The AIS 28/2.8 was the subject of the latest Nikon 1001 nights article on the development of certain lenses: http://www.nikkor.com/story/0057/
This was one of my favourite wide lenses for many years due to the very low geometric distortion and close focusing ability. 28mm also makes a natural wide companion for 50mm lenses, it's pleasantly wide without the extreme stretching towards the corners of wide lenses. (Because I had 28mm I bypassed 24mm and went to the AI 20/3.5 if I wanted something wider).
Thank you for the link!
It, too, expressed my exact sentiments:
- "While many users tend to focus on aspects and specifications ... I think that more importance should be placed on minimum focus distance and maximum reproduction ratio. These aspects are directly related to the degree of flexibility a lens offers. For example, have you ever photographed flowers with a normal zoom lens, and then switched to a telephoto lens to make the flowers appear larger or closer, only to find that you couldn't make the flowers appear any larger or closer because the minimum focus distance for the telephoto lens was quite long? Micro lenses are the best lenses for situations like this. Therefore, with actual shooting, the minimum focus distance is every bit as important as focal length. If we look at brochures in this way, the unique characteristics of the AI Nikkor 28mm f/2.8S covered in this tale become clear. It has a minimum focus distance of just 20 cm, one of the shortest among wide-angle lenses, and a high maximum reproduction ratio of 1/3.9×. This is one of the reasons this "approachability" is still included in our manual focus lens lineup."
The fact I can get so close to a subject,
and capture the environment behind it, is what makes the 28mm f/2.8 Ai-S such a great naturalist's lens to me.
For me, the main fault of the 28/2.8 is generalised flare and loss of contrast, for example when shooting a landscape with a large expanse of bright overcast sky above. Shading the front does not control the flare until the shade intrudes into the picture. Mine has the newer SIC coating. It seems to handle point sources better. Still, I never noticed this problem after many years of shooting so it can't be too bad.
Well, no lens is perfect, but this comes as close to a perfect, single lens (for my purposes) as I have ever shot with. The detail, color, and bokeh I am able to get (reversed) as a macro lens is exceptional. Its low weight and low cost make me comfortable using it "for anything." It does many things very well, some exceptionally well. The landscape shot I took on the previous page had an overcast sky and it didn't seem to affect the detail or contrast. Also, with Lightroom, so much can be "brought back" that I am not too worried about it.
Maybe the new Zeiss 28mm is a better "fine art lens," but at $5,000 it ought to be!
However, as a total nature documentation lens? Not so much. IMO, this little $500 Nikon 28mm f/2.8 Ai-S lens is more versatile, for a naturalist, at 1/10th the price. They don't make 95mm reverse rings, for starters, so you can't even use the Zeiss as a macro--and who wants to use a $5,000 non-weather-proofed lens in inclement weather anyway? Or to expose the rear element by reverse-mounting it (assuming you could even do, which you can't). In other words, a Ferrari may have a better ride, in perfect conditions, than an Army Jeep, but can you take a Ferrari off-roading, like you can the Jeep?
I love the simple, versatile, rough-and-tumble characteristics of this little lens. I really do. This lens can't replace my 300mm telephoto for distance shots of creatures that won't allow close approach, and I can't capture a 1:1 butterfly shot from a far-away distance (as I can with my Voigtländer 125mm) either, but the 28mm Ai-S can capture
everything else about the natural world that these two lenses cannot duplicate. And, reversed, it goes
2:1, not just a mere 1:1. So it takes me beyond a standard macro also. Further, when oriented properly, it can also capture very close "near-macro" shots,
and the environment
behind the tiny subjects, because it allows such close approach while still being wide-angle. (In this respect, the Nikon 28mm Ai-S is very much like the new
Laowa 15mm f/4 Wide Angle 1:1 Macro.)
The all-manual Nikon 28mm f/2.8 Ai-S may not be perfect at all things; but it is really good at just about everything I need it to be good at
Jack
PS: Much props for
your Nikon Website. Lotta work went into that, and it is a great source of history and information, which is definitely bookmarked.
