Constant aperture VR zoom lense
- Thread starter macgregor
- Start date
Jason Allen
Well-known member
A lens with constant aperture + VR + wide angle is not a lens that exists in the Nikon lineup on DX.
If you can give up constant aperture, the 18-200VR, 18-105VR, and 16-85VR lenses are all very good. If you're concerned about exposure shift while zooming during video mode, simply set it to the narrowest open aperture before entering Liveview (i.e. on the 18-200 f/3.5-5.6 VR, set the lens aperture to f/5.6 before entering liveview and your exposure will hold constant throughout the zoom range)
If you can give up VR, the 17-55/2.8 is the best midrange lens available for DX cameras and it works GREAT on my new D7000. I don't find that VR makes a big difference in the midrange of focal lengths anyhow, so I'm very VERY happy with this lens's performance for stills AND video.
If you can give up constant aperture, the 18-200VR, 18-105VR, and 16-85VR lenses are all very good. If you're concerned about exposure shift while zooming during video mode, simply set it to the narrowest open aperture before entering Liveview (i.e. on the 18-200 f/3.5-5.6 VR, set the lens aperture to f/5.6 before entering liveview and your exposure will hold constant throughout the zoom range)
If you can give up VR, the 17-55/2.8 is the best midrange lens available for DX cameras and it works GREAT on my new D7000. I don't find that VR makes a big difference in the midrange of focal lengths anyhow, so I'm very VERY happy with this lens's performance for stills AND video.
macgregor
Veteran
This is not really happening with the 18-105.
Jason Allen
Well-known member
Did a little tinkering here on my end with my dad's 18-200 last night... scratch that part about variable aperture lenses.
When setting the aperture to f/5.6 at 200mm, the aperture blades were open, but when zooming out to 18mm, the aperture blades didn't close to compensate. So, yeah... you'll need 3rd party glass if you want a midrange constant aperture zoom with VR.
The Tamron 17-50/2.8 is a great bargain at $250-300ish used, and there is a newer version available with vibration reduction. Compared to the Nikon 17-55/2.8 AFS that I currently own, the older Tamron 17-50/2.8 was almost as sharp, but significantly slower focusing; the Tamron is built with more plastic, and has a telescoping lens barrel, so I wouldn't classify it as a "built tough" lens, but I used it for a long time shooting weddings on my D90, D300, and D2H bodies. I've heard that focus speed has improved on the newer 17-50/2.8 Tamron with stabilization, but I'd expect the Nikon to still be faster focusing.
When setting the aperture to f/5.6 at 200mm, the aperture blades were open, but when zooming out to 18mm, the aperture blades didn't close to compensate. So, yeah... you'll need 3rd party glass if you want a midrange constant aperture zoom with VR.
The Tamron 17-50/2.8 is a great bargain at $250-300ish used, and there is a newer version available with vibration reduction. Compared to the Nikon 17-55/2.8 AFS that I currently own, the older Tamron 17-50/2.8 was almost as sharp, but significantly slower focusing; the Tamron is built with more plastic, and has a telescoping lens barrel, so I wouldn't classify it as a "built tough" lens, but I used it for a long time shooting weddings on my D90, D300, and D2H bodies. I've heard that focus speed has improved on the newer 17-50/2.8 Tamron with stabilization, but I'd expect the Nikon to still be faster focusing.