sunny so f/8 should be good enough. There are several threads, including one today, discussing the pros and cons of mirror telephotos.

I'd go with the Vivitar Series 1 28-90 and either the second or third edition of the Viv Series 1, 70-210 lenses. Also, the Kiron 70-210 f/4, is a superb performer.

 

Russ

Just a quick note on what NOT to get. For the FM, you'll probably be best avoiding any zoom that has a max aperture which varies with focal length. That's because you'd have to readjust exposure every time you zoom. If you get a zoom for the FM, make sure it has a constant max aperture.

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It's not such a huge issue on the F3 if you shoot in autoexposure mode, as the meter will automatically change the shutter speed to compensate, but it could be a pain with a fully manual camera like the FM2n.

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Most variable aperture zooms are modern autofocus things anyway.

I purchased a Nikkor 400mm ED-IF f5.6 for a trip. Price was $550 and its sharp enough wide open for me. Careful focus is critical as I found out. I did consider buying a much more expensive Nikkor 500mm f4 P and selling it when done but sometimes I have a hard time letting things go.