I'm not sure that I have seen any threads comparing these two lenses directly. Does anyone recommend one over the other as a general purpose lens, including candids & some portrait work (understanding that the 85mm or 105mm & the 80-200 2.8 are optically better lenses for this purpose).

-- Mark Amadeo (amadeo@erols.com), January 08, 1999

Answers

Mark, this isn't quite the answer you want, but some info that I hope you will find useful.

Most people prefer the original AF 70-200 4 (not "D" fixed f4) to the newer one. Also many prefer the older AF 75-300 4.5-5.6 to the 70-300. Except for the AIS 50-300 4.5 IF ED and the AIS 100-300 5.6 (both big, heavy, MF and more expensive) just about all Nikkor x-300 Nikkor zooms start to lose some sharpness after around 200 mm or so. So if sharpness is critical you may be better off with a shorter zoom if you're not likely to use the longer length (OTOH it's certainly no worse/probably better than cropping a shot taken at 200 to 300).

If you don't mind MF lenses, the Nikon Series E 75-150 3.5 has got an excellent reputation and is quite affordable.

-- Geoffrey S. Kane (grendel@pgh.nauticom.net), January 08, 1999.

I can also highly recommend the 75-150, it is very light, cheap and sharp. I have the 80-200/2.8 also, but when I am not sure whether I will really need a long lens then I carry only the 75-150. They have both their advantages.

Before I had the 70-210, but I sold it, since I fould it was only compromise, performance was not a good as either of the other 2 lenses, at 210/5.6 it is quite dark, I can use a TC201 with the 75-150.

I have also the 85/1.8, which is nice too, but recently in a portrait class I perfer to use a zoom (in a class I can not always choose the best position) and the 80-200 does a good job. Actually I think there would be nearly no difference to the 75-150, since I use no AF, no matrix metering and no color film. However for training the computer interface is useful, therefore a 'D' lens is nice.

-- siegfried (boes@first.gmd.de), January 11, 1999.