One year ago I bought my AF-S Zoom-Nikkor ED 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G IF DX, for the reasons that you can read in my blog post of the past year. I assigned myself the task of using the new lens in place of the primes it replaces for at least one year, so now it's the moment of drawing some conclusion.

In a few words — I'm extremely happy of my purchase. I didn't run any side-by-side test, but I understand that the new lens is not as crisp as the 35mm ƒ/1.8, the 50mm ƒ/1.8 and the 85mm ƒ/1.8 — but the difference is not so large. On the other hand, the flexibility of composition that the zoom offers, as well as the fact that it's much easier to carry along than the three lenses it replaces, gave me the opportunity of taking quite a number of shots that I'd have probably missed otherwise.

Roughly the 80% of the photos with the 18-70mm were taken with the Nikon D5100 — actually, the lens is mounted there most of the time. This combination is lightweight and compact — perfect for travel photography.

Does this mean that I'll never use those primes again? Definitely not. When you have all the time of the world to take your shot, carefully searching for the right point of view, mounting the tripod, waiting for the proper light, you also have the time to mount a prime. The lens might not make a big difference — the time you take does. This approach often is not compatible with travel photography, because you're in a hurry. And for the past year I mostly was in a hurry.

Now, my new assignment for the next twelve months is: find the proper pace, slow down as much as it's possible. The very few times I was able to do that in the past year not only I took better photos, but I also enjoyed the moment.