Customer Ratings & Reviews

I bought this lens for my Nikon D7500 camera. This is an outstanding lens! The 200–500 focal range is perfect for many shooting situations. The 6.3 aperture works very well in wildlife, sports, and concert settings. The high-quality glass gives your camera high resolution on all your pictures. And the VR gives you an extra 4 stops which can give you excellent handheld photos without having to use a monopod or tripod. And did I mentioned that it’s built like a tank? This lens has taken my photography to the next level! It is not a light lens, however; but it is very much worth the weight.

I use this lens primarily for motorsports photography. The F2.8 speed is WORTH EVERY PENNY! This lens performs well at night and in the day. It is spectacular for wild life photography too. It holds up well in a light drizzle without letting water in. Make sure your tripod head is beefy enough to hold up the weight of this lens. It's the size of a 1L nalgene bottle. Without equipment rated to handle the weight it wlll fail. It's good to use this lens with a monopod to save your hands, shoulder, and back from strain of repeatedly bringing this lens to your eye hundreds of times a day. I can't wait to slap a 2X teleconverter on this for the 2024 solar eclipse.

Im a amateur enthusiast in photography i use the 70-200 VR1 for few years and i loved it really nice lens but has few flaws (vignetting and sharpness in the corners are weak)but still a great lens then last month i bought the VR2 version and its an outstanding lens the optics were superior to the old one but had some flaws too (focus breathing and quality wasn't on par with canon's best)so yestarday i decided to return the VR2 and get this new lens that im gonna call simply the VR3(Nikon doesn't call it that)and this are the results. Its simply the best lens i ever used ,its amazing,no more foucus breathing,its sharp all across,build quality second to none,and yes its faster than the already fast VR2 itsnsimply the best lens on nikon line up. The only flaw has to be the price. So who should get this lens: **If you are a pro you do need this lens. **If you are an amateur but get gigs,events like weddings often and you make decent money out of them also get it,it will pay for itself. **If money its not an issue and you like photography obviously you gonna get it. **If you like best bang for you buck and only use your lens every now and then,to photograph your kids at the park get The VR 1 its dead cheap nowadays. So in summary this lens its the best telephoto lens in the world (sorry canon shooters time to pass the torch)Nikon has managed to release a superb lens that its a great investment and will serve you for a decade (or more) its the reverse ring a problem? After usining it few hours i got use to it so honestly i don't think it matters,now please stand up and salute the king of lenses(for now).

Super sharp and loads of VR options. The 4 “pre-focus” buttons toward the front of the lens are a bit of a mystery, but it will be handy when shooting multiple areas of the frame where you are constantly returning to the same position. This is a necessary lens for professionals that need a relatively quiet, fast acting lens. No lens creep either. Get this and the 14-24 and 24-70/2.8’s and maybe a 50mm and you are all set. Make sure to only use the camera body’s “A” function rather than the “M” on body as with most modern lenses, you can easily toggle between “M/A” and “M” on the lenses themselves. Nikon states that using the “M” mode on the body can result in damage to lenses or camera. Make sure to get a high quality filter to protect. I use the Hoya EVO antistatic UV (0) 82mm filter on this lens.

It is a pro lens for a pro camera and it shows. That said, you can get a great pictures from a lens like this and a low end camera, but not the other way around. Was playing with it on an old D3100 and it made it look good! Lightening fast focus, even on the old body. Crisp images.

This lens is the gold standard among photographers because of its ability to catch fast action or take photos in low light without all the bulk of a larger lens. The photo here was taken in very low light and was sharp using a d7200 with an ISO of 12800, so you see there is little noise to it.

I love this lens!!! It is definitely heavier than I thought it would be, which made my first few shots a little blurry. I've use it with a D7200. I have only used it twice.

Bought this lens for my Nikon D850 camera and it’s an amazing lens. I shoot a lot of fast action shots primarily Motocross, and the f2.8 lens focuses super quick. Picture quality is amazing. The lens is pretty pricey, but the quality is definitely worth it if you want a quick lens with crisp detail. Definitely recommend.

I purchased this lens primarily for bird photography with my D500 and D850 and it did not disappoint. Images are sharp and autofocus is quick for birds in flight. The VR is very good as well. I would recommend this without any hesitation.

I had bought this lens as a replacement for my first generation VR version. This is fast and sharp lens ideal for portrait and sports. The auto focus is very fast in my Nikon D500. It is a "must have" lens for any serious photographer.

Nice improvement from the last version. Autofocus is fast and spit on. Tack spark images every time.

This is the lens I began my journey into Wildlife Photography with. It has captured many stunning photos already in the short time I've had it.

This is an excellent quality lens! I cannot fault it except to say there is some effort required to learn its full capabilities.

I recently purchased this lens. The first one I had was not tack sharp in all zoom ranges. I tried micro adjustments but was not satisfied. I exchanged it after using it for a week and the new lens is stellar. I have a Nikon D500 and adjusted it to plus 2. It is just spectacular. The zoom is very smoooth and I like the fact that I can autofocus from the push buttons on the lens. It adds to the stability when shooting images. I know some have complained about the zoom being on the end of the lens and the focus ring in the middle, but this doesn’t bother me. My Nikon 200-500 also has the zoom on the end of the lens. I do not even use the focus ring on this lens as the.Autofocus is superior to my own manual focus. The lens has zero focus breathing and I like the fact that the lens moves internally and does not extend further as I zoom. It is tack sharp. I use it for shooting wildlife, sports and portraits of my new grandchild. I shoot at F 2.8 indoors and a shutter speed of 1/80 second. I am able to get extremely fine detail on the eyes. The eyelashes are well defined. The bokeh is superlative. The contrast and color are just outstanding. Yesterday I shot my son-in-law’s softball game. The photos were beautiful. I shared the photos with him and he shared them with his teammates. They all marveled at the quality of the images. It was easy to use and effortlessly tracked very well with the D500’s autofocus system. I have also shot photos of some herons that hang out in my neighborhood. They take to flight whenever you get close to the so I am well prepared for this. I shoot in manual settings at 1/2500 second at 5.6. The lens tracks very well and the eyes of the herons are so clear. The lens blurs the background well so that anyone viewing the imagss will look only at the birds. Incredible photos. Professional quality images. I will share a few below. I borrowed my friend’s Tamron 70-200 G2 to test it. It shot very good stills and nice bokeh but it couldn’t match the performance of anything that iwas moving quickly. It just doesn’t track and focus as quickly. It might have just been his lens. I dont know. Frankly, the Nikon70-200 focuses so quickly that I don’t even see it hunting and changing focus. It’s instantaneous. I like the fact that I can lock out the range of focus to beyond 5 meters for shooting action, since I can never get close enough to the birds before they take off. The lens is lighter than the Tamron and I noticed the extra weight. The other lens seems heavier in the front of the lens so it was harder to steady. The Tamron did have excellent VC but there was a bit of a delay before it stabilized. The Nikon instantly stabilized. The only downside to the lens is that it is super expensive; twice the price of the new Tamron. But, the Nikon is much smoother. The zoom ring is effortless. I really wanted to buy the Tamron and save the extra $1500 but it didn’t compare in my opinion. I tried micro adjustments but there was such variation that when I adjusted at 200 mm, the lens was soft at 70. I did not have the Tamron tap-in system which might have corrected this. So I cannot comment on it. The Nikon is sharp throughout and the minimal front focus adjustment I made allows for superlative image quality throughout the range of this lens. Also, the Nikon feels smoother and I believe that it will last longer. Just my opinion. So this lens if for a professional or an enthusiast, like myself, that wants the best lens in this category.. The photos are so sharp that cropping the images to a reasonable extent do not degrade the image quality. I am really pleased with it thus far. The images are so good that my friends have suggested that I share them with others. They look professional. That’s all I needed to hear. The Nikon lens is super quiet. I don’t even hear it when it is focusing. It’s just outstanding. Very pleased with this purchase. I did not consider the Nikon VR 2 in the same focal length. It’s about $600 less so I figured if I was going to spend that much, the extra cost didn’t seem to matter to me. It has some focus breathing issues which the new Nikon lens doesn’t not have, I didn’t care about spending the extra $600 bucks to get the new glass. Very pleased.

I purchased this new NIKKOR 70-200mm f/2.8E FL ED VR to replace a trusted NIKKOR 80-200mm f/2.8D ED. For several years now the fantastic VR II had been tempting me but I am glad I waited a little longer. I am really enjoying this new lens and thought I should share what I have learned that led me to pull the trigger. There are already quite a few reviews of the new lens since it came out and vast majority of them are overwhelmingly positive. What ultimately settled my decision is the MTF test results published by Mr. Roger Cicala at LensRentals.com. His tests compared NIKKOR 70-200mm f/2.8E FL ED VR against NIKKOR 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II and Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM. The MTF charts convincingly show the latest Nikon 70-200mm outshines the other two lenses (both excellent lenses by any measure) in optical performance through the entire zoom range. The improvement over VR II at 135mm in particular is especially dramatic. This simply means the new lens can produce images that are sharper across the entire frame and with more contract, a conclusion that has been confirmed by many reviewers. Here is a link to the MTF results: www.lensrentals.com/blog/2016/11/nikon-70-200mm-f2-8e-fl-ed-af-s-vr-mtf-tests/. If for some reason the link is removed, you can google “nikon 70-200 fl mtf blog”. In addition to the outstanding optical performance, a few other noteworthy improvements over the VR II version include: * Faster and more accurate focus. * Easily accessible AF lock buttons on lens barrel. * Shorter minimum focus distance (3.6’ vs 4.6’) * Improved VR capability with dedicated sport mode. * Focus breathing at close focus (significant with VR II) generally eliminated * Fluorine costing on front & rear elements for better protection against dust and moisture * Slightly shorter (7.97” vs 8.09”) * Slightly lighter (3.15lb vs 3.39lb) I have only had the lens for a couple of weeks and it certainly met my elevated expectations. The new lens also paired really well with the Nikon TC-20E III teleconverter which make it into a 200-400mm f/5.6 AF VR lens. Image degradation is barely noticeable. On the negative side, the switched focus and zoom ring positions seem to be a potential handling issue for some seasoned photographers. Given that the new layout is also opposite to that on the Nikon 24-70 f/2.8E VR, one can only assume the design decision is likely due to some engineering constraint. The switched position has not been much of an issue for me and should be a non-issue in a month or two. This lens isn’t cheap. But its build quality, performance and features make it a great lens to own and enjoy for years to come. Highly recommended.

I've been saving for a while to purchase this lens. It has always been on my want list. I have owned multiple Nikon DSLRs and have always wanted to pair one with the 70-200 2.8. This version has been great to use with my D750. Some say they dont like the zoom ring on the far end, but I dont mind it. Its beefy, but thats what you get with a zoom and f2.8. Tracks well and the VR is a must for sports inside gymnasiums. I got it on sale ($450 off) and I think its a great value under $2000. At the regular price of $2349, its an OK value. Still, if you're serious, you should have a 2.8 zoom. I also looked at the 70-200 2.8 offerings from the major 3rd party supporters (S & T) and still decided to spend the money for the gold ring. Haven't regretted it.

It angered me when Nikon upgraded their 70-200 2.8 and greatly increased the price. Now with a big sale, I was able to purchase one for what should be the regular price, although it's still not cheap. The lens does all it claims. Focus is very fast. Contrast and sharpness are superior. Having f 2.8 in your back pocket for low light situations, or freezing fast action with higher shutter speeds at moderate iso is a real joy. I find the reach of the lens on my D500, even w/o a teleconverter, combined with the sharpness and fast handling, allows great shots of small birds, like warblers, at close and moderate distances. Its a perfect adjunct to my 200-500, which is overkill for many shots. I was surprised to see that the lens is fine for wildlife video also, and how versatile the zoom range has turned out to be. Enough magnification for most shots at 200mm, and useful wide views at the 70mm end. Finally, the VR works as advertised. 1/15 sec shots at 200 mm are trivial to achieve. But its in that 1/100-1/250 range at 200mm that you really see the difference in actual use. This lens takes flawlessly sharp images at those speeds, where my old non vr 80-200 f 2.8 would just plain fail! Having said that, the vr is no better than what's on the much cheaper 200-500, which is more of a testament to how amazing THAT lens is, rather than a complaint.

Nikon's latest 70-200 2.8 E FLD is not only Nikon's latest midrange zoom, but the best 70-200 any manufacturer makes. Sharp as single focal length lenses, with the convenience of a zoom. It focuses faster than previous versions of this lens. Very suitable for close sports or nearby wildlife photography. The VR is as good or better than previous versions with no delay in response. Yes, it is more expensive, a lot more expensive. But if you make big enlargements of your photos and need the fastest, sharpest lens available this is the lens for you.

I bought this lens so I could capture photos of my kids in poor-to-averagely lit gymnasiums and similar places playing basketball, doing gymnastics, and performing in school concerts, etc., and I have been very happy. Now I'm looking forward to their baseball and soccer seasons, when the added reach will come in handy. Previously, I'd been using the 18-140 mm kit lens that came with my D7500 and the photos would get too dark and grey as the aperture shank at the higher focal lengths. Now, with the constant F/2.8, I can get much better quality low-ISO (less grainy) photos of them at a distance (e.g. 25-50 yards) and at high speeds (e.g. 1/1000 second; helps capture action!).

This lens fills in a gap where 200-500mm is too long and standard lenses (i.e. 70 - 120mm) are too short. I didn't think too much about this 'hole' until on a trip. There are cheaper options from third party makers but this lens lives up to its reputation; rock solid build and amazing sharpness. Okay, it's big and expensive. If you're looking for something small, light and cheap, this isn't it. But if IQ is critical, this is the way to go, especially when mounted on a D850. And focusing is very fast. My only mistake was not purchasing this lens before going to Alaska.