AF-S NIKKOR 14-24mm f/2.8G ED

You will not be disappointed. Wow doesn´t even begin to describe this lens.

Since I was a young man at photographic college I have been testing and comparing lenses. Over the years I have been staggered at the low quality optics on a number of high end, particularly wide angle lenses. I recently jumped ship from Canon, back to Nikon for one main reason - the Nikon 14-24 lens! The D800 also had something to do with it, but having tried one of these lenses, I was delighted to find what I had been looking for, for years. A seriously sharp and contrasty wide angle lens at all apertures. It´s a real beauty. I have owned prime Canon 14mm F2.8 which was an embarrassingly poor optic. The Canon 16-35 was horrendous at 16mm at every aperture. The Canon 24mm F1.4, I tried 3 different models because I couldn´t believe this lens could be so average. Unfortunately all 3 turned out to be the same. So, back to the 14-24mm, yes we all know it is quite heavy and doesn´t take standard filters. I stopped using filters when I switched over to digital (except protect). As an optic I can promise you, you will be unable to find anything on the market that comes close. Even the Canon/Nikon fit Zeiss lenses don´t compare and that is comparing prime lenses with a zoom lens! It is simply sharp wide open, optimum at F8, getting a touch softer by F22. It is astonishingly sharp corner to corner, from F4 upwards at all focal lengths. The mild rectilinear distortion is easy to correct in many photo edit suites. I have a 24-70mm Nikon and when shooting at 24mm, I always go for the 14-24, as it is simply a far better lens. Buy one, you will love it.

I have owned this lens for over a year now, never leaving the shop with out it. Picture quality if not short of crystal clear and sharp. Noticed several comments regarding size and weight, but when I have it in my hands they are not noticeable or a problem, because of the super crisp pictures you will receive. Worth every penny and then some. NIKON ALL THE WAY!!!!

The Nikkor 14-24 has always been one of my favorite lenses. I doubt many prime lenses can produce a photo as sharp as this lenses. I recently purchased a D800. This combination can not be beat. If you mount the lens and camera on a tripod and use a cable release the photos are so perfect. I recently received my Lee filter kit for this lens. I really expect to producer some killer shots. Great job Nikon.

This lens is magic. Like I said in my review of the 24-70, the weight of this lens is part of the deal. Complaining about it is the same as complaining about the legroom in a [name of your favorite fast sports car here]. The 14-24 is pure photographic gold...

For shooting interiors there isn´t a better lens, I used the 14mm Lens and found that the 14-24mm is sharper. I love it more than my 16mm fisheye. I used this lens in low lite interiors as well as landscapes the results were awesome. If there is a down side I would say that it would be the weight. Overall I don´t care about the weight as long as it will help make my images more sell able. I would highly recommend the 14-24mm lens for anyone shooting interiors, landscapes, or even wedding group shots. So far I have only owned the lens just over a month and have taken it on several photo shoots with D300s, I can´t wait for D800e to arrive so I can see what this lens is really capable of.

There is not much to say about this lens, except that it is a technological marvel and a photographic gem.

The only thing that can beat this lens is the AF-S 24mm f/1.4G, and that´s that.

And the only things I do not like about the 14-24 are the price, the weight, and that you cannot use any normal filters with it.

Pros:
Razor sharp even at aperture 2.8
Minimal to 0 distortion
Hardly any chromatic aberration
Excellent build quality쇦궅 proof

Cons:
Heavy, but almost every expensive lens is heavy
Huge bulbous end, can´t use filters without special adapters

Review: This lens is one of the members of the trinity (other two being 24-70 and 70-200). It looks like a fish eye lens, but isn´t. It is not only good for landscapes but can also be used for group portraits; at f2.8 it gives a good bokeh. It is a must have lens for all those who do lots of landscape photography, wedding shoots and time lapse. Most third party f2.8 lenses are not actually usable at 2.8 but this one definitely is.

I also shoot videos using my Canon 5d Mark ii and since Canon does not have a 14-24 lens, I use this one on it with a Nikon to Canon adapter and it works pretty good. The only drawback is that it is a little difficult to use this lens with Canon for photos because it will not auto focus with it. After getting the D4 I have been using my 14-24 on it for videos. Mind you, this lens is sharper than any other 14mm prime lens I have ever used. It is the Nikon´s magic glass, Nano crystal coat and ED elements that make it such a perfect lens.

You CAN use it on a DX camera but not as an ultra wide lens. With a crop factor of 1.5 its focal length becomes 21-36. For DX, try the Nikon´s 10-24mm wide angle lens.

Overall it is a highly recommended lens. I bought this lens before buying a full frame Nikon camera because in my country it is always out of stock and they order it from abroad when you ask them to. Also, make sure that you keep it in the carrying case that comes with it because even with the cap on it has a tendency to accumulate dust. Also check out the other 2 members of the trinity. I bought them and am in love with them.

The contrast and saturation is superb. There´s a sort of ´´double vision´´ effect for out of focus things which is a little annoying. It doesn´t perform as well on subjects at infinity as I would like but for what it is it´s quite good. It´s a zooming, wide angle retrofocus lens and considering the constraints of modern engineering this is as good as it gets. You might get a bit better sharpness performance out of a PC-E lens if you want to monkey with tilt movements for a couple minutes before taking the shot.

It doesn´t take filters but the contrast and saturation are so high I don´t think it´s as big a deal as people make it out. It´s heavy so keep that in mind if you´re using it on a heavy body with an on camera flash.

The construction is solid and the focus and zoom rings are smooth. It´s moving almost 1KG of glass so it´s a given that there´s a bit of resistance in the zoom ring compared to the focus ring. It´s probably the smoothest ´´full time manual focus´´ ring I´ve ever experienced.

The lens element is very exposed so I leave the lens cap on at all times and take it off to take a picture. I might relax a bit more and ´´let go´´ later but for now it makes me nervous. Dust on the front element WILL show up in the shot. This camera is unforgiving in that aspect.

The chromatic aberration is manageable. Usually it doesn´t need correction. There´s barrel distortion on the wide end.

Used on a D300. Waiting for my pre-ordered D800 to come in.

The reason this lens gets 3 stars is because there´s a serious ´´double vision´´ problem for out of focus elements. On the D300 small details are rendered twice if they´re out of focus, about 3-4 pixels apart. Things like telephone wires in the distance, little leaves, etc. Having to stop down the lens extra to mitigate this defeats the purpose of having such a sharp lens. I really wish this issue didn´t happen.

For those interested I´m comparing this lens to the following that I´ve used: Zeiss 35mm T* 2.0 Distagon (on full frame), voigtlander 21mm color skopar F4 (on 35mm film and aps-c sony nex), Schneider Super Angulon F8 on 4x5 film