Nikkor's Vibration Reduction system helps you achieve sharper, steadier shots by compensating for camera shake when shooting telephoto subjects, dimly lit scenes and other handheld situations - including D-movie shooting. Camera shake information is detected by the VR sensor of the VR lens unit, which is continually in motion inside the lens, aligning the optical axis with your camera's imaging sensor, thereby reducing image blur and providing the equivalent of shooting at shutter speeds up to four stops faster with VR II.

 

 

Nikon's Vibration Reduction (VR) function is built into the lens.Your camera's sensor does not move with VR, unlike with in-camera systems, thereby giving you a steadier view through the viewfinder and eliminating the blur you would see in the image itself. A clear view makes it easier to confirm your composition and place your focus point accurately. Looking through a fully blur-corrected viewfinder for long periods of time may cause feelings similar to motion sickness in some photographers. To prevent this, Nikon developed an exclusive algorithm utilized when the shutter release button is half-pressed. This first algorithm controls the blur correction at a slightly lower level than usual. When the shutter release button is fully pressed, a second algorithm engages to maximize camera shake compensation during exposure for clear images.

 

 

Sometimes the movement of a subject needs to be emphasized. To make the most of this effect, Nikon employs Panning Detection function, which senses camera movement and automatically controls blur-correction. So for example, when panning horizontally, only vertical blur is corrected.

 

 

An element that locks the focus ring during autofocus while enabling behavior similar to a manual focus lens in manual focus mode with sufficient load when the focusing ring is rotated. This mode also enables an easy transition from autofocus to manual during AF operation. However, mode switch sensitivity has been altered to reduce the possibility of sudden unintentional switching to manual focus while shooting.

 

 

Nikon developed ED (Extra-low Dispersion) glass to enable the production of lenses that offer superior sharpness and color correction by minimizing chromatic aberration. Put simply, chromatic aberration is a type of image and color dispersion that occurs when light rays of varying wavelengths pass through optical glass. In the past, correcting this problem for telephoto lenses required special optical elements that offer anomalous dispersion characteristics - specifically calcium fluoride crystals. However, fluorite easily cracks and is sensitive to temperature changes that can adversely affect focusing by altering the lens' refractive index. Nikon was the world's first camera maker to develop ED glass that could minimize prism-caused color dispersion. This low-dispersion ED glass also offers anomalous dispersion characteristics like calcium fluoride crystals, which consequently minimize the secondary spectrum. For lenses using normal optical glass, the longer the focal length, the more difficult to correct the chromatic aberration that causes color fringing. Nikon's ED glass, which effectively compensates for this kind of chromatic aberration, is employed in the AF-S Nikkor 500mm f/4G ED VR for superior reproduction.

 

 

With this focusing method, all the lens elements are divided into front, middle and rear groups, with only the middle group moving to focus. All internal optical movement is limited to the interior of the nonextending lens barrel. This allows for a more compact, lightweight construction as well as a closer focusing distance. In addition, a smaller and lighter focusing lens group is employed to ensure faster focusing. 

 

 

Simply by rotating a focus ring, M/A mode allows you to switch from autofocus to manual with virtually no time lag. This makes it possible to seamlessly switch to fine manual focusing while looking through the viewfinder even during AF servo operation and regardless of AF mode in use.

 

 

Nikkor's Nano Crystal Coat is an antireflective coatings that employs an extra-low refractive index coating featuring ultra-fine, nano-sized crystal particles. These crystallized particles eliminate reflections inside the lens throughout the spectrum of visible light waves (380-780nm) in ways that far exceed the limits of conventional antireflection coating systems. Nano Crystal Coat not only solves ghost effects caused by red light, which was incredibly difficult for previous systems, it also effectively reduces ghost and flare effects caused by light entering the lens diagonally resulting in clearer images. 

 

 

Nikon's original Silent Wave Motor (SWM) converts "traveling waves" into rotational energy to drive the optics used for focusing. The two SWM lens types - ring type and compact type - are specifically chosen to match each lenses's specs and design. Silent Wave Motor delivers extremely smooth, quiet and comfortable auto focusing for both general shooting as well as extreme situations, such as sports and wildlife.