I recently upgraded my non-d Nikon 80-200 F2.8 AF-ED to the new version with the tripod collar. Not only did I desperately want the built in tripod collar (opposed to the clunky aftermarket ones), but I wanted it for D metering capabilities.
That said, I see one optical difference between the old and the new - the new one is alot more touchy in focusing than the old one. The reason for this design modification was to speed up its autofocusing abilities (I shoot with manual focus so this doesn't matter to me anyway), but it seems that in the process the lens puts the background out of focus faster with this version than the old. Am I nuts??? Nikon claims there is no optical difference between the old versions and the current one. If you are still with me, here is a greater description of what I see: I was experimenting today - when the sun was out for only a few minutes - when I focus on an object that is closer than infinity (often times the lead unit of the train falls into this criteria), the background goes out of focus faster as I focus closer - as though the focus is more "touchy" in this version, and this touchiness has affected the infinity range of this lens. I know that this is true for any lens, but am I crazy??? Has anyone else upgraded to the new lens??? I need to borrow one of my friends' original lenses to do a comparison. I must be absolutely nuts, because this seems illogical. And since I have not been out shooting in over a month, I could be just a bit rusty with the depth of field thing. Depth of field on an image drives me nuts - I want EVERYTHING in focus!!! Not always easy with slow film and low light! Opinions wanted. Will do more tests this week. David Lehlbach --> SPORRS: Serious Photographers of Railroad Related Subjects
