Nikon 18-200 VR, or the 18-70 DX and a 70-300 VR

[LiveWave]

Hey all,

I'm about to buy a D300 and I've been considering lenses.

I need some advice

Should i get a 18-200 VR lens OR

18-70 DX and a 70-300 VR

I've read on DPReview that the 18-200 suffers from substantial pincushion and barrel distortion. I've also seen the 2 sample shots on the website and it does have very significant distortion.

Problem is I'm not sure about the 18-70 DX and 70-300 VR, suggestions?

Thanks

 

[kidchill]

I have the 18-200 and yes it does have some distortion, but if you notice it's at the absolute extremes of the lens. I can bump it to about 22 and shoot just under the full 200 and it'll come out fine. You can usually tell while looking through the viewfinder. There's also plugins and ways to fix it in PS. I just look at it as there's less changing out of lenses and that helps to keep a dust-free sensor....

 

[Garbz]

www.photozone.de has measurements of all 3 lenses.

I'd pick the latter option. Yes the 18-70mm and 70-300mm VR are not perfect lenses, but are each better than the 18-200 for obvious reasons. Super zooms simply can't be made any other way.