As a photographer there are those special lenses you get used to using that blow you away every time you use it. For me this comes with all my Nikon lenses, but some just have that special feel. Possibly the sharpest lens on the planet and at F2, one of the fastest. I’m talking about the Nikon hotrod 200mm F2.

I purchased it first back in 2010 to shoot my second year at NFR finals in Vegas. Shooting a lot of rodeo in those days, most arenas leaves a lot to be desired, hence F2, another full stop of light. Shooting multiple sports for a media company this lens just fit like a glove for me, given the fact that in those days the noise control on the cameras were no where close to todays Nikon D5 and D850.

2019-2020 North Texas High school rodeo kick-off in Saginaw Texas

Another bonus of the hotrod is that coupled with a teleconverter, it yields almost a 300mm F2.8 lens, probably the all-around favorite lens in sports photography. The other huge bonus of this gem is portrait shooting at wide open aperture. The lack of depth-of-field creates a creamy out of focus background that will take your breath away.

Draw-backs, first is probably the price, pretty hefty just to own for a hobby lens. Second is the weight and size which almost twice the size of the industry standard 70-200 F2.8.  Last is the fixed focal length, takes a little practice to adapt to non-zoom world.

I had decided to sell mine after three years of use. I let a rodeo buddy purchase it. I mean, with the advances of low light noise control, I felt I could make better use of my money…huge mistake. Recently I expressed my separation anxiety to a friend and owner of Competitive Camera, ( Eugene ). He told me he had a used one coming in in a couple of weeks. I’m not a huge fan of buying used equipment, but after dealing with this guy for 20 years I know it will be right or he will make it right.

So.. the proud owner of a slightly used hotrod my anxiety has waned. Using it this weekend was like reconnecting with a old friend.

2019-2020 North Texas High school rodeo kick-off in Saginaw Texas, Nikon 200f2, Nikon photographer