Nikon 2191 AF-S NIKKOR 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR Lens

I must admit up-front that I am newly digital, so I may have my quirks and strong opinions being a very very late convert from manual SLR film cameras... I guess I always liked the medium and had real trouble letting go. The D800 I own is as good as any of my film kit though, no its better, and that was hard for me to acknowledge at first until I actually held it in my hands and shot with it. This little lens is the perfect partner for my medium format FX digital camera, so if you buy one lens let this one be it... Why? Because it offers unmatched versatility in focal length and portability without compromising as much as you might expect in the results, while saving you loads of money on building a collection of lenses that in my view don't justify the cost vs benefit factor... simply put you broadly covered with this lens, and its stunning quality: - Its surprisingly small and compact, it weighs only about 1kg and is solid and well built... ideal for event photography, or outdoors. - Excellent at low light, it really performs beyond my expectations, although the full frame format does help here. - Sharp throughout, and fast, excellent autofocus - 28-300, that's amazing versatility! Unmatched maybe, when you consider how short and compact a lens it is... This means it is the perfect lens for landscape and wedding photography, and also performs exceptionally at both ends of the range so I can't really fault it! - Some minor criticism I have read were unfounded in my view... Thinking theoretically about low light, speed and bokeh I also went and bought the AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.4G prime lens believing I wouldn't have this area covered properly... That 50mm prime is also a superb lens, its supposed to be unmatched in low light, however after using both these lenses in anger I am hard pressed for a real reason to switch lenses when shooting to my 50mm lens because the quality and speed of this lens is generally close enough to that one... On that note someone else also mentioned it doesn't achieve the desired bokeh, but I find the results actually very pleasing and comparable to using my 50mm prime when at full aperture in aperture priority mode, and you have the added benefit of a faster autofocus and VR... trust me its pretty good, so unless you the fussy type and nit pick about fractions and theoretical margins, you won't be disappointed. - Everyone has a preferred style of working, one thing I love about a lens like this is having the benefit of being able to adjust my focal length incrementally as I please, its not everyone's deal I know, but my experience with portraits is that especially between adults and children I do sometimes like some variation in focal length to get the most pleasing result I love this lens, what a bargain in my view!

I have two Nikon D7000 cameras, a Nikon 35mm F1.8 prime, a Nikon 50mm F1.8 prime and also the Nikon 18-200mm VR lens. After careful consideration, reading the reviews and looking at the images taken by others, I decided to buy the Nikon 28-300mm because I hope to upgrade at some point to a full frame camera like the Nikon D4 and this lens can be use on both full frame and DX models. The D7000 is a DX camera so with the crop factor the Nikon 28-300mm becomes efectively a zoom of 42-450mm (with reference to the 35mm film format). I have read some negative reviews regarding this lens with comments like, It's too big and heavy, lens creepage when tilted downwards, lens distortion at both ends of the zoom range and that the focus is soft. Ok let's take a look at these points of criticism:- Yes, if you are only use to the standard kit lens like the 18-55mm, then this lens will seem big and heavy to you, but remember this is a super zoom lens and it has a lot of glass in it to do what it does and although it is has a weight to it, I found it not to be so heavy as to be uncomfortable to use and on the D7000 I find the balance to be good overall. Another point to consider that you don't have to carry a load of other lenses with you to cover the range of zoom that this lens covers, so as a walk about lens this lens is great. What about lens creep? I have never experienced it myself on either the 28-300mm, or the 18-200mm, in any case Nikon now includes a zoom lock on the lens, so there should not be a problem when the lens pointing downwards in one's camera bag. What about lens distortion? If you have a Nikon D7000, there is an option in the camera's menu settings, switch the `Auto Distortion Control' to `ON' and the distortion is virtually eliminated. If your camera does not have this option you will see some barrel distortion and maximum zoom and pincushion distortion at the wide-angle setting, depending on the subject you are photographing. If it is objectionable one can always correct it in your photo editing software. Remember no zoom is perfect, top professional lenses are better and have less distortion, but they cost a whole lot more and their zoom range is far more limited. What about lens sharpness? The colour rendition and contrast of the 28-300mm (and 18-200mm) I find to be as good as my prime lenses, the prime lenses are a little sharper when stopped down, but the difference isn't that great in reality and if the image is found to be a little soft one can easily correct this with your photo editing software. People may comment that their prime lens is a lot sharper, but then their prime lens cannot zoom from 28-300mm can it now? A top professional lens will perform better if you can afford it, but their zoom range is a lot more limited and you will need two or more lenses to cover the zoom range that this lens covers. Overall, I find the lens sharpness to be good throughout the zoom range, both on the 28-300mm and the 18-200mm and when you consider the range of this zoom, I think Nikon have done a really good job and that why I give five stars in this review. One really big advantage with this super zoom is that one can go from wide to full zoom instantly and so never miss a shot. Another advantage is that you don't have to carry a bag full of lenses with you and because one is not changing lenses all the time, there is less risk of dust getting into your camera to contaminate you camera's sensor. What about Bokeh, those nice blurred backgrounds? Bokeh is limited due to the relatively small maximum aperture of this lens, if Bokeh is of critical importance, one could purchase a prime lens with a maximum aperture of F1.8 or better, or a zoom with a maximum aperture of F2.8, however such zooms tend to be very expensive. Which zoom should I get for my DX camera, the 28-300mm, or the 18-200mm? If one is not planning to go to the full frame format, I would recommend the Nikon 18-200mm, if you do decide to go for the Nikon 28-300mm for use on a DX camera, one will also need a wide angle lens in addition to the 28-300mm. If you already own a the standard kit lens such as the Nikon 18-55mm, this will help cover the wide angle side of things. If one is going to upgrade to the full frame format, then I would recommend the 28-300mm. Whatever lens you go for, make sure that you put a good quality lens protector such as the Hoya Pro 1 Digital MC Protector. This is a low profile, multi-coated filter which will protect your expensive glass. I have come across people who have used a cheap filter, which is not even multi-coated and they wonder why they get poor results. Is the Nikon 28-300mm (and the Nikon 18-200mm) worth the money? Every penny in my view, especially if you can acquire it at a good price.

I needed a versatile lens for a photoshoot at the Hay Literary Festival. The 28-300mm did not let me down and I used it all day, never missing a single shot. No fumbling around changing lenses, it covered the lot. The images are sharp, the autofocus fast and near silent, the zooming smooth. Lens elements move internally so nothing rotates on the outside. The filter size is 77mm; buy filters on Amazon and you'll pay half of what the big photo dealers charge. Yes, there are picky reviews out there that get bogged down in barrel/pincushion distortion and chromatic aberration issues but these effects are hardly noticeable. A lens with this zoom range is never going to be perfect, but it's close enough and it's better than missing the chance to get a picture. I agree with the other reviewer that it is a heavy and solidly constructed beast. It's an FX lens, designed to work on the bigger full-frame pro Nikon bodies as well as the smaller DX bodies. In fact, as an FX lens it is better suited to the Nikon D7000 that has a sensor that is said to challenge the resolving power of DX lenses (a lot of pixels on a small sensor). The Amazon image shows the lens unextended, at the 28mm end of its range; it lengthens quite a bit at 300mm and droops if carried vertically, which is why there is a 28mm lock button on the side to keep it short in transit. Do I have a criticism? Yes, the plastic lens hood (not shown in the image) is a bit flexible, springy and can work free. I've withheld one star for this but half a star would be sufficient. Anyway I expect to lose it before long when it drops off. Otherwise, this is a really useful lens.

I use this lens as a hobbyist but also for my business to take product shots. I am very happy with the image quality but more than anything I love the versatility and not having to change lenses often. Obviously it doesn't let as much light in as primes so you do need to watch your shutter speeds, it's easy to get camera shake at longer focal lengths. VR does help with that but you'll find it eats the battery life quite quickly. In the studio it is fantastic for product shots where I can zoom in and out in Liveview to frame the subject perfectly. For my purposes the sharpness is sufficient and I am hard pushed to tell the difference between shots taken with this versus a prime but then I'm not obsessive about image quality. Overall I highly recommend this lens. The only downside is the weight, when I switch back to say a 35mm prime my D750 suddenly feels as light as a feather!

Having a lens that covers this range always has some compromises. Put that aside and this is a traveller dream unless you need a light lens, it does everything very well rather than superbly. Focus is quick rather than fast, the ability to go 28 to 300 is amazing and at either end you have images that are very good, play a bit and they are excellent. It will never match a batch of prime lenses of a couple of f2.8 zooms, but for the money & convenience it is a very, very good lens. Just remenber it is 0.8kg.

The delivery of this item was first class and the quality of packing to protect the product over and above Nikon's packaging was very good. When I had opened the package I was delighted with the obvious quality of the item. Now having used it for a while, I am delighted with the results and although the limited bottom end f-stop at 3.5, this lens allows me to fit it to my full frame camera body. With the range of 28 - 300 it means that on a casual day out I do not have to carry all my other lenses. I, just yesterday, read an article in Professional Photographer magazine passed to me by my son. This was an issue recommending gear for Christmas and this lens was highly recommended for build quality design and results. Can't argue with any of the comments made, I am still very happy.

Having just bought a D700 to partner my D300 I wanted an all purpose 'take anywhere' FX lens. This lens is of course a compromise covering the vast range of 28mm to 300mm yet for my purposes it provides me with the quality of pictures i want, and more importantly the camera is always available without the last minute need to change lens. I love it and will use it extensively in my world travels where many shots are taken in poor or almost non existent light (hence the wonderful D700). Great, versatile and not too heavy so far. Excellent value when bought through Amazon.

I bought this lens to put on my D600 when I went to Africa for a safari last month. I already have the Nikkor 70-300mm but I didn't fancy changing lenses often in a dusty environment. I am really glad that I invested in this lens as it gave me excellent flexibility so that I could very quickly switch from taking wide group shots and landscapes to taking close ups of wildlife in the distance. This flexibility really came into it's own when I was shooting a male lion and my wife spotted a female lion about 300 yards away quickly approaching a group of Zebras, did I get some awesome Lion on Zebra kill action? Yes I did! Would I have got this if I had to change lenses? No I would not. Five seconds and it was all over. The good stuff - Great flexibility - Very sharp images - Solid build quality - Fast auto focus in good to reasonable light - Much cheaper than the less versatile "pro" lenses (70-200mm f/2.8G for example) - The 2nd generation VR works very will even when riding in the back of a Land Cruiser The not so good stuff - In poor light this lens stops being so useful as it has a relatively small maximum aperture - Vignetting at 300mm is very pronounced (Lightroom can take care of this very well however) - It's quite heavy but this can also be a plus point to assist stability when shooting hand held Why only 4 stars? A wider maximum aperture would be nice but it's the vignetting that lets this lens down a little. I know that Lightroom can take care of vignetting but it will introduce some noise at the edge of your images as it has to do some heavy compensation.

I only recieved this lens last week, and have not had much of a chance to use it. Just messing around at home though it seems to take tac sharp photos. The build quality is what you would expect from Nikon... Tough and always ready for action... Again I would only use this lens with a tripod as the weight of the lens and D780 gets heavy being handheld for any length of time... But seems to be a very good lens and looking forward to getting out to put it through its paces

Ha soddisfatto le apettative !

Es un buen lente, saca imágenes muy nítidas, lógicamente no es un prime, tampoco es tan rápido, pero cumple muy bien. Yo recomiendo que sea utilizado para llevar un solo lente de vacaciones por ejemplo, ya que el rango que maneja es muy amplio. Te ahorrará tiempo. Cumple bastante bien en todo, se siente muy robusto a pesar de que es completamente de plástico. El único detalle es que es algo pesado y después de un rato con el si llega a cansar, pero nada que sea significativo como para no comprarlo. Estoy contento con él lo recomiendo. Llega muy rápido y bien empaquetado.

Un objetivo que permite cubrir viajes o eventos en los que es más importante el momento o contenido que la calidad de la imagen y en donde prima la discrección que supone no tener que cambiar objetivos sobre el peso. En gran angular y focales medias tiene muy buena respuesta sobre todo con f's medios (5.6, 8, 11). Aberraciones cromáticas fácilmente corregibles de forma automática en postproceso. El tele cumple su papel en distancias cortas o medias pero no está pensado obviamente para ejercer de teleobjetivo.

Très bon objectif polyvalent.