Nikon 24mm F2.8 Nikkor AI-S any good

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mkelly

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Before i rush out and buy something totally unfit for me what are your thoughts on this lens for my d200 as a starter lens for landscapes .
Or are there better lenses around same value out there.
 
I've not used that one but I think they have a good reputation. Generally speaking the Nikon AIS wide angles are far better regarded than the later AFD auto focus versions. That said, they're still usually a bit soft in the corners wide open (maybe not on a crop though?) but like you I've only ever really used them for landscapes where that never really becomes an issue.

As for alternatives, I guess it depends what you're thinking of spending. I had a 20mm 2.8 afd and a 28mm afd. I wouldn't particularly recommend either but the 20mm in particular seems way over valued these days in relation to it's performance. The 28mm can be picked for less than £100 and though it's not amazing, it is good value.

I also had a Voigtlander 20mm 3.5 which is a lovely little lens and I'd highly recommend it but not easy to find for a good price. Just sold mine recently. At the time I bought it, a few people on here mentioned how well the olympus 21mm lenses work with an adaptor. They sound like they're worth looking out for but I've never seen a cheap one.

And one last one, I've just bought a 20mm F4 AIS. It's not arrived yet but when it does, I'll let you know how I get on. That and the 3.5 version both seem to have a stellar reputation.
 
Thanks a lot gad will take a look the nikon a seem to go over £150 most of the time
But will keep looking
 
Yep.. it's a good lens that. Bit soft in the corners wide open and slight barrelling, but nothing to worry about.
 
I can't comment on its use in digital but I have one and shoot film with it. I find it very sharp and crisp. Like all wides, performance wide open is usually not as good as stopped down. But in my view a very sharp bit of glass indeed.
 
It's effective focal length will be 36mm is that wide enough for you?

Personally i'd opt for a 18~70 as a starter you'll be able to pick one up for around £100 and it will be far more versatile than a fixed focal length that's not quite wide enough imho
 
Starting to get confused i already have a 18-55 and a 55-300 . so no i dont think the 18-70 would fit in and every thing i have read seems to point to the 28mm wide angle for landscapes.?
 
mkelly said:
Starting to get confused i already have a 18-55 and a 55-300 . so no i dont think the 18-70 would fit in and every thing i have read seems to point to the 28mm wide angle for landscapes.?
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But your D200 is not a full frame camera. The sensor is smaller, so on your camera a 28mm will behave effectively like a 36mm lens. Also.. you have that focal length as part of your zoom lens anyway. Is there any particular reason you want a prime lens? If it's for quality you may not notice much difference with a 10MP camera.
 
Pookeyhead said:
If it's for quality you may not notice much difference with a 10MP camera.
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Would you care to expand on that please, be interested how you arrive at this comment?
 
Because his 18-55, while not as sharp as the prime the differences are not dramatic, and will be lost in the aliasing if he prints big, or views close anyway. If the 18-55 was a truly terrible lens then it would be a different matter, but apart from slightly more vignetting at the wide and the 18-55 is actually not a bad lens at all. The lower the resolution of the image, the less critical sharpness becomes... then it's down to other factors such as CA or vignetting, and the 18-55 is not bad in that regard.. plus they are correctable in LR anyway.
 
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Thanks for taking the time.
 
mkelly said:
Starting to get confused i already have a 18-55 and a 55-300 . so no i dont think the 18-70 would fit in and every thing i have read seems to point to the 28mm wide angle for landscapes.?
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As you have a crop sensor body the 18~55 will be fine for landscapes and your telephoto zoom will be useful to compress landscape images too. Just go out and take pictures with what you already have.

The 18 end of you short zoom will effectively be 27mm (18 x1.5) so similar to a 28mm on a full frame sensor. Hope that clarifies things a little more ?
 
^^ This is good advice. I would spend the money on a set of graduating filters and holder, will do wonders for you landscapes.

Andy
 
Andysnap said:
^^ This is good advice. I would spend the money on a set of graduating filters and holder, will do wonders for you landscapes.

Andy
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This is true but I found using grads and/or a polariser on the 18-55 a total pain as the front element rotates when focussing. It can of course be done but it means you have to all of your focussing and composing before applying the filters. When you do apply the filters you have to be extremely careful not to knock the focus off which is difficult because the focus ring moves very freely indeed.

If this was the chosen route, something like an 18-70 would be preferable as the front element doesn't rotate and it's at least as sharp as the 18-55.

Personally I still think the manual prime route is a nice option though in terms of pure quality of output.
 
Thanks for all the coments but one purpose for the wide angle is that when i have finished a bathroom i really struggle to photograph the finished job.
Also as gad said i would like to have a play with nd grads etc and its a bit of a pain with the focus.
 
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