Sharpness at 300mm

For this review, the sharpness test is carried out by photographing a real-world sample, rather than a test chart. The AF-P Nikkor 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6E ED VR was mounted on a Nikon D850, which was in-turn mounted on a sturdy tripod. Exposure delay was activated to prevent camera-shake. Any changes in tone you might see across the crops are due to natural light changes during the shooting session.

The full frame at 300mm

At 300mm, the widest aperture is f/5.6, where centre sharpness is reasonably good. It is sharper again at f/8, but sharpest between f/11 and f/16. There’s visible softness at f/22, deteriorating as you move through f/32 to f/40. At the edges, the sharpest results can be seen between f/11 and f/16.

Aperture	Centre Crop	Edge Crop
f/5.6
f/8
f/11
f/16
f/22
f/32
f/40