Review of Nikon AF-S 600/4.0

Nikon AF-S 600/4G ED VR is the most extreme telephoto lens I have ever used. The lens is very fast and precise, despite its size, and delivers high quality images. As a wildlife photographer the 600mm lens is my most often used lens, accounting for more than half of all my shots. The lens is quite heavy, weighing in at 5 kg, so it's necessary to use a solid tripod with a fluid video head. A close focusing distance of 5 meters is very good for a 600mm lens.

The lens has the "Nano Crystal Coat" which is much more than just a fancy name. The specially coated lens elements means that in practical photography, I can shoot backlit situations with great results. This is a big advantage for me, because I usually prefer to shoot my subjects with backlighting. Shooting almost directly toward the sun the lens provides little or no distracting flares, in addition to fast and precise focusing. To be honest, this is one of the features I've appreciated best after my transition to Nikon!

The lens also has the latest generation of VR technology for image stabilization. This system works much better than expected and is a blessing when I'm shooting at slow shutter speeds. This summer I was very surprised, because earlier I was used to shooting at 1/1600 sec to get sharp images with my 600mm lens on the vibrating metal deck of our tour ship. This year I actually managed to get sharp shots even at 1/250 second shutter speed with VR set to "Normal". Usually I put the VR on "Tripod" when I have the lens on a tripod, but with all the vibrations in the boat the VR "normal" setting worked surprisingly well. Actually I discovered this «by accident», but it helped me to achieve sharp images even in low light conditions.

I want to stress a point with the VR-system: Don´t activate the VR with shutter speeds at 1/1000 or faster, because this can make your images blurry even when your camera is stopped down a few f-stops. I only use VR when my shutter speed is 1/500 or slower!

So which telephoto lens should you choose? This is a good question that I should be careful to answer, but for my photography I´m very happy with the 600/4.0. The main reason for this is that with 600/4.0 I get both great sharpness, super fast AF and deliciously blurred backgrounds. I have also tested the 400/2.8 and the 500/4.0, but I have concluded that the 600/4.0 is the right lens for me. If you are a keen photographer of birds, wild animals or racing, this is the perfect lens in my opinion, if you don´t have problems with the price or weight. I have always carried my 600/4.0 as hand luggage (in my Lowepro CompuTrekker) on planes, so in my case the weight and size are not a problem.

Sweden, April 2010

Botswana, November 2010

Botswana, November 2010

Svalbard, July 2010

Svalbard, July 2010

Okavango, November 2010

Botswana, November 2010

Svalbard, September 2010

Svalbard, August 2010

• TC-14E II Teleconverter - Increases the focal length by 40%, i.e. 600mm becomes an 840mm. The aperture is reduced from f/4.0 to f/5.6. Auto-focus speed and image sharpness are slightly affected.
• TC-20E III Teleconverter - Increases the focal length by 100%, i.e. 600mm becomes a 1200mm. The aperture is reduced from f/4.0 to f/8.0. Autofocus speed is reduced considerably, but the sharpness is still good (but not great). This is the first 2X teleconverter I have used with satisfactory image quality which I can also recommend. But, I recommend you to stop down the lens to f/10 or f/11 to get good sharpness.
• 52mm slip-in Circular Polarizing Filter – This filter work as other polar filters by reducing reflections from shiny surfaces like water surface and glass. The filter has the best effect when the sun is 90 degrees to the side. I do not use this filter very much, since the AF system is slowed down.
• TRIPOD !!