Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G ED Vibration Reduction Zoom Lens with Auto Focus for Nikon DSLR Cameras

Quick summary: This is a great replacement for the 18-55mm kit lens that typically comes with the Nikon D3500 (which I used to take all of the attached photos). It is much larger and heavier, however, but the picture quality is relatively sharp. Good for beginners/intermediates in photography (especially nature photography).I am a novice nature photographer, and here are my thoughts:Firstly, the company that I bought this from stated that the item was used but 'like new,' and I'm pleased to say that they were absolutely correct! The lens is absolutely in like-new condition and lives up to my quality standards in terms of build quality and cleanliness.it doesn't show signs of use. Thumbs up there.Next, the lens itself; talking about size, weight, and usability, picture quality aside (that comes in my next paragraph). In the three-lens photos, you'll see this lens in the middle, sandwiched by my 70-300mm VR kit lens (left) and my 18-55mm kit lens (right). In one photo, each lens is collapsed as small as they get, and in the other photo, the lenses are extended as large as they get. I have to say, the overall size of the 18-140mm (center) is a happy medium between the two, and its hefty weight feels good to hold but isn't too heavy that I can't hold it up for a while. It's been a very easy to use lens, and is great for nearly all shooting conditions in my experience. I love the switches on the side for turning on and off VR as well as switching between AF and MF. The D3500 makes you navigate through a few menus to enable and disable VR, so having the switch is really, really nice. The focus ring also has hard stops when in manual focus mode, which I also love when compared to the motorized manual focus of both kit lenses. I was never a fan of the disconnect that you feel when focusing manually with the ring, but then having the lag of the lens needing to use its motors to put the focus where you want it rather than just manually moving the lens with the ring itself if that makes sense. I like this lens as it makes me feel like I can use it more efficiently.Lastly, let's talk photo quality. At 18mm, the lens does have some heavy distortion (pictured in the photo of my window fan). This is easily fixed in Camera RAW with the default lens correction setting as Camera RAW recognises the lens and corrects for distortion accordingly. I also noticed that when zoomed all the way out to 18mm, there is some decent chromatic aberration and color distortion, and there seems to be a bit of a lack of sharpness in low-light conditions, but this could be due to me still not being used to the lens and getting used to the mechanical focus ring all over again after switching from the kit lenses which have electronic manual focus rings. When zoomed in all the way, you can still achieve great bokeh and a nice narrow depth-of-field if desired, thanks to the f/5.6 capability when zoomed all the way in at 140mm. when zooming in further, the image does feel much sharper and less distorted/fringed, which is to be expected with such a wide zoom range. Overall, the picture quality (sharpness and color accuracy) does change based on how zoomed in you are, but still looks great after a little post-processing. (the only post-processing done to the two window photos shown is making them slightly brighter, as my dumb self underexposed them in the initial shot - but I dod not touch any lens profile corrections.)One more thing that I'll add is that this has been great for blogging and everyday videography as well. An example is that I was able to film some great interior shots of my dad in his corvette, as well as exterior shots more zoomed in, with the same lens. This lens is great for high-speed shooting or filming where you may not have time to switch lenses to be able to zoom in.Overall, I have loved using this lens. It suits my needs as a novice nature photographer as it means that I don't have to switch lenses in order to zoom in further, and I only have to switch to my 70-300mm lens if I'm trying to get in really close to something that's far away. For everyday shooting, this lens has been somewhat of a game-changer in just how versatile it is in so many different shooting conditions. Being able to get a nice wide shot of a landscape or river, and then zooming right into something happening somewhat in the distance, has been a great ability to have for me. I can't recommend this lens for professionals that need the best picture quality that they can get, but for someone on a budget, being able to get this lens for under $200 (used) is an absolute must.

Nikkor never fails to offer a great product. Love this lense. Took it to Alaska and it worked so wonderfully

This is the primary lens on my Nikon D5200. At 7.8x zoom, it covers almost all my focal length needs, with surprisingly few optical compromises. Build quality is solid with near premium materials. It's reasonably sharp at all focal length. Focusing performance is superb: lightning fast, and always on target. There is essentially no focus hunting, even in low light. At longer focal lengths, you get a nice background blur. The zoom gears are a little on the stiff side, but as a result there is absolutely no zoom creep. At 55 mm focal length, the aperture opens to f4.8, which is one-half stop brighter than the f5.6 value of Nikon's 18-55 basic kit zoom at the same focal length.What are the downsides?In the first place, a well built long zoom like this is going to be big and heavy. There is no way around it. It took me a couple of weeks to get used to its size.When zoomed out, the top edge of the lens does cast a small shadow when the built in flash is used. It's only noticeable in certain situation.There is minor barrel distortion at the wide end, but it can be easily corrected manually in-camera if it bothers you. Nikon has not issued a firmware update for automatic distortion correction yet.The image colors taken by this lens are not as vibrant as what you get with a prime, but certainly no worse than the standard 18-55 mm VR kit.Regarding the price. This lens is listed at $600, but the price drops down to $350 when purchased as a kit along with Nikon D5300 or D7100.Verdict: A perfect all around lens for your Nikon DSLR if you don't mind the bulk

Update :: March 2015, I sold my 18-140 mm and 55-300 mm for the newer 18-300 mm f/6.3 (not the old 18-300mm f/5.6) and its much more ergonomic for me. Now my kit is all Nikon D7100 + 18-300mm f/6.3 + SB-700Pros- Comfortable 18-300 mm zoom range, no need to change lens at 55 or 140 mm- 18-300 mm weighs same as 55-300 mm, so it saved me space and weight in my camera bag.- Cost is comparable to 18-140 mm + 55-300 mm together.Cons- A third of stop slower than 55-300 mm- 18-300 mm is marginally less sharp than 18-140 mm------------------------For Nikon DX cameras you have a range of choices for zoom lenses, like1. 18-55mm2. 18-105mm3. 18-140mm4. 18-200mm5. 18-300mm6. 55-200mm7. 55-300mm8. 70-300mmWhats makes a DSLR system awesome is the large number of choices for camera bodies and lenses (flashes also..!!).. this puts some onus on the buyer to understand their needs with resonable effectiveness.As a common man you don't want to miss out on the wide-end like 18-35mm (I mean 35 not 55) on a DX camera, else you wont be able to shoot a group of people sitting on a dinner table or cake cutting etc... 35 to 135mm is good portrait range (at 35mm from a small group of people to a tight headshot at 135 mm) ... 100 mm to 300 mm is telephoto range and is suited for long distance shooting like at a zoo or sports and starts getting into pro user range. Common man should not go over 300 mm as its definitely pro and is very expensive.For the common man, in order of decreasing usefulness, you need 18-35 mm and then up to 100 mm.. anything above 100 mm is of limited use, as you need your subject to be at a certain minimum distance.. which is longer than anything inside a home or small party hall.Caution : 100-300 mm..!!========================100 mm upwards is almost an outdoor thing (like a zoo or a game).. throw some action in it and you will need wide aperture (which you will not get without a prime lens) and decent autofocus system (for which you need a decent camera) which means you are looking at $1500 or upwards for each piece. For indoors you can think of a concert hall.. due to lowlight, f/5.6 will not keep up and you will end up bumping up ISO (not necessarily a bad thing but then its a feature of the camera and not the lens).. just having a focal length of 100-300 mm is not that great .. you need more things.Real question is, how comfortable or active or lazy are you at the 55mm focal length (the tipping point 18-55 mm > 55-300 mm) ... DSLRs tend to stick around for years .. and it starts getting cumbersome when you need to change lens, at 55mm or in general...Then 18-105 mm should be the choice ..!! Why buy 18-140mm? Following are the reasons..1. 18-105mm is older lens and is priced nearly same as imported 18-140mm2. 18-140mm gives 4 stops of VR vs 105mm's 2 stops3. Simply buy more for the same money.4. They weigh nearly same.18-200mm is $850 and 18-300mm (old model) is $1000... where as if you buy 105mm or 140mm you will pay like $350-$400 (only as a kit or imported). 18-140mm for USA model will cost you like $600.My recommendation is, if you own D3XXX stick to 18-55mm to keep the kit light. If you own D5XXX or D7XXX go with 18-140mm (imported or kit) or 18-200mm (primarily because its the best quality lens in the lot). 18-300mm tends to soften in 200-300mm range and is huge in size.For those rare 200mm-300mm shots you can always buy 55-300mm and it is not priced as high like $1000-$1500... discomfort of changing lens can be overcome by the money you save by not buying 18-300mm...but 55-300 mm is a slower lens and is of cheap build quality.I own a D7100 and use 18-140mm so that 95% of the time I don't need to change the lens.. and for those rare 300mm shots I do change the lens.Please remember imported one will not be an USA model and hence there can be warranty issues.. shipping etc can become cumbersome.All in all its a balance of1. Features/Functionality that I can use2. Money I am willing to spend3. Ergonomics (this is very important, a lens that sits in the bag is no good)If you are a Canon user I recommend 18-135mm IS STM with a T5i or 70D else stick to 18-55mm IS STM for lower end models like T3 or SL1.. don't forget ergonomics.. if the package (camera + lens) is not ergonomic (too big or too heavy), your DSLR system will be just another expensive dust collecter.Why 4 stars..?? The build quality is not comparable to 18-200mm $850 lens.. 18-140mm needs to be handled with care and is not as cheap as 18-55mm for a replacement buy.