18-200mm Nikkor VR

[wheellathe]

Hoping that Santa gets me the D7000.Has any one got any thoughts on the 18-200mm Nikkor VR lens. It seems that you can save a few dollars when buying this combo. Thanks in advance.

[kiwi]

Its a very good all around lens, not great at anything apart from being compact and versatile but with quality better than the kit lenses - but not as good as the lenses like the 35 1.8 or the 24-120 f/4 etc

[arthurking83]

Hoping that Santa gets me the D7000.Has any one got any thoughts on the 18-200mm Nikkor VR lens. It seems that you can save a few dollars when buying this combo. Thanks in advance.

I guess it depends on what lenses you currently have?

if you already have something like a 18-105/18-135, then it kind'a doesn't make sense to double up on a compact zoomer.
if you have something like a 18-55 + 55-200 combo, and you really hate changing lenses, then maybe it makes sense to have an all-in-one lens for when the need arises.

I'd personally invest more eggs spread over a few baskets, rather than just the one. eg. 18-105VR(great lens) + 35/1.8 or 50/1.8... or whatever else takes your fancy in the more specialised section(such as semi decent macro lenses).
Note too, when you get yourself a D7000(and say you only currently have a lower end body such as a D40) then seriously look into the older manual Nikon lenses from yesteryear. Once you have the ability to set the lens specs into the camera it just makes life so much easier to play with these older Ais lenses

[OZAmateur]

i had this exact question when i bought my D90.
For me i looked at what i photographed, how much i wanted to spend on a lens and do i want to carry more than one lens with me when im out.
I do a lot of 'travel' shots and almost always have my camera with me, so having a lens that was versatile and offered good range was important.
I didnt want to carry a camera bag with me, so didnt want to have to worry about changing lens......result i needed 1 lens that could do what 2 lens could.

The 18-200 Nikkor lens came in VR & VR2. The VR2 is the better of the two (IMO) is newer and would be my pick.
What will do your head in is, do you want to look at the tamron 18-270mm option, or even the sigma 18-200 option.

If your happy to have 2 lens (or more) this is obviously the better option as you will be able to get a better lens that is better suited to the type of photo's your taking.

If your worried about the quality of photos from the 18-200VR type 18-200 nikon into the group search box on the flickr website....some very good quality shots, and a few lens specific forums for you to flick through

[fillum]

For general photography the Nikkor 18-200 is quite a competent lens. I find it sharp enough for my needs. It is a slow lens - at 200mm the max aperture is f/5.6. I found it struggled a bit on the D50 but works well on the D300 where you can crank the usable ISO much higher to get faster shutter speeds. It should work as well or better on the D7000.

The other disadvantage of the slow aperture is that it's more difficult to get those nice 'blurry' backgrounds when shooting portraits, and also to separate your subject from the background when shooting sport. If this is important you might want to check out some of the 3rd party 70-200 f/2.8 lenses (eg Sigma, Tamron, etc) - although these will likely be more expensive than the 18-200.

One of the good things about the 18-200 is that even if you buy a faster 200 lens down the track, the 18-200 is still a handy lens to own. Although mine is no longer my main lens I still use it regularly when travelling etc.


Cheers.

[HappySnapz]

Hi Wheellathe,
I have the combo that you are enquiring about. I bought the camera with the a twin lens kit and I wish I had done more research before hand as I could have saved a bit of money. I do like the 18-200 and its suitable for what I need it for because I don't want to be changing lens when I'm taking a variety of photos. For me as a beginner, I am very satisfied with the lens and the quality of the photos. The biggest downside for me with this lens is (despite what some reviews have mentioned online) that its pretty heavy especially combined with the d7000. You wouldn't want to have that around your neck all day. But heavy for me may not be heavy for others, I only had a point and shoot before I got this camera so I'm still getting used to the added weight.

[salnel]

I have this lens with my D90. I looked at the kit lenses but wasn't too sure. Being a complete novice, I decided to go with the one lens so I didn't have to keep changing lenses when out and about. I also thought it would make a good general lens whilst I was learning . I have been happy with it. It is a bit heavy but I got used to it very quickly. It does depend on what pics you want to take, but as a general walkabout lens, I would recommend it.

[Michaek Price]

Have you also considered the Nikkor 28-300 as an option, depending on your leanings in subject matter. Equates to approx 40-300!

[hawko02]

I pondered long and hard about which lens to get with what camera. I was unaware of this site at the time. After a few months of searching and reading I settled on the D90 and the 18-200 VR11. I do a lot of walking on the property and have previously had a little pocket point and shoot that I took mustering as well. I love my new camera and lens. I only want one lens attached and ready to go and to make it work for me. Heavy - yes - but i will build my muscles and learn. Down the track I am sure i will want to add another lens for special things but I am too green to know what is special yet. I take photos of EVERYTHING with it.

[RRRoger]

Have you also considered the Nikkor 28-300 as an option, depending on your leanings in subject matter. Equates to approx 40-300!

I have both the Nikkors 18-200 and 28-300 and must testify that the longer lens is a step up in image quality.
However, I like to shoot wide so I also got a 10-24.