Sharpness at 50mm

The sharpness tests for this review were carried out using a real-world subject rather than a test chart. The Nikon AF-S Nikkor 18-140mm f/3.5-5.6G VR lens was attached to a Nikon D7100 body, which in turn was mounted on a sturdy tripod. We also used an infrared remote release and mirror lock-up to prevent any blurring that may result from camera or mirror movement. The 100% crops represent about 1/600th of the total frame area.

The full frame at 50mm

Centre sharpness is excellent from f/5.6 through f11, and still very good at f/5 and f16. Diffraction takes its toll on resolution at f22 but I would not refrain from using that setting if I needed the DoF. The borders aren't that great wide open but sharpen up rapidly upon stopping down, reaching peak performance at f11. At f16 the edges are still very sharp, and even f22 is sharper than f/5 or f/5.6.

Aperture	Centre Crop	Edge Crop
f/4.8
f/5.6
f/8
f/11
f/16
f/22