Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR DX

Camera: Nikon D80      

Lens: Nikon 100mm f/2.8 Series E

Focal Length: 100mm

Shutter: 1/50

Aperture: f/8

ISO: 100

Flash: SB-600

View my Gallery of photos taken with the Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR DX.

In the short time I have used the Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR, it has become my favorite DX lens.  It is light, gets fairly wide, and has VR so I can shoot hand held very slow.  At 18mm I have successfully shot this lens hand held at 1 second.  This is an AF-S lens so it will auto-focus on every Nikon auto-focus camera.  Being that it is DX it will not produce a full image circle on FX or film.  It is also a G lens which means no aperture ring, so cameras with no electronic aperture control cannot use this lens in "A" or "M" modes, but since all DX cameras have aperture control, this shouldn't be a problem.

Camera: Nikon D80      

Lens: Nikon 100mm f/2.8 Series E

Focal Length: 100mm

Shutter: 1/50

Aperture: f/8

ISO: 100

Flash: SB-600

This lens is all plastic including the mount, so it is a lightweight.  The lens is shortest at about 30mm and focused to infinity.  The front element rotates with focusing and the lens gets longer as you get wider or longer than 30mm.  This lens does require a switch to be moved to go from auto-focus to manual-focus.  So far I have only used it in manual-focus for close-ups.  The manual-focus ring is really just a small line of knurls on the front element, but it is so easy and smooth it isn't a big deal.  What is a big deal is that the throw from closest to furthest focus is not much, only about 90 degrees.  I'm not sure if I'll manual focus much beyond focusing for closest focus.

Camera: Nikon D80      

Lens: Nikon 100mm f/2.8 Series E

Focal Length: 100mm

Shutter: 1/50

Aperture: f/8

ISO: 100

Flash: SB-600

In my current arsenal this lens spends the most time on the camera, it is just perfect for low light and hand held.  I love wide angles so I wish it was 14-16mm on the wide end but that would make it much more expensive as well so 18mm is probably a good compromise.

SPECS:

• Focal Length: 18-55mm
• Aperture (18mm): f/3.5 - f/22, 7 blades
• Aperture (55mm): f/5.6 - f/36, 7 blades
• Close Focus: 6"
• Lens Type: AF-S
• Filter Size: 52mm
• Weight: 9.4oz (265g)

Here are some test images for comparison.  This is the overall image and is shot at the closest focus distance, so only about 7 inches or so from the target.

Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 G VR
Focal Length: 55mm
Shutter: 2.2 seconds
Aperture: f/8
ISO: 100
Flash: None

I don't see any discernible distortion in this shot.  Everything looks straight.

The next image is the very center at full resolution.

Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-.6 G VR
Focal Length: 55mm
Shutter: 2.2 seconds
Aperture: f/8
ISO: 100
Flash: None

I am going to do some re-shoots, but all of my images shot at my "target" appear just a little soft.  This is the case even though the focus confirmation was lit.  Even though it is soft, it is nothing to worry about for most images and I don't let it bother me.

And this final image is from the left corner at full resolution.

Camera: Nikon D80
Lens: Nikon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 G VR
Focal Length: 55mm
Shutter: 2.2 seconds
Aperture: f/8
ISO: 100
Flash: None

A little softer still at the edge.  For most images it is a non issue.  If I want to make a large 50" print I'd see it, but I don't view 50" prints from closer than 6-7 feet, so it wouldn't be noticeable at that distance.

In the end I'd freely recommend this lens.  It is a lightweight go anywhere lens that can shoot most everything I shoot.  I've shot landscapes as well as waist-up portraits with it.  And hand held with VR it is a joy.  Most of the time you can get it kitted with a camera, so that makes it really cheap.  Are you a beginner?  If yes, just use this lens until you outgrow it.  I know that is hard to do, we all want new toys, but you'll progress faster just learning this lens and everything you can do with it first.

View my Gallery of photos taken with the Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR DX.