How good is Series E 36-72mm f3.5 & other Nikkors 35-70 ?

[frederick_lau1]

Where will this Nikon Series E 36-72mm f3.5 stand among all other 35-

70mm Nikkors in terms of optical performance :

 

AI 35-70mm f3.5 (72mm filter)

 

AIS 35-70mm f3.5 (62mm filter)

 

AIS & AF 35-70mm f3.5/4.5 (52mm filter)

 

AF & AF-D 35-70mm f2.8 AF

 

Which is the best and which is the worst ?

[calvin_lee]

1. AF & AF-D 35-70mm f2.8 AF

2. AIS 35-70mm f3.5 (62mm filter)

3. AI 35-70mm f3.5 (72mm filter)

4. AIS & AF 35-70mm f3.5/4.5 (52mm filter)

5. Nikon Series E 36-72mm f3.5

 

I have owned the 35-70mm f2.8 AF-D, AIS 35-70mm f3.5 (62mm filter) & the Nikon Series E 36-72mm f3.5. The series E zoom, did not impress me much unless I stopped down to f/8 or smaller. The 35-70mm f3.5 (62mm filter) is as sharp at f/2.8 as it is at f/8. The 35-70mm f2.8 is just a tad sharper than the 35-70mm f3.5 (62mm filter) & offers more speed, but is much more expensive. If you are on a budget & do not need AF, I would go for the 35-70mm f3.5 (62mm filter) lens.

[graham_line]

You didn't ask, and may have reasons for not asking, but the 35-70/3.3-4.5 AIS and AF (same formula, different barrel) would rank about #3 in the above listing and can be had very inexpensively.

[david_h._hartman]

I bought a 36~72/3.5 Series E as a gift for my father and returned it the next day. I was very unimpressed with the quality of construction and even a slim Nikon L37c filter nipped a little light when viewing through the film aperture. Adding a lens hood nipped even more.

[jay_miao1]

I never had chance to try out the most expensive one F2.8 which is no doubt the best one. Then, other than that, I have the 62mm thread one and F3.3~4.5 AF, and the 36-72mm E, but the 72mm thread and the latest 52mm AIS. I don't quite have deep comparison at this point, but I think the E version would not be underrated at least than the F3.3~4.5 AF and latest AIS (3.5~4.5?), it's very compact and one-touch zoom/focus ring I found very handy and smooth (at least mine) way better than F3.3~4.5 AF, the plastic cheap construct build. So I like the 36-72 E alot, which has fairly solid build than many current consumer grade plastic zoom lenses.