A New Lightweight Fast-Action Wildlife Lens Solution
I have to admit that I was initially skeptical about the Nikon 400mm f/4.5 as I did not know exactly what it brought to the table. However, after some consideration I realized that it is actually a great replacement for my Nikon 300mm f/2.8. Since the base 300mm focal length is typically not long enough for most wildlife situations, I pretty much had a teleconverter attached full-time. Hence, the appeal of starting at a longer 400mm base focal length.
Specifically, my most used combination is the TC-14E III 1.4x teleconverter for a an effective 420mm f/4 lens. With a wide f/4 maximum aperture for low light and fast AF performance, this combination always made for an excellent portable fast-action wildlife solution. Most zooms, in comparison, are typically a stop slower and frequently do not have the AF speed of something like the 300mm f/2.8 prime. The longer fast primes offer excellent performance but are much larger and heavier making them a tough haul on size and weight limited excursions. That is the main reason I preferred the 300mm f/2.8 with teleconverters when I needed a portable fast-action lens. Now things have changed even for the better with the considerably smaller and lighter Nikon 400mm f/4.5.
With the Nikon 400mm f/4.5 I only lose 1/3 stop of light and a negligible 20mm in focal length compared to the 300mm and TC-14E III. In terms of optical and AF performance, the 400mm is incredibly good. If anything, it is a little better than the 300mm with the 1.4x TC. Significantly however, there is no comparison when it comes to size and weight. The 300mm f/2.8 and TC-14E III combination comes in at about 7.8 lbs and just over 11″ total length. By comparison, the 400mm f/4.5 comes in at a much more modest 2.6 lbs and 9.3″ total length. Not only is the new 400mm much easier to carry around, I can hand-hold it virtually indefinitely when shooting. With the 300mm f/2.8, I can hand-hold it, but only for short periods of time. Additionally, the VR on the 400mm is noticeably improved over the VR II version of the 300mm. I have not tested it completely but suspect I can hand-hold the 400mm at shutter speeds I never would have dreamed of before.
The other nice thing about the 400mm f/4.5 is that it accepts the TC-1.4x Z-mount teleconverter very well. The combination turns the lens into a 560mm f/6.3. Optical performance and AF speed only sees minimal degradation. That is in contrast to the 300mm f/2.8 with a TC-20E III 2x teleconverter. With only a little more reach and 1/3 stop more speed, the F-mount combination takes a pretty big hit in performance. Center sharpness is definitely not as good as I would like, while the edges see even more degradation. Probably the bigger issue with the 2x TC is AF performance. AF speed is very slow and tends to hunt significantly in low light. Most of the time I tend to avoid this combination unless I am in good light and on a tripod. Now with the new 400mm f/4.5, I have a lot more confidence in the results I can get at this near-600mm focal length. It is a hand-holdable combination that produces consistently sharp results.
Another factor is that since the 300mm f/2.8 is an F-mount lens, I have to also use an FTZ adapter for mirrorless Z-mount cameras. This, along with a teleconverter makes for a rather ungainly combination. The image below shows just how cumbersome the big 300mm f/2.8 with a TC-20E II teleconverter and FTZ adapter is compared to the 400mm f/4.5 with the TC-1.4x.
There are certainly a number of other solutions that cover similar focal lengths. However, none of them match the speed and/or lightweight of the 400mm f/4.5. As mentioned above, the 300mm f/2.8 with a TC-14E III performs well but is significantly large and heavy. The Nikon 100-400mmm f/4.5-5.6 zoom is definitely a very flexible option but with the 1.4x teleconverter it becomes a very slow f/8 at 400mm. The 500mm f/5.6 PF is an excellent prime but is a little slower at f/5.6. It also has less flexibility in that it cannot also be a shorter 400mm and 560mm combination. A 1.4x TC extends the lens to 700mm but becomes a rather slow f/8 combination useable only in good light. Further, the 500mm f/5.6 PF is an F-mount lens, so it also requires an FTZ adapter for use on Z-mirrorless cameras. While not a performance issue, it just adds another component and extra length.
The upcoming Nikon 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3 zoom is also a viable consideration for comparison as it will be nearly identical at the long end to the 560mm f/6.3 combination of the 400mm f/4.5 with the 1.4x TC. However, the 400mm f/4.5 will still be 2/3 stop faster than the zoom at 400mm. It will also have a significant size and weight advantage over the zoom.
The bottom line is that the 400mm f/4.5 along with the 1.4x TC makes for a compelling lightweight long lens solution for wildlife photography. For times when I need to go light, this lens along with a 70-200mm f/2.8 (or maybe even the upcoming small and light Nikon 70-180mm f/2.8) makes for a very fast, lightweight, and portable solution.