Nikon Telephoto Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D AF ED-IF Autofocus Lens USA

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

I have only had this lens for three weeks. I have used it for sports and travel thus far. It has performed very well. I did a few night softball games and the photos came out sharp. The advertised broad sweet spot in the lens is true to form. It is built like a tank. The focus is fast. I am just very impressed with the sharpness of this lens. Thus far there is nothing I do not like about this lens. I will be taking it with me to Europe. I look forward using it. My four star rating is only because I have only had the lens for a short period of time.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

Good telephoto lens for candid shots and some wildlife. Autofocus is very fast and quiet. Fast f2.8 is great in low light situations. This lens is a little on the heavy side, but it is very sturdy and well-built.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

one of the best prime lenses from nikon, period. have been longing for this lens for a while due to good reviews everywhere.

(1) construction: very solid. guess a lot of metal and glass but plastics inside!

(2) performance: i) classic optical design for several decades, simple but powerful; ii) fast and accurate focus, not loud at all. actually i love the sound and it sounds like the lens is telling you it's working; images are sharp, sharp, and sharp; iii) fast f2.8, image quality is still good when widely opened; iv) the feeling for manual focus is just right; v) the bokeh is simply beautiful; vi) no VR? i don't care. vr cannot replace a tripod, can it? i always use a tripod (in case you are wondering, a manfrotto) for low light or if necessary.

suggestion: i) adding a tripod collar to this lens will make it perfect; ii) don't know why there is no rear element, the aperture is exposed to the air directly. not that anti-dust, i guess.

recommend it to every nikon dslr user!

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

This lens is extremely sharp and autofocuses quickly. It is amazing how responsive it is, and in my limit use of it, since I just got it.

I don't miss the 70-300mm I sold to get this lens. I rarely used focus on the zoom lens at or above 200mm, so this just blows away what I had in the focus ranges I use most.

You don't have to go to the more costly version because of this telephoto.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

The 180 has unsurpassed sharpness and a best in class flat, distortion free, even field. It results in images of startling clarity.

The lens is small and does not require VR. It is a superb, smooth manual focus lens and a very serviceable auto focus rig. It is the perfect partner with the 85 or 105 macro for unsurpassed image quality in studio or when photographing people.

Older Nikon lenses were designed for film primarily - and the then emerging digital technology as an after thought. Some of these older designs have ultra high contrast and saturation and are prone to capturing highlights of such intensity that they routinely rendered blown, harsh or unworkable on digital. The newer lenses are designed for digital first and tend to control saturation & local contrast to a point where they appear visibly smoother and more detailed. You can see this when you compare images form an older 60 macro with a newer one or an older 80-200 with a new 70-200 AFS.

The 180 is an older design and displays some of the tendencies of the older lenses...but it also creamy smooth in the mid tones and is the most manageable of the older designs. Unlike some of its siblings, the saturation and highlight rendition are controllable in Photoshop and Camera Raw post shooting.

It is one of the older all metal, solidly built in Japan jewels of construction. I have used a version of this lens for over 30 years.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

Super Optics,Robust & proffessional feel,AF-Instant response on my D2X,Amazing Bokeh @ F 2.8 Ideal for portraits & general photography especially low light even @ ISO 800

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

I use this for quick action on a monopod. It has a reputation for being one of Nikon's sharpest and I am very satisfied. I use a stepup filter holder which negates the use of the sliding hood i.e. requires a new hood but permits the use of my standard filters. Manual focus works well.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

Indeed this is he best lens, I used both or my street portrait photography where ever I went across the world, Nikon 300MM F2.8 VR and Nikon 70-200MM F2.8 VR, they done a great job for me but since I lost my 180MM F2.8 lens non of the other lenses been a good replacement for the 180 on the street.[...]

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

perfect lens for my nikon d200
before to buy i would think it would bigger than it is, instead.
with a own box
i don't ask more. really satisfied !!!

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

I love this lens. sharp as heck, even wide open. feels like it should, heavy, well made and solid as a tank. does not have VR, but i have not noticed the need for it. great pro lens for the price. i listed "heavy" as a con, but it is not too heavy. adds a little weight to the camera bag, but not really a con.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

Great lens, but when shooting certain subjects I have noticed some artifacts like purple fringing especially noticible when on the water, like surfing or sailing photography. Sometimes this can look artsy, but is not always desirable.
Not the fastest to focus, but not bad either. It's a definite keeper.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

I bought this lens based on its stellar reviews, but it's been a major disappointment. Oh, it's rugged, it's light and sharpness is great, but all of my high-contrast photos are ruined by a horrible purple fringing that I have to get rid of with Photoshop. Examples are reflections off water and the black-white edges of an osprey's plumage. It's not just on overexposed scenes like tree branches against the sky - it happens on corrrectly exposed shots, too. None of my other four lenses exhibit this problem with my D300. Chromatic abberation or digital imaging "spillover"? I don't know, but it's a serious problem.

Also, without AF-S, the focus is too slow for fast action nature photography, in spite of its IF design. I wish I had spent another thousand dollars and bought the 70-200 instead.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

I shoot a lot of environmental portraits and wanted the effect of a long lens without the weight of an 80-200. I wanted a lens that I could hand hold if possible and this fits the bill.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

The Nikkor 180mm f/2.8 lens is a good sharp lens. The auto focus is fast and accurate enough to catch motion while being sharp with details. The lens is heavy with a good solid well built feel to it, and has the added advantage of a built in hood. This lens is comparable to the Nikkor 105mm lens, as both lenses give sharp details while delivering a very pleasing bokeh.

I used it on a trip to a large city, and found that the length was very good for getting distance shots without disturbing or inhibiting my subjects. I am extremely pleased with the output from this lens and would recommend it highly.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

I loved my old 180. It was razor sharp and fast as befits a 2.8. However, the ravages of advancing years made consistent sharp focussing less consistent.
This 180 is just as sharp, is lighter than the original and of course, its autofocus.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

Got my slides with pictures from the Sacramento Zoo. Could confirm output is consistent. The images are very sharp (at f2.8 & f4.0), and bright. It does have the same shargpness as my old 180mmAI.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

I am photographıng ın (classıcal) concerts on a Nıkon D700. The Nıkkor 180mm f/2.8 ıs an ıdeal lens for the purpose. Its dead sharp even at f/2.8 and ıt can brıng out the maın objects of ınterest whıle blurrıng the background. The buıld ıs refıned and rugged at the same tıme. Because I am mostly photographıng movıng objects VR would not be an advantage. So thıs ıs the best lens for me and at a great prıce. L.F.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

I used to own the old manual 180mm AI produced in the 1970s. It was a very sharp and rugged lens. However, it was getting obsolete, and I wanted a newer model that allows me to use my F5's matrix metering. After pondering whether I should go with a 70-200 zoom, I decided on the 180mm AF for the following reasons: 1) light weight; 2) compact & rugged; 3) could use my 72mm circular polarizer with HN13 hood (which I also use on my 300mm AI-S EDIF); 4)could use with my FE; 5) would use it with my 85mm/1.8 - giving me enough coverage equivalent to a 70-200. This decision turned out well enough for me. I took it to the Sacramento Zoo today, and took some shots of tigers, a lion, and a snow leopard. Since I still own a film camera, you would have to wait for my slides to develop, and then I can tell you how good they are (no comments on "consistent output" yet). Besides that, I can say that the auto focus was fast enough to catch two playful tigers sprinting about in their enclosure. Auto focus was sharp. In manual focus, the focus ring has the classic Nikon "damping" feel which I truly like. The focus ring is also wide (wider than on some autofocus lenses such as the 85/1.8. The 2.8 aperture is adequate to blur out the enclosure wires (provided the subject is over 10 ft. from the wires). This is a classic lens with an older style A-M switch. I do like this switch as it feels more rugged than that on my Nikon 14mm/2.8. The built is nice too with a solid retractable hood (I prefer that too the HB-style hoods). I also like the crinkle metal surface. Two things I don't like are 1) the plastic aperture ring which doesn't compliment with the crinkle metal finish; 2) the lack of f32 which was provided on my old 180mmAI. On the other hand, this is, overall, a high quality classic lens. I would be traveling to S. Korea next month, and this baby is coming with me!

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

I consider this lens Nikon's best kept secret. It handles like a 135mm prime. I have to remember that this is a longer focal length lens and that I must bump up my shutter speeds accordingly. It is so easy to forget that in the field because the size is so handy. It feels smaller than it really is. It fits into a Tamrac lens pouch and can be carried on the waist that way. I take mine to the beach and I shoot the beach cuties as well as whatever else is going on. The bokeh is outstanding with pleasant out of focus backgrounds. Flare is not a problem and I like the built in lens shade. Some shooters purchase a different shade for a permanent screw in style shade, like on the 80-200mm. No, this is not a zoom but get over it. Zoom with your feet and enjoy the quality ED glass, lack of lens flare, built in shade and compactness. No, I don't like the A/M switch and at times the AF will hunt. The rear is exposed to the aperture blades, so be careful not to let dirt into the rear of the lens. This is my second version. I sold the first one but that was a mistake and I missed having it on my belt. It matches up well with an 85mm as a two lens tele kit. Even if you spent four grand on the 200mm F2, you would still want this compactness. Remember, I told you so.

Comments about Nikon Telephoto AF Nikkor 180mm f/2.8D ED-IF Autofocus Lens:

I own a lot of nikkor lenses from old to new. I consider myself a collector and a semi pro that simply loves nikon pro glasses. This lens is by far one of the best lenses nikon ever made period.

I recently purchased the D90 and tested the 180 on the D90 for the heck of it and i can tell you the picture quality is incredible. You have to own this lens to appreciate it. Regardless of body, you get clean clear shots with this lens.

Nikons best kept secret... Everything you have read about this lens is absolutely true. Yes it is a bit slow, i am happy with the speed regardless.

Saving up for 200 f/2. I think this is the lens to own if one can afford it at about 5Gs, this will take a while...Hopefully soon.

Not enough room to list all my lenses below...

Get this baby if you can, i can assure you there will be no regrets.