I have a few questions for the Nikon MF glass experts here:
I'm considering adding a 20mm to my Nikon kit (currently 28mm AIS, 50mm H, 105mm 2.5 AIS) to use on Nikon FF, but also on my Fuji with a tilt-shift adapter.
It seems the best option in terms of sharpness is the 20mm 2.8 AIS, followed by Voigtländer 20mm 3.5 -> is that in line with experience here? How does the 20mm 3.5 AI compare?
Last, but not least - is any of the 3 considerably better than the others regarding distortion?
Thanks in advance!
Hi. I can only compare the f/3.5 versions and offer a bit of warning. I have the AIS and AI UD versions. The AIS is a much lighter lens and provides outstanding shooting where the sun is in the frame. Great starburst in point of light. Better close up vs distance unless stopped down. I feel the UD version gives overall better image quality at distance landscape.
Here is the warning for tilt-shift adapter. I used to shoot Fuji X cameras and still have the T/S adapter I used. It is the Kipon T&S NIK-FX adapter. Because of the extended flange baffle on the UD lenses it will not mount on that adapter. It protrudes too far into the the mount. It also happened with a 24mm lens I had, but can't recall which one right now.
So be aware of this when searching for lenses to mount on the T/S. Even if it does mount, make sure it does not interfere with any tilt and shift movements.
bobbelbob wrote:
Thanks Serge!! I really wish I had a 16/3.5 Still a bit expensive to me though. I am saving up on a new camera since I'm not sure how much longer my D800 will live, It's quite beaten 😬
The 16/3.5 can get up there even for beat up copes. I have been tempted several times but not sure how often it would be used. It is a terrific lens.
It is a great time to be shopping for cameras. Unlike lenses, thee are some fantastic deals out there and plenty to choose from. Have fun with the hunt.
From afar the American electoral college system seems bizarre and outdated in that last time 70 000 votes determined the outcome despite a popular vote favoring the losing candidate. This despite the definition of democracy which the Oxford dictionary describes as "a system of government by the whole population".
I have no axe to grind and will watch the outcome with interest. For me the circus comes to town every four years and is an unending source of bemusement. Good luck to you all and to the United States.
Thank you Peter, regardless of the election outcome my biggest wish is for this country to become one people. We live in a time where our differences feel unsurmountable, we exist in a legal, not a real, union of very different people with democracy being gamed. I have witnessed as an engineer the loss of well paying manufacturing jobs and the resulting service economy that pays little, the high cost of housing in California, the blind eye to illegal immigration that allowed it to become a tragedy for the country and the illegal immigrants both, high levels of taxation that kills business, the end of mental health services largely driving the homeless crisis, the inability to control illegal drug trade and the legal opioid pain drug crisis, etc. etc.
The USA is adopted country to three siblings from my family and we are both grateful and loyal, living safe and relatively prosperous thanks to opportunities available here and the ability to work productively in what was initially a foreign land and is now my homeland, accent and all.
I just want to look at the 2020's and not feel that the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s were better on a human scale. May this wish come true,
Since the NYC Marathon has been cancelled this year, a couple of photos from the past. It is normally held on the first Sunday of November and lots of fun to photograph. The weather today would have been darn near perfect for the event.
saph wrote:
Not sure how the UD compares in quality to the other choices, but there's definitely been a lot of past talk about it here. Went looking for samples and found this pre-pandemic era photo:
serge07 wrote:
The 16/3.5 can get up there even for beat up copes. I have been tempted several times but not sure how often it would be used. It is a terrific lens.
Serge
the 16/3.5 is the only MF lens I still use regularly. Best MF dollars I ever spent. Also likely the sharpest MF lens I have ever seen. You can crop the heck out of these shots and they still hold up. You can de-fish, or use for effect, hold level and crop a little and nobody will ever know it was a fisheye. Very versatile once you get the idea of how to employ it. For most subjects, you just have to get in real close. As for frequency of use - I can't see going on any shoot without it. It adds a tool no other lens in my kit can substitute for even if you get into stitching and other methods to enlarge field of view.
pburke wrote:
the 16/3.5 is the only MF lens I still use regularly. Best MF dollars I ever spent. Also likely the sharpest MF lens I have ever seen. You can crop the heck out of these shots and they still hold up. You can de-fish, or use for effect, hold level and crop a little and nobody will ever know it was a fisheye. Very versatile once you get the idea of how to employ it. For most subjects, you just have to get in real close. As for frequency of use - I can't see going on any shoot without it. It adds a tool no other lens in my kit can substitute for even if you get into stitching and other methods to enlarge field of view.
Oh no Chuong, this is a horrible lens, nothing more than a paper weight. I can do you a favour buying it right now
Kidding apart, superb samples Chuong. This is one of my last, if not the last lens to buy before giving up to NMFAS! No lucky finding a good copy. Anyway, any day you need to sell this beauty, please consider your old friend!
For today a comparison of visible light vs. IR from my balcony:
Top: visible light in colour; D610 + Nikkor-S 5.8cm f/1.4F ai'd, ISO 100, f/5.6 at 1/250s;
Middle: B&W version; same combo, ISO 100, f/5.6 at 1/250;
Bottom: IR (720nm) some minutes later; IR modified D600 + same lens, ISO 100, f/5.6 at 1/125s.
Shots taken with this superb lens for IR: no hotspot on any aperture:
You're the next one in the family to get it if I EVER going to sell it.
That 5.8cm is nice. I don't know much about IR but that sky pops out of my screen.
Here is another shot from that 15mm f5.6 QD-C. Straight into the sun.
asiostygius wrote:
Oh no Chuong, this is a horrible lens, nothing more than a paper weight. I can do you a favour buying it right now
Kidding apart, superb samples Chuong. This is one of my last, if not the last lens to buy before giving up to NMFAS! No lucky finding a good copy. Anyway, any day you need to sell this beauty, please consider your old friend!
For today a comparison of visible light vs. IR from my balcony:
Top: visible light in colour; D610 + Nikkor-S 5.8cm f/1.4F ai'd, ISO 100, f/5.6 at 1/250s;
Middle: B&W version; same combo, ISO 100, f/5.6 at 1/250;
Bottom: IR (720nm) some minutes later; IR modified D600 + same lens, ISO 100, f/5.6 at 1/125s.
Shots taken with this superb lens for IR: no hotspot on any aperture:
I think the snowbirds have arrived. See who was out my back door this morning! Very skittish 6 foot/ (2M) gator. Was on the lawn until I opened the back door then it went into the water.
Ken Hill wrote:
I think the snowbirds have arrived. See who was out my back door this morning! Very skittish 6 foot/ (2 (2M0 gator. Was on the lawn until I opened the back door then it went into the water.
asiostygius wrote:
Oh no Chuong, this is a horrible lens, nothing more than a paper weight. I can do you a favour buying it right now
Kidding apart, superb samples Chuong. This is one of my last, if not the last lens to buy before giving up to NMFAS! No lucky finding a good copy. Anyway, any day you need to sell this beauty, please consider your old friend!
For today a comparison of visible light vs. IR from my balcony:
Top: visible light in colour; D610 + Nikkor-S 5.8cm f/1.4F ai'd, ISO 100, f/5.6 at 1/250s;
Middle: B&W version; same combo, ISO 100, f/5.6 at 1/250;
Bottom: IR (720nm) some minutes later; IR modified D600 + same lens, ISO 100, f/5.6 at 1/125s.
Shots taken with this superb lens for IR: no hotspot on any aperture:
Well Rafael, I didn't take my own advice or learn from your past lens adventures.
I wanted to test and see how the medium format Nikkors made for Bronica would hold up on the GFX compared to the Nikkor F primes that cover the sensor.
So I found a 13.5cm f/3.5 Bronica S Nikkor on eBay and was going to compare it to the 135mm f/2 F mount. Advertised as free of fungus, a few scratches etc... Only $50 so good for a test.
After 2 weeks sitting at the USPS distribution center 25 miles from my house and 2 inquiries and a call to consumer affairs at that center, it finally arrived today. That should have been a sign.
The aperture blades are frozen. Not sticky, but frozen solid. No movement at all.
And the seller was a US camera shop too, not an individual. I am done with eBay.
