Nikon shares stunning super-telephoto Nikkor Z 400mm sports and wildlife shots

Nikkor Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S
(Image credit: Nikon)

The Nikkor Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S is Nikon's spectacular new super-telephoto lens for its mirrorless Z series cameras. It's the ideal partner for the Nikon Z9, the company's new professional mirrorless camera.

The Z9 is a technical tour-de-force which pushes back the boundaries of professional full frame cameras, combining high resolution, high continuous shooting speeds and 8K video capture. It's an exceptionally versatile camera that can be used for sports, wildlife, high-resolution commercial photography and high-end video capture.

The star here, though, is the new Nikkor Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S super-telephoto. It's key for Nikon's mirrorless plans that it supports its Z-series cameras with professional optics, and this 400mm f/2.8 is just the start, with 600mm and 800mm super-telephotos in the pipeline.

We've already published all the key specs and information about the Nikkor Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S, but here are some sample images taken with this new lens and the Z9 that really show off what this combination can do!

You can click on the gadget in the top right corner (on a desktop computer) to open a full resolution image in a new tab, then zoom in to see the levels of detail that have been captured, the pinpoint focus accuracy and the background defocus and subject separation you get with such a long, fast lens.

Nikon Z9, Nikkor Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S, 1/1600sec f/4, ISO 320, 560mm (with built in 1.4x teleconverter). (Image credit: Nikon)

Nikon Z9, Nikkor Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S, 1/1600sec f/4, ISO 400, 560mm (with built-in 1.4x teleconverter). (Image credit: Nikon)

Nikon Z9, Nikkor Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S. (Image credit: Nikon)

Nikon Z9, Nikkor Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S, 1/2000sec f/2.8, ISO 100. (Image credit: Nikon)

Nikon Z9, Nikkor Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S, 1/2500sec f/2.8, ISO 800. (Image credit: Nikon)

Nikon Z9, Nikkor Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S, 1/1600sec f/2.8, ISO 8000. (Image credit: Nikon)

Nikon Z9, Nikkor Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S. (Image credit: Nikon)

• We've already published a hands on review of the Nikon Z9, and we'll bring you a full review – and a review of the Nikkor Z 400mm f/2.8 TC VR S – just as soon as samples become available!

Read more:

Best Nikon cameras
Nikon Z9 hands on
Best Nikon Z lenses
Best professional cameras
Best cameras for sport

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Rod Lawton
Contributor

Rod is an independent photography journalist and editor, and a long-standing Digital Camera World contributor, having previously worked as DCW's Group Reviews editor. Before that he has been technique editor on N-Photo, Head of Testing for the photography division and Camera Channel editor on TechRadar, as well as contributing to many other publications. He has been writing about photography technique, photo editing and digital cameras since they first appeared, and before that began his career writing about film photography. He has used and reviewed practically every interchangeable lens camera launched in the past 20 years, from entry-level DSLRs to medium format cameras, together with lenses, tripods, gimbals, light meters, camera bags and more. Rod has his own camera gear blog at fotovolo.com but also writes about photo-editing applications and techniques at lifeafterphotoshop.com