Our first image was taken with the 70-300mm VR zoomed into 170mm. The boat was sailing quite quickly into the distance, but the D80 and lens had no focusing issues.

As with the DX 55-200mm VR, the anti-shake facilities helped us frame the shot, and the crops reveal a high degree of detail - and arguably a little more than a similar shot taken with the budget DX 55-200mm VR.

To test the 70-300mm VR at its shortest focal length we took this photo zoomed-out to 70mm. We wouldn't exactly describe the 70-300mm VR as a walkabout lens in the same way as the DX 55-200mm VR, but the shorter end can still be useful for day-to-day shots.

The depth of field is smaller than you think though at 70mm, and here the D80's choice of f5.6 in Program mode has resulted in some areas of the image not being 100% in focus. But those which are in focus are again packed with detail.

The 70-300mm VR has great potential for portraits and while you'd probably stick to the lower end of the range, this shot was taken fully zoomed-into 300mm - and from quite a distance!

VR made the framing easy though while the combination of long focal length and open aperture ensured a minimal depth of field with a very blurred background. You may wish to compare this with our portrait shot taken with the DX 55-200mm VR.

The crops are sharp and detailed as expected.

While working at f8 in Aperture Priority mode, we spotted a boat speeding by, so grabbed this action shot on the spur of the moment.

The crops reveal a little motion blur which could have been avoided with a faster shutter speed, but there's still lots of detail.

The D80 and 70-300mm VR zoomed all the way in responded quickly to the challenge, focusing and firing-off the shot with ease.

Macro shots may not be your first assumption with a lens like the 70-300mm VR, but they are possible - from a distance anyway.

Shooting from the closest focusing distance of around 1.5m, we grabbed this picture. The lens was zoomed-into 300mm, but VR kept the composition steady.

The crops prove the 70-300mm VR can capture fine detail on smaller subjects, but even with the aperture closed to f16, you'll have a small depth of field at 300mm.

This photo of a bird was again taken at close range with the lens zoomed-into 300mm - but this time we had the aperture wide open.

The small depth of field is ideal for isolating subjects, and the 70-300mm VR on a D80 makes photographing wildlife easy with its quick and accurate focusing.

Bokeh fanatics should evaluate the out-of-focus points of light on the water's surface. They look nicer than those from a similar shot taken with the DX 55-200mm VR.

We concluded our DX 55-200mm VR gallery with a vocal bird, so thought it only fair to do the same again here.

As with the previous shot above, the 70-300mm VR is capable of lovely results zoomed-in and with its aperture wide open.

Here the crops are sharp and detailed and the subject successfully isolated from the background. If 300mm is sufficient for your subjects, it's a great lens to have at your disposal.