Data Sheet: Nikkor AF 80-200 mm f/2.8 ED

Pekka Buttler, 08/2024

Specifications

The table below summarizes the lens’ key specifications:

Brand:	Nikon	Lens name	AF NIKKOR 80-200mm 1:2.8 ED
Focal length(s)1	80-200 mm	Angle-of-view2	30°10 – 12°20
Maximum Aperture	f/2.8	In Production	1987–1992
Lens mount	Nikon F	Subfamily (if applicable)	AF
Length3	176 mm	Diameter4	85,7 mm
Filter ring diameter	72 mm	Weight	1272 grams
Lens element count	16	Lens group count	11
Aperture blades (S/R/C)5	9 S	Focus throw	100 °
Minimum focusing distance	1,5 m	Maximum magnification	1:5,9
Has manual aperture ring	YES	Has Manual focus ring	YES
Aperture mechanism type	Auto	Aperture click stops 6	2.8-4-5.6-8-11-16-22

Further notes:
• The lens is a one-ring zoom, meaning that the same rings controls zooming (forward–backward) and focusing (through rotation). In the case of this lens, you pull the zoom ring towards the camera to zoom in (toward 200 mm) and push the zoom ring away from the camera to zoom out (towards 80 mm).
• Front to back, the lens offers the following controls:
– a focus distance preview window;
– a focus limiter control ring offering four choices: 3m to minimum; full range; infinity to 3m; infinity to 5m;
– the zoom/focus ring;
– an auto/manual focus selection ring
– an aperture ring locking button
– the aperture ring.
• This lens does not have a built-in autofocus motor, but depends on a compatible body that drives autofocus through the slot-drive.
• The filter threads rotate when focusing.
• The lens barrel offers intermediate focal length markings at 80, 105, 135 and 200 mm.
• The barrel length stays the same while zooming, but lengthens a bit when focusing towards MFD.
• Nikon offered a dedicated, thread-mounted lens hood for this lens (the HN-28)

Historical notes:
• The year 1987 saw the introduction of two of the world’s first 80-200/2.8 autofocus zoom lenses: The Minolta AF 80-200mm f/2.8 APO and the AF Nikkor 80-200/2.8 ED (this lens). The Canon EF 80-200/2.8 L (aka, the ‘magic drainpipe’) followed two years later in 1989.
• However neither of these were the first 80–200 mm with a maximum constant aperture of f/2.8. That title goes to the Ai-s Nikkor 80–200/2.8 ED.
• This lens remained in production until 1992 when it was replaced with a D-spec version of the lens that seems to be optically identical. See more below.

Genealogy

When Nikon in November of 1959 introduced the 8,5–25cm tele zoom, it was the first Japanese zoom lens, the first tele zoom lens, and only the second zoom lens worldwide (for 35 mm photography).

While professionals remained sceptical of standard zooms and especially wide zooms, the advantages offered by a tele zoom were so compelling that tele zooms became an instant hit, limited only by their rather high cost.

Cost tends to be a rather significant differentiating factor, leading to that many manufacturers’ product lineups tend to differentiate between professional-level gear and amateur-level gear. Nowhere is this more obvious than with tele zooms.

Nikon’s 60+ year history of offering of professional-oriented tele zooms can be divided into four ‘acts’:

• Act 1: 1959–1969: 8,5–25 cm zoom lenses offering a maximum aperture of f/4 or f/4–4.5. These were long (≈30 cm) and heavy (almost 2 kg) lenses.
3 versions with a total number produced ≈ 8500. All versions have tripod mounts.
(The last of these remained in production until 1973)

• Act 2: 1969–1987: 80–200 mm zoom lenses offering a maximum aperture of f/4 or f/4.5. These were significantly shorter (≈15 cm) and very much lighter (750–830 grams). 6 versions with a total number produced ≈ 440 000. None of the versions have tripod mounts. (The last of these remained in production until 1998)

• Interlude: in 1982 Nikon introduced a manual focus 80-200/2.8, but it was too big, too heavy, and too expensive. it had tripod mount. Only ≈ 1600 were sold and it was discontinued in 1985.

• Act 3: 1987–2003: 80–200 mm zoom lenses offering a maximum aperture of f/2.8 with autofocus. Significantly larger and heavier than the various f/4–4.5 designs, but smaller and lighter than both the earliest as well as the 1982–1985 design. 4 versions with a total number produced ≈ 1 150 000. Last 2 versions have tripod mounts.

• Act 4: 2003–today: 70-200 mm zoom lenses offering a maximum aperture of f/2.8 with autofocus and image stabilisation (vibration reduction). A tad larger and heavier than previous generation. 3 versions with a total number produced ≈ 900 000 (and counting). All versions have tripod mounts.

The entire genealogy of Nikon’s pro tele zooms can be summarised as follows

Type and specs	years	optical recipe	blades	MFD	zoom	weight	notes
Act 1
F 8,5–25cm f/4–4.5	1959–1961	15e/8g	6	4 m	1-ring	1770 g
F 8,5–25cm f/4–4.5	1961-1969	15e/8g	6	4 m	1-ring	1960 g
F 85–250mm f/4	1969–1973	16e/9g	6	4 m	1-ring	2000 g
Act 2
F 80-200mm f/4.5	1969–1973	15e/10g	7	1,8 m	1-ring	830 g
C 80-200mm f/4.5	1973–1975	15e/10g	7	1,8 m	1-ring	820 g
K 80–200mm f/4.5	1975–1977	15e/10g	7	1,8 m	1-ring	820 g
Ai 80–200mm f/4.5	1977	15e/10g	7	1,8 m	1-ring	830 g
Ai 80–200mm f/4.5 New	1977–1981	12e/9g	7	1,8 m	1-ring	744 g*	[data sheet]
Ai-s 80–200mm f/4	1988–1998	13e/9g	9	1,5 m	1-ring	805 g*	[data sheet]
Interlude
Ai-s 80-200mm f/2.8 ED	1982–1985	15e/11g	9	2,5 m	1-ring	1900 g
Act 3
AF 80-200mm f/2.8 ED	1987–1992	16e/11g	9	1,8 m	1-ring	1272 g*	(this lens)
AF 80-200mm f/2.8 D ED	1992–1997	16e/11g	9	1,8 m	1-ring	1300 g
AF 80-200mm f/2.8 D ED New	1997–>	16e/11g	9	1,8 m	2-ring	1300 g
Act 4
AF-S 80–200mm f/2.8 D IF-ED	1998-2003	18e/14g	9r	1,5 m	2-ring	1580 g
AF-S 70–200mm f/2.8 G IF-ED VR	2003–2009	21e/15g	9r	1,5 m	2-ring	1470 g
AF-S 70–200mm f/2.8 G IF-ED VR II	2009->	21e/16g	9r	1,4 m	2-ring	1540 g
AF-S 70–200mm f/2.8 E FL ED VR	2016–>	22e/18g	9r	1,1 m	2-ring	1430 g

A brief genealogy of Nikon SLR lens types

Nikon is undoubtedly one of the great names in 35 mm SLR photography. The Nikon F mount has been in continuous production since 1959. During that time, the mount has developed/changed in some detail, however without ever fully sacrificing compatibility.

In short (a longer version is here), the development of Nikon’s SLR lenses can be traced as follows:
• 1959–1977: Pre-Ai. Manual focus lenses that use ‘rabbit ears’ to communicate selected aperture with the camera body. Pre-Ai lenses can further be subdivided into
• F-type (1959–early 1970s: metal focus ring and single-coated),
• C-type (early 1970s–mid 1970s: metal focus ring and multicoated), and
• K-type (mid 1970s to 1977: rubber focus ring and multicoated).
A significant share of remaining Pre-Ai lenses have since been converted to Ai-spec (Ai’d)
• 1977–1986: Ai and Ai-s. Manual focus lenses that may have ‘rabbit ears’ for backward compatibility, but are designed to communicate selected aperture with the camera body through indentations in base of aperture control ring.
• 1986–today: AF and AF-D. Autofocus lenses that do not have a focusing motor within the lens, but rely on the focus motor within the camera. All AF and AF-D lenses are simultaneously Ai-s lenses (they are Ai-s lenses extended with AF) ⁷
• 1996–today AF-S and AF-P. Autofocus lenses that have an internal focusing motor and do not rely on the body having a focusing motor.

Adapting

Besides adapting, this lens can be used natively on all current high-end Nikon dSLRs and several earlier medium-to-high-end older Nikon dSLRs. Moreover, if the camera body contains a slot-drive focusing motor, this lens will even auto-focus⁸. Likewise, if the lens has been retrofitted with ‘rabbit ears’, it can be natively used on all Nikon F-mount film cameras ever produced (without the rabbit ears, it is limited to post-1977 bodies).

Thanks to being a manual aperture lens, the lens can be adapted to all mirrorless cameras using a suitable dumb adapter (and such adapters are easy to find). Moreover, a large range of special adapters (helicoid adapters, tilt/shift adapters, speed boosters) for using Nikon F lenses on most mirrorless systems are available. Currently no adapters for mirrorless exist that would allow autofocus through the slot-drive screw.

Using Nikon F lenses on non-Nikon SLRs and dSLRs is likewise a distinct possibility. Thanks to the relatively generous flange focal distance of the Nikon F mount (46,5 mm), adapter rings for all dSLR mounts are available as well as for a goodly portion of film-era SLR mounts. Such rings will not allow autofocus, and are unlikely to support auto aperture, but even then the lenses can be used in stop-down metering mode.

Footnotes

1. Focal length is (unless stated otherwise) given in absolute terms, and not in Full-frame equivalent. For an understanding of whether the lens is wide/tele, see ‘Angle-of-view’. ↩︎
2. Picture angle is given in degrees and concerns the diagonal picture angle. Rule of thumb:
   > 90 ° ==> Ultra-wide-angle
   70–90 ° ==> Wide-angle
   50–70 ° ==> Moderate wide-angle
   40–50 ° ==> ‘Standard’ or ‘normal’ lens
   20–40 ° ==> Short tele lens
   10-20 ° ==> Tele lens
   5-10 ° ==> Long tele lens
   < 5 ° ==> Ultra-tele lens ↩︎
3. Length is given from the mount flange to the front of lens at infinity. ↩︎
4. Diameter excludes protrusions such as rabbit ears or stop-down levers. ↩︎
5. S=straight; R=rounded; C=(almost)circular at all apertures. ↩︎
6. Numbers equal aperture values on aperture ring; • intermediate click; – no intermediate click. ↩︎
7. There is a further sub-class of AF-D lenses called AF-I lenses that are otherwise AF-D lenses (meaning, fully Ai-s compatible), but have an internal focus motor. Only long tele lenses were made in AF-I variants. ↩︎
8. As of this writing, the following Nikon dSLRs fully support autofocus, aperture priority and manual metered modes on Nikkor AF/AF-D lenses: D2, D3, D4, D5, D6, Df, D200, D300, D300s, D500, D600, D610, D700, D750, D780, D800, D800E, D810, D850, D7000, D7100, D7200 ↩︎