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18-55 VR ... undisputable better IQ than old 18-55 and 18-70 lens ?

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Don't know why not much discussion about the 18-55VR IQ ....

I have this new lens recently and found the IQ is just better than my original 18-55 and 18-70 kit lenses, as a result I sold these two old lenses. Could it be I had bad copies of these lens ? or this new 18-55VR is just better in IQ than them ?

I find this lens not only relatively sharper at edges, resistant to flair and evenly sharp across from wide to tele. You can say it has both combined strength from these two lenses, and corrected those weaknesses of the other older lenses.
How do you find comparison of these lenses in your case ?
 
I agree. Was disappointed with the kit 18-70 so got the new 18-55 VR and the images are just so much sharper and punchier. I use at f8 for landscapes and it works very well.
 
Love to see some detail shots...portraits, etc....
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If you like what I can do with cards, wait til you see what I do with the limes.
 
I am liking mine very much as well. For some reason--not much attention in forums or reviewers yet. Maybe lost in the 16-85 buzz.

Couple of shots with it





Here's one at 1/10 handheld for VR test

 
Those look good. How do you like the VR feature? Is it useful on those focal lengths for you?
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If you like what I can do with cards, wait til you see what I do with the limes.
 
My 18-70mm is my sharpest lens (other than my 105mm VR which doesnt get a lot of use). I would be very interested to see if the 18-55mm is better than the 18-200 VR (or 16-85 if it surfaces).

How is the build of the 18-55mm VR?

No one here in the UK seems to be stocking it much yet.
 
Interesting, my 18-200 is considerably sharper than my 18-70. My 18-55 II is also sharper than the 18-70. It's a shame I know, would rather use the 18-70, but results are so easy to see the difference, I can't make myself put it back on.
 
Even at wider FL, the VR allows usage with slower shutter speeds, effectively making the lens faster. If you get 3 f stops with the VR, you are doing better for low light/static subjects than a 2.8 lens.

I do not take low light pix of moving things very often so I am quite happy with VR benefits. Great for museums, natural light people shots and cathedral interiors etc. Many posts on the 18-200 benefits apply here but at much less cost and possibly better IQ given the less ambitious zoom range.

For many, the 18-55VR also may be a fine alternative to Tamron 17-50, Sigma 18-50 with a few hundred buck left in the bank.
 
i have it and agree its really sharp

key points are, light, sharp, VR, very close focus much closer than 18-70

Problem is barrel distorion at 18mm, not bad by 24 but pretty bad at 18mm

luke
 
Having posted about this lens before, I can testify it performs very well considering its price...unexpectedly well actually.

There is some moderate distortion at the wide end, but clarity into the corners, contrast and sharpness, as well as keeping CA under control are better than expected.

I got this lens as a grab and shoot and this shot, which I have posted before, was taken after a few drinks at a Christmas party. I doubt the image would have been as clear in my condition without the VR. The image is unmodified except for some USM.

http://www.pbase.com/jonstatt/image/90813521/original

Jonathan
 
Is there anyone who can show a picture comparison of the 18-55 or 18-55II and the 18-55VR side by side? Since one has the ED glass and the VR lens does not, I'm curious to see if there is any difference in the image quality from the two lenses.

Thanks. I have the 18-55 ll and am really impressed with it, but struggled on whether to take a chance on the non-ED glass.

Ganny
 
I don't have the other lenses but the ED element is primarily to keep CA under control. From what I can see, this lens has minor CA at the wide end and very litte at the tele end. I have seen lenses that had 1 or more ED elements that had much worse CA. I do half wonder whether the ED badge has become mis-used as a sign of quality, even when in fact the coating is adding little or no benefit.

CA is also becoming less of an issue as more software applications are capable of correcting it (it can be automatically recognised and the chroma of the pixels moved appropriately).
 
I've heard this...that is good news....for an already good lens. I was wondering how it performed.
 
Not surprised that improvements were made because it should be easy.

18-55 had serious QC issues. My two copies had very different IQs and issues.

When you test it, please cover both short distances (for which the 18-55 does well) and infinity as well. 55m used to be the worst part.
 
To have a fair comparison, is better to turn off VR and have the lens compared with the same S and A settings...

My bid is, 18-70mm will be sharper wide open at say f4.5 and when you stop it down, sharpest will be about the same for both....

When you say stuff like, at 1/10s my 18-55mm VR is sharper, is does make sense as hand movement comes into play.... heck, you can compare it with a 60mm macro, the 18-55mm VR will be sharper at 1/10s as well! Get what I am trying to get at....

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18-70mm
35mm f2
60mm f2.8 Micro
85mm f1.8
My Gallery: http://www.pbase.com/mingzcan
 
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