Difference between these 2

[on7june]

Hello everyone, I am planning to buy my first lens for my D3100 (apart from the stock lens which i get with my camera) and found these two lenses Nikon 55-200 mm VR f/4-5.6G IF ED AF-S DX and Nikon 55-200 mm f/4-5.6G ED DX AF-S DX. Just wanted to know what is the difference between these two and which one I can prefer.

[TCav]

The difference is the VR, which means 'Vibration Reduction'. From Nikon's website:

A Nikon in-lens technology that improves image stability by automatically compensating for camera shake. Lenses that offer VR will feature the abbreviation VR on the lens barrel.

For more info, see http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Learn-And...reduction.html

Naturally, VR alters the optics of a lens, but optically, there isn't much difference in the performance of the two lenses.

Basically, if you've got a VR lens, you can turn off VR when you don't need it, but if you've got a non-VR lens you can't turn it on when you do.

[SIMON40]

Another difference of the two is the "IF"... which means internal focusing mechanism- the lens barrel doesn't change in length (or rotate) when focusing like the older model does...

[on7june]

Thanks a lot for your replies. Just curious to know why we need to turn off VR?? or at which situation we will / we need to do? I thought turning it on all the time helps to get better pictures. Correct me if i am wrong.

[Weebee]

You should turn off the VR when you are using it on either a tripod or mono-pod. So they say anyway.

[TCav]

Yes. If VR is on while the lens is mounted on a tripod, and some vibration occurs on the tripod, VR will try to compensate for that vibration. The resulting vibration from compensating for the vibration may induce further vibration that the VR will try to compensate for. And so on, and so on, and so on.

Also, if you're using a fast enough shutter speed to prevent motion blur from camera shake, then VR is superfluous, so you may want to turn it off anyway.

[Weebee]

Half the time I forget to do this!