Tokina for Nikon 12-24mm lens

[three_eyed_otter]

Does anybody have any experience w/this lens. I really wanted the Nikon equivalent until I started hunting down reviews. It now appears that for the money and end product quality the Tokina 12-24mm would be the better purchase. Any lilts, lipsmackin', or loafin' ideas appreciated.

have a good one
3Eo

 

[three_eyed_otter]

I did some thread-scrollin' and some more research so I guess I'll just shell out the dough--am I nuts-- for the Nikon 12-24 mm.:banghead::blackeye::nerd:

have a good one
3Eo

 

[fmw]

I don't know. I own the Nikkor 12-24 zoom and I'm not very impressed with it. It displays some lateral distortion that I would never see in a fixed focal length wide angle. I would be willing to bet that the Tokina wouldn't be any worse. I could be wrong because I've never tested the Tokina but don't be impressed with the Nikkor just because of the brand on it. Nikon makes some spectacular lenses. This isn't one of them.

 

[XJBaylor]

The Tokina is a great lens. I believe that the Nikkor is better, but the Tokina is much better than the price would lead you to believe. If you are doing 100% crops then yes, there is a difference, but otherwise I doubt you will be able to tell any difference whatsoever.
Awesome lens and VERY well built. I would not spend $100 more for the Nikkor as I love how the Tokina performs. Also note, I take 85% of my shots with this lens. I would have sprung for the Nikkor if I thought it was necessary.

 

[pauledell]

I compared both Nikon and Tokina 12-24 lenses and while I'm sure the optics of the Nikon is exceptional, I find the Tokina counterpart to be extremely sharp with great contrast and little distortion, as well as being
a well built lens (I think somewhat better than the Nikon). For the difference in price, the Tokina is well worth it. I use it about 30% of all
images taken with Nikon D2Xs.

Paul Dell

 

[Nekoism]

I use the Tokina and it is a good lens. I use it on a D2Xs for architectural photography. The distortion is really obvious in building photos, but can be fixed in photoshop.

The lens is tack sharp in the center but towards the edges does get soft significantly. I recently had to stitch a panorama and you could clearly see where one image ended and another began because of the sharpness.

AC is pretty severe at the edge of the images (but can also be fixed in photoshop).

But all the photos I take have to be used at a high resolution. All the AC, distortion, softness is more obvious.