Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II AF-S Nikkor Zoom Lens For Nikon Digital SLR Cameras (New, White box)

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I cant rave about this lens enough. Nothings perfect, but you certainly know where your moneys going with this lens. Build quality is excellent. Metal all around with solid and reliable controls, including focus and zoom rings. VR II works really well, so you can get some really sharp hand-held shots, even at maximum zoom. The vibration reduction is so good that you can easily see it working when panning. This is one of only a few VR II lenses available from Nikon. Sharpness is just wicked, and exposes subtle details you may not be able to see with your naked eyes. Bokeh is excellent, with a 9-blade diaphragm, f/2.8 and 200mm zoom, you can get some really creamy backgrounds. Downside #1: its heavy, and will give you a workout if youre carrying it for any length of time. This can mean tired arms and a sore back if youre carrying it for hours. Downside #2: Ive got a Nikon D7000 (DX / APS-C sensor). Because theres 50% magnification versus 35mm (FX) sensors, it gives this lens too much zoom for almost any indoor work (even at 70mm on DX, youre looking at a 105mm shot on a 35mm sensor). An FX sensor would be perfect to use this lens in a wide variety of indoor and outdoor applications. If your goal is landscape photography, or even indoor portraits and such with APS-C, the $1300 AF-S Nikkor 24-120mm f/4G ED VR may be a better bet with a DX camera. That will get you 36mm-180mm comparables for FX (which covers most of the 70-200mm range, obviously).

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In addition to the other comments this is IDEAL for shooting indoor sports like volleyball or basketball. You can get close or back as needed and the range is perfect, and the fast lens is ideal so you dont have to push the ISO too high and can still get a fast enough shutter to stop the action.

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I love this lens but make sure you spend extra money and get from Nikon if your getting a refurb. The lens I bought is Not Refurbished. Looked used and abused. Focus ring had granuals wedged inside and made a grinding noise when moved; Glass was dirty; Packaging was not designed to keep lens safe. Not happy with this lens, returning same day

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Wow. First note: Im still decidedly an amateur. I bought a D7100 w/18-140 lens a year or so ago. Love it. I bought a 10-24mm lens to take on a trip to Europe; love that as well. The trip was with a church choir, followed by many back home. Pictures were posted daily on a pic sharing site: to date over 115,000 picture views. I thought, OK, lets step it up. I bought the Nikkor 18-300mm, and found, while the 300mm was nice to have, there was little substantive difference between it and the lens I already owned at normal ranges. I sent it back, and traded for the 70-200. Wow. Wow. And: Wow. The first really professional lens Ive owned, the increase in focus speed, sharpness, color, and evened bokeh is stunning, macro to infinity. At nearly $2500, an incredible value. Its been less than a week; I may change my mind. But I doubt it.

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Just received this lens this morning. Shooting hand-held instead of a tripod, mirror lockup and remote shutter release this lens is much better than the Sigma 70-200mm I got last week. I did use a tripod, mirror lockup and remote shutter release for the Sigma lens. Dont even think I will bother with a tripod for any further testing. Lens is sharp wide open at F/2.8 and at all F-stops edge sharpness is great. I just decide to suck it up and buy this lens. It is unfortunate that Nikon and Canon seem to want to gouge the public on their equipment plus add in a little price fixing as well. Because of this fact alone I will not give the lens a five star rating.

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Heavy but very stable. I was sent the wrong lens by KEH and they called me to make good on it. I opted to keep the VR I because my photos are fantastic. They are giving me a refund to make up the difference. I need to take a trip and get some good desert shots. but the yard is pleasing and photos show no problems. Pics of birds show their eyes clear as day. I ve been using a 28 - 200 VR lens since they first came out. This lens will replace it. Portraits are sharp, landcapes are clear and animal shots are crisp and clean. I love it already. Plus I got back enough money to buy a new printer. Cannon Pro9000.

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This is currently my favorite lens for portraits. Ill list the following as reasons why. See attached images for samples pros: 1. Sharpness. This is the sharpest lens I own. It is sharper than my tamron 24-70 2.8 VC, my nikon 50 1.8, my tamron 15-30 2.8(with vc), and my tamron 90 mm macro lens(no vr). I have also owned the most recent sigma 70-200 hsm os. This lens is sharper by an order of magnitude(the sigma lens is a fine performer, this lens is outstanding). 2. Autofocus speed - this lens focuses virtually immediately. I havent used this lens in dark situations, but in well lit situations which I have used it in, the autofocus is ultra fast and ultra quiet. I have photographed a basketball game and a roller derby match. In both scenarios, the autofocus hit early and tracked consistently. The only situations I found which werent ideal were where many moving objects are close together and moving at different speeds and directions. Occasionally using nikon 3d focus, it would focus on the wrong subject, likely due to my inability to track these moving object in the focus point of the lens. 3. Color- even with the raw files that I shoot, the colors generated by this lens are pleasing, realistic and brilliant, without having to adjust vibrance or saturation in post processing 4. Contrast - even in the raw file, the contrast is profound. I never have to adjust contrast during processing of the image in lightroom. One issue I had when I owned my sigma 70-200 was the images were somewhat flat, but with manipulation in post, the contrast levels could approach what I am getting on the nikon. 5. Bokeh - the background blur is dreamy. I shot mainly at f 3.5, but at wide open the background blue is phenomenal. cons: 1. When the lens is wide open, there is a very slight vignette, very easily removed in post if you want. I tend to prefer a slight vignette especially in portraits. 2. The lens hood is a joke. About the most plasticy piece of equipment I own. 3. Cost The images I am posting were taken using this lens on my nikon d7200. I have also used it on my d750 with identical results with respect to image quality and focus speed

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I wont get into the technical mumbo-jumbo, as that can be found in many other reviews and online research. I will add, though, that as someone who normally shoots with prime lenses (50 & 85mm), I am finding myself using this lens more and more. I initially bought it specifically for weddings, as it has a decent reach at 200mm and works well in low light. Most wedding photographers consider this a staple as far as gear is concerned. However, I have been using it more and more for engagement shoots, seniors, and even children, as Im finding that putting a little distance between myself and my subjects relaxes them a bit. One downfall to this lens is that it is HEAVY. Sometimes my neck is pretty sore after shooting a wedding all day. You need to be mindful about not just letting it hang from the neck strap.

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Had the Tamron 70-200mm that I have been using for the last year and half. I used my second shooters Nikon 70-200 VRi and fell in love with it. When searching online for the Nikon to upgrade my Tamron, I found this one. Seller shipped it right away, signature required (thank goodness), and it was exactly as described. This is my go to lens for portraits and weddings. Now to upgrade my 24-70mm lens.

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What more can be said about this lens - everybody needs it. It is my go-to lens for so many occasions. Its not quite the walk-around lens that some people boast about (for that I personally use a 50 f1/8) because of its size, but its super well balanced, has an incredibly useful zoom range, and is f2.8. Ive gotten so many amazing kids photographs with this lens that you just cant get with the so-called walk-around lenses because kids are hard to predict what theyll do and how far they are. With this lens, youre always ready to shoot.

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