Colin,
That was my point which I guess I didn't state clearly. There is variability within the same model lens, and even in the bodies that the lenses mount on. I saw good reviews and examples online of the 24-120, but could not find one to perform on that way on my D1X, D2X, or D300.
Jim
DeltaSigma wrote: James Markus wrote:
Jay. That is a reminder of the past impressions of Bjørn Rørslett that I haven't seen in quite awhile (15 years?). He seemed to stop reviews at the D1X - D2X Nikon Camera era - both crop frame sensors & the D3 FX sensor. His opinions seem to be accurate in most cases, but I have found variability within some Nikon lens.
Two of the most extreme were the 12-24mm f4 DX which took three tries to get a good copy. The Nikon AF-S 24-120mm f/4G ED VR is the worst lens I ever encountered, and I gave up looking for a good example. In manual focus Nikkors almost every single one has been good. I thought there must be some reason Nikon kept tweaking the 28mm f2.8 ais. I bought successively newer, and better condition copies. And, the image quality improved each time until I thought I had reached a quality that I considered excellent. I once had a like new 24mm f2.0 ais that was simply gorgeous, but performed like crap wide open. What good is a fast lens that you can't use wide open? That lens taught me a lesson. If you won't use it get rid of it. I'm lucky as I made a bit of money reselling the 24mm, the 24-120, and other lenses.
Jim,
Well I must be lucky because my 24-120 f/4 is pretty darn good.
Even after moving over to the Z system I am hanging onto the F-mount zoom because it works well in IR. It will be my walkabout lens when my D610 comes back from its IR conversion.
Admittedly not as good as my trio of goto MF primes in the 24-85mm focal length but the zoom at 120mm way outperforms my 105/2.5 and 135/2.8 primes. That holds true for my D7100 IR sensor and filter combo. Things might differ on FX. Time will tell.
Colin
Jul 25, 2021 at 05:47 PM
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