The Nikon 80-400mm F4.5-5.6D ED VR lens is about 2/3 the size of the Nikon 80-200mm F2.8D ED AFS lens and also lighter. The 77mm front filter does not rotate when the lens is zoomed or focused. However the VR lens grows in size as it is zoomed from 80mm to 400mm whereas the AFS lens holds its size constant on zooming and focusing. The extension of the front of the VR lens when zooming is very similar to the Nikon 28-105mm F3.5-4.5D and the Nikon 70-300mm F4-5.6D ED lenses.
The VR lens has a pretty sturdy construction. However, it seems to use a lot more plastic compared to the 80-200mm AFS lens. Its smaller size and weight, however, makes it much easier for hand holding. The tripod collar is very different from the one of the 80-200 F2.8D AFS lens. To remove the tripod collar from the lens, one has to loosen the tripod collar screw first until the collar rotates freely. Then it has to be rotated to align with the index marks before it can be pulled off.
The manual focusing of the VR lens is smooth and damped for an AF lens. It takes about turning the focusing ring 120 degrees to go from the minimum focusing distance of 2.3m (7.5 feet) to Infinity. The VR lens, however, unlike the AFS lens, does not offer instant manual override of AF. Instead, the lens features an innovative M-A focus mode selection ring: 2 click stops are provided to choose between manual and auto focus, thus enabling focusing mode change on the fly by simply rotating the ring until it stops at the corresponding click-stop position. In addition, the ring can be locked down to prevent accidental rotation.
The provided HB-24 lens hood looks like a big brother to the hood for the Nikon 70-300mm F4-5.6D ED lens. The semi-soft case CL-M1 provided is a very nice touch from Nikon. I will definitely bring the soft case along.
| Lens Type | 80-400mm F4.5-5.6D ED VR |
| Lens Construction | 17 Elements in 11 Groups (3 ED Elements) |
| Maximum Reproduction Ratio | 1:25 (at 80mm) - 1:4.8 (at 400mm) |
| Minimum Focusing Distance | 2.3m (7.5 feet) |
| Attachment Size | 77mm |
| Weight | 1.36kg (48 oz) with Tripod Collar |
The short answer is yes! I managed to take reasonably sharp pictures at 1/30 at the 400mm zoom setting. This means that the VR lens is a pretty good hand holding walk around lens.
 VR OFF |
 VR ON |
Compare the crop of two pictures shown above taken on F100 with VR Off and On at 400mm setting 1/15 hand held F5.6. Clearly with the VR operational while taking the shot yielded much sharper results. The manual indicated with VR function on it is equivalent to shooting at shutter speed 8 times (3 stops) faster.
Vibration reduction function is only possible with F5, F100, F80, F65, D1, D1X and D1H, i.e. the latest generation of Nikon SLR's featuring 5 AF sensors. 2 modes of VR are provided. Mode 1 turns on the VR mechanism when the shutter is released and when the shutter release button is lightly pressed. Mode 2 turns VR on only when the shutter is released. It is really amazing to see VR in operation in the viewfinder with the shutter release button lightly pressed. To save batteries, I found that I can focus the lens without engaging VR by using the AF-ON button on my F100 even when Mode 1 is selected on the lens.
The instruction manual states explicitly that VR has to be turned off when the lens is mounted on a tripod. It also warns against turning the power off or removing the lens from the camera when the vibration reduction mechanism is in operation.
The VR lens is definitely capable of providing sharp pictures just like its AFS cousin. I was originally a little bit skeptical about its results. However, the slides I took with the F100 camera proved me wrong.
The combination of 400mm at F5.6 plus VR opens new photographic opportunities. The focusing speed of the lens is adequate, especially if pre-focusing is used. The slides turned out sharp and with good contrast, typical of Nikon glass. I am glad to report that Nikon again comes up with a winner.
However, since the lens is not AFS, it is not compatible with Nikon AF teleconverters TC14E and TC20E. The only compatible teleconverter listed in the instruction manual is TC201, meaning the loss of AF and VR functions when attached. Some people has suggested that some 3rd party teleconverter will preserve both VR and AF functions but I have yet to try one of these out. I have yet to find out if there are any extension tubes that will do the same. It would be very nice to if I can convert this lens into a VR macro lens with compatible extension tubes.