![\"18-200](\"http:\/\/www.inkofpark.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/18200f5_6.png\" "\\"18-200")
<\/a><\/p>\nFirstly, credit where it\u2019s due; the pictures were taken by my friend Robert Hohlfelder.\u00a0 The pictures were taken of a dollar bill from about 15 feet.\u00a0 The camera was tripod-mounted, and the lenses with VR had it turned off.\u00a0 The three lenses are the Nikon 55-200 VR, Nikon 18-200 VR, and the Nikon 70-300ED.\u00a0 Photos were taken with at f\/5.6 and 200 mm zoom.\u00a0 F\/5.6 is fully open for the 55-200 and the 18-200, but not quite fully open for the 70-300.\u00a0 Robert observed that the 18-200 zoom affords significantly less magnification at 200 mm than the other two.\u00a0 One questions what the claim for \u201c200 mm\u201d zoom really means.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure the Nikon Corporation would never fib\u2026<\/p>\n
What is most striking is the difference in sharpness.\u00a0 The obvious winner is the 70-300, a lens that lacks VR, but is probably increasing in value at this point.\u00a0 The second-place for sharpness goes to the 18-200, and the 55-200 gets the bronze.<\/p>\n
The shocking truth is in the pictures.\u00a0 Judge for yourself.\u00a0 I\u2019m displaying them larger than their native size so the effect is more obvious.<\/p>\n