Nikon 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED IF AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor Lens
by Nikon
|
List Price: Our Price: Calculated in a shopping cart Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $168.00 (click here) Category: Digital Camera See more product details |
|---|
Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Nikon 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED IF AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor Lens
Customer Review: Versitile Zoom Lens!
Summary: 5 Stars
Works wonderfully! Pictures clear, familiar Nikon mount (easy to change) GREAT VALUE w/ Amazon deal!Customer Review: Great lens
Summary: 5 Stars
This Lens is a steal for a Nikon and a VR lens. The aperture is small, but at this price you can't expect that. The VR is excellent, you can really see the difference when it is on and it makes those low light shots much easier to get. The autofocus isn't super-fast, but its still pretty good and locks on fast enough even for sports. Pictures are crisp and there is vignetting I can find on any photos. I would definitely recommend this lens for those looking for that extra zoom with a cheap price and great quality.Customer Review: Get the 18-200mm VR
Summary: 4 Stars
This lense is nice but the build quality is just ok. It takes sharp pics and the vr works real well. BUT if you can save up and buy the Nikon 18-200mm then thats the way to go. You get less switching of lenses and a way better build quality for the money. This lense has a nice speed and does what you want it too and for the price you cant beat it.Customer Review: Best performing lens for its price
Summary: 5 Stars
Obviously, I did not give a rating of 5 because this lens is the best lens ever, but because it's quite a deal for its price. If I could, I'd give it a 4.5. If you bought a Nikon D40/40x/60 with an 18-55mm lens, this should logically be your next choice. First, here are the cons:
1. Painfully slow (aperture of 4)
2. Slow AF - it takes just a slight but noticeable second longer to auto focus compared to an average lens (55-200 is not exactly ideal for shooting sports, especially if you're using it with D40/D40x/D60).
3. Build quality - the first impression of this lens is that it feels and weighs super cheap... probably because it is. Light weight is not necessarily a bad thing, though it does take away the enthusiasm when you wait a week for your lens to come to find out that it feels and looks cheap. But on the bright side, with all else being equal, lighter is (almost always) better and convenient.
The only real annoying problem out of the three is the aperture, so my advise: get a flash. This obviously isn't a complete "solution" but hey, if you don't have one, you need one anyways. If you have one, then you shouldn't have problems exposing the pictures correctly despite the low aperture. If you have a problem with slow AF and cheap build quality, just live with it. AF isn't all that slow.
Besides from these problems, everything else is great - I really didn't expect such a great quality from a 200 dollar lens. Barrel distortion is negligible, pictures are sharp (especially around the center), bokeh is beautiful, and I haven't noticed much chromatic aberrations or vignetting. It's got Vibration reduction that allows me to shoot about 2 stops lower (may be add another 1/3 more), it's got IF which is somewhat useless but cool to have because the size of the lens doesn't change as you focus. I mean, for 200 dollars, what more do you want?
If you want to look for other options, you're probably looking at 18-200mm VR (about $650). Now, in my opinion, 18-200mm isn't all that great because it has a lot of distortion at 18mm, it's not very sharp around the edges and you may become annoyed with the lack of friction as you carry it around. Although there's no way to beat the convenience of 18-200mm, I would argue that the quality of 55-200 is better, at about 1/3 the cost ($210). If you're lazy or if you want to backpack in Europe with minimal equipment, then 18-200 would be your choice. But if you you want better pictures at lower cost, 55-200mm is the way to go. If you have money to burn? then well, you're a lucky bastard.
70-200mm is in a league that is completely different than 55-200, so it's not even worth mentioning. The 70-300mm VR ($479) seems like a good choice, especially if you bought the 18-70mm ($310)lens to begin with. But since I have yet to use a 70-300mm, I shall not compare it to the 55-200mm.
CONCLUSION: great, great lens for its price. It's even better if you just bought an 18-55mm and you're looking for your first zoom lens.
Customer Review: Great lens for the D60
Summary: 5 Stars
The lens is a fantastic lens. I like the vibration reduction feature because a larger lens is harder to hold steady. THe ability to zoom in much more than the 18-55mm lens I have is a great feature. The lens comes with a cap and fabric case. I purchased a few filters for different lighting situations and a clear filter to help protect the lens. Works great with my D60.
Nikon does a great job with its cameras. I got the camera and lenses as a beginner and have had a blast using them.