Nikon G vs D Lenses

"Kevin" <none RemoveThis @email.com> wrote:

> Looking at a telephoto zoom - a Nikon 70-300mm. I've seen some good
> reviews of this as a decent budget lens. Question is, whats the
> difference between the Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6D ED in the $300 range and
> the Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G in the $140 range.

The 70-300mm ED has an aperture ring, whereas the $140 G version does
not. This primarily matters if you use the lens with older film
cameras.

The 70-300mm ED has a metal lens mount, whereas the $140 G version
makes do with a plastic lens mount. Both are built to favor lower
weight over durability, but the G version even more so.

The 70-300mm ED has a slightly better manual focus ring.

Finally, the ED version has a single small ED element towards the
very back of the lens, whereas Nikon makes no such claim for the
G version. Whether this makes a difference in image quality depends
on who you talk to.

I own the ED version and have never shot with the G version. I
find it a tricky lens to use. It's very light and lacks a tripod
mount, so it seems only natural to handhold the lens. However,
it's sufficiently slow that if you do handhold at any ISO less than
400, chances are you'll either end up selecting too slow a shutter
speed to avoid shake and/or shooting wide open, where this lens is
not at its best.

There's also a newer AF-S VR Zoom-NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED,
which is reported to be better (and more expensive) than either of
the older models.

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