First test
Nikon Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S PRICE: £6299 NIKON.CO.UK
The longest Z series lens so far can bring frame-filling impact with ease – but is it a vital purchase? Tested by Kingsley Singleton
SPECS › Price £6299 › In the box Front and rear caps, lens case › Format Full-frame (Nikon FX) › Compatibility Nikon Z › Filter 46mm slot-in › Construction 22 elements in 14 groups › Special lens elements 3x ED, 1x SR and 1x PF element › Aperture range F/6.3-32 in 0.3EV steps › Diaphragm Nine blades, rounded › Magnification 0.16x › Minimum focus 5m › Lens coatings Nano Crystal Coat, fluorine-coated front element › Weather sealed Yes › Image stabiliser Yes › Dimensions (dxl) 140x385mm › Weight 2385g › Contact nikon.co.uk
excellent rubberised grip at the front to aid with support. It’s also a lot smaller and half the weight of the F mount 800mm f/5.6E FL ED VR, which makes it usable for hours on end. Slot-in 46mm filters can be added if needed. My main handling gripe is that the manual focus ring feels a long way back down the barrel. There’s a customisable control ring between it and the rubber grip – I’d prefer them the other way around. Also, I’d prefer that the lens’ tripod foot was Arca- Swiss compatible. At such magnifications, optical image stabilisation is vital, and the Z 800mm f/6.3 provides 5.5 steps when used with the Z 9 and its Synchro VR mode – but a very healthy five stops on other Z bodies. This means you can take it down to around 1/25sec, and I got crisp results there and even down to 1/10sec in some cases. Image quality is first class, both wide-open and stopped down. It’s not up there with the Z 400mm f/2.8, but that lens is nearly three times the price. At the maximum f/6.3, there’s only a little fall-off in sharpness in the corners, but it’s hardly noticeable unless under the closest examination, and subjects will usually be central and shot shallow anyway. Peak sharpness is around f/11, and this is where vignetting disappeared, though it’s very light wide open too. Flare and fringing weren’t apparent – a testament to the excellent optics and Nano Crystal Coat. PN
NIKON HAS BEEN steadily adding high-quality telephoto lenses to the Z series. As a result, the system has huge appeal for sports and wildlife photographers. This Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S is the longest option, but further choice is provided by the 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6, 400mm f/2.8 and f/4.5, plus the recently announced 600mm f/4. Cards on the table, the 800mm f/6.3 VR S is a stunning – but very specialised – lens. It’s great for small and distant subjects, but in testing I often found myself running out of room and moving backwards when shooting larger subjects, like sports. If you want masses of enlargement, it’s
fantastic – and can also be twinned with Z 1.4x and 2x teleconverters for even greater reach. AF speed and accuracy are both vital for a lens like this, and the Z 800mm doesn’t disappoint. I noticed it was faster on the Z 9 than the Z 7II, which is expected, and there was some hunting in very low-light and low-contrast situations, but nothing that lost me a shot. Similarly, when transitioning from distant subjects back to an object nearer the camera – for instance, focusing on a bird that landed close by – it would sometimes miss and head out again. In those situations, I found it quicker to manually rack to minimum and let the AF pick up from there. To help with that, there’s a Memory Set button that brings the lens back to a stored focus point. Several customisable Fn buttons also feature, though primarily I kept them set to the default AF-ON. At 5m, the close focusing distance is a little lacking, but by no means a dealbreaker – especially when you consider the lightness and utility of the lens. Generally, focus was superb, particularly with Z camera tracking and eye detection modes, and considering its limited aperture. Despite its powerful magnification, this is a surprisingly portable lens. It’s long, but fits in most large backpacks, and comes with a very nice case – as you’d expect for the price. It balances well, though obviously better with the larger Z 9 body, and there’s an
ACTION STATIONS While a powerful unit, larger subjects may prove challenging. However, AF speed and accuracy is excellent, although sometimes manually racking to minimum zoom is best. Exposure 1/5000sec at f/6.3 and ISO 3200
Verdict A premium lens that’s all about bringing you up close to distant or small subjects – which it does brilliantly. It’s portable, powerful and though the price tag is considerable, it’s a third of its F mount predecessor. If you need the luxuries this Nikon can deliver, it’ll feel like a bargain. PROS Superb magnification, fast, accurate AF, easily portable, great image quality and weather sealed CONS Minimum focus and focus ring position
BACK TO NATURE The Nikon comes in very handy for small subjects. Exposure 1/125sec at f/6.3 and ISO 1600
58 Photography News | Issue 102
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