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Lens Reviews

Nikkor, Sigma, Tamron & Tokina in Super-Wide Shootout

Jason Odell (DrJay32)


Keywords: lens, comparison, nikon, lenses, nikkor, 14mm, dx, 12_24mm, 11_18mm, 10_20mm, tokina, tamron, sigma, d2x, d70

Show pages (6 Pages)

Nikon DSLR cameras come with both the FX full frame and the DX APS-C sensors, latter sensor type being smaller than 35mm film. Both of these Nikon camera body types accept standard 35mm format lenses. The decision by Nikon to use a “cropped” DX sensor in some of its digital cameras can be debated ad nauseum as to its merits; depending on their subject, photographers often either love or hate the smaller sensor format.

 

14mm f/2.8D ED AF Nikkor

14mm f/2.8D ED AF Nikkor Ultra Wide Angle Lens 

 

The APS-C sensor in Nikon DX DSLRs has a “crop factor” of ~1.5X. Wildlife shooters immediately liked the idea of their 200mm lens having the same angle of view as a 300mm lens. While the gains in apparent focal length on telephoto lenses were praised by nature shooters, the downside of this “crop factor” was that now your 17-35mm lens lost its “super-wide” ability and became a pedestrian 26-52mm lens. Many early adopters of digital flocked to their local camera shops to purchase the large (and rather expensive) 14mm Nikkor lens. At least then they had an effective focal length of 21mm; wide enough for some, but not truly “super wide” on a DX format body.

Nikon showed their commitment to digital SLR users in February 2003 when they introduced the 12-24mm f/4.0G DX AF-S Nikkor. For the first time, here was a lens specifically designed to cover the smaller sensor area of the APS-C digital SLRs. Until late 2004, the Nikkor 12-24mm DX lens was pretty much a digital shooter’s only choice for an 18-36mm film equivalent angle of view.

However, 2005 saw new lenses introduced with super-wide focal lengths in the Nikon F-mount from each of the three major third-party lens manufacturers. Enter the Tokina AT-X Pro 12-24mm f/4.0 DX, the Tamron SP 11-18mm f/4.5-5.6 Di II, and the Sigma 10-20mm f/4.0-5.6 EX HSM. Each of these lenses are priced substantially less than the Nikkor 12-24 DX, and appear to offer attractive options for super-wide zooms. We at Nikonians, of course wanted to know how the three challengers stacked up compared to the “venerable” Nikkor.

Nikonians was able to obtain a production-level sample of each of the four lenses from their respective manufacturers. Before we move on, Nikonians wants to thank Nikon USA, Tamron USA, Sigma Corporation of America, and THK Photo Products for loaning us these lenses for our tests. We also appreciate Roberts Distributors, who went out of their way and arranged for us to get the lenses on very short notice.


THE SIGMA 12-24mm LENS

Some may ask why the Sigma 12-24mm was not included in this test. All reports are that the Sigma is a very fine lens, and it has the virtue of working on 35mm bodies at all focal lengths. If that’s important to you, the Sigma 12-24mm is the clear choice. If you’re looking for a DX format super-wide lens that will let you easily use filters (the primary drawback of the Sigma), one of the four in this review is currently the only choice.


THE TESTS

So, with a camera bag full of super-wides, and a bunch of DSLR cameras we (Rick Walker and Jason Odell) set out to put these lenses through their paces. We tested these lenses in real-world conditions; anyone who wants to dwell on MTF charts can look them up from the manufacturer’s own websites. We approached this review from the perspective of the Nikonian who is looking to get back their wide angle of view that they were used to with an 18-35mm or 17-35mm lens on their film body. Chances are, if you want a lens this wide, you’re either shooting landscapes or photojournalism-style photography.

To level the playing field between cameras, we shot our test images in JPEG mode with sharpening set to medium-high in the camera. Both of the DX DSLR cameras were tripod mounted and set to their native ISO (ISO 200), and we used aperture-priority matrix metering. We also shot some images in RAW to evaluate post-processing techniques for removing vignetting and chromatic aberration. We looked at sample images at 12mm, 18mm, and (where available) 24mm. For the Sigma 10-20mm, we also looked at images made at 20mm and 10mm.

We shot a series of images with each lens at a range of f-stops; from wide-open to f/22. We repeated the image series at each focal length for each lens. The test shots were then subjectively evaluated for center and edge sharpness, chromatic aberration, and light fall-off (vignetting). We also judged the build and handling characteristics of each lens.

So here, alphabetically, are our individual reviews of each of these super-wide lenses, followed by our summary and conclusions.

 

 

Too long to read?

Short of time or this article did not cover what you need to know? No problem, just ask in our Nikkor forum or in our third party lens vendors.

 

Post Nikkor Question

 

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NIKON 12-24mm f/4G IF ED AF-S DX NIKKOR "Super Wide Angle" ZOOM LENS

The Nikkor is the original ultrawide DX zoom lens, having been introduced back in 2003. For a while, there was no choice on this front: if you wanted a zoom lens with the equivalent range of an 18-36mm, this was the only choice. How does it hold up to the new competition?
 

12-24mm f/4G IF ED AF-S Nikkor Super Wide Angle Zoom Lens 

BUILD / PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

The Nikkor 12-24mm lens is the second heaviest lens of the four we tested. It weighs in at over one pound (485g). Its finish is very similar to what you’d find on recent AF-S Nikkors – matte black with a slight roughness to the surface that most people like.

Unlike most Nikkors, the locations of the zoom and focusing rings are reversed, with the focusing ring at the rear of this lens, and the zoom ring at the front. If you’ve been using two-touch zooms for a while, expect to grab the wrong control on occasion. This lens is a “G” design, with no aperture ring.

This lens takes 77mm front filters, and has a pinch-front style lens cap that can easily be attached or removed with the bayonet-mount lens hood installed. As this is an AF-S Nikkor, focusing is quick and silent. Additionally, there is an instant manual focus override: simply turn the focusing ring to get a revised distance. While this is a nice feature, it isn’t quite as important on a wide angle lens as it is on a telephoto due to the large depth of field.

The distance scale does not have many markings. For example, the last distances marked prior to infinity are 1m and 2.5ft. In addition, the focusing scale is quite compressed. This makes setting a hyperfocal distance more of a challenge than on other lenses. As with most zooms, there are no hyperfocal markings on this lens; a laminated hyperfocal distance table is a good companion for this lens.

The lens hood is reversible and is actually the same model as is used with the 18-35mm 3.5/4.5 AF-D Nikkor and the 17-35mm 2.8 AF-S Nikkor. If you own one of those lenses, you now have a spare lens hood. Internally, the lens features an optical formula of 11 elements in 7 groups and a seven-bladed diaphragm with rounded edges. The lens has a constant maximum aperture of f/4.0 throughout the zoom range, and a close-focusing distance of just under one foot. Because this lens has a “DX” design, the image circle is too small to cover the frame on a 35mm body at all focal lengths, but you’ll get minimal vignetting at 18-24mm on a 35mm body.


PERFORMANCE

With both bodies, autofocus with the 12-24mm Nikkor is accurate and precise. The lens has a nice feel in the hand, and its construction quality is much better than lenses such as the 18-35mm f/3.5-4.5D AF. It’s not quite as solid as a 17-35mm f/2.8D ED AF-S, but that’s also because it’s a much smaller lens.

Images with this lens have excellent contrast at all apertures and focal lengths and correspondingly fine color rendition. Center sharpness is very good at 12mm, and excellent at the longer focal lengths or when stopped down to f/8 or f/11. At the 18-24mm focal lengths, images were spectacularly sharp – about as good as it gets.

The edges of images taken at 12mm and wide-open are noticeably softer than the center when viewed at 100% in Photoshop, but this improves quickly upon stopping down. There is very little light fall-off with this lens, in fact it was the best of the bunch, and was virtually undetectable. As with the other lenses, there is a noticeable softening of images due to diffraction effects at f/22. At 18 and 24mm, this lens yields excellent sharpness in the edges, especially when stopped down.

Optical distortion is controlled very well in this lens. There is slight barrel distortion at 12mm, and no apparent distortion at longer focal lengths. At the wide end, chromatic aberration was apparent in images taken with the D2x, but it was minor. Users of Nikon Capture will find that if you turn on “Color Aberration Control”, chromatic aberration will be automatically removed from RAW files. We didn’t see any adverse impacts from this operation and would recommend turning it on and leaving it on.


CONCLUSIONS

Although the Nikkor is the "oldest" lens in the bunch, it’s a strong performer with the best overall optical performance. The only area where it was surpassed was in chromatic aberration where the Sigma was slightly better. Image quality at all focal lengths was very good to excellent; corner sharpness was a little soft at 12mm and maximum aperture, but this improved quickly at f/5.6 and smaller. The constant aperture design, rounded diaphragm blades and AF-S focusing motor are other nice touches on this lens.

This lens is a very good choice for Nikon shooters who:

• Want the best in overall optical performance and don’t need a 10mm lens
• Have a 28-70mm mid-range zoom, and need the 24mm focal length
• Want minimal vignetting at wider focal lengths without using Photoshop
• Desire a faster, constant maximum aperture

On the other hand, this lens may not be the best choice if:

• You’re on a tight budget
• You need an even wider focal length lens
• You want a lighter weight option

Despite being the first to appear in the market, the Nikkor has held up extremely well and it’s a great lens.

Its comparatively much higher price tag (US $940) is probably the only drawback.


SIGMA 10-20mm f/4.0-5.6 EX DC HSM

The Sigma 10-20mm EX HSM lens is designed for use on digital bodies only. It is in Sigma’s “EX” line, which designates a pro build quality and distinct finish. In 35mm terms, the lens delivers a view similar to a 15-30mm lens; very wide, indeed!
 

10-20mm Sigma lens

10-20mm f/4.0-5.6 EX DC HSM SIGMA

BUILD / PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

The Sigma 10-20mm EX lens weighs 470 grams (16.6 oz). Of the four lenses we tested, it was the second lightest overall. However, the build quality was very good. The lens has a petal-shaped hood with a reversible bayonet mount. Unlike some of Sigma’s other super wide lenses, the 10-20mm lens accepts 77mm front filters.

The focus ring is farthest away from the body, and the front element does not turn when focusing. This lens uses Sigma’s Hypersonic Motor (HSM), so it will autofocus on all Nikon bodies that can drive AF-S lenses. For digital bodies, this is a non-issue, because all Nikon digital SLRs can operate AF-S lenses. The manual focus ring is very smooth, with a very viscous feel. Some may find that the MF ring feels too slow. Again, if you’re a landscape shooter using this lens on a tripod, this is a very small nit to pick.

One difference between the Sigma lens and its Nikkor counterpart is that the focusing ring turns in the opposite direction. The focusing scale goes from 0.8 feet (0.24m) to 3 feet (1m) and then infinity. There are no hyperfocal or infrared markings on the lens. The zoom ring is very smooth and is marked at 10, 12, 14, 17, and 20mm. Our sample had a standard “side pinch” lens cap which can be difficult to install or remove with the lens hood in place.

The Sigma 10-20mm lens has a variable aperture design; f/4.0-5.6. For people wanting the best low-light focusing performance, the lack of a constant maximum aperture may be a minor limitation. However, most landscape photographers will find themselves stopping down to f/8 or smaller, anyway and using hyperfocal settings. The lens has a formula of 14 elements in 10 groups. Unlike the other three lenses tested, the image circle of the Sigma 10-20mm is too small to cover the entire frame of a 35mm film camera at any focal length. This is not a major problem if you solely shoot digital.


PERFORMANCE

The Sigma 10-20mm lens has two major strong points: sharpness edge to edge and chromatic aberration. We found that sharpness at 12mm was very good in the center and did not diminish much at all in the image edges, even when shot wide-open. When used wide-open we saw that edge softening began about 240 pixels from the edge of the frame, but this was a very subtle effect. At 18mm, this lens was among the sharpest of the four lenses, especially in the edges. Sharpness at 20mm was on par with its performance at 18mm. As would be expected, maximum sharpness was obtained between f/8 and f/11, and then diffraction effects began to degrade sharpness above f/16.

One tremendous surprise with the Sigma 10-20mm lens was its ability to handle chromatic aberration (CA). In fact, this lens has almost no visible CA at f/8 and above at 12mm. At 10mm, there is definitely some CA in the corners of the image, but it can be easily controlled during post processing (PP) in Nikon Capture (if you shoot RAW) or in Photoshop CS2 (RAW or JPEG).

Distortion was fairly low across the entire zoom range. At 10mm, there was visible but minor barrel distortion, which became pincushion distortion above 15mm. This result was not unexpected, considering the incredibly wide view at 10mm.

The major weakness of the Sigma 10-20mm lens was in the lens’ light fall-off characteristics. There was noticeable light fall-off in the corners of this lens, especially wide-open. While light fall-off improved above f/8, it was still evident in our images if you looked carefully enough. This is most likely the result of the very small image circle produced by this lens. In fact, the image circle was so small, that there was no focal length where this lens could be used on a film body without serious vignetting. Digital users wanting to have a multi-purpose wide-angle lens that could be used on a film body in a pinch should look elsewhere.


CONCLUSIONS

Overall, this lens offers outstanding performance at a very reasonable price (about US $500).

We think this lens would benefit users who:

• Hate CA in their images, and don’t have an easy way to correct it in PP
• Want excellent performance at the wide end
• Want to go wider than 12mm (18mm in 35mm terms)
• Like silent autofocusing

On the other hand, this lens would be less advantageous to the Nikon shooter who:

• Hates light fall-off, or has no easy way to correct for it in PP
• Wants a constant f/4.0 aperture design
• Uses a 28-70mm lens as their mid-range zoom (leaves a big gap between 20-28mm)
• Occasionally uses their DX lenses on a film body

 

TAMRON SP 11-18mm f/4.5-5.6 Di II LD Aspherical IF

Like the 10-20mm Sigma, the 11-18mm Tamron is a new entry on the market. In fact, the serial number on our test lens was only 85, so we clearly had an early production sample! As with the other test lenses, this lens is optimized for DSLRs in terms of optical coverage and lens coatings.
 

SP 11-18mm f/4.5-5.6 Di II LD Aspherical IF Tamron Super Wide Angle Zoom Lens 

BUILD / PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

The Tamron 11-18mm lens is the lightweight in this group. It weighs only 355g and in use it feels noticeably lighter than the others. Its finish is similar to what you’d find on most consumer grade lenses. The locations of the zoom and focusing rings are in their traditional positions, with the focusing ring at the front of the lens, and the zoom ring at the rear. As with the other lenses, this lens is a “G” design, with no aperture ring.

This lens takes 77mm front filters, and has a pinch-front style lens cap that can easily be attached or removed with the bayonet-mount lens hood installed. The manual focus override is a bit more awkward than on the other lenses: you’ll need to use the AF control on the body. We also found the focusing feel poorer than the other lenses: it has a very loose feel typical of less expensive AF lenses. The distance scale is well marked with distance of 10ft or 3m appearing on the scale as well as many closer distances. Setting a hyperfocal distance is easy on this lens. As with most zooms, there are no hyperfocal markings on this lens.

The lens hood is reversible and average in depth. Internally, the lens features an optical formula of 15 elements in 12 groups and a seven-bladed diaphragm. The lens has a maximum aperture of f/4.5 at 11mm which drops to f5.6 at 18mm. The minimum focusing distance is 9.8 inches or 0.25m – pretty close.


PERFORMANCE

With both bodies, autofocus with the Tamron 11-18mm is accurate and precise, although low-light conditions could cause problems at the longest focal length, where the effective aperture is only f/5.6.

We observed very good contrast in our images with the Tamron at all apertures and focal lengths and good color rendition. Performance at 12mm was a mixed bag. Wide open, the lens was very good in the center, but quite soft in the corners. Stopping down to f/8 improved matters a lot, and it then turned in excellent performance in both the center and corners. Landscape photographers shooting at f/8 and above would not have major sharpness issues with this lens. At the 18mm focal length, images were very sharp, and were comparable to the other three lenses tested. Light fall-off with this lens was good – not as good as the Nikkor, but much better than the Sigma and similar to the Tokina. As with the other lenses, there is a noticeable softening of images due to diffraction effects at f/22.

Optical distortion was a bit more noticeable in this lens compared to the others, but it was not bad. There was easily visible barrel distortion at 11mm which lessened at 15mm and virtually disappeared at 18mm. Chromatic aberration was average for this group; you’ll want to use the correction tools in Photoshop for some images. We found that this lens would probably be usable from 15-18mm on a film body. A tight range, you say? Perhaps, but it presents a viable ultra-wide lens for a 35mm film camera if you needed it.


CONCLUSIONS

The Tamron 11-18mm Di II lens produced fine quality images, but its construction quality was a step down from the others. Its limited focal length range and slower maximum aperture may also be a limiting factor for many photographers. On the other hand, it was noticeably lighter and more compact to carry around as compared to the others, and users valuing portability may find that virtue more important.

This lens is a good choice for Nikon shooters who:

• Want the lightest weight, most compact ultra wide lens available
• Use a 17-55mm or 18-70mm lens and don’t mind the absence of the 19-24mm focal lengths
• Want to be able to use it as a 15-18mm lens on a film body once in a while
• Shoot at f/8 or above most of the time (e.g., landscapes).

On the other hand, this lens may not be the best choice if:

• You use a 28-70mm lens
• You shoot in low-light situations; especially wide-open
• You want more substantial construction and a smoother manual focus feel

Despite our comments on construction, this lens turned in a very fine overall optical performance, and we were pleased with image quality.


TOKINA AT-X 124 AF Pro DX 12-24mm f/4.0 "Super Wide Angle" Zoom Lens

Let's take a look at the Tokina option. With a street price of $480 US, this lens has attracted much interest from amateurs as a direct competitor to the 12-24mm DX Nikkor.
 

12-24mm Tokina AT-X Pro

12-24mm f/4.0 AT-X Pro AF Tokina Super Wide Angle Zoom Lens 

 

BUILD / PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

The Tokina 12-24mm lens is hefty, weighing in at over one pound (570g), making it the heaviest lens we tested. It has a black crackle-coat finish reminiscent of the early AF-I Nikkor lenses. The zoom ring is close to the rear of this lens, and the focus ring is towards the front. The two rings have different widths and textures so they can easily be distinguished. This lens is a “G” design, with no aperture ring.

This lens takes 77mm front filters, and has a pinch-front style lens cap that can easily be attached or removed with the bayonet-mount lens hood installed. The focus mechanism is internal, and the distance scale reads from 1-7 feet and infinity. There are no hyperfocal markings on this lens. The large, petal-shaped lens hood is reversible and has a black velvet lining.

The Tokina 12-24mm uses a standard AF drive, but MF override is possible by sliding the focusing ring towards the rear of the lens. This feature enables MF override without switching the focus mode selector on the body of your camera. Internally, the lens features an optical formula of 13 elements in 11 groups and a nine-bladed aperture.

The lens has a constant maximum aperture of f/4.0 throughout the zoom range, and a close-focusing distance of just under one foot. Because this lens has a “DX” design, the image circle is too small to cover the frame on a 35mm body. However, our testing suggests that you could use this lens on a film body between 19-24mm and get minimal vignetting.


PERFORMANCE

With both bodies, autofocus with the Tokina 12-24mm is crisp and precise. Expect better low-light focusing performance with the CAM2000 module of the D2x. However, with a lens this wide, autofocus seems hardly necessary. The lens has a nice feel in the hand, and its weight makes it feel like a “pro” lens. Images with this lens have good contrast at all apertures and focal lengths. Center sharpness is good at 12mm, and very good to excellent at the longer focal lengths or when stopped down to f/8 or f/11. The edges of images taken at 12mm and wide-open are noticeably softer than the center when viewed at 100% in Photoshop. There is moderate light fall-off with this lens, especially at 12mm, which goes away by f/8. Above f/16, there is noticeable softening of images due to diffraction effects. At 18mm and 24mm, this lens yields good to very good sharpness in the edges, especially when stopped down. In our test sample, we noticed that images at f/11 and f/16 were noticeably dark compared to those taken with other wide lenses, but this was a uniform effect that could easily be adjusted with post-processing, and did not appear to be a metering issue. This effect may be due to sample variation, but we have no way of testing this hypothesis without additional copies of the lens.

Optical distortion is controlled very nicely in this lens. There is slight pincushion distortion at 12mm, and very little, if any, barrel distortion at 24mm. At the wide end, chromatic aberration (CA) was apparent in images taken with the D2x, but it was very minor; about one pixel in width at 100%. Nit-pickers will be able to remove the CA effects easily enough with Photoshop CS2 or in RAW files with Nikon Capture software.

When used with a standard polarizing filter, we observed vignetting at 12mm with the Tokina 12-24mm lens. This vignetting was gone by 14mm or so.

CONCLUSIONS

The Tokina AT-X 12-24mm lens is a fine performer, especially at focal lengths longer than 12mm. At 12mm, performance is good, but plan on shooting at f/8 or higher for maximum sharpness in the edges of the frame. For landscape work, this is practically a non-issue. The constant aperture design and nine-bladed diaphragm are nice touches on this lens.

This lens is a good choice for Nikon shooters who:

• Cannot afford the Nikkor 12-24mm DX lens
• Shoot stopped-down most of the time, such as landscapes
• Don’t need AF-S focusing, but want a fast maximum aperture
• Have a 28-70mm mid-range zoom, and need 24mm focal length in their kit

On the other hand, this lens may not be for you if:

• You are a sharpness “freak” and do a lot of shooting at 18-24mm.
• You need AF-S focusing
• You are shooting wide-open most of the time
• You want a lightweight lens

Our opinion is that this lens is a worthy alternative to the Nikkor 12-24mm DX if price is an issue and you need a super-wide zoom.


SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS

It should be apparent by this time that all four lenses produce images that are very satisfactory. Each of us felt we could use any one of these lenses on a shoot and come away pleased with the results. Interestingly, the three reviewers who participated in this test own three of the four lenses, and we would each make the same choice again. That’s because individual preferences can be just as important as absolute performance.
 

The 4 super wide angles compared

The Nikkor, Tokina, Sigma and Tamron super-wide angles compared

 

In addition, no one lens clearly dominated every review category. In cases such as weight, what is best is debatable. Is low weight better than a more hefty construction? The answer depends on the photographer. The same is true with the focal length range. If you have a 17-55mm, a 10-20mm may make the most sense. If you own a 28-70mm, a 12-24mm may be your preferred option.
 

Lens
Maximum Aperture
Focus mechanism
Lens formula (elements/groups
Dimensions
L X W mm
Weight
g/oz

Street price
USD

12-24mm DX Nikkor
f/4
Internal
AF-S
11 / 7
88.9 X 81.3
485/17.1
$940
12-24mm AT-X Pro Tokina
f/4
Screw-drive
13 / 11
89.5 x 84
570/20.1
$480
11-18mm SP Di II Tamron
f/4.5-5.6
Screw-drive
15 / 12
83.2 X 78.2
355/12.5
$570
10-20mm EX Sigma
f/4-5.6
Internal
HSM
14 / 10
83.5 X 81
470/16.6
$500

 

To help with your decision, here are some of the more common considerations as well as our thoughts on how specific lenses tested:
 

12-24mm DX Nikkor
Best
Optical
Performance
 
Lowest
overall
distortion
Best
Build
Construction
 
Best
Low-light
Performance
12-24mm AT-X Pro Tokina      
Best
Build
Construction
 
Best
Low-light
Performance
11-18mm SP Di II Tamron        
Most
portable
lens
 
10-20mm EX Sigma  
Lowest
chromatic
aberration
 
Best
Build
Construction
   


In addition:

• Best complement to a 17-55mm: Sigma 10-20mm or Tamron 11-19mm

• Best complement to a 28-70mm: Nikkor 12-24mm or Tokina 12-24mm

• Best “bang for the buck”: Sigma 10-20mm or Tokina 12-24mm

We’ll let you do your own trade offs and determine your own personal “winner” based on your own unique criteria. We may know the factors, but only you can give each its relative weight.

So how did the Nikkor fare overall against its competition? It did quite well, although it faces competition, especially given the price difference. Many photographers will probably conclude that the relatively small difference in overall optical quality doesn’t warrant the higher price; others will be adamant about that quality difference. This pattern holds with most other lenses as well – a relatively small improvement in sharpness is usually costly. You need to decide how important it is to you. If you’re consistently stopping down to f/8 or f/11, many of the optical differences disappear.

As mentioned earlier, we tested on both a D2X and a D70 body. We’ve read some discussions that imply that the lower resolution of a 6.1MP DSLR will mask any differences in optical performance. We did not find that to be true. While the D2X can make maximum use of fine optical quality, we saw consistent results in relative optical performance with both DSLR bodies. A lens that looked best on the D2X at a given aperture and focal length also looked best on the D70. The subtleties in optical performance were also clear with both cameras.

The real winner of this shoot-out is the photographer. The market has diversified, and there now are a number of viable choices in the ultra-wide DX zoom range. There is now a lens to match most digital SLR photographers’ needs and budgets, and that will increase the number of happy Nikonians.

 

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(5 Votes )
Show pages (6 Pages)

Originally written on October 24, 2005

Last updated on January 20, 2021

Jason Odell Jason Odell (DrJay32)

Awarded for his multiple written contributions for the Resources and eZine

Colorado Springs, USA
Silver, 3450 posts

1 comment

Noel Gillam (NFG) on November 6, 2018

Hello Thanks for review, I have the Nikon 12-24 and very good it is too. The Tokina 11-16 ATX Pro f2.8 and 11-20 f2.8 also very nice super wide dx lenses N

G