Reddit reviews Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED Vibration Reduction Zoom Lens with Auto Focus for Nikon DSLR Cameras

17-300mm? Do you mean this 18-300mm? I can't find a 17-300mm

New lenses and camera body I've been coveting for a while.

• Zoom lens so I don't need to swap out as often
  
• A nice wide angle for those architecture/landscape shots
  
• Another zoom lens to cover all the really far shots
  
• [A newer camera body](https://www.amazon.com/Nikon-D500-DX-Format-Digital-a [Body/dp/B01A7Q0J3Y/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1480710554&sr=8-2&keywords=nikon+d500) and of course a battery grip

Hey thanks again for the information. I think I'm going to go with your recommendation of the 18-300mm zoom - versatility is exactly what i want for my first lens. And at this point i have no idea what else to get.

I'm having a hard time finding that lens with the keyword "zoom" but is this what you're talking about?

https://www.amazon.com/Nikon-18-300mm-3-5-5-6G-Vibration-Reduction/dp/B008B14VAK

Again many thanks for your time.

I sold all my equipment a few ago when I was in worse times, now that I'm doing well on my own I was looking to get back into photography.

I've decided on Nikon's D7100. Now I'm trying to figure out which lens/es to purchase. They currently have their 18-120mm and 55-300mm for about $600~ but I figured I'd just get an 18-300 and pay the extra amount just to have that one lens. I'm looking to travel internationally so don't want to carry around larger lenses around. I'm also going to get a 35mm 1.8/f and then eventually a 50mm 1.4/f.

For the 18-300, I found two but I'm having trouble reading the descriptions listed on Amazon.

• Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-300mm f/3.5-6.3G ED VR Lens
  
• Nikon 18-300mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S DX Nikkor Lens
  
  The first was released on Amazon on April 9, 2014 and goes to 6.3/f, but is $100 cheaper where the second was released on there on June 12, 2012. Any help differentiating the two would be appreciated!

I shoot Canon, but for that Budget Nikon has a much better selection. Body doesn't matter so much, but a faster frame rate and more AF points will be helpful for birds. If you can afford it, I would recommend a d7200. If not, go for the d5500. You could even go super cheap and buy a refurbed older body (d7000 etc.).

The d7200 has a faster frame rate, more AF points, more cross type AF points, and a more rugged build. The d5500 has a tilty touch screen, and is much lighter. Most other differences are trivial (sensor is exactly the same).

For a lens, I can personally recommend the 18-200mm VR II DX f/3.5-5.6 (~$600). It's a great zoom for just about anything. If you need to get tighter, consider the 70-300mm VR DX FX f/4.5-5.6 for a little less money. If you want to spend a little bit more, I also had a 28-300mm VR FX f/3.5-5.6 (~$1000), which is an absolutely fantastic, but extremely heavy lens. Also much more expensive.

If your dad's only going to be shooting birds and wildlife, I would say the tighter 70-300mm would be great. For a do-all zoom, I would go for the 18-200mm or the 28-300mm if I could afford it.

These are just my personal reccomendations, somebody might have some better suggestions.

Here are the amazon links:
Nikon d5500
Nikon d7200
Nikon 18-200mm VR II DX
Nikon 70-300mm VR DX FX
Nikon 28-300mm VR FX See edit below

Edit: mistakes

Edit 2: I just realized there's an 18-300mm VR DX for the same price as the 28-300mm VR FX, which would make much more sense if you plan on sticking with DX. Optics should be virtually the same, just better designed for DX.

For "high zoom", you can get the 16.7x [Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR for $996.95] (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008B14VAK/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=ll1&tag=battleforthew-20), or, if that's too much of a stretch for your budget, you can get an 11.1x [Nikon DX 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 G ED-IF Auto Focus-S VR for $519] (http://www.amazon.com/Nikon-18-200mm-3-5-5-6-Focus-S-Nikkor/dp/B000BY52NU/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=ll1&tag=battleforthew-20).

These lenses will give you lighting fast autofocus for fast moving outdoor still photography (something you won't get with a Canon lens adapted to an A7 series camera).

Again, hope this is helpful!

I guess there's two versions of the 18-300, it's this one https://www.amazon.com/Nikon-18-300mm-3-5-5-6G-Vibration-Reduction/dp/B008B14VAK the 5.6g and not the 6.3 or whatever.

I have Nikon D7200, and I'm considering buying one of Nikon's 18-300 superzoom lenses, to replace the Nikon 18-140 that came with the camera. The main motivation for this is I was taking some photos at an airshow this past summer and realized 140mm isn't quite enough zoom for that kind of photography (and other things I might want to photograph). I know there are pros & cons to a lens with such a long zoom range, but I'd probably rather not carry around too many lenses with me.

I've noticed there are 2 versions of Nikon's 18-300 lens: The f/3.5-5.6 and the newer f/3.5-6.3. The newer one has a smaller aperture at the farthest zoom, but I've heard it's lighter. I'm leaning toward the 3.5-6.3 version since it's lighter, and I could probably deal with the smaller aperture. I'm curious what you would recommend?