Sample shots with 20mm on FX ( or film ) ?

[johnw63]

<p>I have been thinking of dabbling in wide angle shots, but not all out fish-eye stuff. I like some of the scenics of shorelines with a very low height and everything is in focus. Obviously, there are plenty of uses, but those come to mind first.</p>

<p>With that in mind, does anyone have and sample shots done at the 20mm focal length. I did a quick search of Nikon 20mm in the gallery, and only 5 came up. I was hoping to see more. I need to see if that gives enough of the effect I am looking for, or if I would need to go wider. Specifically, I am interested in the 20mm f3.5 AI or AIS lenses. I already have the 24mm f2.8 and I want to know if there is a big difference with only 4 mm difference.</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

 

[john_cox7]

<p>John,</p>

<p>The big difference is the angle of view. 94 degrees for the 20mm f3.5 compared to 84 degrees for the 24mm f2.8.</p>

<p>Sometimes with a wide angle used for scenic photographs, the detail in the scenery is pushed further away. In this respect, it may not meet your expectations. I have a lot of Kodachrome 64 slides that have been taken with the 20mm f3.5. Unfortunately, none of them are scanned, so I am unable to post any.</p>

<p>The use of a polarising filter on the 20mm f3.5 AI or AIS lens can cause unevenly exposed sky, and, (unless it is a step-up one) will cause vignetting as well.</p>

<p>Where the 20mm f3.5 lens is better suited is for interior photographs of rooms. By standing in a corner, it is possible to include all 4 walls of the room. Just watch for converging verticals and adjust your height accordingly.</p>

<p>I say "better" because I am aware of both the Nikkor 28mm and 35mm PC lenses as well as the newer Nikkor 24mm f2.8 TS-E lens.</p>

 

[Matthew Brennan]

<p>John,</p>

<p>I use a Nikkor 20mm f/3.5 Ai as a super light weight travel or long walk / hike lens. I find it particularly good for shooting close range subject matter like the group photo below or ever much closer like botantical field studies etc. This lens is also a specialist for shooting into the sun or horribly bright and glaring backlit scenes. However, as a distant landscape lens at f/8 it does not give the same wow factor as my 17-35mm AF-S Nikkor - I can't explain why but this is my experience on the D700. 4mm focal length from 24mm back to 20mm is a significant difference in field of view. 20mm on FX really is indeed a substantially wide angle focal length.</p><div></div>

[Ian Rance]

<p>John, have a look in my Nikon 20mm gallery - there are a few there (on film). I use the f/4 version.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.photo.net/photodb/folder?folder_id=876410">http://www.photo.net/photodb/folder?folder_id=876410</a></p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>On an FX body, 20mm is considerably wider than 24mm. If you find your 24mm not wide enough, 20mm is the clear way to go.</p>

[samoksner]

<p>There is a 10 degree difference between the 24 and the 20mm. I had a 24mm for a long time, and when i was offered a 20mm in exchange for my 24mm, i jumped on it. Although i heard that it wasn't as good a lens, to me, it felt identical but a tad wider, which was great since i love getting close to my subject.</p>

[nick_davis]

<p>These were both with the 20mm f/2.8; first one is dx format (D70s), the second one if FX (film)<br>

<a href="http://www.photo.net/photo/7964395">http://www.photo.net/photo/7964395</a><br>

<a href="http://www.photo.net/photo/7964400">http://www.photo.net/photo/7964400</a></p>

 

[georg_s1]

<p>John, I have the 20/3.5 Ais as well as the 24/2.8 Ais. The latter one is the far better performer - at least in the corners. The 20mm vignettes really strong - even at f8 vignetting is not completely gone. But it's a really tiny lens, deals well with lightsources in the frame (ghosting and flare are well controlled) and is easily useable with the Cokin P-system (no additional vignetting with the slim holder). I carry (and use) the 20/3.5 Ais as a compact wide-angle when I don't want to carry the big 14-24.<br>

A regular polarizer will not work with the 20, a dedicated wide-angle filter (with front thread size increased) works well - I've never tried a „slim“-filter.<br>

Have you considered buying the Voigtlaender 20 mm / F3,5 Color Skopar SL II? It's a tiny lens too and maybe a good alternative to the classic Nikkors.<br>

Hope this helps and please excuse my english, georg.</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>I took out my 14-24mm/f2.8 on my D700 and captured a bunch of images at different focal lengths. This is a comparison between 20 and 24mm.</p>

<p>Is 20mm wide enough for you?</p><div></div>

[mark_crown2]

<p>Hi John</p>

<p>I use an Ai 20mm f3.5 on film only. I find it to be very sharp and use it regularly at f8-11. If you position the camera correctly, you can reduce the inherent distortion from the lens. I don't use a polariser with it, but if I want that sort of effect on skies, I use a Cokin P adapter with a Hi-tech grey grad/81B filter to give me blue skies and definition in the clouds. With this lens I find it a good idea to have plenty of foreground interest to detract from some of the distortion you might get on the horizon line. I do not yet have a scanner for my slides, so forgive the lack of pictorial evidence to back me up!</p>

<p>Regards</p>

<p>Mark<br>

Derbyshire, UK</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>Here is a further comparison from 14mm to 24mm. Needless to say, for landscape type shots, the wider you get, the more foreground you need to cover, and it is not always easy to have so much interesting foreground to make the image work. Otherwise, you'll end up with a lot of (empty?) sky on top.</p>

<p>For most landscape photograhy, 20mm is very wide already. When you get to 17, 18mm, it becomes difficult to compose. Those super wide ranges are great for certain indoor shots, though.</p><div></div>

[Jim_Tardio]

<p>Keep in mind that the 20/2.8...either the AF or manual focus version has CRC (close range correction). The 20/3.5 and the 20/4 do not, nor do any of the zooms. The CRC helps keep the foreground and the background in focus, which is the whole point of a wide angle shot IMO.</p>

<p>If you're in the market for a 20mm from Nikon, get the latest, best version...the 20/2.8.</p>

[georg_s1]

<p>Jim, I could be wrong, but I don't think CRC will extend the depth of field - but it will improve the optical performance at shorter distances. The 20/3.5 is reported to be a good performer up-close - even without CRC. I've tried the current AF-D 20/2.8 and wasn't impressed. In situations with strong backlighting the AF-lens was clearly inferior to the old 20/3.5. <br /> Let me attach a backlit picture (Nikon D700, 20/3.5 Ais wide open, sun just in the frame). With my other wideangle-lenses flare and ghosting would have been much more prominent in the picture.<br /> Please excuse my english, georg.</p>

[georg_s1]

<p>Sorry, here is the picture...</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>CRC, per its name, is to improve image quality when focusing to a close distance. If you need to increase the depth of field for sharpness from near to far, you need to stop down the lens and/or use a tilt lens to modify the plane of focus.</p>

[Jim_Tardio]

<blockquote>

<p>Jim, I could be wrong, but I don't think CRC will extend the depth of field - but it will improve the optical performance at shorter distances.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Exactly, George. A strong foreground, to me, is critical in a wide angle shot. I, too, used the 20/3.5, but I found the 20/2.8 to be a better performer with regards to foreground sharpness.</p>

[oskar_ojala]

<p>If you want a new lens, the Voigtländer 20/3.5 goes for under 400 euros right now and it's pretty good (and incredibly small).<br>

In terms of focal length, there is a slight difference, but I would not take both 20 and 24 with me for a shoot, either one tends to be enough.</p>

[johnw63]

<p>As much as I have told my self to stop buying MF lenses, if I ever want to step into digital, the modern, AF , 20mm lenses just cost way too much for my expected use. I may end up with what ever is the least expensive. </p>

<p>Heck, if there was a non G lens, that was for DX, but would work on my F4 at 20mm, without making a circle, I'd consider it.</p>

<p> </p>