18-200 vr ii ?

[aritra_m]

Hey,

I want to go for a new lens and was thinking of getting the 18-200mm VR II. Would like to get it in exchange - 18-55mm kit lens.

18-135 would have been nice as well but it doesnt have VR.

My lens priority list as of now:

1. 18-200 (general purpose)
2. 35mm prime
3. 10-22mm

Since m very new to photography, i wanted a second opinion. I am interested in architecture, street photography.

I called up few shops, and they said i can get the 18-200mm (VR or VR II , that they didnt mention) for 20k INR. (Indian rupees) which is well within my budget.

Thanks.

[kirbinster]

People either love or hate the 18-200VR. It is not the sharpest lens, but I feel it is a great general walk around lens. I love mine, and as you can see in my sig I have a LOT of much better glass.

[OsmosisStudios]

I wouldnt use the 18-200 for architecture, but its a decent walkaround. I couldnt live with the image quality when I had mine: I sold it for $100 less than I bought it for and got a 70-300 VR instead.

[LoveDSLR]

First, 18-200 VR/VR II is a good general purpose walkabout/vacation lens.

If we assume your architecture photography is a serious one then the 18-200 is not the right choice. You may have to consider the expensive Nikon PC-E and UWA lenses.

Many people like a 35mm prime lens (or ~24mm DX) for street photography.

[nokiN]

The 18-200 is not good for architecture because it has the worst barrel distortion of any Nikon lens made today. In other words your building images would have few straight lines.

That and soft focus are trade-offs from a lens designed to have a +10 times zoom.

[aritra_m]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions.

I was thinking of getting a better general purpose lens first. how is the 55-200mm ? [AF-S DX VR ZOOM-NIKKOR 55-200 mm F/4-5.6G IF - ED]

From what i have read, people say 18-55mm + 55-200mm is better than 18-200mm.

Please suggest which lens you think will be perfect for me. budget somewhere around the price of 18-200mm.

Thanks.

[Shokinen]

My suggestion is to get more accessories for the same price. Price are in from Canada but ratio should be approximalty the same.

- 18-200mm cost 949$


For 890$ I would get:
- 55-200mm VR (do yourself a favor, don't get the non-VR version).
- 35mm f/1.8 (you'll be amaze by the depth of filed. Prime lens are also very fun for composing).
- SB 600 Flash (a good flash is always usefull, never regreted mine).

My 2 cent

[kirbinster]

If you get the 18-55 and the 55-200 you will likely have the wrong lens on the camera 65% of the time. The barrel distortion is not much of an issue for most pictures, and you can correct that very easily with software. I suggest you go to flickr and check out the 18-200 group and view the quality of pictures that have been taken with that lens.

[coolbimmerguy]

I just went from the Nikon D50 to the D90 and substituted the 18-105mm kit lens for the 18-200 VR and I took it back and got my kit lens (18-105mm) back and decide to use my Tamron 70-300mm instead. I'm much happier and i'm still new to the specifics but from my "newbie" eye I didn't see the image quality to justify the $800 price tag in comparison the the 18-105 & 70-300mm lens set. I have the 50mm f/1.8 as well and so far I don't see the need for another lens. But i'm thinking about the 11-18mm lens. Hope to find some thoughts on that lens on DPS.