Nikon 300mm f/4 AF - 1987-2000

Nikon's names for all of their 300mm f4(ish) lenses are all so similar, I thought I would put the year in the title for clarity.

Just came today. My camera is only a week old, but I am hot for some moon pictures!
Honestly, I thought I was getting the AF-S when I ordered it, but that just shows my newbishness. No matter, it is a fine lens, and will do what I want, which is spend most of it's time on a tripod. If I do get away from there, I have my hiking staff/monopod.

So I snapped a few pictures:

The flag is across the street, two doors down,



The Chateau is in my next door neighbor's back yard,



The tree is one that I photographed earlier with the kit lens, and wasn't too happy with the sharpness. This lens brings them right in!



The purple bush is across the street the other direction, again two doors down.



And the lawn tractor is across the street, slightly to the right. I decided to set the camera on "S", and I cranked the aperture all the way down to 32, and the camera compensated by cranking the ISO way up! Lots of noise in the picture.

I am happy with the purchase, but Ken Rockwell says this should auto focus on my D5200, yes? I have not been able to get it to auto focus, and I have the switch in the locked-ring position.

But I am VERY glad to finally have that "lenses with aperture rings on DX cameras" figured out (once I had one in my hands!). I thought with the aperture locked down at 32, it could not open. (duh)

I am real happy to have a lens that has a lock ring on the focus! Until last week, I was unaware that lenses could focus beyond infinity. With that in mind, I can get a good sharp focus on the moon, and lock it in place! Other than the deviation between apogee and perigee, I should be set!

Here it is on my camera:

I took that picture with my old Minolta pocket camera. My sole digital tool for all these years, and it was old when I bought it! But I took all my photography with it, both technical (motorcycle repair) and things that I found pleasing to my eye. But the LCD is so small! The whole camera is not much larger than the display on the back of the D5200!

taken with my phone - ugh!

That looks like a af-d lens and if so then it won't auto focus on your Nikon. The af-d Nikkor lenses require a focus motor be in your camera body to use auto focus. af-s Nikkor lenses have the motor built into the lens itself, so the Nikon's without the focus motor like your can auto focus using them!
But the Nikkor af-d lenses are still great lenses and very well built! I love my af-d Nikkor lenses!

Ken Rockwell ,best avoided unless you can sort the fact from the crap on his site,then if you know enough to do that you dont need to visit his site,Bill is correct manual focus unless you get a camera with built in motor.

mikew said:

Ken Rockwell ,best avoided unless you can sort the fact from the crap on his site,then if you know enough to do that you dont need to visit his site,Bill is correct manual focus unless you get a camera with built in motor.

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Thanks guys, and thanks for the Heads up on Ken R.!

Yeah, I saw the little screw turning on the lens mount when I focused it, and saw there was nothing on my camera body to match up to it.
Thanks again!

another heads up Rob, i see you have the camera strap attached, i dont know if i would want to carry it like that with the big lens on the camera?? just my 2 cents.

Roy1961 said:

another heads up Rob, i see you have the camera strap attached, i dont know if i would want to carry it like that with the big lens on the camera?? just my 2 cents.

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No, I don't want to hurt myself! (wear a cup!)

I expect to have the 35mm on most of the time. It would be nice to find something in quick release, though. Thoughts?

edit: I guess this is how people end up with two and more bodies?