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I am trying to decide between the following two lenses.
Nikon 200 - 500 f5.6 versus
Used Nikon 200 - 400 f4 vrii
The lens would be used on a Nikon D850 primarily for casual birding, wildlife and kid sports like soccer and baseball.
I am leaning towards the 200-400 f4 primarily due to the f4 aperture, internal zoom feature and weather proofing. All my other lenses have the internal zoom feature and I am pleased with the smoothness of how they operate.
I know I am giving up 100mm of reach however if that becomes a problem I could recover that with a 1.4x teleconverter.
Your comments and recommendations would be appreciated.
First, you do not indicate what you intend to photograph. Small to medium sized birds? Larger birds? Mammals? Or ????
I owned the 200-400 in the 1990's. Great lens then. But very, very heavy and now with older technology. It was good for large mammals at mid-range distances. My copy was not good for long range. And being so old, repair parts may be hard to get.
Many folks use the 200-500 with great success. Newer technology and easier to handle.
Personally I would spend the money on newer technology that will hold its value better and give you better performance.
The 200-400 vrii was my first professional quality lens. It's been pretty well documented that it is an f4 lens by geometry but the "t-stop"(i.e. actual light transmission) is f5. I had read that but never really appreciated it until I got a 500mm f4 and was able to compare them side by side. And in my experience the IQ of the 200-500 is at least as good as the 200-400. I'm also fond of the internal zoom design which is inherently more "weatherproof" and less subject to dust intrusion. But that is really the single advantage of the 200-400. So you have to decide how important that is based on how/where you shoot. That said I shot several days in a row with the 200-500 sheathed in rain gear in some pretty heavy/steady rain with no problems. And many more times without problems in brief exposure to light rain without any protection. Also my experience was that IQ with the 200-400 degraded noticeably with a 1.4x TC.
- How important is the weather/dust sealing based on your typical shooting environment?
- If you think you really need 500mm vs 400mm planning up front to shoot a significant amount of time with a TC is just... well a bad plan.
- E version lens vs G version lens.
- How significant is the weight difference to you based on physical condition, travel considerations, percentage of time shooting on tripod vs handheld, etc.
Honestly if 400mm is enough reach and for casual use as described I'd opt for the AF-S 80-400 over either of the other options. Comparable IQ and one heck of a lot more convenient. Not great with a TC.
I would probably go for the 200-500. Even though that lens is a little bulky and heavy for hours of handheld shooting, it will be relatively small and lightweight compared to the 200-400. The 80-400 AF-S G lens isn’t a bad suggestion - but the Sigma and Tamron 100-400mm lenses should be a bit better optically. (I noticed this when comparing similar shots from my Sigma 100-400 and a rented Nikon 80-400.) The f/6.3 maximum aperture of the Sigma and Tamron at the longest focal length, however, might limit the number of AF sensors you can use with your D850. Maximum apertures narrower than f/5.6 can cause sensors outside of the central group of cross-type AF sensors to perform unreliably.
Never owned the Nikon 200 - 400 f4 vrii but I have had experience with the 200-500 and the 180-400. I can tell you there is a big difference working with the 2 lens. The 200-500 can be handheld, unless you are really fit the 200-400 will not be hand holdable except for a very short times.
I would w/ the 200-500 unless you always plan to work from a tripod and need the extra durability and weather seallnig
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