Nikon 24-120mm lens....any thoughts?

RowmyF · May 4, 2008

I'm thinking about buying this lens http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...120mm_f_3_5_5_6G_ED_IF_AF_S.html#ReviewHeader

and wondered if anyone has it and what their feedback is?

I do mainly portraits & family photography....

Thanks!

Sw1tchFX · May 4, 2008

I own a 24-120VR, I like it alot, many of my favorite images where shot using it.

When I shoot film occasionally, it's brilliant. 24mm is wide and 120mm is a great portrait length. I've heard that alot of people have been buying these to use on their D3's and enjoy the range and VR more than even the new 24-70N's. Then again, the 12mp FX sensor is much more forgiving than a 12mp DX sensor.

It handles REALLY well. The build is better than the 18-70 and the zoom ring, at least on mine, is smoother than even my 80-200, it's REALLY smooth.

It's not really a sharp lens, but it's sharp enough. 24mm f/3.5 is not going to give you a crisp, contrasty image, but it will be sharp enough, and sharpening in post will help bring back detail, but it's better to stop down. At f/9.5, it's as good as anything, but so is most every lens anyway.

keeping it at f/5.6 i find gives good results because on the long end, it's pretty sharp, even wide open. f/16 is about the tightest aperture you can use at 24mm while keeping things sharp. f/22 is really soft at 24mm.

24mm isn't really wide on DX. The 24-120 is more of a 35-180 on DX. That's the bread and butter range of alot of film shooters, but it's not for everyone.

VR is amazing on this lens, letting you shoot at stupidly low shutter speeds. It has it's quirks though that many other VR lenses don't have because it's first generation VR technology.

I'd wait about a month to see if Nikon's goign to release a 24-105 f/4 VR. I doubt it, but it would be really sweet if they did. Otherwise, if you want it now, than by all means get it, it's a great, flexible lens.