Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G VR IF-ED Lens

I bought the lens mainly to use the vibration reduction function for hand-held indoor shooting without a flash, rather than for long telephoto. It's very effective for this, particularly for architecture - the VR allows comparatively long exposures, so the shots tend to be beautifully lit, without the artificial feel of HDR post-processing. The controls (zoom and focus) are well placed, and the autofocus works fast and accurately. The resulting shots are sharp even in the few long telephoto shots that I've made.

There are four minor disadvantages. Firstly, it's a fairly large lens, and it does make the camera awkward to carry, which matters more than for most lenses because this is a "holiday lens" - i.e. a general purpose lens you're going to leave on all the time and carry everywhere. Secondly, there is no brake on the telephoto, so will slide out too its full length under its own weight if you walk vigourously. Thirdly, the lens will cast a shadow with the built-in flash on my D40X, even at the wide (short) end of its travel. Not a big deal as you can crop the bottom of the photo, but you need to bear it in mind when framing the shot. Fourthly, there is a fair amount of barrel distortion at the wide end. it's not prominent unless you photography something with parallel lines, but if you do, it's conspicuous (I sometimes photograph the signs at places I visit as a note to myself, and this shows up the problem). It is possible to find software to correct the image, and it only matters on the few shots where the effect is visible.

All in all, it's a great lens for what I do and I'm pleased I bought it, but you would need to be sure that you need that much zoom or the VR function to make it worthwhile for you as it's necessarily a fair wad of cash.

This is a incredibly useful lens - 18-200mm is a big range and you need never take this lens off your camera if you're a DSLR happy snapper. First thing to remember is that this range brings with it optical compromise - see the detailed technical reviews at places like Photozone.de. This is not the most awe inspiringly sharp lens around, you simply don't get pro sharpness and speed for a lens of this price and optical range. That said, if you're an amateur shooting friends and family then you won't even notice. If your more serious about your photography you will understand the lens's capabilities and limitations and take them into account, thus getting the very best out of this lens - when it's good, it's very good indeed. 18-200mm does suffer from zoom creep - leave it dangling around your neck and the barrel will slowly zoom out and it won't be on the setting you left it on ten minutes ago. Once again, if you can't make allowance for that in how you work, then by all means splash out the extra thousand pounds for a Nikon pro spec lens - otherwise, remember to check! The VR does work well, but remember, you're only increasing the statistical chance of a shot coming out well when you're hand holding at ridiculously slow shutter speeds. Shutter speed = focal length is the rule of thumb, and even with the good VR on this lens, you canna deny the laws of physics. Overall, this lens is an amateur's dream but if you aim on making money out of your photography, you'll need to be spending more on your kit.

This is a beautiful piece of kit. Clearly solid and well built but without being over heavy. It's quite bright at large apertures but the Ver II image stabilization makes it a good performer at low apertures too and you shouldn't have any trouble down to 1/60secs.

Stacking too many filters may be a problem as there is some vignetting with a skylight (lens protector) and a polarizer, for instance, so its best to use one only at a time.

Otherwise very pleased and if one can get from a reliable eBayer you might save ove £100 on the best UK retail price. Beware eBayers stating they ship from UK (eg Luxurycorner) as one can often be caught out (as I was) with USA sourced lens and be hit for duty, etc!!!

bourght one of these from Kerso a long while back,,, nearly a year on its functioning just great! the VR function has proved a god send especially in all types of low light, anything down to 1/10th second has come out sharp.

the range of 18-200 mm means that you never really need to take then lens off the camera! (or at least i dont) saves a lot of sensor cleaning.

and it saves a lot of room in your camera bag!

only downfall with such a long lens is the wieght of the glass! this in some rare ocations casues the lense to extend through the weight,, usually when you have the lense vertically facing down.

but other then that its 99% recormended!

I bought the 18-200 VR to replace and extend the coverage I had with the 18-135 lens that came with my D80.
I had heard good things about VR, but to be honest had taken most of the comments and reports with a pinch of salt.
I now take that all back, it's all true! VR is truly stunning. I have taken hand-held shots at 200mm with 1/8 second shutter!
I had heard the VR will drain the battery quicker, but so far I haven't noticed much difference.
Only downside compared to the 18-135, the weight. Initially the D80 was noticeably heavier with the 18-200 VR. However I quickly got used to it and the extra zoom length and the VR function are worth it.

I was looking for a 'general purpose' lens and this is it!
Owning any SLR, dirt on the sensor is always going to be a problem so it was worth paying a bit more for an all-in-one lens. Have you ever priced how much it is to get the sensor professionally cleaned?!
Add to the fact I don't need to swap lenses constantly now and the value of this lens is remarkable. All I need now is a 300 or 400 zoom, a super wide and I'm complete. For general use, holidays, days out this is really the only lens you will need.
I'm very impressed with the speed of focus and how well the VR works. Have taken some great night shots hand held! Very quiet lens to use too, I hate noise and those zwee/zwee sounds of noisey lenses as they focus really irritate me. Not a problem with this one.
There is slight barreling/pin cushioning at full wide/telephoto buy easily fixed in photo editing programs and only obvious against straight lines (door frames, etc) toward the edge of the lens.
I am very impressed with the quality of this lens - it really does make my Nikon feel more 'professional'. And is a complete lens package in one.
I'm very happy with mine, if it got stolen/lost/broken? Within a few days I'd have another one - need I say more?

Am on a trip to SA in a short while, will write more when I get back.
Have a couple Hoya filters for it to so looking forward to some great photo's.

More soon...

Everything you've read and heard is true.

A very versatile lens which performs well at wide-angle,at zoom and everywhere inbetween.

Performance in low-light is exceptional due to VR capability.

Well worth buying when compared with the cost and inconvenience of using 2 lenses (18-55 and 55-200).

If you want to put a quality lens onto your camera & leave it there - this one might be for you. Quality and sharpness is as you would expect from Nikon & the VR function has to be experienced to understand how good it is. Recently returned from a holiday in Italy and this lens excelled in all areas - from wide angled landscapes through to zooming detail on buildings. The VR function allowed hand held pictures in fairly dimly lit churches down to 1/30th with great results. If I had to try to fault the lens the only bit I'd improve would be the slight falling off of sharpness at 200mm - but that would be it.
Tip top optic !!

Great lens when it works. Mine unfortunately died on me when looking at the Nile flowing over a magnificent waterfall in Ethiopia. The focus wasn't working properly, nor the full range of the telephoto. Needed to be tweaked constantly to take a photo at all.

Have tried to get it repaired twice through Jessop's, but repair has failed both times. Had to buy a new one in the end. So after 1.5 years, it was not fit for purpose. I hope the new one lasts longer

A great all rounder which produces very respectable results on my Nikon D200. OK, it may not be as good as individual prime lenses, but how many would you have to carry to cover the same range? One of the complaints I have heard about this lens is its tendency to creep when pointing downwards when carried but my example certainly doesn't do this although it is still new! All in all an excellent piece of kit which certainly meets my requirements for an everyday lens.

This lens was far better than I expected. I already bought a normal lens that pretty much covered my everyday use. Still I couldn't get this 18-200 mm out of my head, read all the reviews and decided to try it out. It's range covers everything a semi-pro or even a real pro needs on a daily basis. Even a lazy photographer can get excellent results with this allround lens. Shooting pictures away from the center of attention where it looks like you're out of range. Many photographers wish they could be that discrete and not look like a papparazzi. The lens itself is light, sharp and fast. The VR system compensates for the f3.5 aperture. It replaces all the other ones I used to carry around. That was definetly the pros, now to the cons...
The only bad thing I can think of is that it feels a bit low budget in weight and appearance but don't judge a book by it's cover.
As for the performance: it's GREAT!

Awsome lens took about 100 pics with it now lots between 100-200mm and i not had any bluury pics yet this is ace. a must for any nikon dslr owner on a budget.

Delivery of item was spot on and although I thought that it would take longer it was really a surprise to receive it so early.
Thanks

It would depend what level you are: amatuer/ pro. If you are like me a keen amatuer photographer, then this lens is for you. I already have a nikon 50mm F1.4 portrait lens which has its place in some sensational pictures. The18-200mm is a great lens, it is very quick on focusing on close up and subjects further away. I have just bought this from a really good ebayer, after intial tests, I would recommend it if you are lookin for a coverage of most situations, it saves on changing lenses.

This lens is a great "allrounder". Perfect for a holliday as the "only lens" Image stabilisation (VR) os also a greal function. Good value for money.

The lens is great. I decided to buy it since with this lens I now have a great camera which takes excellent photos. It offers special features which make y Nikon D60 complete!

I like the general-purpose of this product,
but the f value could be lower close to the 200mm.

If you need an easy and cheap kit lens it is the best.

Great Lens Have taken some wonderfull wildlife shots with it. Does everything I expected it would do.The VR is great for an oldy like me.

My first experience of a VR lens. First class results, much better than my old Nikon zoom to 200mm. Happy to use E Bay again

I bought this 18-200 VR Lens in dec 2008, the description was 100% and the condition and working order is great! The lens covers every range i need in a camera, Very pleased.

This lens is brilliant, if you just want to go out and not take you bag full of different lenses this is the lens you want, it's really crisp, components on it work really well and the price is great.
The sending on the lens was very good i had it within a few days of ordering it from the U.S.A it was brilliant service, thanks guys/girls.

BUY IT

I have waitied the best part of three years to get my hands on this lens.

First it was in so much demand it was on backorder everywhere. Then those that did filter through were being sold at a premium with typically a 25% mark -up on RRP. Others just gouged from there!

Now it's readily available, and, more importantly, discounted in many places, this was my chance.

It's a heavy lens, if you're going to be toting it round all day, make sure you have a camera bag with you to take the occasional break.

The first couple of hundred shots since it arrived yesterday have confirmed what all the reviews have been saying. Excellent optics, smooth action, superb VR and most of all excellent image quality in all light levels and across the aperture range. very minimal lens distortion anywhere in the range too.

If you too are thinking about this lens for a DX format camera, JFDI!!! You won't regret it.

Seems to be the must have for the D80 or upwards ,I own a D300 and apart from the obvious lense travel problem it does work a treat.