Nikon NIKKOR Z 800mm F 6 3 VR S Review | 54 Data compared

The Photography Life review highlights the Nikon Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S as a highly portable and affordable Phase Fresnel (PF) super-telephoto lens that offers excellent balance and handling for wildlife photography. Its primary strengths include a lightweight 5.28 lb design, effective vibration reduction, and high-performance autofocus, making it a bargain compared to traditional, more expensive exotic primes. However, the lens has limitations, including slightly lower peak sharpness compared to the more expensive F-mount 800mm f/5.6 FL, a relatively slow f/6.3 maximum aperture, and a restrictive 16.4-foot minimum focusing distance. It also requires an aftermarket tripod foot for Arca-Swiss compatibility, and its performance declines significantly when paired with a 2.0x teleconverter.

The Nikon NIKKOR Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S lens delivers exceptional handheld performance, particularly due to its class-leading vibration reduction system. Reviewer Sravan Kumar highlighted that he captured sharp images at shutter speeds as slow as 1/13 of a second on a Nikon Z9. The lens features a lightweight, balanced design that allows for hours of field use without causing fatigue. Optically, the lens produces very sharp images between f/7.1 and f/9. Maximum sharpness and acuity are achieved when VR is turned off while using a tripod. Furthermore, autofocus is fast, accurate, and reliable for birding and wildlife photography. This remains true even in low-light environments. Pairing the lens with a 1.4x teleconverter extends the focal length to 1120mm while magically enhancing the background bokeh. Despite these strengths, the review notes several practical disadvantages. The lens exhibits noticeable vignetting when shot wide open at f/6.3. Chromatic aberration also becomes more pronounced when utilizing the 1.4x teleconverter. Additionally, the front element easily attracts dust and requires frequent cleaning. When using "VR Normal" mode during handheld shooting, the image jumps significantly in...

The NIKKOR Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S is an impressively lightweight, super-telephoto mirrorless lens that offers strong real-world performance for specific photography niches, costing around $6,000. Reviewer Jeff Frenette notes that its standout pros include its weight of 2385g, making it significantly lighter and much less expensive than its 4590g DSLR predecessor. Combined with a Nikon Z8 body, the lens delivers a powerful 6.0 stops of stabilization, allowing for sharp handheld shooting down to 1/250th of a second. It features a more affordable 46mm drop-in filter size, produces soft, smooth bokeh at its maximum f/6.3 aperture, and yielded a 90% autofocus success rate when tracking fast-moving birds and wildlife in standard conditions. However, the lens comes with several notable cons regarding its size and performance in specific environments. Its massive physical profile means it will not fit into standard photo backpacks and requires a specialized padded carrying case. In terms of performance, the autofocus system struggled heavily to detect subjects during snowy conditions in Montreal. Additionally, pairing the lens with a Nikon Z 2.0x teleconverter resulted in a much slower,...

The Nikon 800mm f/6.3 PF VR S is a highly capable Phase Fresnel (PF) telephoto lens for the Z-mount system that delivers near-perfect optical performance. It is exceptionally sharp in the center and retains strong acuity out to the edges, improving even further at f/8. Thanks to its PF technology, the lens is incredibly compact at 15.2 inches and weighs a manageable 5.3 pounds, making it far more travel-friendly and hand-holdable than its massive F-mount predecessor. Additionally, it features excellent S-line weather sealing, surprisingly nimble autofocus, low vignetting, well-controlled chromatic aberration, and a powerful vibration reduction (VR) system that reaches up to 5.5 stops of stabilization with a Z9 body. Despite its stellar performance, the lens has several notable usability and physical drawbacks. The overall ergonomics are hindered by an unfriendly control layout that forces awkward hand placement, and a tripod foot that requires an Allen wrench to remove and lacks integrated Arca-Swiss compatibility. The massive 140mm front diameter necessitates a bulky carbon-fiber lens hood and "sock" cap combination that consumes massive amounts of camera bag space. Optically, users must...

The Photography Life long-term review identifies the Nikon Z 800mm f/6.3 VR S as a highly portable, lightweight super-telephoto lens delivering exceptional sharpness, effective VR, and rapid autofocus. Costing $6,500, it offers high value, though the Phase Fresnel (PF) element can produce distracting bokeh in harsh lighting, and the 5-meter minimum focus distance limits close-up shots.