teleconverter help

[goodoneian]

i have a nikon 80-200 2.8 af-d, and i've been looking for a teleconverter for it. from what i've seemed to find on nikon's site, they don't make one specifically for it, just the 70-200 af-s. there is the tc-200 and 201 though, but i haven't found much about them being used with this lens. i've seen that tamron has some as well, but before i make any purchases i was wondering if anyone had any experience with using a converter on this lens.

ideally a 2x converter would be nice, since that'd let me reach out to ~400mm. the 5.6(i think?) aperture wouldn't be a big deal either since i'd be using it for distant landscapes on a tripod so it'd be stopped down quite a bit anyways.

edit: just after posting this i came across this

http://nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Product/Camera-Lenses/2189/AF-S-Teleconverter-TC-20E-III.html

i'm assuming that'd work perfectly with this lens sense it's listed as "no limitations"

 

[itznfb]

Are you talking about this?
1986 AF-S Zoom-NIKKOR 80-200mm f/2.8D IF-ED No limitations

That is not the same lens as the one you have.

 

[Phranquey]

I had the 80-200mm AF-D, and just bought a TC14E II and modified it. The TC##E II series have an extra tab on the ring that prevents anything but AF-S lenses from fitting.

The mod is VERY simple to do even if you only have the slightest mechanical talent, a #1 philips screwdriver, and a dremel tool.


Christophe Heyman Photography - Nikon Pages

 

[dhilberg]

Nikon doesn't make a teleconverter that will work without modification on the 80-200 f/2.8 AF-D. The ones they make now only work on AF-S and AF-I lenses. You'll have to go with third party ones unless you want to purchase and modify a TCxxE II series TC like Phranquey suggested.

I have the Kenko Teleplus Pro 300 1.4x TC for my 80-200 f/2.8 AF-D. It's a good quality TC, manufactured with glass supplied by Hoya. Works great, no loss of quality that I can see. Major drawback: It slows down the AF a lot (by about half). The speed gets lost in the extra mechanical linkage for the screw drive AF. But if you're not shooting fast moving things it's not important.

Not sure about the 2x, but I think gsgary uses the 2x version on his Canon equipment. Might pm him about it.

 

[Derrel]

If the 80-200's rear element is anywhere near the back of the lens, as in not recessed, modifying a TC-14e will not help,and you'll get a "crash n bash" situation on the lens' rear element and the TC's front element. The TC-200 and TC-201 are older, AI and Ai-S era converters, and they have a recessed space at the front, where the lens goes on; the Nikon TC-14e has a front element in the front,and it protrudes MUCH more than the recessed element on the TC-200 and TC-201. I don;t have an 80-200 any longer or I would check it out for you, but my recollection is it has the reaar element quite near the back side of the lens, and hence, the TC-14e, TC17 or TC20e are a poor match for it.

Needless to say, the TC-200 or TC-201 will turn your 80-200 into a manual focusing lens.

I think dhilberg has the right idea--go for the Kenko Teleplus converters--one of the best 3rd party converters ever made, and also designed with the recessed style front element for maximum compatibility with the greatest number of lenses in F-mount.

Please note, the Nikon lens compatibility list for their new AF 2x TC lists the 80-200 AF-S, which has a recessed rear element; you have an AF-D 80-200; see how the front glass on the TC20e extends FORWARD of the lens mounting flange??? THAT is the reason many non-AF-S lenses will NOT work with the AF-i and AF-S eleleconverters in the 14e 17e,and 20e line..."crash n bash."

 

[Phranquey]

I had the two-ring AF-D, and the rear element on the lens was plenty recessed and had no problems with the TC14E II. I am not sure on the push-pull model, however...if goodoneian happens to have that one.

But, you are correct in that the TC##E II front elements do protrude quite a bit and can damage lenses if you're not careful about what you put it on.

 

[goodoneian]

oops, i didn't notice the "af-s" in front of the compatibility chart. i'm aware that's not my lens though i just wasn't paying enough attention.

well the kenko tc's sound like a pretty viable solution then, i'll definitely check them out. and if the auto focus is compromised because of them, that really is next to no issue since it'd be on a tripod and manual focusing anyways

 

[djacobox372]

A 2x converter on a zoom lens degrades quality to the point where you would have been just as well off cropping and upscaling in photoshop.

A 1.4x converter is better suited for your lens IMO.

 

[Garbz]

i have a nikon 80-200 2.8 af-d, and i've been looking for a teleconverter for it.

Asside from Nikon teleconverters not working with this lens without some modification, the Nikon TCs are simply poor compared to the Kenko Pro 300 series. I would want to hope that Nikon's new teleconverter is a step up in quality given how much they are shouting about their aspherical elements.

I use my 80-200 with the Kenko Pro 300 DG 1.4x teleconverter. I don't think they make a 1.7x, but they do make a 2x and a 3x. The 2x would give you a pretty big quality hit, and the 3x would be practically unusable. These are the anti-lemons from a company which produces mostly crap.

 

[Derrel]

Nikon teleconverters are simply poor? WTF?

They work superbly on the lenses they were *designed* to work with. WHich excludes most zoom lenses. ON the lenses they were actually *designed* to work with, namely the 300,400,500mm lenses they work quite well. The TC 14e was originally designed for the 300mm f/2.8 AF-i Nikkor, and on that lens, and the 300/2.8 AF-S, AF-S Mk II and the 300/4 AF-S the TC 14e or TC4e-II work wonderfully.

Here's a rundown from a real NIkon expert on Nikon teleconverters.

Teleconverters for Nikon 'F' Mount

On the 200mm f/2 AF-S VR-G the TC 14e works superbly. Again, Nikon's 1.4x, 1.7x and 2x converters have been designed for use with only a handful of lenses, for which they are superb matches. Of course, most of those lenses are pretty high-end primes or very costly zooms.

The TC-300 2x converter designed for the 400/3.5 ED-IF makes a SUPERB 800mm. Of course, that converter is a $300 item on the used market.

 

[Garbz]

Eeek should have mentioned poor compared to the Kenko series for compatibility. The worlds best Nikon TC means nothing to me if I need to modify it and then still get worse results than the Kenko on an AF lens.

In this topic, and that is for the 80-200, the Nikon option is simply poor in comparison, not the least because it doesn't work to begin with.