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Nikon 28 1.4 AF

glenerrolrd

Workshop Member
The 28 FOV is my favorite for street and travel work . I am very happy with the 24/1.4 AF Nikkor or my Zeiss 25/2 (manual focus) but I need a fast 28 . The reputation of the 28 1.4 is exceptional (along with its price used about $3000) but I ve also seen reports that wide open doesn t match the newer G lenses.

Hoping for some GETdpi insights …..before I buy one …..:facesmack:
 

k-hawinkler

Well-known member
The 28 FOV is my favorite for street and travel work . I am very happy with the 24/1.4 AF Nikkor or my Zeiss 25/2 (manual focus) but I need a fast 28 . The reputation of the 28 1.4 is exceptional (along with its price used about $3000) but I ve also seen reports that wide open doesn t match the newer G lenses.

Hoping for some GETdpi insights …..before I buy one …..:facesmack:

I have that lens and D800E and A7R.
What kind of shots are you interested in?
Also, manual or autofocus?
 

Jack

Sr. Administrator
Staff member
Roger,

You may have missed this post in my 28/1.4 thread a few down from here: http://www.getdpi.com/forum/nikon/48904-i-am-getting-hankering-28-1-4d.html

My very first image taken with a used copy that also has a ~3mm front element scratch about 2/3rds off center -- for whatever reason, I can't see any deleterious effects even shooting directly into the Sun. Note that there is apparently a lot of sample variation in these as they are hand-ground aspheres. I feel I got lucky as this was my first attempt with one.

For some added background, at present this and the 50/1.2 are my most used walk-around lenses -- they both render very similarly. To give you some comparative thoughts, they both remind me of Mandler design Lux glass used wide open. While my 85/1.4G is a favorite, it is overall much cleaner and modern rendering, a beautiful lens but near clinical in comparison. My 105 DC zeroed is more in the 28/1.4 vein, similar rendering but tends toward yellow a little more than the 28 -- an easy fix in post though. I only used a borrowed 24/1.4 and did not like that copy, so hesitate to give you a direct comparison. The copy I shot had significant focus shift and even if calibrated for f1.4, it wouldn't accurately focus inside its DoF at f2.8. That said, the image again appeared a little cleaner and more modern than the 28's. Oh, one final comment -- for whatever reason, my copy has virtually no visible CA, another welcome surprise.

Here is a copy of my post from the other thread. The flower is roughly 1-½ inches long and I'm focused at about 16 inches, image processed as shot with no added post trickery:

This was the first test frame I grabbed with the lens and was immediately sold. D800E, lens wide open of course:



Here is a center crop:



And a welcome surprise in the lower left corner, part of which was on the focus plane:

 

glenerrolrd

Workshop Member
I have that lens and D800E and A7R.
What kind of shots are you interested in?
Also, manual or autofocus?
I am looking for Autofocus ,28 and fast . I have the 28/2.8 Leica R converted for Nikon and its superb but its too slow for evening shooting . The issue with street shooting is that the subject will often move ….so no getting away with 1/60-1/90 (might be more than adequate for a stationary target ) .

Good alternatives at 24/25 and 35 but at 28 only the Nikkor meets the specification . Of course you can adapt to either 24 or 35 alternatives …..but neither are ideal . The 24 will distort a face placed near the edge and the 35 gives you not much room to avoid clipping hands and feet .

Thanks Jack for the example ..I can see the opportunity to use the”character” of this lens . It looks similar to the 58/1.2 NOCT . I am thinking more like the work you see at the NYT Lens Blog and wonder if the look will be sharp enough in that range 1.4 to 2.8 . The 24 /1.4G is a good benchmark .
 

Ocean

Senior Subscriber Member
There is an interesting article about the development of the Nikon 28/1.4 AFD, Nikon Imaging | NIKKOR - The Thousand and One Nights / Tale 28 : Ai AF Nikkor 28 mm f/1.4D. It took Nikon for 10 years to develop/manufacture this lens!

I purchased a copy this summer and had the lens element assembly completely replaced (other than the front element). This is a lens with very special characters wide open. It has a very similar rendering of Noct-58/1.2. Wide open, the 24/1.4 has sharper center and more of a 'cleaner' imagery while 28/1.4 has some 'raw' feel to it. The color render of the 28/1.4 is very rich and deep. Once calibrated (focus), it's wonderful lens especially for close focus images. I will keep it as long as I use Nikon system.
 

glenerrolrd

Workshop Member
There is an interesting article about the development of the Nikon 28/1.4 AFD, Nikon Imaging | NIKKOR - The Thousand and One Nights / Tale 28 : Ai AF Nikkor 28 mm f/1.4D. It took Nikon for 10 years to develop/manufacture this lens!

I purchased a copy this summer and had the lens element assembly completely replaced (other than the front element). This is a lens with very special characters wide open. It has a very similar rendering of Noct-58/1.2. Wide open, the 24/1.4 has sharper center and more of a 'cleaner' imagery while 28/1.4 has some 'raw' feel to it. The color render of the 28/1.4 is very rich and deep. Once calibrated (focus), it's wonderful lens especially for close focus images. I will keep it as long as I use Nikon system.
Thanks this is very helpful ….this is what I would expect based on the samples provided . I found that the 58 /1.2 has tons of character …but also that you need to understand its limitations … In bright light wide open ..the glow can overwhelm the image … Of course if you stop down a little the image quality becomes very strong .
 

Photojazz

Member
The artistic rendering of Jack's flower bud here, really says it all about this lens. It's a masterpiece, regardless of technical limitations or design flaw. (the AF to M ring that tends to crack).

I have owned 2 copies. I had a great one, and like an idiot, sold it. I should never have sold my US copy. Mistake was made. I did get another copy, even though an import.

I would still probably buy a US lens in box if I found one, and sell my import. But that's not really required.

I have an image I took that always reminds me of what this lens is capable of. My first copy rendered it.

Nothing can prepare you for this first image. It's just WOW! Camera is pretty awesome technology, are you ready for this? (D2X) Sometimes, I present it vertically, but it matches up better with page to show it horizontally.





This one is also a favorite, something about the rendering of the rocks, and the overall detail that is very nice.



The renderings of the Noct and the 28 1.4D are similar, because they represent 2 of the 3 lenses manufactured this way, the 20-35 zoom was the third.
 
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Jack

Sr. Administrator
Staff member
Thanks Jack for the example ..I can see the opportunity to use the”character” of this lens . It looks similar to the 58/1.2 NOCT . I am thinking more like the work you see at the NYT Lens Blog and wonder if the look will be sharp enough in that range 1.4 to 2.8 . The 24 /1.4G is a good benchmark .
Mine sharpens up significantly at f2 (just like my 50/1.2 does), to the point most aberrations are gone and it starts to look modern and more clinical. I don't think you'd be disappointed if you got a good sample. AF is old style slower, but still pretty fast since it's only a 28 and the group doesn't have to move much, and of course manual focus feel is excellent.

PS: The only reason I'd ever sell mine is because I found a newer, cleaner better performing copy -- and even then, I'm not sure I wouldn't keep both just in case :D
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
Roger I would love to have your Leica 28r. If you ever sell it let me know. I'm selling my Nikon soon. 28 1.8 that is
 
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