Need Lens Advice for D5200

I've pre-ordered the D5200 with the 18-55mm lens as a birthday present for my girlfriend. She's an amateur but much more serious about photography than I am and continuously lamenting the fact that my Canon S3 IS is so limited - no lenses, no real manual focus, the zoom is automatic instead of a ring, etc.


I'd like to buy a telephoto lens to wrap with the camera so that she's ready to go, more or less, but I'm having an extremely difficult time deciding (even the D5200 was a hard decision...).


She shoots a lot of landscapes/sunsets, wildlife, and "sports". I ride horses and compete professionally - Dressage and some jumping - and one of her biggest passions is photographing me both in practice (where she can get closer) and shows. So I know she's going to want a lens with good zoom, sharp images, and a quick autofocus. Most of her shots will be outdoors in good/decent lighting, but occasional low-light photography is definitely a possibility.


The four I've been considering so far are the Nikkor 55-200mm VR, Nikkor 55-300mm VR, Nikkor 70-300mm VR, and the Tamron 70-300 VC. Advice?

Read more: http://nikonites.com/telephoto/10331-real-mccoy.html#ixzz2HyYwZEyw

my vote would be 55-300 or 70-300, but neither is great for fast focus, so, she might miss some shots.

The few criticisms of the 55-200/55-300 that I could find were that the AF was a little sluggish for sports or action shots, which is why I started looking at the 70-300 to begin with. It was recommended in many of those posts as a "if you want something faster...".


I'm certainly open to recommendations of other lenses, too, if you feel something else would be better for what she's interested in. I'm just looking to stay at or under the $500 price mark for right now.

18-200 or 300 Vr no contest ..sell the 18-55 I personally like Sigma but you are buying for a woman and size does matter.........argh....

you should get a 18-250 sigma for $500 and an 18-200 for significantly less ..why would you want to mess about changing lenses ..waste of time