AF-S DX Nkr 18-200mm F/3.5-5.6G ED VR II

How can I give this a five star rating? Part of the problem with camera and lens reviews is that someone you don’t really know tells you something you can’t really verify. It gets worse when they introduce a blizzard of numbers because, seriously, what do the digits even mean in the context of your photographs? So, if you’re looking for jargon and specs, I can’t help you. But, if you want to know what I think and why, then here you go. I needed to upgrade my walking around lens. I was using a Nikkor 18-105 mm kit lens that came with my D90. Yeah, I’ve had that one for a while but it still worked great. But, if I was going to take longer shots, I either had to switch up to my Nikkor 55-300 mm zoom (and lose any wide area opportunities that came my way) or I would have to carry both of those lens in my pack and swap them out in the field. So, if I could find it, I wanted one lens to give me the benefit of both. But, now I have to tell you how I generally shoot: freehand, no hood and natural light. I’m also either in ‘P’ or one of the automatic modes and have the camera set for high burst. As for what I shoot, subjects include nature photography, but there’s some industrial work, travel photos, and non-pro sports. And, I use the D7200. Size and weight matter to me because at the end of the day, freehand shooting can be tricky enough at full telephoto. Also, space is finite and every ounce you save can either be banked (the pack is just a little lighter) or you can carry something else. Lastly, I’ve got a budget and can’t throw unlimited $$$$$$$ at gear. I used my 55-300 to help me settle on options and I looked at shots at 140, 200 and 300 mm. The 200 worked for my style of photography and my subjects. To be sure, I rented a Nikkor 18-200 from Borrowedlenses. I had it for three days and took a lot of photos. For what I shoot and how I shoot it and what I shoot it with, the 18 – 200 was the ticket. So, as for the rating, I can give this a 5 star because it’s exactly what I wanted and it does exactly what I need. If you want to see a range of photos you can check them out on G+. Look for Charlie Goodroe.

Show more

This lens is great for almost everything.The perfect lens for almost any situation. This lens is perfect for sight seeing, photo shoots and everything in-between. Its become my daily driver and I have it attached almost constantly. It is very sharp and has decent bokeh at wide angles. However, it does lack in dark situations. Ultimately you end up having to boost your ISO to make up for the large minimum aperture. With that said, its relatively easy to anticipate when you will be in a dark or low light situation and you can plan for such a thing with a prime. Overall, if you are looking for a "one stop shop" lens and dont want to juggle multiple cameras or changing lenses during a shoot, this is a lens worth looking into.

Show more

This lens is absolutely stunning. Since I purchased it, I havent taken it off my Nikon as none of my other lens can match this one. The clarity of photos is super crisp. AF is really fast. The VR really works well as it stabilizes the shots as I zoom in. As far as all the technical Bokeh, Distortion, Light Falloff, etc. No lens is perfect for all situations. But for the vast majority of them, this lens excels. If your a pixel counter, then you might fret of this lens. Ive used it professionally and all my clients have been super pleased with the shots I produced on this lens. If you take this to a lab, it might not succeed at all points. If you take it to the real world, I guarantee you will be very pleased! 18mm is a really wide shot and I use it very frequently for video work. The lens to me excels at just about everything I throw at it. Yes, its a little pricey, but it is worth every penny. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up today.

Show more

I avoided buying a Nikon kit with several inferior lenses. Rather, I bought a body (Nikon 7100) and this lens separately. Im sure glad I did. For the most part I leave this lens on the camera, dont need to swap it with another or carry multiple lenses in a camera bag. Great. Its not too heavy, either. The 18-200mm range is great for most all my shooting. I like wide angle and would have liked something a bit wider than 18mm. However, as a walk-around zoom lens with good optics and reasonable price, I think this was a very wise choice.

Show more

If you only want to carry one lens, and ditch your camera bag, this is the one to get. Theres a little bit of barrel distortion, but its easy to auto-correct in Lightroom or the photo editing software of your choice. Auto-focus is fast, even when zoomed all the way out. The build quality is much better than the kit lenses too. My 35mm F/1.8 lens is sharper, but this 18-200mm is so versatile, and the image quality is still good enough that it rarely leaves my camera. This might be the best travel lens made for any camera.

Show more

this is a great lens, i am impressed with it thew at 18mm thew 200 mm and everything inbetween it takes much sharper photos than the kit lens that came with my D5300. i have seen good reviews and bad reviews of this lens but i cant say anything bad about it. besides the fact that its a bit big and a little heavy ( but what do you expect for a lens like this ) i have no complaints. its probably one of the nicer lenses i have used, basically i am using this lens only, unless i am shooting at night and do not have a tripod, in that case ill use my 35mm f1.8 lens it lets in enough light that i can shoot at night and hold the camera in my hand using a fast shutter speed, or if i know i will not need a zoom and i want a smaller lens on the camera ill throw that on but for the most part i think this lens will be on the camera 90% of the time. the 70-300 mm lens is probably a bit better for IQ and has more zoom which comes in handy but its really nice to have one lens that will do for almost everything and not need to changes lenses if i want a wider angle or a zoom. the 18-200 has great IQ IMO.

Show more

Great all-around lens. Lots of people like to pick at these superzooms but they do the job for 99.9% of the people 99.9% of the time. And for that other .1% you can rent the $2000 glass you need. Ive had multiple calendar images and magazine covers from images Ive shot on fishing boats in Alaska, where changing lenses can be undesirable due to the probability of getting water inside the camera. No one ever said, "Oh my god, Im sure that image was taken with a superzoom. We cant possibly use it!!" Might be different for wedding or product photography, I wouldnt know. :-)

Show more

The lens is advertised as Very Good condition Any where else would have listed it as excellent condition. It arrived days before the "expected delivery" date. I have an outing planned this weekend, and the better than prompt delivery of a new toy for my camera will make it all the more fun. I would say overly packed for safety. There was no way it wasnt arriving in the same condition it was shipped. Extremely please with the lens. Im just staring out taking photography seriously and the lens has a very intuitive feel to it. Everything is where you would expect it to be, and it only took a few minutes to get the feel of the lens. Midwest Photo & Electronics will be top of my list for my next purchase of camera stuff.

Show more

I have been wanting the Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G for many months. And I do not regret getting one. I definitely recommend the 5.6G over the 6.3G for it is far more sharper, especially at its max zoom at 200mm. Despite being heavier than the 6.3G, it feels to be more durable and more "professional". Also, I love the fact that I do not have to carry two lens. Now my backpack is weighs less, and I could put other things in it.

Show more

My bread and butter lens. Dropped one on a highway as I was changing lenses. Dented the darn rim so it wouldnt adjust. Rather than repair, I bought one just like it. A very nice general type of zoom lens. Works very well. May not be as crisp as higher priced lenses but thats why they are higher priced. I do a lot of HDR photography and use a tripod. I also like using the manual focus for night shots. I feel really good about this lens for someone thats not into the really high end lenses.

Show more