Closest focus distance/max. magnification: 1.4 m (4.6 ft.) / 1:8.3. In my test I was able to go down to 1: 7.9. This meager magnification also means that the effective focal length shrinks some 30% when focusing close. Similar to what the Sigma achieves. [0] Complement this lens with a 24-70mm standard zoom and you can seamlessly cover a 8.3x zoom-range from fairly wide-angle to a decent tele with only two lenses. And while the 70-200mm f2.8 is corrected for full-frame FX format bodies, you could equally use it on a cropped-frame DX-body where it gives you an equivalent 105-300mm coverage plus future-proofing should you upgrade to an FX-body at a later date. I still haven’t spent much time talking about third-party 70-200mm’s yet. However there are a few really great performers out there, namely the Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 VC USD and the Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 OS HSM. The shape of the new design is reminiscent of the older AF-S 80-200mm f/2.8, with a wide body that does not taper towards the lens mount until the tripod collar. Build quality is excellent throughout, with much of the lens being constructed of magnesium. As a result this lens is heavy. Very heavy in fact, weighing in at over 1.5kg, which is noticeably more than its predecessor. The lens is weather-sealed and designed to cope with the rigours of daily professional use in harsh conditions. Zoom and focus are performed internally and as a result the lens remains the same length at all times. As usual I’ll have a look at the technical data first. I’ve rated the features with a [+] (or [++]), when it’s better than average or even state of the art, a [0] if it’s standard or just average, and [-] if there’s a disadvantage.

The Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II ships with the plastic HB-48 bayonet hood. Note that there is a a dedicated tripod collar ring, the RT-1, but it's an optional accessory rather than included with the lens.

Bokeh

The second version was released in the middle of 2009. It has a completely different optical design, a more advanced VR system and it is fully optimised for full frame coverage. The only issue some people have with it is that when focused close to minimum focusing distance at the 200 mm end of the zoom range its acctual focal length is reduced to about 130 mm. This is perfectly fine for some people, yet it bothers others. But the lens is very sharp corner to corner, it has less vignetting, and some even say it has improved contrast and superior colour rendering over the first generation lens. Lenses – Should have no marks on the elements andoptically clear. There may be light dust present that will not effect theimagery. However, the new Nikon 70-200 2.8 VRII does have an edge in almost every respect. (Except looks; the original 70-200 2.8 is much more sexy looking!) It is noticeably sharper, so if you shoot high-end portraits and you need to make huge prints from a 36 megapixel D800, while shooting at f/2.8 all day long, then the mk2 is well worth it. The last handling feature I’ll mention is stabilization. Unlike most Nikon Z lenses so far, the 70-200mm f/2.8 S has built-in vibration reduction (VR). Even though most photographers will be using this lens with a Nikon Z camera that has in-body image stabilization (IBIS) like the Nikon Z6 II or Z7 II, the VR feature is still helpful if you want to use this lens on a camera like the Nikon Z50 and Nikon Zfc that doesn’t have IBIS. The purpose of teleconverters is to increase the focal length of lenses, in other words to get closer to subjects, and the TC-20E III is the biggest and the longest teleconverter manufactured by Nikon – it doubles the focal length of a lens. While this teleconverter works with any professional Nikon lens that can take teleconverters, it is specifically designed to work with fast prime lenses with an aperture of f/2.8 and larger. The Nikon TC-20E III is targeted at sports, wildlife and other types of telephoto photography where the photographer cannot physically approach subjects.

It also features Nikon's Vibration Reduction (VR) system, which offers 4-stops of compensation. Two modes are available. Normal for everyday shooting, Active for shooting from a moving vehicle. There are two VR switches on the lens barrel, one for turning Vibration Reduction on and off, the other for switching between the Normal and Active modes.

The new 70-200mm and hood are on the left. As you can see, the newer lens is marginally shorter. The hood is shorter too. Nikon's first pro-level f/4 tele zoom was announced in late 2012. It has the highest rated MTF of any Nikon tele zoom, and performs spectacularly —at a fraction of the size, weight and price of the 70-200mm f/2.8 ED IF VR II. Nikon says that the Z 70-200mm f/2.8’s VR works in tandem with IBIS for a total of 5.5 stops of stabilization. As usual, we found these claims to be a bit higher than we could measure in practice. At 70mm, I consistently got about 3.5 stops of stabilization compared to using the lens with VR turned off; at 200mm, that improved to about 4.5 stops of stabilization. These are good real-world numbers and match my expectations. Where the "II" does not refer to the type of VR employed in the lens, but rather, it refers to the entire lens as the second version (or MkII if you like) of this lens. As I mentioned earlier, the Nikon Z 70-200mm f/2.8 S weighs almost exactly the same as the F-mount 70-200mm f/2.8E at 1440 g (3.17 lbs) with the tripod foot. This may be a bit frustrating for some Nikon Z fans, especially considering that most of Nikon’s other Z lenses have weighed less than their F-mount counterparts so far.Not to mention the inevitable comparisons with Canon, whose mirrorless RF 70-200mm f/2.8 L lens is noticeably lighter at 1200 g / 2.65 lbs (and just 1070 g without the tripod collar).

The first conclusion I can definitively say is that the Nikon FL lens is clearly the sharpest overall. From corner to corner, this lens shows the most detail out of the group. Distance information is relayed to the camera, so the Nikon body can do all the advanced exposure-related stuff with this lens. But this is true for all alternatives too. [+] Even more important is that while the rated close-focus distance isn't that much closer, the older 70-200s cheated and weren't really 200mm at their close-focus distances. As expected from a high-end professional lens, the Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G VR II does not disappoint when it comes to sharpness. When compared to the previous generation Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR, it is not only sharper in the center, but also significantly superior in the mid-frame and the extreme corners. This lens performs so well at f/2.8, that you wouldn’t want to shoot it at larger apertures, unless you need to increase depth of field or improve corner sharpness. In fact, once I saw how good the shots were coming out at f/2.8, I just kept shooting wide open and really loving the results! Best of all, the lens has consistent sharpness across the board, from 70mm all the way to 200mm. Color and contrast have also been improved over the previous 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR, thanks to better coating and superior optical design. NIKON D3S + 70-200mm f/2.8 @ 155mm, ISO 200, 6sm f/11

Price

IS: Yes, VR 2nd generation = great! At focal lengths beyond 100mm and with today’s high resolution sensors image stabilization is an indispensable feature. But the competition has finally caught up[+] If I already own the 70-200 2.8 mk1, do I really need to upgrade to the mk2? How much better is the mk1 versus the mk2?” Cameras – LCD screen is heavily worn either by de-lamination or has scratches to it. Rubber grips are starting to come away from the body.