CAMERA

Samsung 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 ED OIS - A View Angle Equivalent To 27-300mm Lens On 35mm Camera

8/22/2013 9:05:52 AM

This 11.1x zoom lens is used for Samsung NX camera that provided a view angle equivalent to 27-300mm lens on 35mm camera, including optical image stabilization, i-Function control and available for $900.

Features and Handling


Samsung 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 ED OIS

Samsung 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 ED OIS

The high quality plastic was used in most parts of the lens and the lens mount is made of metal. It has a smooth glossy and a green metal ring that is between the lens body and zoom ring. With a weight of 549 g and dimension 105.5 mm, it is well balanced to Samsung NX20 body that is used to test, but can make sense a little loose on the body more compact than Samsung.

The lens has been installed to the camera

The lens has been installed to the camera

Focusing speed is reasonable, especially when in good light condition and thin focus ring is very light and feels quite smooth to operate. Focusing process is performed internally, and the 67 mm filter threads do not rotate, ideal for using with graduated and polarizing filters. In manual focus model the screen immediately enlarges the central part of the photo, with quite simple adjustment. This lens includes i-Function buttons to access quickly to camera control and switches that are provided to enable optical stabilization and to change between auto and manual focus. A lock switch is also provided to prevent the lens from opening widely during transport.

Min focus distance is 50cm, which is fairly typical for lenses in this range. With careful, at 200 mm, optical image stabilization allows sharp hand-held photos that were taken with a consistency at 1/20.

The lens has been installed to the camera

The lens has been installed to the camera

Performance

At 18mm and max aperture, sharpness in the center of the frame is very high, although clearly to the edge of the frame lagging behind little, gains a good degree of sharpness. When sharpness was dropped it is improved in the frame, with the peak sharpness achieved at f/4. The clarity in the center of the frame is excellent and sharpness of the edges of the frame is very good.

Zoom result to 70mm is disappointed in sharpness of the frame at all apertures. Sharpness is very clarity in the center of the frame between f/8 and f/11 and sharpness toward the edges of the frame is quite good.

Finally, at 200 mm, sharpness is further reduced, with sharpness is from moderate to quite good at maximum aperture. Good sharpness is performed in the center of the frame with the lens down f/8.

Chromatic aberration review

Chromatic aberration review

How to read our charts

Blue columns represent the index from the center of the frame at the different apertures and green is from the edges. Making average two indexes you will have red column.

Conventional column on the left side shows the actual image resolution. Column is tall as the quality of camera lens as good.

In the review, the lens was tested on Samsung NX20 that used Imatest.

Chromatic aberration can be a problem with this lens, especially at 70 mm, the edges of the frame reach 1.5 pixel width. As the result, the little attention may need to be done when shooting high-contrast subjects with this lens.

Sharpness of the image review

Sharpness of the image review

How to read our charts

Chromatic aberration is not only capable of focusing on the sensor or blurring all colors of visible light at the same point of the lens. High chromatic aberration gives the remarkable range or creates a halo effect around sharp edges around the photos. It can be handled by the software.

Apochromatic lens has the special lens (extra-low dispersion, etc.) to minimize the problem, so they often have much higher price.

In this review, the lens was tested on Samsung NX20 that used Imatest.

Light falloff towards the corner is well controlled throughout room range. The down about a stop in maximum aperture significantly influences the process of visually uniform illumination.

Distortion is very well controlled, with a knee strain ranged from 0,443% at 18mm and 0,565% at 200mm. This level is quite low so the line parallels to the edges of the photo area that can be considered straight for most purposes.

A petal lens hood comes with this lens as standard, it performs a task that is covered the lens from the irrelevant lights that can affect the contrast. This lens can be easy glare and is taken out light to reduce contrast, so, it is best to cover the right place.

Sample photos

Sample photos

Sample photos

Value

Account to performance element of this lens, the $900 asking price seems to like a high price to pay for the convenience of the expansion zoom range.

Because there is no available alternative from other manufactures, Samsung is exclusive in this case.

Verdict

Super zoom lens is always a promise as well as optical performance is observed, but in many cases the convenience of the zoom range is more value than any omission in the operation of the lens.

In the case of this lens, it is certainly not a terrible lens, but there are better examples of available super zoom lenses of other camera systems, it proves that it can create a convenient lens that gives excellent performance.

This lens achieves good performance, with a few points need to care, such as high level of chromatic aberration reasonable, and lose the ability to shoot contrast into the light. If your shooting process is okay, this lens may be right for you.

Pros

·         Convenient zoom range

·         Good build quality

·         Effective optical image stabilizer

·         Low distortion

·         Excellent sharpness in the center at 18mm

·         Low falloff

Cons

·         Drop off in performance as the lens is zoomed in

·         Chromatic aberration levels may be a problem

·         The contrast is lost when shooting into the light

Specifications

Lens Mounts

·         Samsung NX

Lens

·         Focal Length: 18mm - 200mm

·         Angle of View: 8° - 75.9°

·         Max Aperture: f/3.5 - f/6.3

·         Min Aperture: f/22

·         Filter Size: 67mm

·         35mm equivalent: 27mm - 300mm

·         Internal focusing: yes

Focusing

·         Min Focus: 50cm

·         Stabilised: yes

Construction

·         Blades: 7

·         Elements: 18

·         Groups: 13

Dimensions

·         Weight: 549 g

·         Height: 105.5mm

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