What Photo Gear

Photozone has just published their in-depth review of Nikon’s latest digital-only zoom - the Nikkor 16-85mm VR Lens.

Released just this year, the Nikon 16-85mm is, quite honestly, a lens that did not make much sense to me when it was first announced. Nikon had their basic 18-55mm lens, the 18-70mm, the 18-135mm and the 18-200 VR lens in it’s DX (for 1.5x sensor DSLR’s) lineup.

The Nikon 16-85mm with it’s 35mm equivalent zoom range of 24-127mm is obviously the DX version of the 24-120mm VR ; and at first glance seems to be a replacement for the 18-70mm - but with a price approaching that of the 18-200mm VR I still can’t figure out who this lens is for. The 18-135mm covers the same zoom range at half the price, granted without the very useful Vibration Reduction of course. And just a few dollars more gets you the 18-200 VR.

But the Photozone review does come as a bit of a surprise, as this lens seems to be quite the performer based on their tests. They proclaim the Nikon 16-85mm as probably “the best DX standard zoom lens in the Nikon mount to date.” Even claiming that this lens is even somewhat more desirable than the Nikon 17-55mm f/2.8 lens at twice the price.

Surprising results indeed (to me at least.) If it performs as well as claimed in real world shots, then perhaps this lens just might find a home in my bag. And perhaps it’s place in Nikon’s zoom lens line-up will make a lot more sense to me.

If you haven’t already, click here to read Photozone’s excellent in-depth review of the Nikon 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S VR. They also have a few high resolution images shot with the lens mounted on a Nikon D200 for your review.

From: Photozone via WhatPhotoGear

The great folks over at DPReview have come out with one of the first (most likely the first) in-depth review of Nikon’s latest version of it’s basic kit lens - the 18-55mm DX VR.

The good news is that despite the changes in the optical design (more elements, no ED glass) optical performance is still decent and on par with lenses at this class. The big news is of course the addition of Nikon’s Vibration Reduction which helps us shoot hand-held in lower shutter speeds than normally possible without a tripod.

There are still design issues carried over from the previous two versions of the lens, such as the rotating front element (not good for those using filters), the thin manual focus ring, and there is still no hood included (and the lens is fairly prone to flare). But all in all, if I were to conclude from DPR’s review - still one of the better kit lenses out there, and still one of the better value Nikkor’s out there especially for beginners.

You can check out the rest of the Nikon 18-55mm DX VR Review courtesy of DPReview.

The Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S DX VR Nikkor Zoom Lens is currently available for under USD $200.00 and will of course be available as the standard stock kit lens for Nikon’s latest DSLR - the Nikon D60.