W. Marshall (CA, USA) gave the Nikon 16-85mm 5 out of 5 stars
“I missed one. 70-300 VR is great, but 70mm is often too much and 18-135mm lens has no VR, so “no flash” in museums, aquariums etc. usually means no pictures.
Most Nikon fans probably wonder if this new lens is a worthy alternative to 18-200 VR. 18-200 VR lens covers the range of this lens almost completely, adds plenty on telephoto end and costs about as much. So optical quality of 16-85mm VR lens better be very good. Not many reviews and test results are available on the web at the time of writing. I spent hours searching for test data and found only one French site that had detailed test results.
The major weaknesses of 18-200 lens – bad distortion and corner softness are clearly addressed in this new lens. Distortion is about half of what you get with 18-200 lens, and sharpness is on par with 70-300mm VR. The only weakness is relatively harsh bokeh – out of focus background blurring.
My personal experience with the lens is pretty much in line with formal tests. The lens is as sharp as it gets. Transitions between two objects of different color are usually one pixhel wide. Distortion, noticeable at 16mm is not very bad and quickly disappears as you increase focal length. VR works like a charm. This lens is not fast, but professionals should have incentive to pay 3 times as much for their toys. I think 16-85mm VR and 70-300 VR lenses is probably all amateur like me needs, with light and compact 16-85mm VR lens mounted on camera most of the time. “
Richard Kennedy (Nashville, TN) gave the Nikon 16-85mm 4,5 out of 5 stars
“I’ve now taken well over a 1000 pictures with this lens and a D300 body. I’ve used it in the desert, in snow fields, in Las Vegas at night, in heavy overcast sky and indoors at a wedding without a flash. The results are easily up to professional standards – sharp, no chromatic aberrations, low distortion.
The VR makes it easy to hand hold down to 1/5 of a second. This, to some degree, makes up for the lens’ relatively slow speed. The plus side of the trade-offs this lens design makes is that you get a much greater focal length range than the much more expensive, much heavier, faster glass – while retaining great performance.
Build quality is great with no lens creep. It feels like the two front extension tubes are metal (I don’t know that for a fact). There is only minimal wobble at the front of the lens when it is fully extended. This movement is about the same as found in any fixed focal length Nikkor lens.”
Randy Leftwich (Austin, Texas) gave the Nikon 16-85mm 5 out of 5 stars
“This lens is an absolutely super upgrade to Nikon’s very decent 18-70mm DX lens. Not long after receiving and shooting with it, I sold my Nikon 17-35mm lens – a pro classic for sharpness and build quality. Why? I shoot APS frame on a Nikon D300, so a DX lens works fine. I saved 1/2 pound in weight, gained a little on the wide end (24mm equiv. on 35mm, FX frame), and gained over twice as much zoom range. The quality delivered by this lens is superb, even considering the touted vignetting at the wide end, and some distortion over its range. Contrast and color are great. Sharpness blows me away. Build quality is very good. Nikon is getting better and better at designing these lenses with plastics and (I assume) carbon fiber technologies. The VR (vibration reduction) feature is great… allowing photos in low light with sharpness like they were shot from a tripod. Can’t say enough good about the 16-85mm lens, and I have shot everything from 4×5 to medium format for several years. No lens is perfect. Nitpickers who blow up their shots to the size of a wall to compare lenses will surely find faults. But for real shooting at normal prints sizes (and beyond), this lens fills the bill for most of my everyday needs. Don’t fret, just buy one! “
