Nikon AF-S 24-120mm f/4G ED VR review

The Nikon AF-S 24-120mm f/4G ED VR offers a useful 5x zoom range

Nikon AF-S 24-120mm f/4G ED VR
(Image: © Nikon)

Digital Camera World Verdict

A perennially popular kit lens option with cameras like the Nikon D750 and D780, it’s also a wise buy in its own right. The generous 5x zoom range stretches from a wide maximum viewing angle to useful telephoto reach and image quality remains impressive throughout, boosted in handheld shooting by 3.5-stop optical stabilization. Considerably more compact and lightweight than the latest Nikon AF-S 24-70mm lens and at only half the purchase price, it’s a good choice if you don’t need the faster f/2.8 aperture.

Pros

  • +

    Powerful 5x zoom range

  • +

    Impressive image quality

  • +

    Good handling

Cons

  • -

    VR only moderately effective

  • -

    Quite pricey for an f/4 zoom

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Building on the success of Nikon’s original AF-S 24-120mm VR, this second edition has a constant rather than variable aperture rating and an upgraded stabilizer. Even so, it’s been on sale for more than a decade now, and the 3.5-stop stabilizer is less effective than in most newer Nikon lenses. At least VR comes complete with Normal and Active modes, although it lacks the ‘Sport’ mode of Nikon’s newer lenses.

Specifications

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Matthew Richards

Matthew Richards is a photographer and journalist who has spent years using and reviewing all manner of photo gear. He is Digital Camera World's principal lens reviewer – and has tested more primes and zooms than most people have had hot dinners! 

His expertise with equipment doesn’t end there, though. He is also an encyclopedia  when it comes to all manner of cameras, camera holsters and bags, flashguns, tripods and heads, printers, papers and inks, and just about anything imaging-related. 

In an earlier life he was a broadcast engineer at the BBC, as well as a former editor of PC Guide.