About two months ago I found a ‘cheap’ second hand Nikon 24-120mm f/4.0 and decided to give it a go.
I will write a review soon, but I was asked about it’s VR capabilities via Youtube, so I made a short video about that.
Why the 24-120?
I will explain my choice more in the actual review, but in short I made that decision while on summer holiday.
We made regular walks in the woods with our three kids (2,4 and 6 years old) and I had some difficulties hauling all my glass and switching lenses over and over again.
Although it did make for really nice footage, it got me thinking about buying a second hand 24-120 f/4
A short compilation of our footage (most was shot with my D610 and 3 primes)
So when somebody offered one for about half the price of a new one, I decided to give it a go.
Image stabilization
More on my experience later, this post will focus on the VR part of the lens.
In short I am pleased how well the VR copes with the small shakes caused by holding the body.
Especially on the long end of the lens, it smooths out the footage, as can be seen in the test.
This is especially true when standing still while shooting. I also tested the VR while walking, but that did not make that much of a difference.
My Panasonic HC X900 is more capable of dampening the large motion caused by walking with its active stabilization (you can see the lens move in the body).
But all in all this 24-120 does make footage that was shot hand held more usable.
This and the flexibility of the 24-120 are it’s main bonuses, but more on that in my review.