I was thinking of getting a Nikon 16-85mm lens. I looked on Photozone ratings and saw that the Nikon lens was not as good MTF wise as my Tamron 17-50 lens. I always thought that the Nikon would be better. Not going to buy the Nikon lens now.
I have the Nikon 16-85mm and really like it. It is sharp and it allowed my to combine 2 lenses into 1. Had a 28-70 and a 12-24mm so this has lightened my load.
I have been using the 16-85 as my primary 'walk around' and landscape lens. It covers good focal range and is very sharp from 16-50mm. Stopping down to f5.6-f8 further improves the sharpness. Most of my landscape images are shot at f11 on a D300 or f8-f11 on a D5100. Resolution wise, the 16-85 holds its own against the 16-35 on the D7000 (photozone.de).
Biggest downsides, relatively slow wide open aperture f3.5-f5.6. Also, the sharpness drops from 50mm-85mm. It is noticeably softer out from 70mm. Also, the bokeh is pretty average at best but isn't bad at 85mm.
When it comes to lenses, one person's "great" can be another person's mediocre. There is also the matter of sample variation. My problem with the lens is f5.6 at 85 MM.
For the higher cost and Nikon brand, I thought it might be better. Also with variable aperture which would be cheaper to make, I thought they would make the optics better.
I think the Nikon 17-55 2.8 has come down in price considerably and it's worth looking at, you can get a LN one around 700-750. IMO it's one of the best DX lenses around. If you don't need 2.8 and need VR then the 16-85 is your best option.
I have the 16-85 and love it. it's my primary walkaround lens for traveling when I'm using DX. I have the 16-85 and a 70-300 as my traveling kit. I love the combo - it's light weight, simple, very competent.
I bought my 16-85 as a stop gap while I waited for a 24-70 2.8 to show up at the right price. Shortly afterwards I stopped looking for a 24-70. Very useful range and has become my primary lens for walkabout and landscape. My 12-24 gets very little use since buying the 16-85. 16 is wide enough for me where 18 never was (shooting on dx bodies).
