Nikon 14-24mm f2.8G review

Summary

Highly Recommended award If you want or need an ultra-wide-angle zoom along for your FX-body that delivers the highest execution with a professional build and a constant f2.8 aperture there's simply one choice: The Nikon AF-S 14-24mm f2.8G! Good points: Good to excellent quality across the FX image-circle; brave out sealing; quiet and fast AF mental process; sturdy build prize. Bad points: Prostrate to flare; no filter-thread; malodourous Price; modest surg range.

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Nikon 14-24mm f2.8G reexaminatio

24th June 2013

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Intro

The AF-S Nikkor 14-24mm f2.8 is an ultra-wide angle zoom configured for high-skeletal frame FX-formatting Nikon DSLRs. Announced in 2007, aboard the AF-S Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8, IT delivers a unique combining of ultra-wide coverage, fast and continuous focal ratio, in favou physical body timbre and superb results which has deservedly seen IT become one of the most desirable and successful high-end lenses of any system.

It's no exaggeration to say the Nikkor 14-24mm has driven many professional landscape and architectural photographers to the Nikon system, and even converted umpteen from rival formats. This is not just the lens that many Nikon owners hope, but the model that's causative countless Canon owners looking into adapters and clutching onto every rumour that a analogous model may be under development for the EF mount.

So you already know it's very swell, but since 2007 in that location's been a come of alternatives launched, including two from Nikon, offering such temptations as broader ranges, exteroception stabilization and take down toll tags. So the big question is impartial how bang-up is the Nikkor 14-24mm, and six years after its plunge, should IT still make up the wide soar upwards that FX owners aspire to? To find prohibited I tested it along Nikon's highest resolution broad-frame DSLR, the D800, for my in-depth review!

Facts from the catalog

As was common I'll have a look at the technical information first. I've rated the features with a [+] (or [++]), when IT's better than mediocre or even state of the art, a [0] if it's standard or sporting middling, and [-] if there's a disfavor.

Size (diam. x length): 98 x 132 millimetre (3.9 x 5.2 in). The lens-thug is built in and non collapsable. It protects the bulging front genus Lens in combination with a non-standard breast-lense ceiling that simply slots finished the lens-hood and held (surprisingly effectively) aside friction. [0]

Weight: 1,000 g (35.3 oz.). This is a massive fisheye lens and together with a full frame physical structure you'll be schlepping 1.8kg around. [0]

Optics: 14 elements in 11 groups. That's bad lowly in comparison but still: 11 groups have 22 air/glass-surfaces that bring on much of opportunities for flares and ghosts. Nikon has practical their special Nano Crystal Surface on one element. We'll see how this works knocked out in do as wide-screen-angle lenses are extremely prone to intramural reflections. The cross-plane section shows a batch of special elements: three aspherical and two extra-low dispersion elements. [0]

Closest focus distance/max. blowup: 0.28 m (0.9 ft.) / 1:6.7. In my test I was able-bodied to confirm this. At closest focusing outstrip objects are only 10 curium away from the lens-hood. [0]

Filter-thread: Zero filter-thread at completely. So if you want to exercise physical filters, you'll need to invest in a one-third company solution which attaches to the final stage of the barrel, such As the Lee SW150 system. This adds significantly to the overall size and is not a casual purchase – but and so neither is the 14-24mm. [-]

Image stabilisation: No, simply this is almost moot with much pint-sized focal lengths. To follow fair-minded, there's also very few ultra-wide zooms with sense organ stabilization for any system beyond Nikon's 16-35/4.0G VR and Sony's 10-18mm f4 for NEX. [0]

Auto focus: AF-S with SWM (uncommunicative wave motor), so IT does work at D60/3×00/5×00-bodies, extremity-centerin overturn by turn the focusing ring [+]

Covers full frame/FX or smaller = very good [+]

Price: about 1600 EUR brand-new (incl. 19% VAT) = expensive. But there's none comparable alternative. [0]

Comes with a precise nice semifinal-soft lens-case that is well padded, rear and front lens-cap are enclosed. [+]

Distance information is relayed to the camera, so the Nikon consistency can coiffure whol the advanced exposure-related stuff with this genus Lens. But this is true for every alternatives too. [+]

Aperture ring = no, just like complete competitors. [0]

Waterproofing: yes! A safe grommet at the lens-setting. [+]

The score in the "features-section" is 1[-]/7[0]/5[+]. The minus-point being the missing filter thread. All-in-entirely the feature set does not look excessively exciting, with the elision of the visual chemical formula: 14-24mm f2.8. If the lens system can deliver a fine sense organ performance this would put it in a unique one-of-a-kind position on the market.

Alternatives

– There's the Sigma AF 12-24mm 4.5-5.6 II DG HSM. Information technology goes wider even than the deadly wide Nikon 14-24mm but it is bad benighted: a maximum aperture of f4.5 along the wide end and if you zoom in you become 2 stops behind the Nikon pretty cursorily. You can receive it for below 800 EUR which makes it the cheapest of the alternatives.

– Then there's the Tokina AT-X Pro 16-28mm 2.8 FX starting only at 16mm but reaching 4mm longer at the long ending. Interestingly this lens looks almost care a copy of the Nikon from the outside. Starts at 800 EUR.

– And you can proceed for Nikon's personal AF-S VR 16-35mm 4.0G ED: lose 2mm on the wide end but gain almost 50% more hit on the long end. This might comfortably be an attractive trade-off and the lens also offers image-stabilization which is a curio on such a wide-Angle zoom. But it only has a maximum aperture of f4.0. It is also the most expensive alternative at around 1000 EUR simply it is still comfortably cheaper than the Nikon 14-24/2.8.

Note if you're a DX proprietor who intends to stick with the cropped format, I'd recommend the Nikkor DX 10-24mm zoom as an alternative. It may not constitute as business a lens, simply information technology will deliver immoderate-blanket coverage. Then over again if you're a DX possessor WHO's thinking of going full-frame, then the 14-24mm, let alone the others mentioned above, become options with future-proofing – just remember all lenses you rise onto a DX consistency will have their reporting efficaciously small past 1.5 times, making an ultra wide lens less wide.

Focus and build select

Focus truth and repeatability is critical to consistently produce sharp shots. Repeatability (the accuracy of concenter on the unvarying theme after repeated focus-acquisition) of this Lens is excellent with no outliers complete a series of 40 shots. And there is no performance variation whether the lens focuses from infinity or the minimum focus distance. The lens system focuses real fast: around 0.4 sec from infinity to 0.35m.

The centre ring has no slack or flirt and a throw of around 50 degrees, which is still enough to make accurate focus wide open at the long finish easy. The focus band is easy to grip and movement is real smooth as is the zoom action. AF-surgical procedure is pretty quiet happening the outside, but if you record picture with the built-in microphone every direction-cause produces an clunky "clap". Shaking the electron lens also produces any clunking sound. But apart from that the indiscriminate impression of establish quality is that of a pro-level lens: A high prize golden/plastic structure combined with weather sealing and nine rounded aperture blades.

Now it's time to check impossible the results in my Nikon 14-24mm f2.8 superior and Nikon14-24mmf2.8 sample images pages, OR if you'd like to skip to chase, head erect for my verdict!

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