Nikon 24mm f/2.8 ais vs Nikon 28mm f/2.8 ais 24 vs 28

<p>Because I wanted to know the difference in sharpness and contrast between the Nikon 24mm f/2.8 ais and the Nikon 28mm f/2.8 ais, I did a quick non-scientific test. I photographed the back of a house with lots of small detail. I used a Nikon D700 camera, a sturdy tripod, a wired remote trigger and the light conditions where constant. I moved the camera to get a similar field of view with both lenses. I only tested the apertures that are important to me; f/5.6 and f/8. All samples below got the same post processing.</p>

<p>This is the full image:<br /> <img src="http://www.denisdendaas.nl/temp/24vs28ais/full.jpg" alt="" width="400" height="266" /></p>

<p>Nikon 28mm f/2.8 ais @ f/5.6 top left<br /> <img src="http://www.denisdendaas.nl/temp/24vs28ais/topleft-5.6-28.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>Nikon 24mm f/2.8 ais @ f/5.6 top left<br /> <img src="http://www.denisdendaas.nl/temp/24vs28ais/topleft-5.6-24.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>Nikon 28mm f/2.8 ais @ f/8 top left<br /> <img src="http://www.denisdendaas.nl/temp/24vs28ais/topleft-8-28.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>Nikon 24mm f/2.8 ais @ f/8 top left<br /> <img src="http://www.denisdendaas.nl/temp/24vs28ais/topleft-8-24.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>Nikon 28mm f/2.8 ais @ f/5.6 center<br /> <img src="http://www.denisdendaas.nl/temp/24vs28ais/center-5.6-28.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>Nikon 24mm f/2.8 ais @ f/5.6 center<br /> <img src="http://www.denisdendaas.nl/temp/24vs28ais/center-5.6-24.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>Nikon 28mm f/2.8 ais @ f/8 center<br /> <img src="http://www.denisdendaas.nl/temp/24vs28ais/center-8-28.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>Nikon 24mm f/2.8 ais @ f/8 center<br /> <img src="http://www.denisdendaas.nl/temp/24vs28ais/center-8-24.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>The biggest surprise to me is the corner sharpness of the 24mm. I expected the 28mm to be sharper in the corners, but it doesn't look very good to me. I doesn't get much better at f/8 either. The 24mm beats the 28mm handily here. The 28mm is slightly sharper in the rest of the image though. Really excellent. I have not tested it, but form what I read, the 28mm should be more flare resistant.</p>

<p>The 28mm has better contrast too, but look what happens after I adjust (-0.30) the exposure of the 24mm photos to match that of the 28mm photos. To my eyes, the difference isn't that big anymore. Apply some sharpening to the 24mm images and the difference will be even more difficult to see. Also keep in mind that the color rendering is different. The 24mm looks al little more yellow to me. That might be distracting.</p>

<p>Nikon 28mm f/2.8 ais @ f/8 center 100% crop<br /> <img src="http://www.denisdendaas.nl/temp/24vs28ais/adjusted-28.jpg" alt="" width="546" height="546" /></p>

<p>Nikon 24mm f/2.8 ais @ f/8 center 100% crop<br /> <img src="http://www.denisdendaas.nl/temp/24vs28ais/adjusted-24.jpg" alt="" /></p>

<p>Well, no clear winner here if you ask me. Both lenses have their strengths. Enough pixel peeping for today. Go do something fun!</p>

<p>Very interesting, not what I`d have expected. Thanks for sharing! Maybe a field curvature issue in the 28mm lens? Surprising.<br /> Anyway,</p>

<ul>

<li>Has been the camera -correctly- leveled? (Looks like it does).</li>

<li>Have you checked the centering of your 28mm lens? (Does all four corners show the same ammount of blur?)</li>

</ul>

<p>And BTW, have you used Live View to focus? (although I don`t think it`s a focus issue).<br /> I think you should have shot at f2.8 too, at least to check focus (if you already haven`t done it!).</p>

<p>I don't think it's a focus issue either. I used my eye to focus and I can still see clearly. Both lenses are nice and sharp in the center as you can see from the samples. All four corners are the same. The camera was as level as I could get it. I checked the straight lines in the viewfinder. This is the second test I have done (the other indoor with a sheet of newspaper in each corner of the image) and both tests gave me the same results.</p>

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<p><em>"The camera was as level as I could get it. I checked the straight lines in the viewfinder... "</em></p>

</blockquote>

<p>Hmmm, it makes me think that there could be a difference then. You should have used a mirror or reflective device to center the camera in perfect perpendicularity to the wall... otherwise, a little deviation will place the plane of focus at the corners far enough to get reliable results. I`m wondering too if DoF at f8 should be enough to hide that deviation, in your pics looks like it isn`t...<br>

BTW, the center sharpness seems to me as expected.</p>

<p>If that was the case, the 24mm should have shown the same problem and maybe even worse. Also, all four corners of the 28mm show the same unsharpness. To my eyes it's just poor performance. You can always test your own sample. I used the clarity slider in LightRoom to enhance the contrast and after that there was almost no difference between the 24mm and 28mm images.</p>

<p>Not a pixel peeper, but I do test my gear to understand how it will perform. It was interesting (for me anyway) to observe that the 24mm appears to be so much sharper in the corners than the 28. I'm no lens expert by any means, but I wonder if the differences in the center are possibly due to more contrast in the 28, and not just a sharpness difference only. I think that may be giving the 28 an appearance of being slightly sharper there when it may be just the same as the 24.</p>

<p>It looks to me like the central parts of the images are close enough in sharpness...no clear winner, but to me the corners make the 24 a clear winner overall. OTOH, my vision may be affected by medication I'm taking for dental surgery I had earlier this week. Thanks for taking the trouble to shoot and post this comparison - it's something interesting to see while I'm cooped up (I shouldn't drive for another day or two). ;-)</p>

<p>Was identical processing applied to all the images in Lightroom (e.g. copy/paste the processing settings)? Did you make any prints? I'd be curious to know if any differences in the center areas are more visible with prints. I don't have either of those lenses, but I do use a 20mm f/2.8 AF-D with my D700. I'd be curious to see how it compares to the 24 ais.</p>

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<p>Was identical processing applied to all the images in Lightroom</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Yes identical processing was applied to all of the images, except the last two where I adjusted the exposure setting of the 24mm photo.</p>

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<p>I wonder if the differences in the center are possibly due to more contrast in the 28, and not just a sharpness difference only</p>

</blockquote>

<p>My idea exactly, because when I use the clarity slider to enhance the contrast, the 24mm photo looks much more like the 28mm photo. It gets much harder to see the difference then.</p>

<p>Doesn't the 28mm f2.8 AIS also have CRC (Close Range Correction) as the 24mm has? I've shot tons of images with my 28mm 2.8 AIS and never seen any corner out of focus issues. It is a superb lens in my experience, corner to corner.</p>

<p>You are not the first person to observe the 24/2.8 outperforming the 28/2.8 in sharpness. I've seen more than one reviewer make that comment.</p>

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<p>Doesn't the 28mm f2.8 AIS also have CRC (Close Range Correction) as the 24mm has.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Both have CRC, but my subject was not very close. I'm not sure when this system really 'kicks in' and starts to make a clearly visible difference. Both lenses are great for 'wide close-up's'. Maybe there is some sample variation, maybe they all have soft corners on digital FX. I really had no favorite (but now I do) and I did not try to make one lens look bad. It's just how it is. I've read some bad news about the 24mm too, but in my test the 24mm ais is not so bad at all!</p>

<p>I think this might represent an example of sample variation. There are at least a couple of reputable reviews/resolution tests of these two lenses, all of which show the 28/2.8 to be the superior lens of the pair.</p>

<p>The 24mm was my favorite WA focal length on 35mm format, but I wound up migrating to the 28mm for FX digital as the CA exhibited by the 24 was just too pronounced. I can't really say I noticed a resolution difference, though the 28mm <em>feels</em> is a bit sharper to me... could be contrast though.</p>

<p>It looks like you have a good sample of the 24/2.8, and perhaps a lesser sample of the 28/2.8. Have a look at this for a comparison of two samples of the latter.</p>

<p>http://www.16-9.net/lens_tests/28mm_2.html</p>

<p>All I can say about the 28mm f/2.8 is that the pictures posted above match with my sample almost exactly. So whether this is due to sample variation or not, if buying one is a gamble, then it really isn't a very good lens in my book.</p>

<p>All other MF Nikkors that have passed through my hands have been consistent performers, from used battered versions to new-out-the-box. Perhaps it's a function of the CRC mechanism, but I haven't seen the sort of variation (shown in the link above) in other CRC lenses.</p>

 

<p>Loved my first 24/2.8 on a Nikon F. Loved my second 24/2.8 on an F3 and and F4. Love my current 24/2.8 D on my D300. Say what you want, pro or con. It is a Nikon classic.</p>

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<p>Say what you want, pro or con. It is a Nikon classic.</p>

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<p>The 24mm surely appears to be a classic. The good reputation of the 28mm is slightly hurt. It's still a good lens, but maybe not the perfect legend some people say it is?</p>

<p>I have both of them, though my 28mm is actually an AI instead of AIS. The optical formula is a little different, with actually one less element than the AIS. Both of my lenses are very sharp, with less difference between the corners than you are seeing with the AIS. In the flare department, however, my 28mm blows the doors off the 24mm with the sun in a corner of the frame. Much more ghosts with the 24mm. Also, the sun looks like a big blob with my 24mm, but is very sharp wth the expected "rays" from the aperture blades.</p>

<p>If positioning was not a factor, I would reach for my 28mm rather than my 24mm 10 times out of 10</p>

<p>I have both of them, though my 28mm is actually an AI instead of AIS. The optical formula is a little different, with actually one less element than the AIS. Both of my lenses are very sharp, with less difference between the corners than you are seeing with the AIS. In the flare department, however, my 28mm blows the doors off the 24mm with the sun in a corner of the frame. Much more ghosts with the 24mm. Also, the sun looks like a big blob with my 24mm, but is very sharp wth the expected "rays" from the aperture blades.</p>

<p>If positioning was not a factor, I would reach for my 28mm rather than my 24mm 10 times out of 10</p>

<p>My 28 f/2.8 AI-S is razor sharp, easily the equal of my 24-70 and superior to that lens at very close distances. I sold my 24 f/2.8 AI-S which wasn't that good.<br>

You more than likely have a decentered 28 there.</p>