Customer Reviews

Nikon 20mm f/2.8D AF Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Nikon AF20mm f2.8 was designed as a "pro" wideangle lens back in the days when 20mm in autofocus was as wide as you could get. Originally introduced in 1989 it was the AF equivalent of the manual focus design of 1984 and uses the same optical formula as the MF. The subsequent addition of the D chip has changed nothing else. In it's day an AF 20mm was pretty radical and it was only superceeded in 1993 by wider primes as the pros sought wider and wider views. For most amateurs however 20mm on film will get you into the "superwide" range without breaking the bank. For digital shooters, dealing with the 1.5 magnification factor in Nikon D-SLRs, it becomes effectively 30mm, which is still wide enough for most situations.
Optically it delivers typical Nikon high color saturation and contrast, with distortions well controlled for it's focal length. While it is reasonably free from flare I strongly recommend the optional HB-4 lenshood designed for it and polarizing will be dificult for film shooters due to vignetting caused by the thick polarizing filter mounts of a "standard" polarizer. Digital shooters should not have this problem because the camera's sensor is only using the central portion of the projected circle - inside the area of vignetting.
Mechanically it is all metal and well constructed with an nice "solid" feel to it for an AF lens but those of us who still miss the old manual focus "tanks" will find the undamped focusing ring a little too "loose" when manually focused. As part of a planned outfit, it can form the wide angle anchor for a travel kit standardized on 62mm filters. Add Nikon's 28-105AF 3.5-4.5 and 70-210AF 4.5-5.6 and you have a lightweight kit for either film or digital SLR's

This is a fine Nikon lens made in Japan, very quality built, a trust-worthy kind of lens that will last for a life time. It is very sharp and fast, colors are warm and fine, and the frame is just ridiculously wide if you use it on a film or FX. This is a perfect choice for those who would like to have an extraordinary wide, fast and quality prime lens for less money.

When you look at what other possible options are on offer today - like 14mm prime or 14-24mm zoom - this lens might look little outdated. However, for less than 500 US$, you get all you really need - a possibility to shoot sharp and contrasty, very wide-angle images, in a very low light! Even using it on a DX, it is still very wide, and the quality is immediately apparent, especially if compared with any 18-xxx kit lens. The next step - having a possibility to shoot even wider images under the same light conditions, costs three times the price of this lens! An other advantage of the lens is that it is small enough to put in your pocket, so you can basically always have it with you, ready to combine with any other lens you keep on the camera!

The lens does have a visible geometric distortion, especially used on film or FX, but it is normal to expect in such a wide lens, and it can actually be fun. Anyway, it is easy to fix in post processing.

If you are a DX user, maybe you can consider some other lens specially built for DX, because there is no point of wasting valuable resources for something you do not use in full capacity (due to crop factor).

However, there is no way you will find such a quality and such wide lens for this price. Also, if you plan to upgrade to FX one day - which is probably everyone's logical step - I do recommend buying this 20mm lens, as it is probably going to also be used by your own grandchildren...

I bought this lens to compliment my other prime lenses for my D700 and it is a very good performer. It is quick in focusing and the picture quality is very good. There is slight distortion at the edges but that's to be expected for such a lens. It is also built like a tank, has nearly the same weight as my 85 f1.4 but at 1/3rd the size (about the size of my 50 f1.8). Overall, I'm very pleased with my purchase.

I use the 20mm with my D80. My title highlights my two favorite features. I went for the 20 after I analyzed the first month of my shots with the kit lens were over 50% in the wider (18mm) range. With a prime I wanted high image quality, sharpness, simplicity and of course small package.

The 20mm gives you small size, great ability to 'get it all in' and in many cases delivers outstanding sharpness. [...]

If your doing snapshot style, group photo's of people or casual shooting I think you'll be better served w/ the 18-20mm portion of your kit zoom. This lens does require attention to deliver consistently sharp images.

With that caveat being said I can honestly say that in the 5 or so months I've owned it this is my go to, default lens... size matters! Happy Shooting!

I love the 94 degree angle I get with this 20mm lens. I owned one back around 1980 with my Nikon FE. It consistently produces sharp and contrasty shots with great colors. This newer model has Close Range Correction. It's a great piece of glass to have in your bag that doesn't take up too much space.

When I originally purchased this lens I was using a DX camera body and was looking for something sharp, fast, and wide to replace my old kit zoom lens. While it was a competent performer, it didn't really set my world on fire. On a DX body it's just not wide enough to create wide-angle distorted close up photos where the wide aperture would come in handy. When shooting landscapes the wide aperture didn't present much use and even though it was very sharp, I didn't notice much difference from my kit lens as I was typically stopping down enough that both lenses produced sharp photos.
All this changed when I upgraded to a FX camera. With the full-frame sensor this lens comes alive producing amazingly wide-angled views with sharpness all the way to the corners. This is now my go-to lens for landscapes, architecture, panoramas, astrophotography, and abstract street photography. I really can't stress enough how great this lens is. I'm sure a lot of people looking at this lens are debating between this and the renowned 14-24 f/2.8 Nikkor. While that lens is undoubtedly better in most ways, I wouldn't discount getting the 20mm Nikkor if it's wide enough for your needs (which for most people I would say it is), especially at a third of the price. If you're a DX shooter and plan on staying that way, I would recommend getting one of Nikon's wider zooms (i.e. 12-24mm) instead as this probably won't be wide enough for your needs.
A big warning for FX shooters, you can pretty much forget about using a filter with this lens as even the thinnest filters will produce visible vignetting in almost any situation.
In summary here are the pros and cons:

Pros:
Amazingly sharp
Fast autofocus
Fast aperture
Very reasonable price for wide angle lens
Very wide angle on FX cameras
Built like a tank

Cons:
Not wide enough on DX camera
Can't use filters when shooting with FX camera
Won't autofocus on entry-level DSLRs (i.e. D3000, D5000, D40, D60, etc.)

When I first saw Velvia slides taken with this lens by a friend I was very impressed by the angle of view and the contrast and great colours. That was 20 years ago.
However lens design has improved with time and few focal lengths (apart from say the 50mm lens) have not improved.
I tried this lens on a full frame digital camera and noticed that it is a little soft on the sides. Chromatic abberation is definitely present.
So I can't call this lens great anymore.
If you want to make big blowups and you have the money you should probably go for the 14-24mm f/2.8 zoom.
However if you want a compact, unobtrusive lens of this focal length this is the one to go for. It's very sharp in the center of the image and the fact that you
can take good pictures at f/2.8 means that it can be a good lens to take when there is not much light.

Note: I'm using this on D7K, which has a built in focusing motor; manual focus only on bodies without.

35mm is probably the most popular all around lens, but from my experience the 52mm equivalent on DX makes it a tad too long for indoor. On Full frame it's probably just right.

I was hesitant to go this wide and was contemplating the Nikon 24mm f/2.8D AF (35mm equivalent), but it didn't quite get the same positive reviews as the 20mm. While the 35mm f/1.8G AF-S has received outstanding reviews, i just didn't want to settle on that focal length, so i took the plunge with the 20.

Great decision! Most would probably use this lens for landscape, but i find it just right for indoor candids of the family. I never worry about available shooting space and never find it too wide.

Sure it's not a 1.8, but 2.8 is plenty fast for a camera like the D7k where high iso is a non-issue.

It is extremely sharp even at full aperture and it works well. It is an old design, and Nikon could probably improve it with vibration reduction, but it works fine as it is. I only have an 85 mm. fixed focus lens which I use mainly for portraits. This wide angle lens helps me with nature and social shots. A zoom would be more versatile but I like the slightly better definition of the fixes focus lenses.

I use this lens with D80, specially for landscape photography. This is an excellent wide angle lens; sharp and fast.