Tele-options (>500mm) for Nikon D3300

MikeKiwi · Jul 11, 2024

A friend of mine owns a Nikon D3300. She currently owns the 18-55mm and 55-300mm lenses. She would like to increase the reach on telephoto-side but is wondering what options are available for a reasonable budget.

She currently has the Sigma 150-500mm F5-6.3 APO DG OS HSM on loan (which we think is the most budget-friendly option (???)), but despite the fact that it has a motor built in, the AF is not working (in the info-screen the focus-setting is constantly flickering between MF and AF). I've seen more reports with the same problem.

Which options for a similar lens and budget are more reliable and 'guaranteed' to work on the D3300?

Tord S Eriksson · Jul 11, 2024

The 150-600 C is a far better, relatively modern, lens (I have the Sigma 150-600 Sports which is a much heavier lens, built for pro use, but the optics are said to be very similar).

I enjoy the Sigma 100-400 C on my D3300, which on sunny days works well with a TC-1401, reaching 550mm in that combination. Weighs just a little over a kilogram.

The Olympus 100-400 is a reworked version of the Sigma, by the way.

--
tordseriksson (at) gmail.....
Owner of a handful of Nikon cameras. And a few lenses. DxO PhotoLab user.
WSSA #456

MikeKiwi · Jul 12, 2024

Thanks a lot for your reply and the suggestion of the Sigma 100-400. That might be a good alternative! I've read mixed experiences in the use of the 100-400 along with the 1.4tc. Things like slow focus and backfocussing. Do you experience any of those ?

Tord S Eriksson · Jul 13, 2024

MikeKiwi said:
Thanks a lot for your reply and the suggestion of the Sigma 100-400. That might be a good alternative! I've read mixed experiences in the use of the 100-400 along with the 1.4tc. Things like slow focus and backfocussing. Do you experience any of those ?

I use the TC only when it is bright, sunny, weather, as otherwise you run into the issues you mention! But it is a great lens, at a low price, and I have had nil problems with mine!

Backfocusing is not anything I have noticed, but I guess it happens!

--
tordseriksson (at) gmail.....
Owner of a handful of Nikon cameras. And a few lenses. DxO PhotoLab user.
WSSA #456

Michael Benveniste · Jul 13, 2024

Like many pre-Global Vision Sigma lenses, the 150-500mm required firmware upgrades for compatibility with later Nikon dSLRs. While Sigma USA provides such upgrades, they only do so for lenses discontinued less than 10 years ago. I suspect that that 150-500 is close to or past that deadline.

I own both the Sigma 100-400mm and the 200-500mm Nikkor. Either is hard to beat on a price-performance basis. But if you are considering adding a teleconverter, I suggest you go with the Nikkor.

Peter in Canberra · Jul 13, 2024

a couple of thoughts that don't directly answer your question.

I own a D3300 and it is a good camera.

A consideration, imo, when looking to pair a big/heavy and (at least relatively) expensive long lens to a D3x00 or D5x00 body is that there is no option for in camera focus calibration. I have experienced this issue with D3300 for some lenses. Having a lens with a dock option can address this.

Another way around this is to have a body that allows some focus correction such as D7200 or D7500. And depending on what your friend wants to shoot, the AF of the upper tier cameras may also give an advantage over the D3300.
I wonder if another option to get at the long reach would be a teleconverter. They have their own issues of course (image quality may be less in comparison with an equivalent crop of an image from the native focal length.

In terms of image quality and cropping, I think there are better 300mm options than the 55-300. The D3300 is compatible with the AF-P lenses. The DX 70-300 VR is superior to the 55-300 (imo, I had the 55-300 for a time). The AF is snappy and accurate. The more expensive and heavier (but apparently better) FX AF-P 70-300 is also an option.

Blufftonian · Jul 14, 2024

Michael Benveniste said:
Like many pre-Global Vision Sigma lenses, the 150-500mm required firmware upgrades for compatibility with later Nikon dSLRs. While Sigma USA provides such upgrades, they only do so for lenses discontinued less than 10 years ago. I suspect that that 150-500 is close to or past that deadline.

I own both the Sigma 100-400mm and the 200-500mm Nikkor. Either is hard to beat on a price-performance basis. But if you are considering adding a teleconverter, I suggest you go with the Nikkor.

I would caution anyone on using a TC with a telezoom. I have the Nikon 200-500 and it's a terrific lens. It's quite heavy but especially for the price, the IQ is very good. I also have a Nikon TC-14E III but I'm not happy with using it on 200-500. Pushing that lens to f/8 means a darker viewfinder and reduced AF from the camera, and I use mine with a D500, which has the best AF of any DX body. And then there's the drop off in IQ. I even very rarely use the TC on my Nikon 500 PF for the same reasons. The only success with it I have is on very bright, sunny days. The TC does work well on the 300 PF as this lens starts out at f/4 so the one stop push doesn't impact the D500's AF much at all.

I'd still recommend both the Nikon 200-500 and the Sigma 150-600 Contemporary that a good friend has. In the USA both can be found used, but in excellent condition, for $800 or so.

Tord S Eriksson · Jul 14, 2024

Blufftonian said:
Michael Benveniste said:

Like many pre-Global Vision Sigma lenses, the 150-500mm required firmware upgrades for compatibility with later Nikon dSLRs. While Sigma USA provides such upgrades, they only do so for lenses discontinued less than 10 years ago. I suspect that that 150-500 is close to or past that deadline.

I own both the Sigma 100-400mm and the 200-500mm Nikkor. Either is hard to beat on a price-performance basis. But if you are considering adding a teleconverter, I suggest you go with the Nikkor.

Click to expand...

I would caution anyone on using a TC with a telezoom. I have the Nikon 200-500 and it's a terrific lens. It's quite heavy but especially for the price, the IQ is very good. I also have a Nikon TC-14E III but I'm not happy with using it on 200-500. Pushing that lens to f/8 means a darker viewfinder and reduced AF from the camera, and I use mine with a D500, which has the best AF of any DX body. And then there's the drop off in IQ. I even very rarely use the TC on my Nikon 500 PF for the same reasons. The only success with it I have is on very bright, sunny days. The TC does work well on the 300 PF as this lens starts out at f/4 so the one stop push doesn't impact the D500's AF much at all.

I'd still recommend both the Nikon 200-500 and the Sigma 150-600 Contemporary that a good friend has. In the USA both can be found used, but in excellent condition, for $800 or so.

I have used the Sigma 100-400 C with the TC-1401 and it is an OK combination in good light, but a crop can sometimes work just as well!

Imprimis · Jul 14, 2024

MikeKiwi said:
~
Which options for a similar lens and budget are more reliable and 'guaranteed' to work on the D3300?

Mike, I suspect the issues here are more related to the limitations of the D3300 than the lens(es). Expecting reliable autofocus with an f5.6 (or darker) lens might be a big ask.

I found that my 200-500 f5.6 Nikon would not focus in dull light when mounted on a D7000. The D7000 has the same lower limit of autofocus capability (-1ev) as the D3300. Even in bright light autofocus was marginal. Moving the same lens to a D750 (good to -3ev) gave me reliable autofocus.

Are there any budget 500mm lenses faster than f5.6?

bjn70 · Jul 14, 2024

MikeKiwi said:
A friend of mine owns a Nikon D3300. She currently owns the 18-55mm and 55-300mm lenses. She would like to increase the reach on telephoto-side but is wondering what options are available for a reasonable budget.

Sigma 100-400 and Sigma and Tamron 150-600 are the reasonable budget options. I don't know how high you can go with f-number before it has focus problems but it can't be much higher than what these are. That would be a problem with adding a TC.

I happen to have a D3300 also and use it occasionally with a Sigma 100-400 because that is my highest pixel density camera. That gets me to 600mm equivalent which should be enough for most people for casual use. The 150-600 lenses get you to 900mm equivalent which is pretty serious optical artillery, not suited for casual use.

Blufftonian · Jul 15, 2024

Imprimis said:
MikeKiwi said:

~
Which options for a similar lens and budget are more reliable and 'guaranteed' to work on the D3300?

Click to expand...

Mike, I suspect the issues here are more related to the limitations of the D3300 than the lens(es). Expecting reliable autofocus with an f5.6 (or darker) lens might be a big ask.

I found that my 200-500 f5.6 Nikon would not focus in dull light when mounted on a D7000. The D7000 has the same lower limit of autofocus capability (-1ev) as the D3300. Even in bright light autofocus was marginal. Moving the same lens to a D750 (good to -3ev) gave me reliable autofocus.

Are there any budget 500mm lenses faster than f5.6?

I certainly don't know of any. The issue is the size of the front element. A 500 f/5.6 needs a 90mm front element. To get to f/4 it needs to be much bigger - like 125mm - and glass is expensive, not to mention heavy.

Tord S Eriksson · Jul 15, 2024

bjn70 said:
MikeKiwi said:

A friend of mine owns a Nikon D3300. She currently owns the 18-55mm and 55-300mm lenses. She would like to increase the reach on telephoto-side but is wondering what options are available for a reasonable budget.

Click to expand...

Sigma 100-400 and Sigma and Tamron 150-600 are the reasonable budget options. I don't know how high you can go with f-number before it has focus problems but it can't be much higher than what these are. That would be a problem with adding a TC.

I happen to have a D3300 also and use it occasionally with a Sigma 100-400 because that is my highest pixel density camera. That gets me to 600mm equivalent which should be enough for most people for casual use. The 150-600 lenses get you to 900mm equivalent which is pretty serious optical artillery, not suited for casual use.

I have the 100-400 C and the 150-600 S and you are totally correct that the latter is nothing you carry along on a walk! For a lot of reasons, not least bulk and weight!
I have had little problems with focusing the 100-400 C, not even with the Nikon 1 J5, and even less with the D3300.

--
tordseriksson (at) gmail.....
Owner of a handful of Nikon cameras. And a few lenses. DxO PhotoLab user.
WSSA #456

Parry Johnson · Jul 15, 2024

Tord S Eriksson said:
I have had little problems with focusing the 100-400 C, not even with the Nikon 1 J5, and even less with the D3300.

Speaking about the Nikon 1 cameras, that's the cheapest way to get more reach -- just get a Nikon 1 J5 and an FTZ adapter and you're good to go with any Nikon (AFS /AFP) lens at 2.7X crop factor. So, a lowly 55-200 becomes a pretty good 150-540mm lens in a tiny package.

Tord's J5 has the highest resolution of that (discontinued) series of cameras, but I'm using a V3, which has an electronic viewfinder as well.

Like Wayne Gretzky, "you miss 100% of the shots you don't take," so having something light an highly maneuverable makes it easier to NOT leave behind.

Michael Benveniste · Jul 15, 2024

Imprimis said:
Are there any budget 500mm lenses faster than f5.6?

If you are willing to "twist and shoot," the 500mm f/4P can be found for under $1000. You can also find Sigma 500mm f/4.5 HSM lenses for around $1500, but I can't recommend that lens for the same compatibility issues that plague the 150-500mm.

bjn70 · Jul 15, 2024

Tord S Eriksson said:
I have the 100-400 C and the 150-600 S and you are totally correct that the latter is nothing you carry along on a walk! For a lot of reasons, not least bulk and weight!
I have had little problems with focusing the 100-400 C, not even with the Nikon 1 J5, and even less with the D3300.

I used my 100-400 on my D3300 for the recent eclipse, carefully mounted and handled on a tripod, because the D3300 is the highest pixel density body that I own. I have not tried it yet for birds or anything like that.

Peter in Canberra · Jul 15, 2024

Parry Johnson said:
Tord S Eriksson said:

I have had little problems with focusing the 100-400 C, not even with the Nikon 1 J5, and even less with the D3300.

Click to expand...

Speaking about the Nikon 1 cameras, that's the cheapest way to get more reach -- just get a Nikon 1 J5 and an FTZ adapter and you're good to go with any Nikon (AFS /AFP) lens at 2.7X crop factor. So, a lowly 55-200 becomes a pretty good 150-540mm lens in a tiny package.

Tord's J5 has the highest resolution of that (discontinued) series of cameras, but I'm using a V3, which has an electronic viewfinder as well.

Like Wayne Gretzky, "you miss 100% of the shots you don't take," so having something light an highly maneuverable makes it easier to NOT leave behind.

I recently got a V2 (also wanting a viewfinder) and the FTZ adapter for precisely this reason - to try out this light and relatively inexpensive option of long reach. I haven't used it extensively yet but the image quality is pretty good (to my eye) and the AF is pretty good. The V2+FTZ+DX-AFP 70-300 is a very light option for long reach (equivalent field of view). I think it is a shame that the 1 inch sensor went the way of the dodo.
My internal jury is still out on whether the image quality is as good as I can get from D7500 and cropping.

Michael Benveniste · Jul 15, 2024

Peter in Canberra said:
I recently got a V2 (also wanting a viewfinder) and the FTZ adapter for precisely this reason - to try out this light and relatively inexpensive option of long reach. I haven't used it extensively yet but the image quality is pretty good (to my eye) and the AF is pretty good. The V2+FTZ+DX-AFP 70-300 is a very light option for long reach (equivalent field of view). I think it is a shame that the 1 inch sensor went the way of the dodo.

I hope you're using the FT-1 adapter and not the FTZ. Unfortunately, Nikon chose to "defeature" the FT-1 by only allowing use of the central AF point. On one occasion, I did try to shoot birds with a V2, an FT-1 and 55-200mm and gave up in frustration.

I'm not sure that a 1" EVIL system would have succeeded in the marketplace under the best of circumstances. But Nikon's determination not to "cannibalize" DX sales and problems with the Chinese manufacturing plant made its failure inevitable.

Tord S Eriksson · Jul 16, 2024

bjn70 said:
bjn70 said:

I have the 100-400 C and the 150-600 S and you are totally correct that the latter is nothing you carry along on a walk! For a lot of reasons, not least bulk and weight!
I have had little problems with focusing the 100-400 C, not even with the Nikon 1 J5, and even less with the D3300.

Click to expand...

I used my 100-400 on my D3300 for the recent eclipse, carefully mounted and handled on a tripod, because the D3300 is the highest pixel density body that I own. I have not tried it yet for birds or anything like that.

Smaller birds in flight are very tricky, bigger birds are excellent for training purposes!

Even a simple Nikon 1 V2 is then OK!

Hooded crow stealing the ducks' food!

Brown-hooded gull, Bangkok. Hovering! (V1 used)

--
tordseriksson (at) gmail.....
Owner of a handful of Nikon cameras. And a few lenses. DxO PhotoLab user.
WSSA #456

Tord S Eriksson · Jul 16, 2024

Peter in Canberra said:
Parry Johnson said:

Tord S Eriksson said:

I have had little problems with focusing the 100-400 C, not even with the Nikon 1 J5, and even less with the D3300.

Click to expand...

Speaking about the Nikon 1 cameras, that's the cheapest way to get more reach -- just get a Nikon 1 J5 and an FTZ adapter and you're good to go with any Nikon (AFS /AFP) lens at 2.7X crop factor. So, a lowly 55-200 becomes a pretty good 150-540mm lens in a tiny package.

Tord's J5 has the highest resolution of that (discontinued) series of cameras, but I'm using a V3, which has an electronic viewfinder as well.

Like Wayne Gretzky, "you miss 100% of the shots you don't take," so having something light an highly maneuverable makes it easier to NOT leave behind.

Click to expand...

I recently got a V2 (also wanting a viewfinder) and the FTZ adapter for precisely this reason - to try out this light and relatively inexpensive option of long reach. I haven't used it extensively yet but the image quality is pretty good (to my eye) and the AF is pretty good. The V2+FTZ+DX-AFP 70-300 is a very light option for long reach (equivalent field of view). I think it is a shame that the 1 inch sensor went the way of the dodo.
My internal jury is still out on whether the image quality is as good as I can get from D7500 and cropping.

Hope you like it!

The J5 has a higher resolution, essentially the same as a D7500, while the V2 has just 14 MP, more like a 1.3x-cropped D7500 (a tiny bit better, actually).
The main problem with Nikon 1 cameras is that the sensor in them is noisy (due to their small size), so I shoot RAW and turn off all de-noising in the menus and use DxO PhotoLab 6 at deepPRIME, or better, setting. Works very well.

Shot through a window so a little fuzzy!

Next sunseed ready for delivery!

--
tordseriksson (at) gmail.....
Owner of a handful of Nikon cameras. And a few lenses. DxO PhotoLab user.
WSSA #456

Peter in Canberra · Jul 16, 2024

Michael Benveniste said:
I hope you're using the FT-1 adapter and not the FTZ. Unfortunately, Nikon chose to "defeature" the FT-1 by only allowing use of the central AF point. On one occasion, I did try to shoot birds with a V2, an FT-1 and 55-200mm and gave up in frustration.

yes, sorry misspoke, FT-1

Tele-options (>500mm) for Nikon D3300

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