Af-s Dx Nikkor 18-105mm F/35-56g Ed Vr Review
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Nikon 18-105mm VR DX
Nikon 18-105mm f/3.5-v.6 VR DX (67mm filters, 14.8 oz./420g, i.v'/0.45m close focus, about $397). bigger. I'd go mine at Adorama , at Amazon or at B&H.
This advertizement-complimentary website's biggest source of support is when y'all use those or whatsoever of these links to my personally-approved sources when you become annihilation, regardless of the country in which yous live. Nikon does not seal its boxes in whatsoever way, so never buy at retail or any other source non on my personally canonical list since you'll take no way of knowing if you're missing accessories, getting a defective, damaged, returned, not-USA, store demo or used lens. Get yours only from the approved sources I use myself for the best prices, service, render policies and selection. Thank you for helping me aid you lot! Ken.
March 2018 Nikon Reviews Nikon Lenses Nikon Flash All Reviews
Ideal Uses: Full general-purpose plastic zoom for utilise on DX digital cameras.
Non for: Film or FX cameras.
Introduction top
Intro Specs Functioning Recommendations
Compatibility History
The plastic-mount 18-105mm VR is a decent enough general-purpose lens for people who are in the price range of the D90 with which it is kitted, but for $400 ($300 in a kit with the D90), I'd rather purchase something else.
The photos are nice and sharp well-nigh of the time, merely if you're looking closely, the 18-105mm is Nikon's fuzziest lens in the corners at 18mm. Even the $100 xviii-55mm is better.
For $400, you could buy either of the fantabulous 18-55mm kit lenses which are sharper at 18mm (VR or non-VR, your choice), and with the money left over, buy the professional person 50mm f/ane.4 AF-D or 50mm f/1.viii AF-D for use in depression light, all for the same price or less than the 18-105mm.
For not much more, I could get the superior metal-mount sixteen-85mm VR or 18-200mm VR instead, either of which is also superior to the eighteen-105mm.
The only DX midrange zoom I similar less than this eighteen-105mm is the non-VR eighteen-135mm, which is also overpriced.
Nikon 18-105mm. enlarge.
Compatibility back to intro back to top
Everything works perfectly on every DX digital Nikon.
Forget it for film, considering you lot'll become blackness corners, and information technology's light-headed to apply information technology on an FX camera considering you'll but exist using the heart of your very expensive sensor.
See Nikon Lens Compatibility for details with your camera. Read down the "AF-Due south, AF-I," "G" and "VR" columns for this lens. You'll get the least of all the features displayed in all columns, since "Yard" (gelding) is a handicap which removes features.
DX Lens History back to intro back to top
2003: The first DX lens is the 12-24mm, followed by the ten.5mm fisheye and 17-55mm f/2.8. None of these has VR.
2004: eighteen-70mm f/3.5-4.5, metal mount. It has no VR.
2005 April: 18-55mm f/three.5-five.6, and 55-200mm f/4-5.six. Both are plastic mount and take no VR. The 18-55 doesn't need VR, but telephotos often do.
2005 November: eighteen-200mm f/three.5-v.half-dozen VR, metal mount.
2006: 18-135mm f/3.five-5.half dozen, plastic mount. It needs VR but doesn't have it.
2007: 18-55mm f/3.5-five.six VR, and 55-200mm VR, both in plastic mount.
2008 Jan: 16-85mm f/3.5-v.vi VR, metal mount.
2008 August: This 18-105mm VR, plastic mount, is announced.
All are withal in production equally of September 2008
Nikon 18-55mm 2, this eighteen-105mm VR and 18-200mm VR. enlarge.
Specifications pinnacle
Intro Specs Performance Recommendations
Gobbledygook, Nikon eighteen-105mm DX VR.
Proper noun
Nikon calls this the Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR eighteen-105mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR.
AF-South and SWM: Silent Moving ridge (focus) Motor.
DX: Corners black-out on motion-picture show or FX cameras.
Thousand: Gelded for toll-reduction and removing compatibility with older cameras.
ED: ED Glass.
IF: Internal Focusing. Nothing moves externally when it focuses.
VR: Vibration Reduction.
Optics
15 elements in xi groups.
Ane is of ED glass, another is aspherical.
It's multicoated, which Nikon calls Super Integrated Coating (SIC).
Focal Length
18-105mm, which on a DX camera gives angles of view similar to what a 28-150mm lens gives when used on an FX or 35mm camera.
Close Focus
1.5 anxiety (0.45m).
Maximum Reproduction Ratio
1:5.
Hard Infinity Focus Terminate
No.
Focus Scale
No.
Depth-of-Field Scale
No.
Infra-Red Focus Alphabetize
No.
Diaphragm
7 rounded blades.
Stops downwardly to f/22 at 18mm and f/38 at 105mm.
Aperture Ring
No.
Tripod Collar
No.
Filter Thread
67mm, plastic. Does not rotate.
Size
3.five" (89mm) extension from flange by 3.0" (76mm) diameter.
Weight
Nikon specifies 14.viii oz. (420g).
Hood
HB-32 plastic bayonet, included (at to the lowest degree in Japan).
Example
CL-1018 pouch, included.
Introduced
27 August 2008, along with the D90.
Aircraft Since
Mid-September, 2008 (USA).
Price
March 2018: $397, USA.
2008: $399, Us; 249€ Europe. ($300 equally a kit with the D90).
Operation top
Intro Specs Operation Recommendations
Overall Focus Distortion Ergonomics Falloff Filters
Lateral Color Fringes Macro Maximum Discontinuity
Mechanics Sharpness VR Zooming
Overall back to Performance back to top
The 18-105 VR works as expected, but it's soft in the corners at 18mm if yous're looking.
If you're a serious lensman who worries nigh corner sharpness for landscapes, laissez passer on the eighteen-105mm. Virtually people would never detect.
Focus dorsum to Performance back to top
Nikon 18 105 controls. overstate.
Auto Focus
AF isn't that fast. It's not a speed demon like the pro AF-S lenses.
Manual Focus
Manual focus is easy: just grab the focus ring at any time. Y'all don't need to have the A-M switch out of Machine.
Distortion dorsum to performance back to tiptop
The xviii-105 has the usual circuitous barrel distortion at 18mm, and pincushion distortion throughout most of the rest of the range, of modernistic broad-ratio zooms.
Distortion at 18mm (DX camera).
Distortion at 50mm (DX camera).
This can be corrected for disquisitional utilise by plugging these figures into Photoshop CS2's lens baloney filter. These aren't facts or specifications, they are the results of my research that requires hours of photography and calculations on the resulting data.
| On DX | Visible Effects | Correction factor |
| 18mm | strong butt (bulging) | +4.0* |
| 21mm | neutral simply wavy | 0.0* |
| 24mm | pincushion | -2.2 |
| 35mm | strong pincushion (sucking) | -iii.five |
| 50mm | strong pincushion (sucking) | -four.0 |
| 105mm | strong pincushion (sucking) | -3.0 |
© 2008 KenRockwell.com. All rights reserved.
*Waviness remains
Ergonomics (handling and ease-of-use) dorsum to performance dorsum to summit
The ergonomics are great. Nothing gets in the style of not bad pictures.
Focus is like shooting fish in a barrel to override, and the zoom range is well spread out.
Your hands will naturally fall on the zoom ring, and not hands hit the focus ring by accident every bit is a trouble with the $1,600 24-70mm f/two.viii.
Falloff (darkened corners) back to performance back to superlative
Falloff on DX isn't a trouble.
I've exaggerated this by shooting a grayness field and placing these on a gray background.
Nikon xviii-105mm falloff on DX at infinity.
| Broad Open | f/5.6 | f/viii | |
| 18mm |  |  |  |
| 24mm |  |  |  |
| 50mm |  |  |  |
| 105mm |  | |  |
© 2008 KenRockwell.com. All rights reserved.
Filters, Employ with dorsum to Performance back to top
I see no problems with vignetting with standard, or even thick filters. I wouldn't spend more than mooney on thin-mount filters, unless you're going to stack them.
The filter band does not rotate.
Lateral Color Fringes back to Performance back to top
At that place are no lateral color fringes when shot on the D90, which would correct them if there were there.
Macro back to Functioning back to top
Macro is fine, letting you lot make full the DX frame with objects as small equally about three x four.6" (8 x 12cm).
Maximum and Minimum Apertures Performance top
| Maximum | Minimum | |
| 18mm | f/three.5 | f/22 |
| 24mm | f/4 | f/25 |
| 35mm | f/4.five | f/29 |
| 50mm | f/v | f/32 |
| 70mm | f/5.3 | f/36 |
| 105mm | f/5.6 | f/36 |
Mechanics back to Operation dorsum to top
Nikon 18-105 and plastic mount. overstate.
Barrel Exterior
Plastic.
Filter Threads
Plastic.
Hood
Plastic bayonet.
Focus Ring
Semi-rubbery, semi-hard plastic.
Zoom Ring
Plastic, rubber covered.
Depth-of-Field Scale
None.
Discontinuity Ring
None.
Mountain
Plastic.
Markings
Paint.
Identity Plate
Embossed and planed metallic.
Weaknesses
Watch the plastic lens mount; avoid picking up a camera past grabbing the lens since information technology could interruption off!
Sharpness back to Operation back to peak
Warning 1: Prototype sharpness depends more on y'all than your lens.
Warning two: Lens sharpness doesn't hateful much to skilful photographers.
With those caveats, the 18-105 is probably the softest DX lens I've used in the corners at 18mm.
Otherwise, information technology'southward sharp all over, and then simply don't wait closely in the corners at 18mm and it looks not bad.
At 18mm
Information technology'south smeared in the corners wide-open, and doesn't become much better stopped down to reasonable apertures. My sample was worse on one side, but non by much.
At 24mm
It's a bit softer, merely not smeared, in the far corners broad open. It gets meliorate stopped down. My sample was a niggling softer on 1 side.
At 50mm
Information technology's sharp all over at all apertures.
At 105mm
It's precipitous all over at all apertures.
At small apertures like f/16 and smaller, diffraction limits performance.
VR Measurements back to operation dorsum to superlative
VR (vibration reduction for manus-holding in the dark) is not very adept. It only offers one or ii stops of existent improvement.
By "sharp shots" I mean perfect tripod-equivalent sharpness when viewed at 100%, every bit shot on a D90 by me. For nearly uses, ane can use much slower speeds. See Why VR Matters for more than.
VR OFF
| % Sharp Shots | 1 | 1/2 | 1/4 | 1/8 | 1/15 | 1/30 | 1/lx | ane/125 | one/250 |
| 18mm | 0 | 0 | 17 | 66 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| 35mm | 0 | 0 | 5 | 16 | lx | 70 | 90 | 100 | 100 |
| 105mm | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 16 | fifty | 100 | 100 |
VR ON
| % Sharp Shots | 1 | 1/ii | 1/iv | 1/8 | 1/fifteen | 1/30 | 1/60 | 1/125 | i/250 |
| 18mm | 10 | 80 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| 35mm | 0 | 10 | 5 | 80 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| 105mm | 5 | 20 | 25 | 50 | 80 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
Lowest speeds for perfectly sharp shots 50% of the time
| VR OFF | VR ON | Existent Stops Improvement | Marketing Stops Improvement | |
| 18mm | 1/6 | one/3 | 1.0 | 2.half dozen |
| 35mm | 1/15 | 1/5 | ane.6 | two.8 |
| 105mm | 1/threescore | 1/15 | 2.0 | ii.viii |
"Real Stops" are how many extra stops I get over shooting without VR. "Marketing stops" is improvement over the old-wives' tale of 1/focal length every bit a lower speed limit.
Hint: VR improves your hit ratio. It doesn't guarantee that every shot volition be sharp. I always shoot at to the lowest degree 3-shot bursts at slow speeds so I tin pick the sharp shot out of several when shooting handheld at actually irksome speeds.
Zooming back to Performance back to top
Zooming is well spaced, with no part of the range being squashed as well close together every bit many other lenses like the quondam xviii-70mm do.
Nikon eighteen-105mm at 18mm.
Nikon xviii-105mm at 105mm.
Recommendations tiptop
Intro Specs Performance Recommendations
I'd pass on this eighteen-105mm lens. It's too expensive for what you lot get. $400 for a plastic mount lens? Not from my wallet, simply if you desire a light, exercise-about everything lens for a DX photographic camera and don't heed the cost, this could be your ticket.
I would forget the xviii-135mm since it lacks VR.
Personally I dearest the more expensive 18-200mm VR because information technology does but about everything. For merely about $250 more ($650 total), the 18-200mm VR could be the only lens you lot e'er demand.
I prefer both the 18-55mm and 18-55mm VR lenses, which are both sharper and a fraction of the price! I use them when I go along holiday and want light weight. In all honesty, I don't like long lenses. The all-time photos come up from getting close enough, not from throwing more money into a longer lens to shoot from farther away. Y'all can brand great portraits with these 18-55 lenses, and geesh, how many caput shots do you need anyhow? I usually shoot my people pictures at shorter zoom settings than 55mm anyway.
If yous insist on soft backgrounds for portraits, none of these zooms does a particularly spectacular job. If you're doing posed portraits, y'all could use an old transmission focus 135mm f/2.8 (about $150 used) or 80-200mm f/2.eight ($900 new) for far meliorate results. Encounter Portrait Lenses for more than ideas.
Don't forget the 50mm f/one.8 AF-D and 50mm f/1.4 AF-D, each pro lenses and each much less expensive than this zoom. Each will autofocus on every photographic camera except the D40, D40x and D60, for which you would demand the new 50mm AF-S instead.
Deployment
I'd leave either a 67mm Nikon Articulate (NC - UV) filter, or a 67mm Hoya Super HMC UV on the lens at all times. I would leave the hood at domicile.
If I was going to apply this as part of a larger pro arrangement, I'd adhere a 67->77mm stride-up-ring to convert this to today's pro standard of 77mm, and use a 77mm Nikon UV or Hoya UV filter for protection. This is what I really do; I just put on a step-up ring when I get a lens similar this and care for information technology as if information technology's a 77mm filter thread len as long equally I have it.
If you go the step-upwards road, don't forget a new Nikon 77mm cap.
If I was working in nasty, muddy areas, I'd forget the cap, and utilise an uncoated 67mm Tiffen UV filter instead (or in 77mm). Uncoated filters are much easier to clean, merely more prone to ghosting.
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