A couple Nikon Lense opinion poll questions

[djg05478]

Good Afternoon

I'm looking for feedback or opinions or reviews on the latest Nikkor 55-200 manufacturer model #20050 and just to be clear I mean this specific model that just came out in the past couple months.

I have a previous model of that same lense on my D7100 and the auto focus has a very hard time settling on a focus point (and its not in a continuous focus mode). Almost to the point using the auto focus on the lense is impossible. I'm not upset because I have very low expectations for that lense at that price point. But I need a working lense in the 55 ish-200ish range.

So the 55-200 Model# 20050 is set at $346, which is up $150 dollars from the cost of previous versions. A price increase of that amount would lead me to believe its an improved lense, but I haven't been able to find any reviews I trust.

On a side note. I just made a hastey decision and an impulse purchase on BH for a refurbed : AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR. If anyone has any thoughts or opinions or personal experiences regarding this lense, I'm all ears.

Thanks
Debbie

[george013]

Good Afternoon

I'm looking for feedback or opinions or reviews on the latest Nikkor 55-200 manufacturer model #20050 and just to be clear I mean this specific model that just came out in the past couple months.

I have a previous model of that same lense on my D7100 and the auto focus has a very hard time settling on a focus point (and its not in a continuous focus mode). Almost to the point using the auto focus on the lense is impossible. I'm not upset because I have very low expectations for that lense at that price point. But I need a working lense in the 55 ish-200ish range.

So the 55-200 Model# 20050 is set at $346, which is up $150 dollars from the cost of previous versions. A price increase of that amount would lead me to believe its an improved lense, but I haven't been able to find any reviews I trust.

On a side note. I just made a hastey decision and an impulse purchase on BH for a refurbed : AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR. If anyone has any thoughts or opinions or personal experiences regarding this lense, I'm all ears.

Thanks
Debbie

Photozone.de is one of the sites I allways check for that. Both the 55-200 lenses are reviewed.
http://www.photozone.de/nikon--nikko...w--test-report

George

[djg05478]

Thanks George

[Manfred M]

I think that the review that George has posted are for the two older versions of the lens, not the recently released one.

I haven't seen any reviews on the newest version either. It seems that much like what Nikon has done to the kit 18-55mm, the new 55-200mm lens is now "collapsable", so it can be made even shorter when not in use.


http://en.nikon.ca/Nikon-Products/Pr...-ED-VR-II.html

[djg05478]

Thanks. I agree about the review, I couldn't tell which version of the lense they were reviewing.

I was able to find some info on the other lense I have coming:

http://www.dpreview.com/articles/908...m-f-3-5-5-6-vr.

Debbie

[george013]

Thanks. I agree about the review, I couldn't tell which version of the lense they were reviewing.

I was able to find some info on the other lense I have coming:

http://www.dpreview.com/articles/908...m-f-3-5-5-6-vr.

Debbie

Maybe this site will help you further. Three 55-200 lenses are mentioned. If you click on the name you get a precise photo with the name. And you know the differences.
http://www.photosynthesis.co.nz/nikon/lenses.html
George

In photozone it's the vr 1. Look at the sign. That means VRII is missing.

[Black Pearl]

Good Afternoon

I'm looking for feedback or opinions or reviews on the latest Nikkor 55-200 manufacturer model #20050 and just to be clear I mean this specific model that just came out in the past couple months.

I have a previous model of that same lens on my D7100 and the auto focus has a very hard time settling on a focus point (and its not in a continuous focus mode). Almost to the point using the auto focus on the lens is impossible. I'm not upset because I have very low expectations for that lens at that price point. But I need a working lens in the 55 ish-200ish range.

So the 55-200 Model# 20050 is set at $346, which is up $150 dollars from the cost of previous versions. A price increase of that amount would lead me to believe its an improved lens, but I haven't been able to find any reviews I trust.

On a side note. I just made a hastey decision and an impulse purchase on BH for a refurbed : AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR. If anyone has any thoughts or opinions or personal experiences regarding this lens, I'm all ears.

Thanks
Debbie

Can you elaborate as I don't follow?

Are you saying your D7100 struggles to get a solid focus lock when using this particular lens and if so is it fine with other lenses?

Are you trying to shoot anything in particular with this lens when you encounter this issue or is it all the time?

Is the camera set to use 1, 9, 11 or all 51 focus points and do you chose them or does the camera?

[Manfred M]

Debbie - what focus mode have you got your camera set to?

I find that when using one of the matrix modes when using a longer lens, the camera hunts and has trouble locking onto a focus point. If, on the other hand, I use a single point focus mode, the camera and lens autofocus and lock much more quickly because the camera's autofocus system has to deal with less data and less ambiguity.

[djg05478]

Can you elaborate as I don't follow?

Are you saying your D7100 struggles to get a solid focus lock when using this particular lens and if so is it fine with other lenses?

Are you trying to shoot anything in particular with this lens when you encounter this issue or is it all the time?

Is the camera set to use 1, 9, 11 or all 51 focus points and do you chose them or does the camera?

Are you saying your D7100 struggles to get a solid focus lock when using this particular lens - Yes

is it fine with other lenses? Yes

or is it all the time Over 50% of the time - enough that I'm missing too many opportunities

set to use : 1 focus point that I select

[djg05478]

Debbie - what focus mode have you got your camera set to?

I find that when using one of the matrix modes when using a longer lens, the camera hunts and has trouble locking onto a focus point. If, on the other hand, I use a single point focus mode, the camera and lens autofocus and lock much more quickly because the camera's autofocus system has to deal with less data and less ambiguity.

Most of the time I use a single focus point. Sometimes I'll start shooting with the lense and it will be fine for a bit - 5 or 6 shots...maybe, then it will just go into overdrive searching searching and I try to focus on a distinct edge or perimeter or chunk just to get it to lock. No luck. I'll turn the camera off. Turn the camera back on. Flip the camera and the lense to M for a bit. No luck.

Maybe the autofocus on my particular lense is cooked. I could still use the lense in manual mode, but the lense is so cheap I'm not upset about it, but I do need to cover that range. Thats why I was wondering about the latest version...exactly what makes it worth the price point of $400.

Thanks for your input.
Debbie

[Manfred M]

Most of the time I use a single focus point. Sometimes I'll start shooting with the lense and it will be fine for a bit - 5 or 6 shots...maybe, then it will just go into overdrive searching searching and I try to focus on a distinct edge or perimeter or chunk just to get it to lock. No luck. I'll turn the camera off. Turn the camera back on. Flip the camera and the lense to M for a bit. No luck.

Maybe the autofocus on my particular lense is cooked. I could still use the lense in manual mode, but the lense is so cheap I'm not upset about it, but I do need to cover that range. Thats why I was wondering about the latest version...exactly what makes it worth the price point of $400.

Thanks for your input.
Debbie

I think I have the same version of the lens that you do. When I used in on the weekend, I heard some unfamiliar noises... Hmm.

If you are using single point focus mode, you've taken the camera not being able to identify the focus point out of the question, and 80% of the focusing is camera related. All the lens does is is receives the command as to how much to change the focus and report back that this has happened to the camera (actually, it's a bit more complicated that this, but not that much).

The fact that your are getting a few correct focuses and then it stops working suggests a lens problem (potentially the problem shows up as a bit of heat is generated by the focusing motor). The fact that it is cycling suggests that the camera is not getting confirmation that the lens has focused the way it should and sends a "try it again" command. I suspect that you are right about the lens and it is most likely "cooked", as you are not seeing this problem with your other lenses. If you have access to another Nikon camera body, try it there and if the behaviour repeats, you will have confirmed it is the lens.

It's such an inexpensive lens, I suspect that repairing it will cost more than a new one. Unfortunately, like you I have seen nothing other than marketing materials on the lens, no reviews yet.

When I look at the B&H website the new lens lists for $50 less than the old one. When I compare the two lenses, the old one has 17 elements in 11 groups while the new one has 13 elements in 9 groups, so it looks like it should be a fair bit less expensive to manufacture than the old one. It also seems to be a bit faster at the short end (f/4 @ 55mm versus f/4.5 @ 55mm for the old one).

[djg05478]

"If you have access to another Nikon camera body, try it there" Good point! I still have my D90. And the lense wasn't doing this on my D90 a couple of months ago. I'll check.




Thanks for your input.
Debbie

[djg05478]

I still haven't checked the lense on my D90 for focus lock issues. But I did get the refurbished 18 - 140. I'm trying to decide if I'm going to keep it, or return and just make the investment into either the DX 18-300 or FX 28-300, and I'm referring to the similarly priced models in the $1000 range.

Here's one from the 18-140.