Nikon - AF-S DX Micro Nikkor 85mm f/3.5G ED VR Telephoto Lens for DX SLR Cameras - Black

I’m so glad that I decided to up the money for this lens. Definitely made an awesome improvement on the quality of photos I take of insects, spiders, lizards, and more. I’m still learning use the functionality of using the manual settings. I haven’t perfected it yet, but I’ve taken some awesome pictures with this lens. Was definitely a great investment!! I have no regrets about buying this lens.

This lens is amazing. My daughter is learning so much about her camera using this and it does everything it says it does. Came with a bag and a lens shield.

I wanted a true 1:1 macro lens that was sharp, smooth, with a high degree of quality for the money. Bokeh effects were of secondary importance to me but this lens does that well, too! I am fully satisfied with this lens! I wouldn't bother posting evaluative photos on the 'net because the quality of tiny photos is irrelevant to my mind. And my eye. During the months of research I conducted I found them to be useless. So I will not post a photo here. This 85mm lens also works very well for general photography. I've used it for a number of subjects from portraits to still life to nature to actual macro photos of all kinds of things. One of the challenges of macro photography is the shallow Depth Of Field of macro lenses up close. It's not really well suited to most landscapes, of course, being 85mm. It is a very good lens and I recommend it. I have not had a macro lens before but this one has become my favorite lens! When I pull my camera out of the bag probably 70% of the time this 85mm macro is on it. I have just begun my Nikon journey and have the 18-55 and the 55-200 lenses that came with the D5100 I bought as a kit. I have an old Minolta Maxxum 650si that is my favorite camera but all these lenses are actually better than my old Minolta lenses, even if the camera body is not. And of my Nikon lenses this macro is the best! So if you're considering taking the leap into the other world of macro, I really don't think you can go wrong with this 85mm. Some may be concerned about the Depth Of Field with f3.5. I can only say that if I wanted to go down to f1.5 or in that range, I can not imagine that DOF being useful for most macro subjects. I took a close-up, 1:1 shot of my eye and while part of the iris was in focus the center of the lens (my eye's lens and the reflections of light sources) was not and neither were most of the blood vessels... I can't see using f1.5 or 1.8 without focus stacking and I simply don't have time for that. In fact, keeping the subject in focus is the trickiest part of using this lens. That's just macro photography though, part of the unique challenge. Oh, and the way you can manually focus while in AutoFocus mode is very cool and useful. This is a great lens and I really really like it!

I have had this little beauty for about 6 months(bought it at Best Buy, great deal) and have shot several hundred picts. I also bought the SB 900 flash at the same time & I am still learning to operate both and as usual, make a lot of errors. The pictures are fantastic @ 12+ mp and the menues are almost self explanitory. The user manual could be better written, I down loaded a more complete one from the internet, quite a job. I create folders for each month, and downsize them(keep the full sized in a separate folder) and store them on an external HD. There are so many options that Its hard to remember what each is for and how to use them, hopefully with time and use that will clear up. My only wish(other than better understanding the manual & menues) is being able to place the date on a photo and not have to use another progam. In years to come it would be nice to look at a snow pict. with a date on the bottom and remember how much we had. I also have the 5000 and wish the features of each could compiled on one great camera without haveing to mortgage the ranch to buy it. All in all I think this a great camera and would recomend it to all. I started out with Nikon film cameras over 35 years ago and have upgraded periodically to finally these digitals. Nikon quality has lead the way. I wish I had these cameras years ago when our children were growing up.

Specialized lens for macro photography. I could have spent more and went with the 105mm lens but I have found this lens suitable for my needs and its much more compact than the bulky 105.

I highly recommend this lens. While it is difficult to focus at first, a few hours of practice will yield excellent results. Very easy and sharp photos

I have not had a lot of time to learn all about the product but really like it

Just received my copy from warehouse and sounds like a cheap plastic rattling when focusing. I tried the 40mm and is better than this one. I returned it for this one but I guess is going back to warehouse. Some reviews online are good may be I got a bad copy. If you want a pro lens save some money for the 105 micro or if you are shooting things like rings and jewelry go with the 40mm.