Nikon 18-55mm: To keep or not to keep?

[minchman]

Hi everyone,
I just wanted to get some opinions and expertise.

I have the Nikon D40, and purchased the Nikon 18-200VR (which I LOVE!).

My question is, should I keep the kit lens that came with my D40? Would selling it now make it difficult to sell the D40 body only later (when I decide to upgrade my equipment in the future)? Can the 18-55 do anything better than the 18-200VR? Thanks in advance.

 

[taylorwilsdon]

There is nothing the 18-55 can do that the 18-200 cannot, so I say get rid of it. It actually adds little value to the camera as a bundle (~$50 or so with body only vs kit) so don't let money be the deciding factor.

I say sell now if you'd like the money. You can probably get $75-$100 depending on where you sell it, and either put that in savings or add to your photography collection

 

[Hello.there]

I'm in the same position as you, I haven't used my 18-55 since getting the 18-200 (which I also love). But I decided to hold on to it, (a) because I doubt I'd get a whole lot for it (??) and (b) you never know when you might need it....eg after dropping the 18-200 down the toilet, or a similar catastrophe.

 

[ChrisA]

Hi everyone,
I just wanted to get some opinions and expertise.

I have the Nikon D40, and purchased the Nikon 18-200VR (which I LOVE!).

My question is, should I keep the kit lens that came with my D40? Would selling it now make it difficult to sell the D40 body only later (when I decide to upgrade my equipment in the future)? Can the 18-55 do anything better than the 18-200VR? Thanks in advance.

You really can't get much for the 18-55 lens. There just is not much of a market for it as "everyone" already has one. Yes, the 18-55 is better in some ways then the 18-200. It has less optical (geometric) distortion and is lighter to cary around. And you are right about selling the camera. I would not expect a person in the market for a used D40 to already have a collection of Nikon lenses. A D40 buyer would be wanting a lens.

 

[Mr.Noisy]

Considering the 18-55mm doesn't go for a lot, i'd just store it in the box and sell the Body + Lens as the Kit, make it easier to shift, leaving you with a 18-200mm VR for your next Camera which you'll get cheaper as body only, Thats what I'd Do anyway , I'm thinking of getting the 18-200VR for my D2Xs to save weight instead of lugging the 70-200 around, from what ive heard the 18-200mmVR gets some good results

 

[apearlman]

keep as a backup

I've kept my cheap kit lens as a backup, or if I ever go someplace messy or dangerous... the beach, hailstorms, food fights.

While I think my idea is brilliant, I'll also mention that I haven't once actually USED my kit lens since replacing it.

Andrew

 

[Artful Dodger]

After asking the same Q about two weeks ago or so I will be holding onto mine after some great input from everyone in this forum Some day you may buy a D300 or something along that line and keeping the lens for the D40 for a backup or hand-me-down dslr with a lens is a great idea to keep in mind

Enjoy your new lens as I really like the 18-200VR as well, now if it would just stop raining around my area the new lens would be even nicer

 

[Shacklebolt]

Honestly, I'd hold on to it, and yeah, sell it with the D40, but not individually.

Honestly, there are probably going to be some scenarios where you might just want a lens that weighs about a third of that of the 18-200mm. And if you want to sell it, again, sell it with the D40.

 

[wgilles]

It's always good to have a backup lens. You won't get that much for the 18-55mm anyway. I'd just keep it.

Also, if you buy a new body, it's usually not a bad idea to get a kit again (with a different lens of course, B&H has tons of kits). You usually get a discount of some sort when you buy the kit so look for a kit with a lens you need and buy that one.

 

[krye]

It's one of those things where it's cheap enough that you might just as well hold onto it. Maybe you'll be somewhere where you don't feel like bringing your huge expensive lens and the kit lens will do. I mean, if it was a $1000 lens, then sure, sell it. No sense in holding onto an expensive lens if you're never going to use it. But looking at ebay, you'd be lucky to get $100 for a new one.

 

[TimJim]

I would keep it as a backup because you will only get about $50 for it.

 

[CrackedButter]

I've kept my cheap kit lens as a backup, or if I ever go someplace messy or dangerous... the beach, hailstorms, food fights.

While I think my idea is brilliant, I'll also mention that I haven't once actually USED my kit lens since replacing it.

Andrew

I agree, I just bought an Olympus e420 and the kit lens is a (including conversion factor) 35-90, i bought a new lens the next day and its a 24-120, clearly a superior focal length and faster f-stop but i kept my kit lens as a backup and incase i don't want to take my better lens to a place where I know it can get damaged like in a club where i work often.