OP, it's been about a year now... which did you go with, and are you happy with it?

chemprof wrote:
18-70 or 16-85. The lens mount on the 18-105 is junky plastic which will abrade and leave plastic debris in your mirror box, which will later make its way onto your sensor.

I suppose if you never change lenses it would be all right.

Gerald



pfft...if you are shaving plastic off your mount when you switch lenses, i suggest learning how to properly remove a lens.

I own the 18-105 and it is excellent besides the distortions at 18mm. As a previous Pentaxian, I can say that the VR on this lens isnt quite as noticeable as the in body from Pentax. However, it is an extremely sharp lens that I will not be selling any time soon.

I got the 18-105 VR lens. I bought it second hand but in new condition. Somebody got it as a kit but upgraded right away. It was a lot cheaper than the 16-85 and pretty much covers 98% of the range that I use the most.

So far the lens has been performing great. I do not really have anything else that's similar to compare to but I do not see any major problems with the build quality or image quality. This lens rarely leaves the body so I doubt I will see any wear on the mount any time soon.

nufenstein: I am ex-pentaxian as well. A like Pentax a lot but their AF was just too slow. My current Nikon D60 even as an entry level camera beats AF of the K10D that I used to have. But besides that K10D was a wonderful camera. Plus I started with ME Super and went thru 3 or 4 other bodies till I arrived at K10D so I have a history with Pentax :-)

We replaced the 18-70 with the 16-85 and are quite happy with it. The VR is very nice and the IQ is fine at middle apertures. The extra 2mm at the short end is significant and means that less switching to the 12-24 is needed.

EBH

drabina wrote:
I got the 18-105 VR lens. I bought it second hand but in new condition. Somebody got it as a kit but upgraded right away. It was a lot cheaper than the 16-85 and pretty much covers 98% of the range that I use the most.

So far the lens has been performing great. I do not really have anything else that's similar to compare to but I do not see any major problems with the build quality or image quality. This lens rarely leaves the body so I doubt I will see any wear on the mount any time soon.

nufenstein: I am ex-pentaxian as well. A like Pentax a lot but their AF was just too slow. My current Nikon D60 even as an entry level camera beats AF of the K10D that I used to have. But besides that K10D was a wonderful camera. Plus I started with ME Super and went thru 3 or 4 other bodies till I arrived at K10D so I have a history with Pentax :-)


Thank you for coming back and answering! It helps the archives when people have similar questions

16-85 has its own ++. But I love my 18-70 served me well to satify all the situation......Get 18-70 and save some money for future to get FX Lenses like 24-70/2.8 and 70-200/2.8 VR...

drabina wrote:
I got the 18-105 VR lens. I bought it second hand but in new condition. Somebody got it as a kit but upgraded right away. It was a lot cheaper than the 16-85 and pretty much covers 98% of the range that I use the most.

So far the lens has been performing great. I do not really have anything else that's similar to compare to but I do not see any major problems with the build quality or image quality. This lens rarely leaves the body so I doubt I will see any wear on the mount any time soon.

nufenstein: I am ex-pentaxian as well. A like Pentax a lot but their AF was just too slow. My current Nikon D60 even as an entry level camera beats AF of the K10D that I used to have. But besides that K10D was a wonderful camera. Plus I started with ME Super and went thru 3 or 4 other bodies till I arrived at K10D so I have a history with Pentax :-)

wow, thanks for following-up... it's been so long, i was thinking you probably wouldn't reply!

anyhow, i think i'm going to go with an 18-105 too... i can get it for about what the 18-70 is running (both used)

clickmepp wrote:
16-85 has its own ++. But I love my 18-70 served me well to satify all the situation......Get 18-70 and save some money for future to get FX Lenses like 24-70/2.8 and 70-200/2.8 VR...

Read thread then reply, op already bought 18-105 and is happy with it.

so i bit the bullet and bought one of these (18-105mm) used from CL.

guy was cool, whatever, and i messed around with the lens ahead of time (mounted it, checked the glass, made sure AF worked...), and it seemed fine. i haven't shot much with it, but i'm noticing that the zoom ring does not have a uniform feel when twisting it (sorry, don't know any other way of explaining it).

basically, when going from 18-->105 it gets uniformly stiffer. it's not rough or anything like that, it's about as smooth as i'd expect from a used lens, but it does get stiffer as i move closer to 105 (and vice-versa). I'M A NOOB, so i'm just wondering if this is normal... thanks in advance.

oh, and on a side-topic, is it typical to take a lens into a local camera shop to get serviced, or do you have to always send it back to the manufacturer?

Tak555 wrote:
is it typical to take a lens into a local camera shop to get serviced, or do you have to always send it back to the manufacturer?

Assuming the lens is not under warranty, take it someplace you trust. A local authorized service center might be your best option. I've taken all sorts of camera gear to Kurt's Camera here in San Diego. Their work is top-notch, and their prices and turnaround time are better than Nikon or Canon.

Tak555 wrote:

oh, and on a side-topic, is it typical to take a lens into a local camera shop to get serviced, or do you have to always send it back to the manufacturer?

It may depend on what sort of work needs to be done to the lens. The local shop here, Mike's Camera, was able to do some work on a Tamron lens, but couldn't do everything and had to send it to Tamron for the remaining work.

if it's hard for you to decide, you can review the photos took by the 3 lens first, download the original size photos and review the color and sharpness.

18-70mm
http://english.sellpower.net/modules/flickrorg/dlsr_index.php?id=2&dc_model=0&iso1=0&iso2=0&len_id=49&exposure1=0&exposure2=0&shutter1=0&shutter2=0&num_focal_mm=0&num_focal_mm2=&B1=Query

18-105mm VR
http://english.sellpower.net/modules/flickrorg/dlsr_index.php?id=2&dc_model=0&iso1=0&iso2=0&len_id=104&exposure1=0&exposure2=0&shutter1=0&shutter2=0&num_focal_mm=0&num_focal_mm2=&B1=Query

16-85mm VR
http://english.sellpower.net/modules/flickrorg/dlsr_index.php?id=2&dc_model=0&iso1=0&iso2=0&len_id=176&exposure1=0&exposure2=0&shutter1=0&shutter2=0&num_focal_mm=0&num_focal_mm2=&B1=Query

I'd suggest you the lens 16-85mm VR, on a APS-C camera, this focal range is more usageful than the others.

I just picked up an 18-70 on the used forum here. It's the third one I will have owned. I've sold the other two as I accumulated the 2.8 stuff, but it's still nice to have a small zoom on a crop body. I have a D5000 as a backup body and have been looking for a zoom that's small and light. The $135 price was the clincher. I've always been impressed with the 18-70. I wanted the 16-85, but couldn't get off my wallet!

TWoK wrote:
Get the 18-70!
same here 1+