Tokina 12-24mm f/4 AT-X Pro DX AF Wide Angle Lens for Nikon Digital Cameras by Tokina
|
List Price: Our Price: $488.95 You Save: $411.00 (46%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $455.00 (click here) Category: Digital Camera See more digital camera details and other models |
|---|
Digital camera reviews of Tokina 12-24mm f/4 AT-X Pro DX AF Wide Angle Lens for Nikon Digital Cameras
Digital camera Review: Tokina 12-24mm f4 AT-X Pro DX AF wide angle lens for Nikon
Summary: 4 Stars
The Tokina 12-24 mm f4 AT-X Pro DX AF wide angle lens for Nikon is very well-built and sharp. Digital camera Review: Not perfect, but pretty good
Summary: 4 Stars
This lens makes a good impression of being solidly built, and in return it's relatively heavy for its size. No flimsiness here.
On most of the focal range, the optical quality is quite impressive: sharpness good at f/4, and excellent at f/5.6; no noticeable light fall-off ("corner vignetting") at any aperture - bravo!; barrel distortion at 12 mm but gone at 18 mm and above.
The biggest optical drawback is at the level of Lateral Chromatic Aberration ("purple fringing"). In situations of a dark object interfacing with a very bright one, color fringes will be noticeable if you enlarge the image. Still, looking at a photo in "normal" size (or at a large photo from the "normal" distance required to look at a large photo), the LCA will not be noticeable. I'd rather have some LCA that can only be seen on close examination than light fall-off in the corners that will be obvious no matter how one looks at the picture.
Sharpness is clearly less good at the 20-24 mm end wide-open. At those focal lengths it is necessary to stop down to f/8 to obtain good results.
The Sigma 10-20 mm has a clear advantage over this Tokina 12-24 mm in the extra 2 mm on the wide end. However, from measurements I've seen, the Sigma is a much less good performer at the level of light fall-off in the corners. Which one to choose becomes a matter of taste and purposes.
Digital camera Review: The Wide-Angle Lens Nikon Should Have Made
Summary: 5 Stars
So far I am very pleased with the results of this Tokina lens with my Nikon D80. Accurate color, little/no noticeable distortion, excellent sharpness. I recently had a 20x30 enlargement made of a photo I made with this lens, and it looks flawless. Sharp edge-to-edge, no noticeable distortion, beautiful color. What more can you ask of a digital camera lens?
Nikon makes a wide angle zoom that covers about the same zoom range as this Tokina. The Nikon is about double the price of this Tokina. From my experience with this Tokina, it would be extremely difficult to convince me that the Nikon zoom could possibly be worth the extra money. This Tokina is so good, I can't imagine how the Nikon could be good enough to be worth an extra $500. And, this Tokina feels like a very high-quality piece of machinery; metal construction, smooth-as-glass zoom and focus action.
The only warning I would give potential buyers of this lens concerns the use of filters: filters will cause you to have vignetting unless you use a filter with a very slim, low-profile frame. I am using Hoya Pro 1 Digital filters with my Tokina, and they are vignette free.
I bought my Tokina 12-24 through Amazon merchant 17th Street Photo, and their service was exemplary: fast delivery, USA lens warranty (not grey market), sturdy shipping container, unopened factory pack.
Many of the other big New York-based photo equipment retailers have less than great customer service reputations, and very few of them seem to be members of the Better Business Bureau. But, 17th Street is the exception to the rule that you had better hold on to your wallet when dealing with the big NY photo houses.
17th Street IS a member of the BBB, I checked. You can check any retailer's complaint record and BBB membership status at http://search.bbb.org/.
I have been very pleased with this purchase and with 17th Street Photo, and I would buy this same lens from them again without hesitation.
Digital camera Review: Great lens for a great price!
Summary: 4 Stars
I was looking for a wider lens for my D200, and have no regrets getting the Tokina 12-24mm f/4. On 35mm format, it would translate to 18-36mm, which is a great range. It is also a constant f/4, which is unlike other wide angles in this range for DSLRs. Price wise, it is much cheaper than the Nikon 12-24mm f/4, but in terms of performance, it is almost comparable. Unless you have that few hundred bucks more to spend on the Nikon, this Tokina would work beautifully! The build of the body is good and sturdy.Digital camera Review: Excellent Quality Lens
Summary: 5 Stars
An outstanding lens that renders professional quality images. Very fast focus, very sharp, superb build quality. Highly recommended