Andy, I started with a $40 f3.5 ai, and was surprised how sharp it was for landscapes. Then I got the f2.8 ais, and it also was excellent for macro, not as sharp on landscape. Then I got the factory ai'd nikkor-P.C which is the oldest of the three. It is one of the sharpest lenses I own, and it only was $78. I noticed that Scott, mp356, used his for landscapes - and even in resized jpgs the resolved detail was evident. I ended up shooting a red DeBussy record album to compare the acutance between the three copies I own on resolving record grooves. The oldest lens was the sharpest. This is only a small sample, and a test that I thought would eliminate most variables. I came to the conclusion that any Nikkor 55mm lenses is an excellent performer for macro, and infinity focus. IMO the 55mm Nikkors are some if the best lenses Nikon ever made.
Jim
cadman342001 wrote: kwoodard wrote:
I bought both the 55/2.8 and the 55/3.5. The 2.8 was great out to infinity, but wasn’t as sharp as the 3.5 up close and at 1:1. My 2.8 also seized up, and since I bought it cheap, I sold it cheap for what I paid for it…fully disclosed the focus issue. I want to say the guy that bought it spent $80 on a CLA to have it serviced. I still use the 3.5 to this day.
I had heard (I'm sure Curtis mentioned it) that the ais version is much better in that regard (sharper at infinity) than the earlier versions. May I ask what versions you have/had Kevin?
My 55/3.5 is the scalloped pre-ai version, rarely used for anything other than close up/macro (rarely used for anything TBH)
Andy
Oct 04, 2023 at 08:56 AM
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