Nikon Inroduces its First Vibration Reduction (VR) Lens

Canon was the first to offer an image-stabilization system, and now Nikon joins its rival with vibration-reducing technology for handheld telephoto shooting at relatively slow shutter speeds. If you shoot in low-light conditions or in other situations that require the use of slow shutter speeds that would normally result in blurry images, the new Nikon AF VR Zoom-Nikkor 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6 ED telephoto lens may be just your ticket. The vibration-reduction system allows you to pick up about three shutter speed steps compared to the limits of shooting without the system.

Here’s how the system works: Angular speed sensors detect minute shifts (vibration) in camera movement. The data from the sensors is used to calculate the change in position and drive special motors to adjust the dedicated VR lens element. The lens is also able to automatically detect camera shake that takes place during panning. There’s no need to reset the lens for panning action, as panning is automatically detected in all directions including up, down, left, right and diagonally.