Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1: 4 is Nikon's first autofocus telephoto zoom lens.
Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1: 4
Main technical characteristics of Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1: 4:
| Review Instance Name | Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1: 4 |
| Basic properties |
|
| Front Filter Diameter | 62 mm, metal thread for filters |
| Focal length | 70-210 mm EGF for Nikon DX cameras is 105-315 mm |
| Zoom ratio | 3 x |
| Designed by | for Nikon film cameras |
| Number of aperture blades | 7 straight (not rounded) petals |
| Tags | a window with a focusing distance in meters and feet, focal lengths for 70, 85, 100, 135, 210 mm, marks for aperture values f / 4, 5.6, 8, 11, 16, 22. Tags for 70 and 210 mm focal length to work in the infrared spectrum. |
| Diaphragm | From F / 4 to F / 32 over the entire range of focal lengths. The lens has an aperture ring (Non-G - lens type) |
| MDF | 1.1 m, maximum magnification ratio 1: 3.9 |
| The weight | 760 g |
| Optical design | 13 elements in 9 groups. Optics has NIC enlightenment.
The image of the optical circuit is clickable. The optical design is identical to the Nikon Lens Series E Zoom 70-210mm 1:4 (I couldn't find the design for the AF version) |
| Lens hood | Nikon NH-24 |
| Manufacturer country | MADE In Japan (Japan) |
| Period | From September 1986 to April 1987 (lenses were produced for only 8 months). In August 1987, a replacement addition came out in the form of Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1: 4-5.6. |
| Price | Prices for modern Nikon Nikkor telephoto lenses are available look at this link |
The first thing that catches your eye is the interesting lens design. When changing the range of focal lengths, the lens does not move anything. The lens looks solid on the camera.
The design is austere, the whole body is made in black with white markings. Only the minimum aperture value and the aperture lock button are orange.
Sony has a similar lens, the Minolta 70-210/4, nicknamed the "Beer Can" due to its resemblance to an aluminum can. Since the Nikon 70-210mm f/4 AF has similar characteristics, it is sometimes also called the "Beer Can . "
Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1: 4
The Nikon 70-210mm f/4 AF is considered an excellent portrait lens . Indeed, after taking a few shots with it, you begin to appreciate its unique character and stunning images. The Nikon 70-210mm f/4 AF is also very compact (for a telephoto lens) and not at all heavy. My Nikon 70-300mm 4.5-5.6 is much bulkier and unwieldy due to its extended barrel. For those who prefer faster lenses, a note: the Nikon 70-210mm f/4 AF is only one stop (twice as fast) slower than the Nikon 80-200mm 2.8 .
Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1: 4
The main points you need to know about the Nikon 70-210mm f / 4 AF lens and their effect on the resulting image.
- The lens from the film cameras, and this gives the ability to use it on full-frame cameras Nikon Most likely, if you are configured to use or already use this lens, then when switching to a full frame by type Nikon D800, D3s etc., the lens can prove itself in all its glory.
- When used on Nikon DX APS-C cameras, the viewing angle will be narrower. The viewing angle will be equivalent to the viewing angle of a focal length lens 105-315mm when used on film cameras and / or in full frame. On my Nikon D90 и Nikon D200 the lens turns into a decent telephoto, and a rather large aperture allows you to do just great portraits.
- At the lens general aperture. This is indicated in the lens name as F / 4. This means that no matter how cool the zoom is from 70 to 210mm, and aperture will be permanent. This makes the lens look like its colleagues from the professional lineup. The most important thing is that already with F / 4.0 the lens is completely 'working' in terms of creating sharp photos.
- At the lens internal zoom. Internal zoom. When zooming, the lens does not extend its trunk - this is also an important professional feature of the lens. The zoom at the lens is exactly three times. There is a popular belief in what people do good zoom with a magnification of more than three - impossible due to physical factors.
- When focusing, the front element both moves and moves forward. Leaves somewhere by 3cm. This is inconvenient for manual focusing and for the use of some filters (especially polarizing and gradient). With manual focusing, the focus ring rotates 180 degrees, this can be easily checked by a small groove in the ribbed ring of the focus. Auto Focus Slow.
- The lens has a wonderful focus distance scale.
- The lens has aperture control ring, it is necessary for old film cameras and a useful thing when used, for example, with other systems. If you need the usual automatic iris control, then rotate the ring to F32where it clicks itself. The diaphragm \ diaphragm control is made in the form of a button, and not a moving slider.
- The lens has a standard 62mm filter. I advise you to immediately screw on it protective filter.
- The lens has an aperture with 7 blades. The diaphragm petals are not rounded, and the diaphragm hole creates nuts in the blur zone.
- True to the lens no depth of field indicatorsbut there is a focus correction in the infrared for 70 and 210mm.
- Nikon 70-210mm f / 4 AF very well shot, without backlash. With its 760g of weight, it is very convenient to consider my cameras Nikon D200, D700but on Nikon D80 it is no longer so convenient to control the lens, since it takes the bulk of the camera-lens bundle onto itself.
- This is one of the few lenses with zoom and focus. the rear lens group does not move... This will prevent the camera from sucking in dust, and in general - just a nice little thing.
Important : Autofocus with this lens is only available when used on cameras with a built-in focus motor.
The exact list of Nikon DSLR cameras with a built-in focus motor on which this lens will autofocus:
- D1, D1h, D1x, D2x, D2xs, D2h, D2hs
- D3, D3x, D3s, D4, D4s, D5, D6
- Df
- D50, D70, D70s, D80, D90
- D7000, D7100, D7200,D7500
- D100, D200, D300, D300s,D500
- D600, D610, D750, D780
- D700, D800,D800E, D810, D810a, D850
- Fujifilm FinePix S1 Pro, S2 Pro, S3 ProS3 Pro UVIR, S5 ProIS Pro
- Kodak DCS PRO 14n, DCS Pro SLR/n
The exact list of Nikon DSLRs without a built-in focus motor on which this lens will not autofocus:
Only auto focus and sound confirmation of focus will not work with these cameras, all other important functions, such as automatic exposure metering and automatic iris control, will work well.
You can find a lot of useful information about Nikon camera types and lenses here.
Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1: 4
Thoughts on the Nikon 70-210mm f/4 AF :
The lens has a very short minimum focusing distance; at 210mm, you can take perfectly normal macro shots at 1:4 magnification . This isn't a D-type lens, so the camera won't know the focusing distance to the subject. Some might find it difficult to use a flash with this lens, but I personally didn't notice a significant difference between a D-type and a non-D-type lens. The lens focuses slowly . Yes, the Nikon 70-210mm f/4 AF does have slow focusing; the camera's motor buzzes and rotates the focuser for a very long time. Focusing produces a rather loud and unpleasant sound.
Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1: 4
Regarding image quality :
The lens is virtually distortion-free. It's sharp enough even wide open at f/4.0. At wide open, there's significant chromatic aberration , including severe fringing. Color rendition is excellent, although some say the lens may exhibit some color distortion due to its older NIC (Nikon Integrated Coating) coating.
Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1: 4
Sample photos on Nikon 70-210 mm f 4 AF
You can see more sample photos taken with this lens here , here , here , here , and here . My wedding (the one where I was the groom, not the wedding photographer ) was shot with a Nikon D610 and Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1:4.
After some 26 years had passed, from 1986 to 2012, Nikon came to its senses and released the Nikon N AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm 1:4G ED SWM VR IF Nano Crystal Coat . But this is no longer the original 70-210/4, but still a 70-200/4.
The only weakness of the lens is poor coping with backlight - the lens starts to catch hares and lose contrast. Perhaps a hood would help with this ailment. Personally, I was pleasantly surprised that a lens even at 30 meters can separate the background from the subject in the field of focus. Vignetting on crop is minimal, but at 210mm 4.0 it is still slightly noticeable. The bokeh of the lens is excellent, I'll even write “amazing”.
Sigma Auto Focus UC ZOOM 70-210mm 1:4-5.6 Multi-Coated and Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1:4
All Original Similar Nikon FX Telephoto Lenses
Below is a list of all Nikon Nikkor telephoto lenses without high aperture and with auto focus support:
- Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1: 4, 1986-1987
- Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1:4-5.6, 1987-1993
- Nikon AF Nikkor 75-300mm 1:4.5-5.6, 1989-1998
- Nikon AF Nikkor 80-200mm 1:4.5-5.6D, 1991-1999
- Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1:4-5.6D, 1993-2000
- Nikon AF Micro Nikkor 70-180mm 1: 4.5-5.6D ED, 1997-2005
- Nikon AF Nikkor 75-240mm 1:4.5-5.6D, 1999-2000
- Nikon AF Nikkor 70-300mm 1:4-5.6D ED, 1998-2006
- Nikon AF Nikkor 70-300mm 1:4-5.6D, 1998-2006 (?)
- Nikon AF Nikkor 70-300mm 1:4-5.6G, from 2000 to 2014, black or silver
- Nikon AF S Nikkor 70-300mm 1:4.5-5.6G ED VR IF SWM, from 2006 to 2017
- Nikon AF S Nikkor 70-200mm 1: 4G ED SWM VR IF N Nano Crystal Coat, from 2012 to the present day
- Nikon AF-P Nikkor 70-300mm 1:4.5-5.6E VR ED, 2017 to present
The names of the lenses are indicated according to their spelling on the case.
Comments on this post do not require registration. Anyone can leave a comment.Conclusion :
The Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1:4 is an excellent telephoto lens with interesting characteristics. It's one of the few lenses that can be confidently recommended as a portrait zoom lens . It has an excellent image quality, is compact, and is inexpensive. If you're struggling to choose a portrait zoom lens, the Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1:4 is a great choice. Just remember that autofocus is only available on higher-end Nikon cameras.
See also a review of a similar modern lens, the Nikon N AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm 1:4G ED SWM VR IF Nano Crystal Coat.
This material was prepared by Arkady Shapoval . The greatest support for the site is if you use links on this site, such as Amazon , when purchasing anything . It costs you nothing, but for this site, and therefore for my family, it's the main source of support.
Hello! I can't decide between this instance and the 80-200 f / 2.8
Is there a big difference in quality and in terms of autofocus?
80-200 2.8 is a legend. that's all))
I got it))) thanks for the answer)
What is really a legend? And what legendary did you do?
hahahahahaaaa, I'm laughing so hard)
Hello Arkady. I am satisfied with this lens in conjunction with the D750. Can you recommend a teleconverter for this lens.
Hello Arkady. You have a good website. Thanks to him, I purchased this lens. I am satisfied with the lens in conjunction with the D750. Can you recommend a teleconverter for this lens.
Thanks for the reviews, you have a great site! Tell me which glass will give the best picture: this Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1: 4 or the manual Ai-S Nikkor 80-200mm 1: 4?
I shoot with Nikon F3 and Nikon D750. Mostly landscapes. The 80-200 is confused by the trombone design and the sagging of the zoom ring under its own weight.
Several examples from this glass.
A few more examples from this glass.
And another example from this glass.
D300 and 70-210 / 4. ISO 1250, f5, 1/160
Why only sheep?
Thank you, Pavel. Share your thoughts. For photography I choose a lens on the D90. For starters, Nikon AF Nikkor 70-300mm 1: 4-5.6G, or still Nikon AF Nikkor 70-210mm 1: 4? Thank you.
70-210mm for portraits is better. 70-300mm, only the one with a stub is desirable. True, 300mm may not be enough, even on a crop. It depends on whom you will hunt.
Thank you, hunting objects, hares, foxes, badgers, beavers and birds, swamps and forests. I chose the 70-300 “screwdriver” as the first telephoto camera. True without VR. (
VR helps, of course, but for fidgety purposes the shutter speed will still need to be reduced by raising the ISO. Well, or look for well-lit areas.
Hello Arkady. I have a D700 and. 80-200, 2,8. acquired this summer. Naturally I tested it as I could and took it on orders. The quality is awesome, but there is a development problem. Even at aperture of 10, the depth of field may not be enough. I noted for myself that it can only be taken for performances in one row. It is not quite suitable for reporting. Therefore, I decided to duplicate this lens for reporting with something less aperture. And my eye was attracted by 70-210 f4 which is in the review. I think that a lower aperture lens will give me less of a problem for reporting. What do you think about that?
That 80-200 at f10, that 70-210 at f10 will give the same grip
Buy in addition to 80-200 14-24 in addition, there you will not have problems with depth of field ^ _ ^
14-24, in my opinion, is too much, it's not a landscape. IMHO, 24 mm is already quite good at moving the picture away without significant distortion.
Is this shooting that 80-200 is not suitable for reporting? just fine, you can separate something / someone important from the garbage in the background. sports, concerts, parties - anything at 80-200 is great to shoot.
So depending on what reports. Sports competitions, where 1-2 athletes should be in focus, or a speaker at a rally, of course, it is more convenient to shoot from a telephoto camera. And if there is some kind of gathering of comrades, then it is clear that 80 mm will no longer cover them, you obviously cannot line them up in one line, 80 is essentially the same telephoto. Ideally, of course, walk with two carcasses, 24-70 and 70-200, for each specific case.
Maria,
I bought a non-autofocus Nikon E 70-70 f210 for 4 bucks, nowhere can I find any information about it, Anyone can tell you what kind of “E” series?
this
here
You are bad looking.
https://radojuva.com/2020/04/nikon-lens-series-e-zoom-70-210-4/
Here 's about the series
thanks a lot
good afternoon
I am the owner of this lens. When shooting on the d300s and d610, the red tint predominates in the pictures, especially on the skin. Is this a problem with my lens or is the curvature of the hands in the camera settings when shooting?
Most Nikons of the amateur and semi-professional series have “red faces”. Only the d7200 and more modern ones do not have this disease. So the lens has nothing to do with it. If on Pentax or Sony A, I can immediately share photos from a trip or a holiday, then with Nikon I was ashamed to give photos without processing (everyone has red faces:))
Arkady hello! Thank you very much for your reviews and for your work. Please tell me, advise, a zoom lens only wider ×××-200 with the same unique pattern and amazing picture
Even though this lens turns 40 this year, I really enjoy shooting with it. I agree about the D610 being sharp wide open, provided, of course, the AF accurately hits the spot I was aiming for. My copy, like probably many others, especially older zooms, has a slight backfocus at the short end and a slight frontfocus at the long end. Consequently, it's impossible to completely correct this with fine-tuning in-camera. The margin of error is very small, but after working with a zoom lens, it's already a bit annoying. As a compromise, I made a weighted average adjustment in AF Fine Tuning. If you stop it down to f5, it's quite good. It draws beautifully. It's heavy. I bought it for $100 and I'm happy with it.