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In addition to being lighter, the new lens is also considerably shorter than the old one – zoomed out, the 18-300mm f/3.5-6.3G ED VR is only 99mm long, whereas its older brother is 120mm.
Those looking for a convenient all-in-one zoom lens for travel, or simply to cut down on lens changes will love the extreme zoom range this 18-300mm lens offers. Sacrificing the f/5.6 maximum aperture at 300mm of this lens' predecessor is a worthwhile compromise in my opinion, as it has resulted in a much more manageable lens that is compact, yet versatile. Closest focus distance is 48cm, and focusing is performed internally, so the 67mm filter thread does not rotate, which should make this lens ideal for use with graduated filters and polarisers. Looking to upgrade your equipment? Get competitive prices on major brands with our part-exchange service.
Design
On a positive note, the lens is built well and feels solid in hands – certainly better than the Tamron and Sigma equivalents. It has a plastic barrel with plastic focus and zoom rings (the zoom ring is covered with rubber). Most of the recently-announced lenses by Nikon have a plastic exterior, which does not necessarily mean that the lenses are not solid. The interior of the Nikon 18-300mm contains plenty of metal to hold optical elements, although judging from the weight, it feels like the lens has nothing but glass. The lens mount is also made of solid metal, not plastic as in some cheap kit lenses like 18-55mm DX. I've now taken hundreds of shots with my Nikon D7100 to compare the A. 18-300mm f/3.5-6.3G DX with B. 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G DX and C. 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G FX, chosen best of three in all categories and carefully compared them.
The increased magnification of the 300mm telephoto end is clear here - the 18-300mm does give noticeably more 'reach', and of course gathers a bit more light than the other lenses too. But whether this is worth the increased bulk and price is very much a personal decision. Autofocus I made a brief comparison of images captured with both lenses across the focal length range, and the difference in optical quality was indeed noticeable. At every focal length I tested, the f/5.6 version of this lens was clearly sharper and had better contrast and bokeh than the f/6.3 version. This difference was particularly noticeable at the longer focal lengths. 1:1 crops of images captured at 300mm with the Nikon 18-300mm lenses. At top: 18-300mm f/3.5-5.6. Below: 18-300mm f/3.5-6.3. Incorporating proven NIKKOR lens optics and technology, the new AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-300mm f/3.5-6.3G ED VR lens offers an extensive feature set that produces vibrant color, sharp detail with minimal distortion, whether capturing still images or recording HD video. Helping to ensure sharp photos and video even in low-light situations while also combatting the effects of camera shake, the 18-300mm comes equipped with Nikon’s renowned Vibration Reduction (VR) image stabilization, providing the lens with four stops* of stabilization to help make shooting a blur-free experience, even while handheld. MELVILLE, NY (April 10, 2014 at 12:01 A.M. EDT)– Today, Nikon Inc. announced the latest addition to its legendary NIKKOR lineup, the new AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-300mm f/3.5-6.3G ED VR telephoto zoom lens. Designed for the DX-format photographer looking to get more out of their D-SLR camera, the versatile NIKKOR 18-300mm is a compact and lightweight 16.7X all-in-one telephoto zoom lens that delivers high performance and superior image quality. Whether capturing still images or HD video, the 18-300mm lens is built to help users capture content with vibrant colors and sharp details, plus shoot sports, vacations and wildlife with confidence.
Nikon DX 18-300mm Lenses Compared
Distortion is bad with A at all focal lengths, except from around 24 - 35mm (35 - 50mm FX equivalent). The D7100 in-camera distortion control works pretty well with RAW images from A, but not as well as with B. With A at 18mm, DC isn't very good, so residual barrel distortion needs post-processing. With the lens attached to a D7000, auto-focus is somewhat slower and more “hesitant” than on the AF-S Nikkor 18-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR. It's still noticeably faster than the AF-S 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6 DX telezoom, though. Thankfully the filter thread does not rotate on focus, making it that much easier to use graduated neutral density filters and polarisers. Manual focus enthusiasts should take note that the focus ring is rather narrow and located close to the lens mount. Distortion THE NEW AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-300MM F/3.5-6.3G ED VR LENS IS A VERSATILE YET COMPACT AND LIGHTWEIGHT TELEPHOTO ZOOM LENS THAT ALLOWS USERS TO GET CLOSE TO THE ACTION And here is an example with the sun in the top right frame at sunset: NIKON D800E + 18-300mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 72mm, ISO 100, 1/200, f/8.0
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