Nikon 24mm f/2.8D AF Lens Review

The 24mm AF Nikkor is a nice compact lens. It’s physical dimensions are about the same as the 50mm f/1.8, but it weighs almost twice as much (270 versus 145 grams). The lens is sharp and I have no hesitation using it wide open and do so frequently for handheld shots in low light. When shooting multiples, I can get perhaps one or two reasonably sharp images in a set with shutter speeds as slow as 1/10 second. If I am able to brace the camera, I can get down to 1 second exposures.

I find that this lens in conjunction with a 50mm and 105mm prime makes a nice three lens travel kit for a film SLR body. However, with Nikon’s digital cameras the 24mm lens only has the equivalent an angle of view of a 35mm lens. While I find the 35mm focal length very useful for taking environmental shots without distorting the relative size of objects, it doesn’t allow for the more extreme near-far compositions possible with a wider angle of view on film.

This lens flares easily as the front element is not recessed. In addition to the sun, I’ve had problems with street lights during night shots. I never bothered to buy the lens hood for the lens as it seemed too small to provide adequate protection. Instead, I just hold a hat or some other object to block any light directly falling on the front of the lens. However, sometimes it’s not possible to shade the lens because you have a really bright object that you’d like to include in the picture itself. For example, in the picture below the bright light from the tunnel opening is bouncing around the inside of the camera and leaves a reflection of the CCD chip (this is the green splotch near the escalator rider). In fairness, I’m not sure if this lens is more or less susceptible to reflections of the sensor than other lenses. This particular picture has an extreme brightness range and the light at the tunnel opening is probably seven or more stops brighter than what is needed to record white.

The lens has a small amount of barrel distortion. The image below was taken with a D100 (and so experiences the digital crop). Fortunately, the barrel distortion can be corrected in photoshop with the spherize filter.

Finally, on my Nikon D100, I’ve noticed chromatic aberration with this lens. The picture below is a 100% crop taken from the image on the right. You should be able see reddish tint on the right of the dark areas and a blue tint on the left. However, at normal magnifications the aberration is not really noticeable.

100% crop of window frame to the left of the flags.

Flags at Union Station. Washington, D.C. Nikon D100, 24mm AF, ISO 320, 1/60 sec, f/5.

Positives

• sharp, light, and compact

Negatives

• some barrel distortion and chromatic aberration

Pictures taken with this lens

Specifications

lens formula	9 elements in 9 groups
angle of view	84 degrees
minimum focus distance	0.3m (1 ft)
filter size	52 mm
size	65mm diameter x 46mm length (2.5 x 1.8 in)
weight	270 gr (9.5 oz)

Tagged as: 24mm, gear, lens, Nikon, wide angle