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Anonymous
Hey /p/, does anyone of you own the 18-200mm VR lens? I want to buy it but wanted to hear the opinions of my fellow /p/hags first. Yes, I know there are plenty of reviews out there but wanted to hear people's opinions here.
>> BlackAdder !!bSWRwu/NqzQ
Ken Rockwell loves it almost as much as himself.

Good if you never want to change the lens, I'd imagine. Compromised on every other front is the opinion I've seen so far. These sorts of zooms tend to have bad reputations that way.

I've heard some folk around the net say the Sigma OS version was supposed to be not bad at all. Could be one of the few large focal range zooms worth using as a walk about lens. I've not tried it for myself yet though.
>> Anonymous
>>96821
Yeah, I know all about Rockwell's love for it. Was wanting to see others' impressions of it.

And yeah, I'd probably opt for the much cheaper Sigma, but alas, my damn D40 won't autofocus it, which means I'd have to get another body (a la D80) or some such, which is a bit out of my price range at the moment. I mean, I'm still going to upgrade in the future, but perhaps when I have a bit more in my bank account.
>> Anonymous
The 18-200 is great for new photographers who don't know what they want to shoot yet - it'll work fine for 90% of normal photo situations. Once you know what you enjoy shooting, then the specialized glass (if you need it) becomes important. It also makes a fantastic everyday walkaround lens.
>> Anonymous
I own that lens and think its a wonder item for my collection. It is a great all around lens when you go to Disneyland, to the park, parade, vacation ect. But if you shoot something specific, you should haul around all your gear for that.

This lens is great for day stuff.. evening sets in and you will get blurry pictures, even at iso 800-1600. set it at f8 and you will get some awesome clear beautiful pictures. If you are an amature, take Rockwell's advice and get it and don't look back. If you are somewhat pro and doing shoots or sports, you need something faster with f/2.8.

I would suggest some lenses for you, even 3rd party, but i dont know what you are shooting.

You can always go to fredmiranda.com/reviews. This section is awesome. Great reviews from people who actually bought the lenses and tried them out.

Good luck, and in my opinion, the 18-200 is a must. VR included, and if you ever upgrade to d300, the high iso will make it fast!
>> Anonymous
I'm sorry but using that lens with a D300 makes the baby Jesus cry.
>> Liquefied !!CF1+3tSFCce
>>96896
Use it on your D300 to take pictures at Disneyland.
>> Jesus
>>96899

;_;
>> Anonymous
>>96896
lol! yes, it will do that, and i will certainly post some pics for my fellow /p/ gents when my d300 comes in next week.

>>96884
This is true, buy this lens, shoot with it for a few months, after you feel you need something else, get all your pictures, put them in adobe bridge, or aperture, or lightroom, and look at the focal lengths you used mostly.

50mm, is considered normal, anything below is wide and above is telescopic. If you find yourself shooting lower more, get the 17-55, anything above get the 70-200, both are 2.8 and amazing but will cost you more than a grand.

Good luck!
>> Anonymous
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guess what lens i put on my camera just for shits and giggles! its really shitty outside right now though :(

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeNIKON CORPORATIONCamera ModelNIKON D300Camera SoftwareAdobe Photoshop CS3 WindowsMaximum Lens Aperturef/3.7Sensing MethodOne-Chip Color AreaColor Filter Array Pattern750Focal Length (35mm Equiv)36 mmImage-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution240 dpiVertical Resolution240 dpiImage Created2007:12:02 16:43:23Exposure Time1/80 secF-Numberf/3.8Exposure ProgramAperture PriorityISO Speed Rating800Lens Aperturef/3.8Exposure Bias0 EVMetering ModePatternLight SourceUnknownFlashNo FlashFocal Length24.00 mmColor Space InformationUncalibratedImage Width1072Image Height712RenderingNormalExposure ModeAutoWhite BalanceAutoScene Capture TypeStandardGain ControlLow Gain UpContrastNormalSaturationNormalSharpnessNormalSubject Distance RangeUnknown
>> Anonymous
>>96903
I hayte u! lol, looks fkn awesome, even in shitty fog overcast.

Go take moar! I want my d300! Anyone interested in buying my d200? = ]
>> Anonymous
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>>96905
i found my dad's old 35-105mm micro earlier today. when you put it into macro mode, it cant change focus anymore so focusing = moving the camera back and forth until its in focus.

anyway, 100% crop, SB800 remote triggered from the side.

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeNIKON CORPORATIONCamera ModelNIKON D300Camera SoftwareAdobe Photoshop CS3 WindowsMaximum Lens Aperturef/4.6Sensing MethodOne-Chip Color AreaColor Filter Array Pattern750Focal Length (35mm Equiv)157 mmImage-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution240 dpiVertical Resolution240 dpiImage Created2007:12:02 16:15:13Exposure Time1/60 secF-Numberf/10.0Exposure ProgramAperture PriorityISO Speed Rating200Lens Aperturef/10.0Exposure Bias0 EVMetering ModePatternLight SourceUnknownFlashFlash, Compulsory, Return Not DetectedFocal Length105.00 mmColor Space InformationUncalibratedImage Width1072Image Height712RenderingNormalExposure ModeAutoWhite BalanceAutoScene Capture TypeStandardGain ControlNoneContrastNormalSaturationNormalSharpnessNormalSubject Distance RangeUnknown
>> Anonymous !MjcMqTX/iM
>>96911
You focus using the zoom on the lens.
>> Anonymous
>>96911
ok you have a d300 and using your dads old lenses to take pictures of horrible flies.... eww, nvm, dont post moar. in fact, send that d300 my way and please put it out of its misery by taking it out of your hands.
>> Anonymous
>>96912
im assuming you mean the focus ring, but that doesnt really help with this lens. i dunno if its not working properly or what, but turning the focus ring from one end to the other didn't do anything when it was put to macro mode.
>> Ken Rockwell
I highly recommend this lens. It is great for everything, no exceptions. The D40 and 18-200 is all anyone needs. Of course, some find that other lenses are better for shooting test charts, but the best way to get a picture of a test chart is a scanner, not a camera.
>> Anonymous
>>96915
but its fun to use a lens ive never used before to see what it can do. its dark now though, so ill have to wait another day to go out :(
>> Anonymous
>>96915
btw, if you look back in the other pages of /p/ i was the one who took pictures of my pizza! ive been waiting for days to be able to go out and use the damn camera but all ive been able to do is calibrate my lenses and sit around waiting. i dont care if its raining or cold or both, just as long as the sky doesnt make everything look like shit :(
>> BlackAdder !!bSWRwu/NqzQ
>>96927

A bright but overcast day can be good for some shots. Depends on what you're after.
>> Anonymous
>>96930
yeah it could be, but the picture above of my street is the brightest its been all day.
>> Anonymous
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at 200mm. raining even harder now. hopefully itll be nice tomorrow.

Camera-Specific Properties:Equipment MakeNIKON CORPORATIONCamera ModelNIKON D300Camera SoftwareAdobe Photoshop CS3 WindowsMaximum Lens Aperturef/5.7Sensing MethodOne-Chip Color AreaColor Filter Array Pattern750Focal Length (35mm Equiv)300 mmImage-Specific Properties:Image OrientationTop, Left-HandHorizontal Resolution240 dpiVertical Resolution240 dpiImage Created2007:12:02 17:41:46Exposure Time1/2 secF-Numberf/5.6Exposure ProgramAperture PriorityISO Speed Rating800Lens Aperturef/5.6Exposure Bias1 EVMetering ModePatternLight SourceUnknownFlashNo FlashFocal Length200.00 mmColor Space InformationUncalibratedImage Width1072Image Height712RenderingNormalExposure ModeAutoWhite BalanceAutoScene Capture TypeStandardGain ControlLow Gain UpContrastNormalSaturationNormalSharpnessNormalSubject Distance RangeUnknown
>> Jeremo !iKGMr61IHM
I was so happy when i bought my 18-200mm, i treated it like my a child. 8 months later, i was even more happy to be finally rid of it.

This is the single most over rated lens in Nikkor's collection, mainly thanks due to that Boofhead Ken Rockwell. The guy never really knows what he's talking about.

Good points:

- I did get a great amount of images of out it, mostly shot at f/5.6 - f/8... any faster has the tendency to get a shit load of purple fringing. But that may also have been the fact that my UV filter exacerbated it.

- It's light

- The VR does work really well when you need it to

- The focal range is convenient

- The mount actually has a rubber seal for weather sealing with the D200. I've had a drunk cunt at a pub spill a drink on the lens but it was okay, i just had to wipe it off.

Now the the things i hated it about it...

-Distortion

Boys does this lens have it. At the wide end it's really noticebale when straight lines become arcs. At the long end pin cushioning is noticeable too, all can be fixed in PP however.

- It's slow, the VR is good, but it won't replace fast glass, not having more DoF control is something i'm not a fan of.

- Lens creep. Probably the most annoying thing about this lens.

- It's really soft wide open.

- Some models of this are un shootable beyond 120mm... by that i mean the lens optics doesn't focus properly and it appears as if it's not focused.

I thought it was just my copy, but it's happened to a few people on the interwebs.

I bought the lens mainly for the convenience. For since i mostly shoot wide and mid i got my self the 17-55mm instead and am debating whether to get a sigma 10-20 (currently i borrow a friend's 12-24mm nikkor).
>> Anonymous
>>96940
i agree with this. i havent gotten rid of mine yet, obviously, but it is a convenient lens when i dont feel like carrying a lot. in daylight when you can stop down, its really not that bad, and ive really enjoyed the contrast i get coming out of it. ive mostly been shooting with 2 primes though, so i dont really use this lens much other then when i do some simple photo work for a summer swim team. its really nice there because of the zoom range, its not all too heavy, and its always nice and bright out so i can stop down.
>> ????? !wAHA/GeRU.
>>96940
I agree with much of what's said here. For the first few months, zoom creep was not an issue since the zoom was tight. After a lot of use, the creep became annoying.

It is really soft wide open, as can be seen in>>96938
This is why I shot it at mostly f/8 or f/7.1.

My copy focused properly at all focal lengths, which made mine really nice to use. My 18-70 didn't focus as surely as my 18-200. Too bad the AF is busted now. I'm sending it in for repair, so I'm not sure if it will be the same as it was before.

I got a Tokina 17-50mm f/2.8, and despite the distortion and weight (a little too light), I like it. I can shoot it wide open without the softness of my 18-200. But I'm really yearning for the 70-200mm VR, since I miss the extra range.
>> Anonymous
>I was so happy when i bought my 18-200mm, i treated it like my a child. 8 months later, i was even more happy to be finally rid of it.

Is it bad this made me think of late-term abortion?
>> Anonyfag of Borneo !bHymOqU5YY
>>96903
>>96938
You're lucky. It has been raining for several days here. Also means I can't go out shooting (I suck indoors). Miss the blue sky.
>> Anonymous
>>97115
ive had the D300 for almost a week now, and not a single day has been remotely nice enough to go out shooting without everything coming back gray lol.
>> angrylittleboy !wrJcGUHncE
>>97115
SEasian weather generally sucks this time of the year
>> BlackAdder !!bSWRwu/NqzQ
I'd like to add my discontent at the weather also. It's no fun if its raining constantly.
>> Butterfly !xlgRMYva6s
I was shooting in downpours and 40mph winds this weekend, you lot are pathetic.
>> angrylittleboy !wrJcGUHncE
>>97188

We don't have a Sony :(
>> Butterfly !xlgRMYva6s
>>97190
The grip for my right hand is starting to come off already -___- sony haet rain.
>> BlackAdder !!bSWRwu/NqzQ
>>97188

There's no way I'm testing out equipment in a downpour that will fry it in five minutes. There's no weather sealing of any sort on the camera. I might risk it in a little spitting rain from time to time, but not when it's a full-on shower.
>> BlackAdder !!bSWRwu/NqzQ
>>97193

The grip is coming off? Do you mean part of the body or a rubber covering over part of the body? I'm not very familiar with Sony cameras.
>> Butterfly !xlgRMYva6s
>>97196
ill stick a picture (how i duno) of it when i get round to posting some surf pics.
>> OPFOR !8vKpfCqy8A
>>97188
>>I was shooting in downpours and 40mph winds this weekend, you lot are pathetic.

I am actually a broke wanker who can't afford to replace his camera at the moment due to stupidity.
>> Butterfly !xlgRMYva6s
>>97199
I cant afford to replace mine either but when im out shooting for someone I dont really have much choice.
>> BlackAdder !!bSWRwu/NqzQ
>>97201

I hope you're getting paid enough to cover that risk then. It'd be shitty if it died due to a shoot like that and you couldn't replace it.
>> Half-Eye !Ir.x8Zkt3c
Hey butterfly, about the headphones...drop me a line =)
>> Choamsky
I own one and I think it's fantasic. I shoot a lot of sports so unless I'm doing something on a large field like football or soccer, in which case I switch to my 400mm f/2.8, I use this lens. It's fantasic and sharp.

I must have gotten a good lens, i don't notice distortion and the focus and zoom are silent and fast.
>> Butterfly !xlgRMYva6s
Getting paid, no. I got free accomodation/transport and the oppertunity to do it so its not costing me anything either.

>>97228
I want a 400/2.8 quite badly... i hate you :P