Nikon Nikkor AF-S 70-200 mm f/4.0G ED VR review - Vignetting

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Nikon Nikkor AF-S 70-200 mm f/4.0G ED VR

4 May 2013

Arkadiusz Olech

8. Vignetting

When you attach the Nikkor 70–200 mm f/4.0 VR to a reflex camera with the APS-C/DX sensor we can by and large forget about the problems connected to vignetting. The thumbnails below show it very well.

Nikon Nikkor AF-S 70-200 mm f/4.0G ED VR - Vignetting

At 70 mm and by f/4.0 the light falloff in the corner of the frame amounts to just 15% (-0.47 EV). The vignetting disappears completely, its value reaches just 3% (-0.08 EV), after applying f/5.6 aperture. Almost identical situation can be seen at 135 mm focal length where, at the maximum relative aperture, the vignetting gets to 14% (-0.44 EV) and by f/5.6 it decreases to 3% (-0.10 EV). You can notice vignetting in real life photos only at the maximum focal length and by f/4.0 as the brightness loss is 27% (-0.88 EV) there. Fortunately the f/5.6 aperture eliminates that problem almost completely because it makes the vignetting decrease to a value of 7% (-0.20 EV).

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Now let’s check the performance on full frame.

At shorter focal lengths the vignetting still can be considered moderate. At 70 mm and by f/4.0 the light fall-off in the corners amounts to 24% (-0.81 EV). The aberration decreases to a level of 10% (-0.31 EV) already by f/5.6.

The vignetting gets higher when you pass to 135 mm – here, at the maximum relative aperture you must reconcile with the loss of 30% of light (-1.03 EV) in the corners. Applying f/5.6 aperture can limit this aberration to 15% (-0.46 EV). It becomes imperceptible only by f/8.0, where it reaches just 8% (-0.24 EV).

The biggest number of problems you are going to see at 200 mm focal length. By f/4.0 aperture the vignetting will be 32% (-1.13 EV). Stopping down the lens can increase this aberration to 16% (-0.49 EV). The problem disappears almost completely by f/8.0 where it is just 8% (-0.23 EV).

Our overall assessment of the tested lens’s performance in this category is positive. Its significant dimensions mean, among other things, the proper vignetting control.