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Tag Archives: nikkor

Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR, AF-S DX review

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By Anthony Rampersad

I’m 28 and I live in Trinidad & Tobago. I’ve always been interested in photography but I guess its only recently that I’ve started taking my interest seriously. Somewhere in 2008 I shot my first “serious” picture and fell in love with both the process and results of the capture. I particularly enjoy nature and landscape photography and aspire to one day reach a pro-level skill even if its not accompanied by the pay.

Nikkor 18-55mm Overview

I’ve been using the 18-55mm near to 4 months now. I bought it with the aim of using the wider end of its focal length to practice my landscape shots. It’s actually a good performer and the pricing makes it a great value buy. I can see why many manufacturers choose to offer their DSLRs with the 18-55mm as a kit lens. It’s just very useful and applicable to most of your everyday shooting needs especially if you’re interested in those travel and vacation shots. I actually spent 5 nights in London taking shots with this lens (I simply do not understand how you people deal with that cold weather) and even without a tripod I was surprised at the quality of the shots. As with my previous review, all shots were taken with the Nikon D90 and I’ve arranged the review according to the below categories for easier reading:

Nikkor 18-55mm handling

I can’t say there’s anything particularly “wowing” about the handling and use of this lens except for the fact that its light, easy to carry, mount and dismount. And I certainly can’t fail to make note of the AF performance. Its quick, smooth and accurate making it almost second nature to operate. But, do try and get used to using the AF because the Manual Focus (MF) on this lens can be a bit annoying to use. Speaking strictly from experience and opinion there is much more to be desired of the MF. For a start, the very narrow focus ring is all the way out to the tip of the inner barrel. Now it may be that my fingertips were sorely numbed from the London cold but on too many occasions I found myself groping around the barrel to locate the ring in MF mode. I eventually decided to switch full-time to AF mode. The zoom ring at present feels like its lubricated with peanut butter (not the crunchy one though), just a bit sticky in places but Im assuming thats because it was still brand new. The VR is definitely one of the strong points of this lens. I managed to get night shots with speeds as slow as 1/10 sec (no tripod) that were still acceptably sharp (See sample shots).

Nikkor 18-55mm build quality

No major commendations or complaints here. Its all plastic, of course with the exception of the glass elements, and it has just that kind of feel, light and somewhat cheap. While the lens has no major weight to warrant an aluminium mount I still feel the need to be very cautious when attaching or detaching with the plastic mount. Still, it’s well put together and for the price one really couldn’t ask for more.

Nikkor 18-55mm image quality

This is where this lens makes up lost ground. It’s an excellent performer. Once you set your focus properly its sharp where it has to be and at its max aperture of f/3.5 produces nice shallow depth of field. In normal shooting situations (daylight to mid evening) the VR ensures that images are sharp and clean. The diaphragm blades on this lens are rounded so it produces a nice soft and rounded bokeh when it captures those highlights out of focus. Colour rendition is excellent. I just have to say I’m impressed. I expected a “kit lens” to be somewhat cheap and drab but the 18-55mm has certainly exceeded these expectations. I think most of my surprise had to do with the lens’ performance in night shots which is all I really had time for so far. I hope I’m equally pleased when I manage to get around to daytime shooting.

Pros

  • Superb image quality
  • Super-quick and sharp Autofocus
  • Excellent value pricing
  • No noticeable distortion
  • Good maximum aperture
  • Rounded diaphragm blades
  • Excellent VR (vibration reduction)

Cons

  • Sticky zoom ring (perhaps only when new)
  • Thin and awkwardly placed manual focus ring. Takes some time to get used to

8/10

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Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D AF review

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By Anthony Rampersad

I’m 28 and I live in Trinidad & Tobago. I’ve always been interested in photography but I guess its only recently that I’ve started taking my interest seriously. Somewhere in 2008 I shot my first “serious” picture and fell in love with both the process and results of the capture. I particularly enjoy nature and landscape photography and aspire to one day reach a pro-level skill even if its not accompanied by the pay.

Nikkor 50mm F1.8 overview

Where do I even begin with this lens? I bought it new with my Nikon D90 and have been using it for almost 7 months now. I bought is specifically to help develop my composition skills. Since it’s a fixed focal length (prime lens) you’re more or less forced to walk your way around your subject to get that frame just the way you want it. Of course it’s a 50mm lens but if you’re mounting this on a DX format camera (like the D90 for instance) it becomes a 75mm with the crop factor considered. I bought the 50mm as the first lens on my D90 this also being my first DSLR. At first I regretted my decision for not getting a zoom lens but realized afterwards that the 50mm was an excellent choice and combination with the D90. The lens is reviewed according to the below categories:

Nikkor 50mm F1.8 handling

It’s light, it’s really just light and easy to carry either on the camera body or as part of your gear package. The first time I attached the lens to the body of the camera I had a little difficulty, perhaps best attributed to unfamiliarity. But its a snap to snap on. The lens comes with an aperture ring but I don’t believe its functional or even necessary on DX cameras. In fact if you toggle it out of its widest aperture you can expect to get an error reading on your display. I absolutely love the smooth focusing action of the focus ring. It’s almost mercurial in both manual and auto focus modes. When switched on to AF, focusing is extremely quick. I was nothing short of impressed with the AF speed. My previous compact/bridge camera seemed Jurassic on a speed comparison and even my other lens the 55-200mm AF is a lot slower.

Nikkor 50mm F1.8 build quality

The 50mm certainly feels very compact for its price. For a $125 lens I’d almost expect to see rough flimsy plastic all the way around and the nauseating smell of cheap glue holding everything together. I was glad to see that it came with a metal attachment mount rather than the flimsy feeling plastic mount. It was mentioned in my D90 review that I dropped this camera with this lens attached. I guess I was thankful afterwards that I had the 50mm attached rather than my weightier zoom lens. No one likes to see a grown man cry.

Nikkor 50mm F1.8 image quality

Now it’s crunch time. How does the lens rank in terms of its image quality? At the risk of sounding like a converted Nikonite I cant resist saying that I love the image quality of the 50mm. The max aperture of f/1.8 is an excellent allowance for creatively blurred shots and quicker shutter speeds. At an amateur level I’ve shot my car, family, friends, flowers and everyday still life objects. It produces a crisp, clean super sharp shot with wonderful colour rendition and practically zero noticeable distortion. I’ve even managed to shoot some satisfactory close-ups with the addition of an Opteka closeup filter kit (52mm filter size). My very first shot with this lens was like bokeh love at first sight. I shot a blooming bougainvillea with the sunlight in the background at f/1.8 and the beautiful look of the bokeh produced by the peerings of sunlight through the leaves totally amazed me. It’s great for that and you wont be disappointed. I have to note though that on a few subsequent and similarly framed shots the bokeh appeared hexagonal (7 sides right?) in shape. One of the only shortfalls I guess with this lens is that the 7 diaphragm blades aren’t rounded so in some circumstances, expect the bokeh to look more mechanical than rounded and natural.

Nikkor 50mm F1.8 Pros

  • Superb image quality
  • Reliably built
  • Super-quick Autofocus
  • Fluid-smooth manual focusing
  • Excellent value pricing
  • No noticeable distortion
  • Wide maximum aperture. Allows for:
    • More creative shots from very shallow depth of field
    • Quicker shutter speeds

Nikkor 50mm F1.8 Cons

  • Diaphragm blades not rounded (sometimes jagged hexagonal bokeh)
  • No vibration reduction (although its necessity is debateable)

 

9.5/10

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Nikon / Nikkor AF 70-300mm review

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Don’t forget, you can also watch the Nikon AF 70-300mm video review.

Nikon produce two 70-300mm telephoto lenses. The cheaper standard version – which this review covers – and a more expensive version which has VR image stabilisation.

This lens weighs 480g which is pretty light compared some of the competing lenses at the same focal range. It is important to note that the magnification levels when using this lens will vary depending upon the size of the sensor within your digital camera. When using a cropped sensor digital camera such as the Nikon D80, the image will be cropped, making it look magnified unto 1.6 times the actual focal length you are using. So, for example, taking a photo at 300mm will in effect be 480mm. If, however, a full frame digital camera is used, such as the Nikon D3, the image captured will be the same as the focal length of the lens.

Nikon 70-300mm lens construction

It’s a very simple lens to use, with no switches or buttons to worry about. The MF/AF switch is found on the digital camera rather than on the lens. The barrel of the lens provides enough resistance when moving from 70mm all the way up to 300mm, without it being juddery. It does feel surprisingly light in your hands almost like a toy. When trying to auto focus, the lens is typically noisy – much like the Sigma and Tamron lenses – and takes a similar amount of time to focus in. There isn’t a specific macro function either with this lens, and the minimum focusing distance is 1.5m away.

Nikon 70-300mm image quality

Alternative lenses

The more expensive Nikon/Nikkor 70-300mm has VR (vibration reduction). This noticeably increases the price but affords the ability to take photos at slower shutter speeds. The direct competitors to this lens however would be the Sigma APO 70-300mm and the Tamron 70-300mm.

Overall

Considering the price of this lens, it is ideal if you want an introduction into telephoto photography without having to spend a lot of money. The Sigma and Tamron have the advantage of incorporating a macro function which is very useful. So, if you’re only concerned with telephoto photography, perhaps the Nikon 70-300mm would make more sense, however if you are interested in delving into the world of macro photography as well, then the Sigma APO 70-300mm would be more suitable.

Nikkor AF 70-300mm F4-5.6 (non VR) lens video review

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Don’t forget, you can also read the Nikon 70-300mm review and check out the cheapest Nikkor 70-300mm price.