AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR

I´ve been with Nikon since 1993 and for the first time we now have a “full range” zoom for FX format (the 35mm for the old days).

What I like is that this lens comes well when you want to “travel light” and you don´t want to bring all your gear. (If you are a pro or semipro).

If you are an advanced amateur is the best option in FX. (You have another options in DX.

The internal motor is both silent and fast and the VR feature allows you to take sharp pictures even at 1/125 sec at 300mm hand taken! (With a still subject).

The range is very flexible in you can go easy from a group photo at 28mm to a close up just with a few hand movements.

My only concern is that if you try portrait the depth of field is high so is not easy to get blurred backgrounds compared vs. the f/2.8 options (80-200mm and 70-200mm)

An advantage is that the filter size is 77mm so if you already have pro series gear you can use the Circular Polarizer and the rest of the filters, you really save money with this.

What I dislike is the fact that the lens “expands” as you move from 28mm to 300mm. I prefer the ones that are with a fixed length.

Since I can remember all the Nikon (ED rated) are simple the best in class. The colors are true and the definition and sharpness always at the top. They worth the extra bucks!

Conclusion, If you are someone interested to jump to the “FX-big format” this is a very good start. And for the pros, this lens is very versatile and still keep many of the features and advantages of the pro gear without sacrificing too much. (speed and depth of field).

I´m really happy with this lens.

When I bought my D800 six months ago, I looked at the Nikon lens offering and debated the 28-300 vs 24-70 70-200 combination in order to get the focal length coverage I wanted for every-day picture taking. For once in my life, I decided to go with the cheaper solution. Am I ever glad that I did.

While I lose a little at the wide end (28 vs 24 mm), I get an extra 100 mm at the narrow end. And, while I lost a few f stops in going with this lens, I saved enough to buy a 14-24 mm, f2.8 and a 50 mm f1.4 which more than makes up for lost stops.

I´ve taken great portraits, great landscapes and great still-lifes (by my humble standards, anyway) with this lens.

If you´re a photo-enthusiast looking for an all purpose lens to cover 95% of your requirements - this lens is a great candidate.

You have to remember that this is a zoom lens and not a fixed focal length lens. Its not a fast lens, its starts at F3.5-5.6. with that said, this lens is fantastic. I take portraits of people all day, and this lens works great for individuals and groups. I shoot in the studios at f9 mostly and I find my results are just great. Had 2- 24x30 prints made last week and I can´t find anything that I could improve on from this lens. Camera is d800e, this lens gives me very thing I need for 90% of what I do. Yes i still need those fast lenses and if I want that soft bokeh I use my Dc 105mm F2. and if I´m in the hockey rink i still want my 80-200mm F2.8. But I did go on Vacation to the big US of A. and all i took was my 28-300mm and that was all i needed. No Camera bag just the camera over my shoulder and my sb800 in my wife´s purse. I was in grand central station in new york one evening and was watching a young lady with this big canon camera and lens combo trying to capture the train station. Thing were not working out for her but i did want to say anything (because i never used a canon before or want to) I asked her to take a photo with my camera of my wife and I and i told her just push the button that was all she needed to do. with the camera set at 1/125 sec f.3.5 at 28mm iso set to 1600 and sb800 set TTL -1 stop. well the look on that photographers face was priceless. I think she wanted my camera. Just remember what you have, what your are using it for, then you will see that for the most part this lens is perfect for 90% of the stuff you need. Im a Master Photographer with 32 years in this field and i can tell you i have lots of lenses and cameras and i think i found a winner with this one.

Well, finally, after several months of sleepless nights, and reading countless reviews online, wondering if I should purchase the 28-300 lens for my built-like-a-tank D300, I finally took the plunge a few weeks ago. However, I had to return my first purchase because it had a focus problem. Sometimes I had to turn the camera off and then on again for it to focus properly. The one I now have is super, and actually, for the size of the lens, I think the focus time is very, very good. Also, from the reviews I have read online, it has received many good reviews. It is a little heavier than my 18-200mm was. But I have decided that this is a great all-in-one lens. It is good for sports, portraits, landscape, and wildlife. I´ve found that my lens hood fits it very nicely and is good and snug - no worries about it coming off. One of the main reasons for my purchase of the 28-300 FX lens , was my not-so-far-in-the-future plans are to purchase an FX camera. On my D300, I now get 42mm to 450mm, and find it really sucks the picture in close at 450mm. So, for now, my D300 and the 28-300mm lens will be my main pair, even if the two together weigh 7 pounds. I know that after a short while, I will not even notice the weight. I like to hold my camera with the strap on my shoulder, supporting the lens with my hand., I figure I can walk for 2 to 3 hours easily. Believe it or not, pictures with this lens are crystal clear, sharp images and colors are brighter than the 18-200 lens. $1,200 (tax included) is a chunk of money to me, and when I read reviews that call this lens a ´´cheap´´ lens, let them buy the new 800mm lens for the low price of $18,000.... that´s right... look it up. Please remember this is only my opinion, and whatever you decide on, camera or lens, they are ´´old technology´´ as soon as you walk out of the store. I give this lens a 5 star rating, because it focuses quickly, gives you unbelievably crystal-clear, sharp images, awesome color, and for $1,200, in my opinion, it deserves it.

I have this lens for over a year, about one month after it has released. This lens is so versatile that I make it to my top best 10 Nikon lens. The first time my friend showed off his lens during one of our photo huntings. He point the lens at about 30cm (1ft) to my face and showed the result on his D3s camera at 300mm. The image is so sharp. Okay, I write it again: 300mm at a distance of 30cm (1ft)!! I was sold immediately and when I got back to my town, I ordered one for me. I have brought this lens to several countries, together with 16-35, 24-70, 70-200 f/2.8, 16mm fisheye, 35mm f/1.4 as my usual whole setup for photo huntings. This lens is however always on my D4 almost all the time. To give you guys the importance of this lens to me, I have almost all recent Nikon lenses up until 400mm f/2.8 VR (except 24mm f/1.4 and 200 f/2), but 28-300mm is the best lenses for me, and for all Nikonians in my photo club. I wrote a little list of my best 10 Nikon lenses in my personal website (no commercial site) http://www.fnubrawijaya.com/berita-153-my-nikon-10-best-lenses.html. I apologize for my broken English. Oh yes, I am more in landscape and street/human interest photography. It is important to have two kind of interest to make our photo hunting worth every time (you cannot take photos during rain).

Had this lens on the famous D800. Was a big pleasure to shoot in Paris, at tourists having fun in parks . The lens is clear , enough even at 300 mm . For travel its making the majors pics you have to do. Not so heavy and no heavy work to change lens according to the subject. If not satisfied by the accuracy, just work a bit with your laptop and all becomes well. I just need a wide angle beside, i will choose the wonderfull 16 35 VR. Weight will be all right for having a walk and good shoots !
DD.

Most reviews indicate an extremely useful all around lens with average optical quality. Well, I might have got a good number because the detail obtained on both a D300 and a D800 is impressive, quite superior to the results obtained with 18-200mm, regardless of the camera pixel count. The lens was reported as soft at 300mm. Not mine, which I found at par with the 80-400mm. The VR system appears to be better than the one of most of my lenses. In addition, at 300mm, the lens gives excellent results in the macro range, with an impressive working distance. Fantastic for insects!

I read many reviews on this lens before buying it and I´m happy to say I love the lens. I´m using it with a Nikon D800 and either do the lens correction through the camera menu option or via Photoshop ACR. The lens correction function helps minimize or eliminate CA, vignetting, pincushion, and barrel distortion. I´ve found the lens to be very sharp with the D800 ---- perhaps a more expensive lens would be sharper, but I´m very happy with the sharpness. I´ve actually done some indoor shots (without flash) using the VR function and Auto ISO with the ISO ranging from 1200 to 1800. The focus was fast and accurate and sharpness was excellent. Even at 1/30th second, f/8, and ISO 1800 the results were great without a tripod. I try to use the lens at f/5.6 or f/8 since that´s where the lens seems to perform best. Most lenses don´t perform well wide open, so stopping down roughly two stops is usually a good idea.

I haven´t tried the lens for action photos, but suspect it´s not optimal for that kind of shooting ---- that´s not to say you can´t use it for that. However, you´d probably be better off using a faster lens like the more expensive f/2.8 70-200mm Nikkor. For what I do, the 28-300 is great. I´d recommend it for general photography and as a convenient extended range zoom for scenic work.

My current lens lineup is a 10.5mm f/2.8 DX fish-eye, 16-35mm f/4 VR, old 35-70mm f/2.8, old 85mm f/1.8 manual focus, 50mm f/1.4, and the 28-300mm ----- all Nikon optics.

The Nikkor 28-300mm lens isn´t perfect, but after a few weeks of use I´d recommend this lens. The only negatives I can think of are the slightly heavy weight, the relatively slow f/3.5 maximum aperture, and the inferior lens hood (it doesn´t stay in place and can easily come off the lens).

Altho´ a tad heavy, this is a reasonably compact and very versatile lens that is ideal for travel photography with a D800. No longer do I have to carry multiple lenses when touring with limited time and space; I still carry my AF-S 17-35mm f/2.8 for the extreme wide-angle perspective. Among often unmentioned assets is that it uses 77mm filters, the same size used with many of Nikon´s best lenses (eg, 24-70mm f/2.8, 70-200mm f/2.8). At its focal-length extremes, it´s not quite as sharp or as free from aberrations as one might like, yet its versatility and generally very good image quality make this a fine product.