The type of photography that you are planning to use is an important decision factor. Here we have evaluated the Nikon 300mm f4E PF VR and the Nikon 500mm f4D ED-IF II for their suitability to various photography scenarios:
Size and Weight Comparison
Size of a lens is an important deciding factor when comparing two lenses.Nikon 500mm f4D ED-IF II is the longer of the two lenses at 394mm. The Nikon 300mm f4E PF VR with a length of 148mm is 246mm shorter. Besides being longer, the Nikon 500mm f4D ED-IF II also has a larger diameter of 140mm compared to Nikon 300mm f4E PF VR's 89mm diameter.
Weight of a lens is as important as its external dimensions, especially if you are planning to hand hold your camera and lens combination for longer periods. Nikon 300mm f4E PF VR weighs 750g, which means it is 3050g (80%) lighter than the Nikon 500mm f4D ED-IF II which has a weight of 3800g.
Below you can find the dimension and weight table of the 'Telephoto Prime Lenses in Nikon F (FX) Mount for size comparison purposes.
Telephoto Prime Lenses in Nikon F (FX) Mount for Size Comparison
Lens Mounts
Both Nikon 300mm f4E PF VR and Nikon 500mm f4D ED-IF II has the same Nikon F (FX) lens mount. Some of the latest released cameras that are compatible with the Nikon F (FX) lenses are Nikon D6, Nikon D780 and Nikon D3500.
Focal Range
Nikon 300mm f4E PF VR is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 300mm. When it is mounted on an APS-C sensor camera with 1.5x crop, it provides an 35mm (FF) equivalent of 450mm.
Nikon 500mm f4D ED-IF II is a prime lens with fixed focal lenght of 500mm. When it is mounted on an APS-C sensor camera with 1.5x crop, it provides an 35mm (FF) equivalent of 750mm.