VR lenses on a D50/D40/D40x????????

[RMThompson]

Quick question?

Can the D50 use the "18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 G ED-IF AF-S VR " Miracle lens?

I read somewhere that its useable on the D70/80/200 etc, but didnt specify D40 or D50...

 

[fmw]

Sure, no problem. Just don't expect miracles.

 

[RMThompson]

Sure, no problem. Just don't expect miracles.

lol. Well, just going by what it's nickname is out there... but why do you say that? I hear it's great for weddings and whatnot?

I cannot afford it now, but I figure I can buy my D50 body, and then get the VR lens soon.

They just announced a 55-200 VR lens for only 250 dollars... and i would buy it right this second, but do I need wider than 55 for weddings????? (I was planning on using a 50mm prime 1.8, but the 55 f4.0 with VR should be about equal???)

am I right? wrong?

 

[dewey]

Vr is awesome for what it does. You cannot buy a $250 lens and do anything with it at a wedding. I would imagine this new lens is a 4-5.6 lens or something like that. VR will not freeze motion it will just stop shake. You'll still need a very bright lens for weddings.

The 18-200 is a neat lens for a "carry all" for travel photography but I wouldn't call it a miracle... it has compromises and it's not very bright. It's not a wedding lens.

The 2 lenses I use the most at weddings are the 17-55 2.8 and the 70-200 2.8 VR. You need that wide aperature for weddings. The VR is great on the longer lens I highly recommend it.

And yes, you will need something alot wider than 50mm for formals.

 

[shingfan]

18-200 is good for carry around....but definitely not good for wedding photography or in low light situation.....why i'm planning on getting a f2.8....but fur sure not from nikon.....i can only afford sigma >_<

 

[drgibson]

I have an 80-200 f2.8 and the amount of light I get from it is considerably better then my old f3.5 and with a monopod it is steady as a rock.

 

[fmw]

lol. Well, just going by what it's nickname is out there... but why do you say that? I hear it's great for weddings and whatnot?

I cannot afford it now, but I figure I can buy my D50 body, and then get the VR lens soon.

They just announced a 55-200 VR lens for only 250 dollars... and i would buy it right this second, but do I need wider than 55 for weddings????? (I was planning on using a 50mm prime 1.8, but the 55 f4.0 with VR should be about equal???)

am I right? wrong?

I'm a little fussier than most so I wouldn't be willing to put up with the image quality of 10X zoom. Others like it, however. But basically it will be slow and distorted with soft corners like every other 10X zoom. I'm sure the 55-200 would be better. I'm not even willing to go for a 4X zoom but it would better than a 10X. For $250 it is also likely to be quite slow. You tend to get what you pay for. I would think the perfect wedding lens for Nikon digital would be the 17-55 f2.8. Understand, though, that I'm not and never was a wedding photographer so you would probably get better advice from someone who is.

 

[dewey]

I would think the perfect wedding lens for Nikon digital would be the 17-55 f2.8.

It is. :thumbup:

 

[RMThompson]

It is. :thumbup:

*CRY*

I don't have 1,000 dollars.

 

[Don Simon]

Well fortunately you could always rent instead when it's time to shoot a wedding.

AFAIK when it comes to optics (not the VR which I'm sure is very helpful) the 'miracle' of the 18-200 is simply that it's not crap in other words, it's probably really good for an 11x zoom, but you wouldn't generally go comparing it to a prime or a zoom with a faster constant max aperture and smaller zoom range. If you only want to carry one lens I'm sure it would be good, but in that respect I would consider it ideal for travel rather than weddings or other events.