AF-S VR Zoom-Nikon 70-300mm teleconverter compatibility (2 Viewers)

[billsbirding]

AF-S VR Nikon 70-300mm 4.5-5.6 teleconverter compatibility

Hi,

I have been looking to upgrade to the AF-S VR Nikon 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED for wildlife photography for my Nikon D60 and was wondering if anyone could tell me whether this lens is compatible with any of the Nikon teleconverters? It seems the cheapest option for me.

Thanks in advance :t:

 

[gvca1]

I know that the TC14eII is not compatible. Since the TC14eII is AFS/AFI only, and the 70-300 is an AFS lens, I'm afraid that there may be some mechanical interference between the elements on the converter and the lens. Otherwise, I'd think it would be on the list.

Looks like the same is true for the TC-17E II and the TC-20E II, unfortunately.

best birding wishes,

Jim

 

[stoop]

I have been told by a pretty good source that the Kenko Pro 300 1.4 works with this lens but I haven't tried it myself.

 

[billsbirding]

Thanks for the help guys. Stoop, do you know if the Kenko Pro is able to auto-focus with this lens?

 

[billsbirding]

I've just been doing some research into the Kenko 1.4x and it seems to auto-focus fine with the Nikon AF-S VR 70-300m. Reviews that I've found only praise the combination so I think I might go for that option now. Thanks again guys. Does anyone have any personal experience with the Kenko TC?

 

[nirofo]

I don't know about the Nikon AF-S VR 70-300m but it produces good results with the Tamron 200-500, providing you have reasonable light conditions.

Here's a shot of a Dunlin taken on a Nikon D200 and Tamron 200-500 at 500mm + Kenko 1.4 DG Pro Teleconverter, f8 400ASA.

nirofo.

 

[Fozzybear]

I tried using the Kenko tc with my 70-300VR last week. It auto-focuses but is a bit juddery due to the darker image. Due to that it works better in single rather than continuous focus. The image sharpness does drop somewhat too but if you really need the length at a push it's ok.

 

[billsbirding]

Cheers guys. Nirofo, great shot of the Dunlin by the way. Paul, thanks for the feedback. Am I right in thinking the 300 will effectively become a 420?

 

[D. Taylor]

I have a Nikon 70-300 VR on a D 80 and have used on a D 50. I tried my Tamron 1.4 on this lense, everything worked, focus, VR, etc. but the IQ drops off. I also used a 1.7 TC which attaches to the front of the lenses and had the same IQ problems. I thought for a while it was the Tamron TC but I use it with my Nikon 300/4 with very little IQ loss. In my opinion you would be better just cropping the shot than using a TC with this lenses.

 

[Fozzybear]

It does seem that this lens doesn't fare brilliantly with a TC - I use the Kenko on my 300mm f/4 and get very little impact so it seems that the 70-300 doesn't really suit the use of TCs - you still get an image but very soft and lacking detail. With the light loss making it effectively an f/8 lens it's not a very usable combination too, even in good light you'd need to push the ISO and lose more detail that way.

Have you looked at second-hand kit? It was a bit of a bargain but I got my 300mm f/4 prime a couple of years ago second-hand and that cost me less than £350. Could be worth trawling the camera stores - always used to be lots of second-hand kit listed in the back of Amateur Photographer and there's ebay (but be wary of buying from there).

 

[billsbirding]

It does seem that this lens doesn't fare brilliantly with a TC - I use the Kenko on my 300mm f/4 and get very little impact so it seems that the 70-300 doesn't really suit the use of TCs - you still get an image but very soft and lacking detail. With the light loss making it effectively an f/8 lens it's not a very usable combination too, even in good light you'd need to push the ISO and lose more detail that way.

Have you looked at second-hand kit? It was a bit of a bargain but I got my 300mm f/4 prime a couple of years ago second-hand and that cost me less than £350. Could be worth trawling the camera stores - always used to be lots of second-hand kit listed in the back of Amateur Photographer and there's ebay (but be wary of buying from there).

Cheers. 300mm f/4 for less than £350??! Where was that from? Could you recommend any sites that specialise in 2nd hand photography equipment?

Thanks for the tips, I think I am ready to lose some quality to get that extra zoom. The TC would just be something I'd slap in the pocket and use if I had a bird just out of reach. 300mm is a perfect focal length and the TC would be an alternative to cropping on the Nikon D60. So I gather that it is best to use on a tripod and to set the ISO high, and only use the TC in good light.

Thanks again all :t:

 

[Fozzybear]

Cheers. 300mm f/4 for less than £350??! Where was that from? Could you recommend any sites that specialise in 2nd hand photography equipment?

I got the prime from a seller on ebay, although that was before ebay went to the dogs (after that I had problem after problem with sellers and buyers, won't go near the place now). The 300mm f/4 really doesn't come up for sale much, I was surprised at the time that it didn't go for more considering it's condition (it was pretty much as-new). Not sure what the good places to buy from are these days, I seem to recall there was an online shop called Aperture that was supposed to be good, haven't used them myself. As I said, the back pages of Amateur Photographer used to be full of second-hand dealers, might be worth a look there.