Best 20mm for D700?

<p>I'm looking for a 20mm prime lens for my D700. I've been using the Zeiss lenses mostly, I have a 28/2, 35/2, 50/1.4 and 85/1.4. I love the quality, both the optical quality and build quality of the Zeiss lenses.<br>

Back when I shot film and low-res cropped digital (D1h), I loved the Nikon 20/2.8AFD. But I've heard mixed reviews for it with full frame digital, and so I don't know which way to go.<br>

I'd consider that lens, a Nikon AIS version, or the forthcoming Zeiss or Voigtlander versions, which are hard to judge since they're not out yet.<br>

Speed is somewhat important but so is size. The Zeiss is huge, the Voigtlander is a great size but somewhat slower, but I could probably live with that since the high ISO is so good anyway on the D700. My priority isn't absolute sharpness but what is more important is overall quality, low distortion, low CA and edge sharpness. The Nikkors are the best combination of size/speed I guess, but I'm worried about the bad reports I've heard with these on full frame digital.<br>

While I know there are great zooms in this range, I have NO interest in zooms. Please don't waste your time recommending one. </p>

<p>Look for an 18mm F/2.8 AI-S Nikkor instead.</p>

<p>I have a D700 and use the Nikkor 20mm f2.8 AIS with it. Wide open the corners can be very soft. I like the lens at f11. It will flare. I am interested in the Nikkor 20mm f3.5 for flare resistance but it has distortions. Need to wait for the others to become available.</p>

<p>The 21mm Distagon is likely to be fabulous. I think it is due out sometime very soon so provided you have the cash for that beast I would wait for it.</p>

<p>Ditto on the Nikon 20/2.8 AiS...it's basically an f/8 to f/11 lens, unless you're looking for 'special effects'! Needless to say, the new ZF and Voigtlander are very interesting. Did you notice the price(B&H, Popflash) went down about $250 on the ZF over the last few days? I expect either to be better than any of Nikon's various(five over the years if you count the AF as a separate lens) attempts at a 20mm.</p>

<p>According to Diglloyd, the Zeiss 21mm has already shipped to dealers and should be available shortly: <a href="http://diglloyd.com/diglloyd/2009-03-blog.html#_20090318ZeissZF21">http://diglloyd.com/diglloyd/2009-03-blog.html#_20090318ZeissZF21</a><br>

Looks like it's going for $1,490 USD from B&H, which just tops the 100mm Makro-Planar at Zeiss's most expensive ZF lens, and only about 100 less than the Contax version everyone raves about.</p>

<p>Stephen Gandy is shipping the Voigtlander 20mm at $549 USD (+49 for the hood) starting next Friday. <a href="http://www.cameraquest.com/Voigt_SL2.htm">http://www.cameraquest.com/Voigt_SL2.htm</a></p>

<p>For the money, I'd take the CV in a heartbeat. It's half a stop slower, but on paper, that's pretty much the only compromise you'd be making. Judging from current Zeiss ZFs vs. Voigtlander SL-IIs, the build quality is very very similar, and the focus throw is just about as long. Plus, my personal gripe with Zeiss is that they refuse to put CPUs in the ZFs, but the ZEs have full electronics. For 15hundred, I'd expect more. You probably don't care as you already have nearly a full stable of Zeiss glass, but it's more of a principle thing to me.</p>

<p>Again, neither of these two readily available for public consumption. I've been following both of these closely for a while and I'd say it'll be another month before the in-depth reviews start rolling in. If you can't wait, you'll probably have better luck getting your hands on the CV right now.</p>

<p>The very best one would clearly be the Nikon 14-24mm f2.8. None of those older Nikons stand a chance against it. It's so good that Canon shooters are buying an adapter so they can use it on their cameras.<br>

Kent in SD</p>

<p>Well I am hoping the Voigtlander shows up excellent. For primes the picking is pretty slim. I suspect both the 17-35mm and 14-24mm zooms are much better then the Nikkor primes. Patience for the new lenses.</p>

<p>My Tamron 17-35mm f2.8-4 performs very well at 20mm.</p>

<p>I've compared the Nikon 17-35/2.8 AFS against the Nikkor 20/2.8 Ai-S and they're pretty close to equal in terms of edge/corner sharpness across the f/stop range on FX. The zoom performance does pick up about a stop earlier (f/6.8) while the prime needs f/8 to match. This did surprise me as I had expected the 17-35/2.8 to be much better wide open but it's just as poor as the 20/2.8.</p>

<p>Roger... </p>

<p>Roger, This is interesting...on my samples of 20/2.8, 17-35, and D3, the 17-35 was clearly less fuzzy at 2.8, 4, 5.6 at the edges than the 20/2.8....maybe I got a bum 20??? Or you've got a bum 17-35??? No matter, I'd still like a mechanically better built lens than the Nikon 20/2.8.</p>

<p>I'm very happy with my 20/3.5 ais.</p>

<p>Keith,</p>

<p>LOL - sounds like we have at least one perfect pair between us. The one oddity I don't like about the 20/2.8 Ai-S is the short throw on the focusing helicoid. The distance in turn needed to go from infinity to 2m is VERY short. The older 20/3.5 Ai was much better in this regard.</p>

<p>Roger...</p>

<p>Noah, i own the 20mm AF 2.8 D for a long time, and many times have been disappointed by the distortion from this lens. For a full frame camera i would try to test some lenses, and select the best one from own experience.<br>

Just ask a shop if you can take a picture in their store from something with straight lines ......</p>

 

<p>Thanks to all for the advice. I'm leaning towards the Zeiss or Voigtlander. I had been leaning towards the smaller Voigtlander but the faster Zeiss might be nice.<br>

Seeing them in person might be tough since both are not in wide supply yet, but I'll try to check them both out. </p>

<p>"According to Diglloyd, the Zeiss 21mm has already shipped to dealers and should be available shortly: <a rel="nofollow" href="http://diglloyd.com/diglloyd/2009-03-blog.html#_20090318ZeissZF21" target="_blank">http://diglloyd.com/diglloyd/2009-03-blog.html#_20090318ZeissZF21</a> <br /> Looks like it's going for $1,490 USD from B&H, which just tops the 100mm Makro-Planar at Zeiss's most expensive ZF lens, and only about 100 less than the Contax version everyone raves about."</p>

<p>Ouch! That's a lot of $$$ for a 35mm lens! I'd rather buy a 43mm for my Mamiya 7.</p>

<p>'Ouch! That's a lot of $$$ for a 35mm lens! I'd rather buy a 43mm for my Mamiya 7.'<br>

I'd love to be able to shoot film on assignment, but it's not really feasible for the work I do. Also, the D700 is better in low light.<br>

I'll be in NYC in a few weeks so I'll stop by B&H to check out the Zeiss. Maybe if I'm lucky they'll have the voigtlander in stock too, but I'm not counting on it.<br>

 

 

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