nikon 16-85mm, AFS G VR ? | Nikon Lenses | Photo Forum

If you are shooting landscape, large buildings and interiors, the 16mm would be great, they are equivalent to 24mm on 35mm film format. The 85mm could be good for details and portraits, but that lens you are refering to is F3.5-F5.6…in that range if the 16mm is not important, you could get an all-around lens of 18-105mm or even a 18-200mm. The problem with lenses is the F number, the lower the F number is, the glass is better because let’s more light into the mirror. That’s why the F2.8 lenses at all range of zoom are more expensive. In the 16-85mm you have 16mm with F3.5mm but you zoom to 50mm you will get a F4 for instance, and with 85mm you will get a F5.6. What do I mean by this? I mean if you are in low light situation for instance and you want to shot with 85mm zoom, you will not be able to put your F-stop in F3.5 for instance…and then or you use the flash or you bump your ISO higher. The result is adding some noise to the picture and less sharp image.

I once experimented a 35mm DX prime and because the lens is 1.8 you can easy handhold the lens at night. With a 2.8 lens I don’t know what happens because I didn’t experimented yet. I have a 105 macro with 2.8 but I only experimented indoor with low light and for handhold and focus perfectly without tripod, was necessary for me to bump my ISO to 1000 or more. In landscape and night photography, I recomend the ISO 100 for very good and sharp images, but even with a 2.8 I’m afraid the the camera meter will ask you for shutter speed lower than 1 second…so the tripod must be necessary because lower than 1 second deppending on the person, we generally shake the camera and lose the focus.