Customer Reviews

Tokina AT X124 AF PRO DX - Wide-angle zoom lens - 12 mm - 24 mm - f/4.0 Pro

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

 

 

no viginetting, reliable, good built quality, moderatly noisy gets it 4 stars...

I got this lens under the assumption that since it was a "wide angle" it'd have a wider field of view than a comparable lens. I'm still fairly new to SLR cameras and found out later that the zoom range was what mattered, i.e., it wasn't any wider than the 18-55 kit lens on my Nikon D50.

It is, however, a very solidly built lens, with less distortion at the wide end, a good set of optics, and overall is a couple of stops faster. The focus is almost as fast as the 18-55 but a little noisier, and the manual zoom has a nice touch to it. Qualitatively it's apples oranges with the kit lens, but it has a higher quality build and just a better "feel" to it.

I use this lense in tight situations photographing real estate as well as landscapes. It gets a lot of information in the frame.

Looking for something a little more substantial than the kit lense for my new D50, I purchased one of these based upon net reviews. It is sturdy beyond my imagination, looks quite cool on the D50, and heavy enough to function as the anchor for a small boat. Nevertheless, it balances well, is adequately sharp (much better than the 28-70 Tokina I once owned), and I'll bet outperforms that kit lense, except in terms of reach. Somewhat prone to flare, but I can't think of any reasonably priced lense with this size front element that isn't. Just be careful what you're doing. Sometimes referred to as the Plastic Fantastic, it feels like all metal (or else some new super plastic!) Smooth zoom and focus rings, nicely differentiated ribbing for feel. Reasonably accurate in autofocus, although hunts a bit in low light. I'm quite pleased with this, although the short zoom range on an APS-C size sensor results in more changing, and thus the potential for dust motes. Works quite well on my Nikon 35mm. Can't believe Tokina can make a profit at this price with these materials and fit/finish. Recommended.