Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G VR Lens

The media could not be loaded. A few months ago I decided I was going to try digital photography. Many years ago I had a 35mm SLR camera, but ended up not using it very much because it was so expensive to get the photographs developed. The beauty of a DSLR camera is that you can take as many photographs as you want and it doesn’t cost you any money. I asked a very good friend of mine, who is also a very good photographer, which camera to go for and he suggested the Nikon D3400. I bought the camera and it came with an 18 to 55mm VR lens.I live in the countryside in a house with a very large garden. We get a lot of wildlife in the garden and I immediately began taking photographs with my new camera. It wasn’t long before I realised that the lens fitted to my camera could not get close enough to take a decent of photograph of the majority of subjects I was wanting to capture. So I decided that I would purchase a telephoto lens. This would be the very first accessory that I bought for the camera. I made the decision to go for a Nikon lens instead of a cheaper version and I decided to opt for a 300mm focal length. I had two choices, the 55 - 300mm or the 70 - 300mm and because my first lens was 18 - 55mm, I decided to go for the first one. This meant that my lenses covered 18 to 300mm with no gap.The lens arrived from the States a few days after I bought it and inside the box as well as the lens I found, a lens cap, a bayonet end cap, a lens hood, small protective bag and a set of instructions.The lens had VR, vibration reduction; this is a mechanical feature that reduces the vibration experienced when taking photos whilst holding the camera in low light conditions or with slow shutter speeds. The VR on this lens is 2nd generation even though this is not mentioned anywhere and it works very well. See the video. As well as a switch to turn VR on or off, the lens has a selector switch for auto or manual focus.Fitting the lens to the camera is a doddle and within minutes I was taking photos of deer and squirrels away in the distance. This lens really does open up a whole new world of photo opportunities. See the video for a real demonstration of the telephoto lens in use at several focal lengths. It is possible to take good close up images, not quite macro, but still close up.One thing I found out after a few weeks is that the camera will take much better pictures if the lens cap is fitted as it reduces glare and flaring giving a much better result, less washed out with richer colours.I had issues with the focus, it was a bit hit and miss and about 50% of the pictures I took were not in focus. This was because I was using the camera in full auto with area focus selected. I had to place the camera in position A, manual with aperture priority, and swap the auto focus over to single point auto focus. Then I was able to select the centre point on the camera using the curser on the camera menu and things got considerably better. I am now finding the focusing much easier. Manual focus is a little tricky as a very small movement will take the image through focussed and out the other side so care is needed to focus. It does get better after time as you become more used to it. Also it is very easy to knock the image out of focus in auto focus mode as there is a small amount of movement on the focussing wheel and you can turn it slightly if you are not careful where you place your fingers pushing it out of focus. This is not a big issue as my hands tended to be away from the focussing ring in normaI use.I have hardly used the 18 – 55mm lens since I got this one. I am very pleased with it and so glad that I decided to go for Nikon. It is by no means perfect, but I have taken some cracking (in my opinion) photos with it and having the extra reach is a real joy. I think it was the right choice as my first accessory and would recommend it if you too are struggling to get the photos you want because the subject is too far away. I think it is good value and it is a very welcome addition to my set up.

Let me start by saying that the delivery was fast, so kudos to that.Now to the Lens, I wanted something light for my travels instead of taking my work camera Nikon D700 which is a pain to carry around the neck all day with all the other lenses I have when you want to relax, for travels instead I have a Nikon D90 with 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G and now this 55-300mm (it's very light) which is more than enough. After recieving this lens, I did some tests and got to say this big plasticky piece of glass is not to be underestimated and is a terrific performer.Despite it's build quality, it provides pretty good images at mostly all apertures and focal lengths.wide open in the center it is sharp, contrasty and soft in the corners with some vignetting and a slight loss of contrast; After f/11 it starts to get a bit soft in the center with some slight decay in contrast and in the corners vignetting is more controlled, it's a slightly softer and the loss of contrast is more noticeable. The sharpest aperture of this lens is f/8.In terms of focal lenghts this lens is a star performer from 55-200mm with almost no chromatic aberration, very sharp and good image quality overall (contrasty images), after 200mm to 300mm image quality decays a bit in terms of sharpness and contrast but it's still good and usable, chromatic aberration is slightly more noticeable at 300mm, viewing the image at 100%.Also tested the responsiveness of this lens and I'm impressed, Autofocus it's pretty fast in good light conditions and some dim light circumstances, although it has tendency to hunt for the subject when there is little light, when it finds it, snaps right into focus. Went on a casual Sunday to a football game to try further it's responsiveness in action photography and I'm amazed with the results, in good light conditions it snaps the subjects right into focus with AF-C (Continous Focusing) mode it almost no chance of hunting for the subject.Only things that makes me sad about this lens is two things:- VR Mode, I feel the absence of Normal Mode and Active Mode, it only has the switch to turn it off and on, the VR system itself is good though.- No manual focus override system (M/A - M Switch) only M - A (Manual - Automatic) Switch.Overall it comes down to this:Pros:- Sharp images from f/4.5|5.6 to f/11, being f/8 it's peak.- Crispy Images from 55-200mm with pretty good and usable images at 300mm.- Overall good optic quality for the price.- Almost no presence of Chromactic aberration from focal lenght 55-200mm.- Low chromatic aberration at 300mm that doesn't become intrusive in the image quality, only noticeable if you go pixel peeping.- VR Mode is functional and good despite not having the Normal/Active function.- Light which makes it good for travels.- Zoom/Focus ring feel sturdy despite being plastic.- Autofocus is excellent and responsive in good light conditions, it snaps right into focus on your subject.Cons:- Build quality, despite the metal mount which is ok, the plastic body may not please those who shoot under harsh conditions and look for something affordable, but then again something had to be sacrificed to be light.- Clunky Manual/Auto Focus Switch, it is annoying especially for those who have the Manual/AF switch in the camera like me, Manual Focus Override (M/A - M Switch) would be a better addition.- Lens Hood is so badly constructed with a thin layer of plastic that it feels it's going to get torn apart at any moment if something comes at it, it's still useful though.- Autofocus has tendency to go hunting for the subject in dim light conditions, it can become an annoyance for some, specially if they shoot action photography, but what to expect from a f/4.5-5.6 lens, it's still usable but don't expect it to snap right into focus in dim lights.Despite the not so good things about this lens it's still a good purchase for those who are looking for an excellent lens in terms of Price/Quality, you will not be disappointed as this lens, sure is a star performer.Sure, the Nikon 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 VR may offer a slight more image quality, Manual Focus Override, VR Mode with Normal/Active and slightly better AF than this lens, but unless you're planning of moving for Full-Frame later and can't afford the best performer Telezooms right away, there is no a reason for buying the more expensive 70-300mm, if you can't deal with the Cons you can spend the extra money, but if you're willing to live with the cons like I am, it's still a perfect choice for a Telephoto Lens and you won't regret it!