» Nikon 28mm f/2.8D AF Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

Nikon 28mm f/2.8D AF Nikkor Lens for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras Reviews

Customer Rating:
Summary: Very good, not perfect
Comment: The 18-200mm lens on my Nikon D50 already gives very good results at 28mm, even at its widest aperture of f4. Is the 28mm f2.8D worthwhile? Sometimes.
The main attraction of the 28mm to me is for night scenes. If the 18-200mm can acquire an autofocus target, it can focus accurately. If it can't, the distance scale is usually unreliable. The 28mm can be easily dialed to infinity, and that setting will be accurate. There is also the possibility of using f2.8. This is genuinely useful on the 28mm. There is slight vignetting and very slight softness, but it still performs well to the corners at f2.8. Stopping down to f3.2 eliminates the softness, and vignetting is gone by f4.
Night scenes can be a challenging test of lens flare. The 18-200 is not bad for a superzoom, but the 28mm does better.
A prime focus lens should be nearly perfect, but the 28mm falls a bit short of that. There is mild barrel distortion. (The 18-200 shows slight pincushion at 28mm.) In my challenging chromatic aberration subject, the 28mm shows a little red and cyan fringing. The 18-200mm shows purple fringing in the same scene.
The 28mm f2.8D will autofocus with the D50/80/200/300. Switch the camera to manual focus, and it can manual focus. With a D40/60 it is manual focus only.
My 28mm, which I bought from Amazon, comes with a 1 year Nikon U.S.A. warranty and 4 years extended service protection.
Here's a catch on the extended service protection: To get it you must mail in the Lens ESC Registration card within ten days of purchase.

---