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While the 14-24 occupies an extremely usable space, I wasn't overly impressed with it for my use. While very good especially considering what it is (i.e. a zoom that is somewhat reasonably priced), I never felt it was 'the best of the best' there are better performing options out there, but they'll come at a price.
my problems with the 14-24 were:
1) flare (combatable, as shown, but still a PITA to deal with at times, and sometimes small flare can go unnoticed in the field making post production time and effort much more extensive than it otherwise would be)
2) lack of filter support (some filters available but come at a high price and limited availability and quality)
3) CA - an common issue with ultrawides, and at least in my copy the CA was noticeably worse than some of the other lens options in the ultrawide range that I have experience with.
4) mediocre to good but not stellar IQ performance on the 20+mm range compared to other options available, especially in corners and larger apertures
5) Great IQ performance below 20mm but heavy with field curvature/distortion(understandable in the ultrawide range, but not an ideal quality and there are better performing options), corner performance while still good compared to most other ultrawides, wasn't the best contender.
6) IQ performance wide open, while good and better than many others below 20mm, is not the best around (IQ above 20mm not the best as noted above, many better options available)
7) focus shift problems
8) personal preference for MF with wide and ultra wide, and MF feel an quality in most AF lenses including the 14-24 is severely lacking
9) Build quality is great, but not on the same level as other options i.e. Zeiss
10) only f2.8, and while there are VERY few options for faster lenses in the sub 24mm range (none of which I own, though I continually wish my wides/ultrawides were faster). the old sigma 20 f1.8 and new Nikon 20 f1.8 are the only Nikon usable lenses in this range that I can think of, and out of those 2, the Nikon would be the only one I'd buy (unless siggy comes out with an updated Art version that falls into the quality of their other art lenses perhaps)
11) EDIT- forgot this one, TERRIBLE lens cap. I hated that thing.
obviously some of my gripes with the 14-24 are simply personal preference stuff, others are understandable given the focal range, and some are more of an issue than others, when you're looking at sub 24mm wides and ultrawides you kindof have to choose where you'll compromise. So to me the 14-24 isn't the cream of the crop but rather a very very good option at a somewhat reasonable price given that you can compromise on those areas that it is less than stellar at...For me it wasn't what I really wanted and I could not compromise on a few of the 14-24's issues, I found the combination of the Zeiss 15 and 21 to be far better for me for a number of reasons, however going with the ZF's was also a significantly more expensive route to go. Others love their 14-24, and produce fantastic images with it, and rightly so.
again before jumping into something I'd recommend looking at renting a few options and seeing if they are for you or not.
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