Nikon Teleconverter

[Keith1010]

I am considering one of three Nikon Teleconverters. As background they would be compatible with the Nikon Lens I plan to use them with. The three converters are:

 

Nikon TC-14E II (1.4x) Teleconverter AF-S

Nikon TC-17E II (1.7x) Teleconverter AF-S

Nikon TC-20E III AF-S 2x Teleconverter AF-S

 

After doing a lot of reading it seems that I should go with a 1.7x Teleconverter as some have said that the 1.4x doesn't make enough of a difference given the cost and that the 2x might impact picture quality so it just seems that the 1.7x would have a lot of benefits with very few issues with quality.

 

I would appreciate thoughts on this from those of you who have used these converters could share with me. I plan to use it with a Nikon 70-200mm

AF-S lens.

 

Thank you.

 

Keith

[donaldsc]

Don't forget that the more power the tele, the bigger the hit that you take on your max lens speed and also in some cases the more difficult it will be to auto focus.

 

DON

[YVR_cruise_lover]

I am considering one of three Nikon Teleconverters. As background they would be compatible with the Nikon Lens I plan to use them with. The three converters are:

 

Nikon TC-14E II (1.4x) Teleconverter AF-S

Nikon TC-17E II (1.7x) Teleconverter AF-S

Nikon TC-20E III AF-S 2x Teleconverter AF-S

 

After doing a lot of reading it seems that I should go with a 1.7x Teleconverter as some have said that the 1.4x doesn't make enough of a difference given the cost and that the 2x might impact picture quality so it just seems that the 1.7x would have a lot of benefits with very few issues with quality.

 

I would appreciate thoughts on this from those of you who have used these converters could share with me. I plan to use it with a Nikon 70-200mm

AF-S lens.

 

Thank you.

 

Keith

Note that the TC-14E II may be discontinued. See the following link:

http://nikonrumors.com/2013/09/07/nikon-tc-14e-ii-teleconverter-listed-as-discontinued-again.aspx/

 

A review of the Nikon teleconverters can be found in

http://photographylife.com/image-degradation-with-nikon-teleconverters

[snowbird1]

I am considering one of three Nikon Teleconverters. As background they would be compatible with the Nikon Lens I plan to use them with. The three converters are:

 

Nikon TC-14E II (1.4x) Teleconverter AF-S

Nikon TC-17E II (1.7x) Teleconverter AF-S

Nikon TC-20E III AF-S 2x Teleconverter AF-S

 

After doing a lot of reading it seems that I should go with a 1.7x Teleconverter as some have said that the 1.4x doesn't make enough of a difference given the cost and that the 2x might impact picture quality so it just seems that the 1.7x would have a lot of benefits with very few issues with quality.

 

I would appreciate thoughts on this from those of you who have used these converters could share with me. I plan to use it with a Nikon 70-200mm

AF-S lens.

 

Thank you.

 

Keith

 

I have the 70/200 VR and the 1.7 tele. It teams up nice, lose about 1 f-stop. I decided not go to the 2x after researching it.

 

 

Sent from my iPad

[dodger501]

I tried a teleconverter quite a while ago, it worked a lot better when on a tripod. Would VR/IS help here (didn't have it way back then)?

[framer]

I have all three TC and your lens. The 70-200 and I don't care if it V1 or V2 is not up to greatness with the TC20EIII, it works but you should/could be disappointed. Don't get me wrong in a pinch it works. The TC17 is better if you really need the extra reach. My 70-200 lives with the TC14E II attached. Autofocus and sharpness are better with it on my lens then when it's off. I shoot FX size. If you really need more reach consider the 300 f4 or better yet the 300 f2.8 then add the 14 or the 17. The 300 f2.8 even works fine with the TC20 III= 600 f5.6

 

Note: the TC17 reduces you F stop by 1.5 stops.

 

 

framer

[chipmaster]

No TCE is for free, more reach for IQ degradation and slower speed.

 

I agree if you want the best balance the 17 is the way to go. If you are going for birding/wildlife then the 20 is worth a hard look ifyou can afford to stop down at least two stops and have good light.

 

The better option IMHO is purchase a Nikon 1 and an adapter which gives you a 2.7x native mag with no loss of anything!

 

Dang your cake and eat it to, maybe I'll buy back the Nikon 1 for the 3rd time :D

 

http://www.sansmirror.com/newsviews/nikon-1-lessons-learned-on.html

[awboater]

No TCE is for free, more reach for IQ degradation and slower speed.

 

I agree if you want the best balance the 17 is the way to go. If you are going for birding/wildlife then the 20 is worth a hard look ifyou can afford to stop down at least two stops and have good light.

 

The better option IMHO is purchase a Nikon 1 and an adapter which gives you a 2.7x native mag with no loss of anything!

 

Dang your cake and eat it to, maybe I'll buy back the Nikon 1 for the 3rd time :D

 

http://www.sansmirror.com/newsviews/nikon-1-lessons-learned-on.html

 

Dang Chip... you are killing me. :D

 

I am very satisfied with my V1 and FT1. It has worked out very well for me. Unfortunately, as Thom has said - the Nikon 1 gets no respect.

 

How odd though that the Sony RX100 is well thought of, but has the same sized 1" sensor (although the Nikon sensors are made by Aptina rather than Sony).

 

Perhaps Nikon will be discounting the V2 this Dec when the V3 makes it's appearance... or maybe not.

[Keith1010]

Thank you all for the feedback. This is one of these very tough decisions.

 

Keith

[pierces]

Dang Chip... you are killing me. :D

 

I am very satisfied with my V1 and FT1. It has worked out very well for me. Unfortunately, as Thom has said - the Nikon 1 gets no respect.

 

How odd though that the Sony RX100 is well thought of, but has the same sized 1" sensor (although the Nikon sensors are made by Aptina rather than Sony).

 

Perhaps Nikon will be discounting the V2 this Dec when the V3 makes it's appearance... or maybe not.

 

One big issue I always found with the V1 is size. When I was shopping for my NEX-7, I was intrigued by all the board chatter about how compact the V1 was. I went down to BB and was rather startled by how large it was.

 

Below is a comparison I did for a friend that was in the market for a travel camera:

 

 

Unless you have an extensive Nikon system to blend with it, I feel that there are several other options that provide better compact bang for the buck.

 

BTW, the combo of a 1 series body and F adapter makes for one heck of an expensive teleconverter!;)

 

Dave

[awboater]

BTW, the combo of a 1 series body and F adapter makes for one heck of an expensive teleconverter!;)

 

Dave

 

While I will agree that the list price of the V1 was ridiculous, I paid $299 for my V1 new (not refurbished) when Nikon was discounting them in Dec 2012, and $199 for the FT-1 adapter. For $500, they are no more expensive than a Nikon teleconverter.

 

And you can use Nikon lenses with the V1 (or any other Nikon 1) that Nikon does not recommend using with their teleconverters. And you will get no loss of sharpness or loss of aperture with the Nikon 1/FT1.

 

If you own the Nikon system of lenses, there is no better option. Some Nikon owners having DSLRs have purchased the Nikon P520 as they wanted a longer reach, but in reality, they paid as much for the P520 with a small 1/2.3 sensor and marginal lens as I paid for the V1 and FT1 combined. So the Nikon1 does have it's advantages, depending on what other equipment you own.

 

While my emphasis is on integrating the Nikon 1 with your other Nikon gear, you can buy Nikon refurbished J1s right now for $199 with lens. The $299 Dec deals are gone, but if you can stand for a refurbished camera - the J1 is still a great value. The J1 does not have all of the features of the V1 (mostly the EVF and larger battery), but it can use the FT1 adapter.

 

One thing the V1 has going for it is it has a very fast focusing system and perhaps was the first camera to have a hybrid contrast/phase detect system, something most no other compact camera can match. And it has a very short shutter lag - which is sub 100mS, which is the pro-DSLR territory, and faster than even any entry level DSLR.

 

And all Nikon J and V models have magnesium chassis, perhaps that contributes to the size and weight. But they are built like tanks. Probably overkill though, and maybe one (of the many) contributing factors the price is so high. They actually packed a lot of technology into the cameras and then put it into a 1" sensor, where perhaps they should have used something larger.

 

The Nikon 1 system gets no respect (I even recall Chip claiming it was polishing a turd), but I have found mine to be a great system. Unfortunately, Nikon severely overpriced the cameras and that is as much why they have not received better reviews.

 

If I were going for a compact camera, I would get the Nikon P330. It remains as the only camera (that I am aware of) that has a bona-fide pause function in the video mode - if video is important to you.