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| AF-S NIKKOR 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5 G ED VR |
Although this lens is offered as a bundle with several full frame bodies, it’s anything but a “kit” lens. Having a slightly wider and longer range than an 18-55mm does on an APS-C body, it’s essentially the full-frame equivalent of that lens, but with a metal mount, rear gasket, bayonet hood, stationary filter ring and focusing scale. Tack on outstanding performance, and this quickly becomes a must have.
Because Nikon has shown restraint with regard to focal length range, this lens comes in at a price that gives it great value. Its extra speed at the long end set it apart from similar offerings. Some may say that the range of 24-85mm seems limiting, but I find it to be an ideal compromise between a very useful range, and a compact, easy to handle form factor.
In the real world, this lens is very easy to live with. In room light, I’ve shot at 85mm with a low ISO at 1/6 sec. That’s four stops right there, and at times I’ve pushed it one more with surprising results. The combination of focal length range, speed and VR performance are in perfect balance. This lens simply does not try to do more than it can, and what it does do, it does well.
What’s missing from this lens is the active VR mode. I’ve never used it on my DX 16-85mm and it seems unlikely that with a maximum focal of 85mm that I would be using it for sports photography. For that I can simply use my 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 which does have active VR mode. A depth of field scale and infrared index would also have been nice, but these omissions are typical of G lenses.
What’s included is the usual storage pouch, and a bayonet-mount tulip-style lens hood. As tulip hoods go, it’s a pretty extreme one with deeply cut sides, which actually helps a little when used with a polarizer. If you opt for the Hoya Screw-in Rubber Zoom Lens Hood, it will vignette in the range 24mm to about 35mm where the corners peak through a tiny bit. Not to worry though, since this lens has good resistance to ghosts and flaring, so a hood is not essential.
Aperture Ring None. Aperture is controlled through the command dial on the camera body.
Auto Focus Built-in Silent-Wave motor makes this lens compatible with professional, semi-professional and entry-level cameras. Average focus speed and very accurate.
Bokeh Like most zoom lenses which seek to achieve optimum sharpness, the bokeh is a compromise. For best results, shoot in close proximity to the subject at 85mm at f/4.5.
What’s included is the usual storage pouch, and a bayonet-mount tulip-style lens hood. As tulip hoods go, it’s a pretty extreme one with deeply cut sides, which actually helps a little when used with a polarizer. If you opt for the Hoya Screw-in Rubber Zoom Lens Hood, it will vignette in the range 24mm to about 35mm where the corners peak through a tiny bit. Not to worry though, since this lens has good resistance to ghosts and flaring, so a hood is not essential.
Auto Focus Built-in Silent-Wave motor makes this lens compatible with professional, semi-professional and entry-level cameras. Average focus speed and very accurate.
Bokeh Like most zoom lenses which seek to achieve optimum sharpness, the bokeh is a compromise. For best results, shoot in close proximity to the subject at 85mm at f/4.5.
Close Focus 7.25" from the lens. Works well with close-up filters and short extension tubes.
Color Rendition Typical of most NIKKOR AF-S lenses.
Compatibility Works with Nikon Digital SLRs and AF film SLRs such as the F6, F100, F5, N80 and N75. On the N90s, N70 and F4 you won’t have VR, Aperture Priority or Manual exposure modes.
Construction 16 elements in 11 groups, including 1 ED glass element and 3 aspherical elements. Polycarbonate outer and inner barrel, metal mount, rear gasket.
Country of Origin China.
Coverage 135 film, FX and DX.
Diaphragm 7 curved blades.
Distortion Considerable, but corrected in-camera for JPEGS, and can be corrected easily during post-processing.
DX Performance When used on a DX camera this lens has a very usable range of 36-127.5mm, and is faster at the long end than its DX equivalent, the AF-S DX Zoom-NIKKOR 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6 G ED VR. When used on an FX camera in DX crop mode, its range is extended to 127.5mm, although at lower resolution.
Extension Tubes Tested with the Kenko Auto Extension Tube Set DG, it hunts and finds with the shortest tube, but rarely finds with the longest tube. Therefor use with autofocus in not entirely out of the quesiton. Manual focus should be fine, were VR will be preserved.
Falloff Visible only wide-open at 24mm, and corrected in many of the newer cameras.
Filter Thread Plastic, 72mm. Does not rotate with either zoom or focus rings. With more than one filter, very slight vignetting occurs at 24mm, which can be prevented by taking the Filter Leap of Faith. If you’re using this lens with Cokin filters, you won’t encounter vignetting at 24mm with the standard filter holder as long as you use it without a screw-in filter. Also, you can use one section of the modular hood, as long as it’s mounted as close to the lens as possible. If you use unusually thick filters, such as the P173 Varicolor Polarizer, you’ll get just a tiny bit of vignetting at 24mm, which is gone by 35mm.
Ghosts and Flares Very well controlled, making a lens hood largely unnecessary, except for protection or “coolness factor”.
Included Standard center-pinch front lens cap, LF-4 rear cap, HB-63 plastic tulip-style lens hood, CL-1118 pouch.
Lateral Color Fringes Virtually none at 24mm, and only very slight blue-yellow fringes at 50 and 85mm.
Macro About average performance for a standard zoom. Close focusing at 7.25" from the lens enables a reproduction ratio of 0.22x. Switching to DX Crop mode increases that to 0.33x.
Manual Focus Focus scale with no depth-of-field scale or infra-red index. No hard stop at infinity. Manual override at all times. Focus ring is smooth, has slight play making it a challenge to rock back and forth for precise focusing.
Maximum Reproduction Ratio 1:4.5 (0.22x)
RoHS Compliance 10 years.
Sharpness Always super-sharp in the center, and almost as sharp in the borders and corners at 50mm. At 24 and 85mm, the sides and corners are a little softer, becoming optimally sharp at f/11 (24mm) and f/5.6 (85mm).
Spherochromatism Virtually none.
Sunstars Soft, 14-pointed, becoming sharper with underexposure.
Teleconverters Tested with the Kenko MC7, there is perpetual hunting. Autofocus use not recommended, but should be fine for manual focus, where VR is preserved.
Variable Aperture Range
Versatility Good for: wide angle, portrait and close-up; macro with closeup lenses or extension tubes. Not the best choice for sports photography, hand-held night photography or infrared.
Vibration Reduction (VR) 4 stop improvement claimed. In the field, 3 stops are more common.
Vignetting More that one filter vignettes a small amount at 24mm. This lens is a good candidate for slim filters, or use of oversized filters with a step-up ring.
The Bottom Line Purchasing this lens as a bundle with the Nikon D610 was a much better experience than if I had purchased my D90 with the plastic-mount 18-105mm. This lens is a huge improvement over previous offerings, having considerably better performance in the corners, a better build and the all-important VR. It is also quite compact and easy to keep with you. This is the lens I keep on my D610 at all times.
Color Rendition Typical of most NIKKOR AF-S lenses.
Compatibility Works with Nikon Digital SLRs and AF film SLRs such as the F6, F100, F5, N80 and N75. On the N90s, N70 and F4 you won’t have VR, Aperture Priority or Manual exposure modes.
Construction 16 elements in 11 groups, including 1 ED glass element and 3 aspherical elements. Polycarbonate outer and inner barrel, metal mount, rear gasket.
Country of Origin China.
Coverage 135 film, FX and DX.
Diaphragm 7 curved blades.
Distortion Considerable, but corrected in-camera for JPEGS, and can be corrected easily during post-processing.
DX Performance When used on a DX camera this lens has a very usable range of 36-127.5mm, and is faster at the long end than its DX equivalent, the AF-S DX Zoom-NIKKOR 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6 G ED VR. When used on an FX camera in DX crop mode, its range is extended to 127.5mm, although at lower resolution.
Extension Tubes Tested with the Kenko Auto Extension Tube Set DG, it hunts and finds with the shortest tube, but rarely finds with the longest tube. Therefor use with autofocus in not entirely out of the quesiton. Manual focus should be fine, were VR will be preserved.
Falloff Visible only wide-open at 24mm, and corrected in many of the newer cameras.
Filter Thread Plastic, 72mm. Does not rotate with either zoom or focus rings. With more than one filter, very slight vignetting occurs at 24mm, which can be prevented by taking the Filter Leap of Faith. If you’re using this lens with Cokin filters, you won’t encounter vignetting at 24mm with the standard filter holder as long as you use it without a screw-in filter. Also, you can use one section of the modular hood, as long as it’s mounted as close to the lens as possible. If you use unusually thick filters, such as the P173 Varicolor Polarizer, you’ll get just a tiny bit of vignetting at 24mm, which is gone by 35mm.
Ghosts and Flares Very well controlled, making a lens hood largely unnecessary, except for protection or “coolness factor”.
Included Standard center-pinch front lens cap, LF-4 rear cap, HB-63 plastic tulip-style lens hood, CL-1118 pouch.
Lateral Color Fringes Virtually none at 24mm, and only very slight blue-yellow fringes at 50 and 85mm.
Macro About average performance for a standard zoom. Close focusing at 7.25" from the lens enables a reproduction ratio of 0.22x. Switching to DX Crop mode increases that to 0.33x.
Manual Focus Focus scale with no depth-of-field scale or infra-red index. No hard stop at infinity. Manual override at all times. Focus ring is smooth, has slight play making it a challenge to rock back and forth for precise focusing.
Maximum Reproduction Ratio 1:4.5 (0.22x)
RoHS Compliance 10 years.
Sharpness Always super-sharp in the center, and almost as sharp in the borders and corners at 50mm. At 24 and 85mm, the sides and corners are a little softer, becoming optimally sharp at f/11 (24mm) and f/5.6 (85mm).
Spherochromatism Virtually none.
Sunstars Soft, 14-pointed, becoming sharper with underexposure.
Teleconverters Tested with the Kenko MC7, there is perpetual hunting. Autofocus use not recommended, but should be fine for manual focus, where VR is preserved.
Variable Aperture Range
| Full-Frame (FX) | APS-C (DX) | f-Stop Range |
|---|---|---|
| 24mm | 36mm | f/3.5-f/22 |
| 35mm | 36mm | f/4.0-f/25 |
| 50mm | 75mm | f/4.2-f/29 |
| 70mm | 105mm | f/4.5-f/29 |
| 85mm | 127.5mm | f/4.5-f/29 |
Versatility Good for: wide angle, portrait and close-up; macro with closeup lenses or extension tubes. Not the best choice for sports photography, hand-held night photography or infrared.
Vibration Reduction (VR) 4 stop improvement claimed. In the field, 3 stops are more common.
Vignetting More that one filter vignettes a small amount at 24mm. This lens is a good candidate for slim filters, or use of oversized filters with a step-up ring.
Build Quality ★★★★
Optical Quality ★★★★★
Value ★★★★★The Bottom Line Purchasing this lens as a bundle with the Nikon D610 was a much better experience than if I had purchased my D90 with the plastic-mount 18-105mm. This lens is a huge improvement over previous offerings, having considerably better performance in the corners, a better build and the all-important VR. It is also quite compact and easy to keep with you. This is the lens I keep on my D610 at all times.
The range of 24-85mm was well chosen. The “hard stop” at 85mm give credibility to this as a portrait lens, where its faster f/4.5 maximum aperture performs similar to f/1.4 with VR for stationary subjects. In the field, if I need more reach I switch to DX crop mode at “L“ resolution, where it maxes out to 127.5mm.
I would highly recommend this lens to any first-time, full-frame Nikon owner, and also to those DX owners with a plan to purchase a full-frame camera in the future. For those who already own a full-frame Nikon, it’s definitely a worthwhile addition to your kit.
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