Hello everyone, we will introduce the Nikon Nikkor Z 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 VR S lens in this article to help you better understand this lens.
1. Why 100-400 mm
When we think about the types of work that require telephoto focal lengths, they include long-distance photography such as stage and concerts, photography of parts of landscapes, photography of birds and insects, and subjects such as compression photography, all of which have a distinct characteristic.
摄影器材：尼康Z 5 + 尼克尔Z 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 VR S 摄影环境：1/400秒f/11 145mm ISO4000
For example, when filming a stage performance, if you want to shoot the performer's upper body and face up close, there are many situations where 200mm cannot cover the entire scene, depending on the size of the venue. When shooting a stage performance or concert, in a large auditorium with a capacity of more than 1,000 people, the photographer usually places himself in the middle of the auditorium, while in a small auditorium with a capacity of 200 people, the photographer usually stands at the back of the auditorium, 100mm will capture roughly the entire stage, and 400mm will capture the face or upper body.
If it is 200mm, the focal length is enough to capture the performer's entire body from the knee up. If we consider a more familiar situation, such as a sports day, but when you want to shoot a bust or a close-up shot, Megumi finds that 200mm is often not enough.
For portraits where you can freely set the standing position, 70-200mm is easier to use, and you can use background blur more freely, but for shots where you can't set the shooting position freely, 100-200mm has a unique advantage, and 400mm is more convenient to use.
摄影器材：尼康Z 5 + 尼克尔Z 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 VR S 摄影环境：1/400秒f/11 400mm ISO9000
By the way, regarding the size and weight of the lens, the 70-200mm Z-mount lens measures 89mm x 220mm and weighs 1440g, while the 100-400mm measures 98mm x 222mm and weighs 1435g, which is not much different.
Second, high-quality images
The Nikkor Z 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 VR S is an "S-Line" lens that achieves a higher standard among Nikkor Z lenses, so its image quality is extremely high, allowing you to get great images, while the results are very good at both the wide-angle and telephoto ends, especially the graphs that show contrast remain almost unchanged from the center of the screen to the periphery.
In actual shooting, we were able to get very clear and detailed images even at the maximum aperture. The compression effect unique to the telephoto lens clearly reproduces a wide range of colors with wide variations in brightness, producing rich tones from highlights to shadows. The shortest shooting distance is 0.75m at the wide-angle end and 0.98m at the telephoto end, and the maximum shooting magnification is 0.16x and 0.38x, respectively, so although it is not too macro, it is compared to similar lenses. This allows you to take closer, larger photos.
摄影器材：尼康Z 5 + 尼克尔Z 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 VR S 摄影环境：1/400秒f/5.3 340mm ISO560
If you look closely at the photo of the candle, you will see that the texture of the soot on the foreground glass and the tone of the flame are richly reproduced, while the large blur in the background makes it possible to create an impressive image.
3. The image stabilization function of the telephoto lens is very practical
As a feature to aid shooting, it is equipped with a lens-shift VR mechanism that provides 5.5 stops of image stabilization. When combined with lenses such as the Z 9, it can be linked to body stabilization to provide a higher correction effect, which is an extremely effective feature for telephoto lenses that are susceptible to camera shake, and image stabilization is also useful when framing. When trying to shoot a certain close-up area with a 400mm lens, it is difficult to maintain accurate framing due to the large impact of small blurs, which is not noticeable with a standard or wide-angle lens, but with the image stabilization function, this allows for a more stable framing.
摄影器材：尼康Z 5 + 尼克尔Z 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 VR S 摄影环境：1/1600秒f/5.6 400mm ISO560
摄影器材：尼康Z 5 + 尼克尔Z 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 VR S 摄影环境：1/1250秒f/10 200mm ISO720
When shooting with a wide aperture, the perspective of the frame is compressed, and the contours of distant subjects are clearly reproduced. Although the photographs taken in the snow-capped mountains are reduced to a certain extent, high resolution is obtained from the center to the edges of the frame, and the softness of the fog and the contrast of the trees seen through the fog are well depicted. The falling snowflakes were also photographed in large size, which was impressive.
Fourth, summary
The lens does feel a bit heavy in everyday shots, but it's great for telephoto shots. In addition, its high optical performance and powerful image stabilization make it one of the most commonly used cameras in commercial photography. #春日生活打卡季#