I love street performers, and these were some of the best I’ve seen. These 2 lenses are both up for review soon, but for now I’ll let the photos speak for themselves.
Nikkor Q·C 135mm f/2.8 non-ai (ai converted)
Nikkor 24mm f/2 ais
Nikkor 24mm f/2 ais
Nikkor 24mm f/2 ais
Nikkor 24mm f/2 ais
Nikkor 24mm f/2 ais
Nikkor 24mm f/2 ais
This review is a work in progress and will be updated
Overall: 4 out of 5
Optics: 4.5
Price on Used Market: ~$200 USD
Value at $200 USD: 3.5
A fast wide-normal, the 35 f/2 AI is a lens design Nikon used for generations (non-ai through AI-S) due to its great IQ.
Nikkor 35mm f/2 AI
My copy of this lens has seen better days, but it’s still sharp despite scratches on the front element.
Assorted Information
| Max Aperture | f/2 |
| Min Aperture | f/22 |
| Aperture Blades | 7 |
| Close Focus | 0.27m/.9ft |
| Filter Thread | 52mm |
| Hard Infinity Stop? | Yes |
| Built in Hood? | No |
Image Quality
Image quality the strong suit of this lens. It’s sharp and contrasty all the way from f/2, sharpest at f/4, and good through f/11. Edge sharpness isn’t great at f/2, but improves significantly by f/5.6. Boke is good for a 35mm lens, but you’ll get better results on any of nikon’s 50mm f/1.4 used on full frame as compared to this on a DX crop. It has no problems with chromatic aberration, and no problems with distortion. There can be, however, some ghosting.
That’s No Moon (it’s a screw) — w/PN-11 Extension Tube
Operation
Exactly what you’d expect from this type of lens. A small, light lens, with smooth focusing. ½ turn gets you from the excellent close focus of 0.27m/.9ft to infinity at which there’s a hard stop (yay).
Spiderweb — Full Frame (D700) Reverse Mounted
The lens is also fairly useful reverse mounted. The working distance is too small to use with bugs, but it gets you 1.4x magnification with a miniscule depth of field.
Nikon FE, 35mm f/2, Fuji Velvia 50
Final Word
This is a great lens with great IQ. The only problem is the competition at this focal length is also great. If you’re okay with a Manual Focus lens, the 35mm f/1.4 gives you an extra stop (though for 3 times the price). The autofocus 35mm f/2 will cost you another $150. And for the same price, the 35mm f/1.8 gets you an extra ⅓ of a stop and AF-S, but will only work on a DX cropped camera. There’s a lot of choices to be had here, and if rumor pans out, we may even be getting a 35mm f/1.4 AF-S for full frame cameras.
More Photos with this Lens
All images with a DX Crop except those marked with a film type.
Full Frame (D700), @f/8
Nikon FE, 35mm f/2, Fuji Velvia 50
Magsafe Macbook Power — with Pn-11
You can use this lens with a PN-11 extension tube to bring the close focus to almost nothing. Image quality remains great, and it gives you a wider perspective than most macro, but it’s not that useful.
Full Frame (D700) Reverse Mounted
Full Frame (D700) Reverse Mounted
More Photos of this Lens
Most people see a spider walking across a piece of paper and they’ll probably put it outside, or squish it. I, however, take a picture of it. After all, how often does one see photos involving both arranged numeric sequences and arachnids? Not often enough.
I feel I should make some overly analytical comment here about the juxtaposition of our base fears of nature and our acquired fears in industrialized life (honestly, who likes spreadsheets?). Or perhaps the image of a spider invokes feelings of being trapped in a web, or by the web. Really, though, it’s just a photo of a spider and a spreadsheet.
[Edit: Upon closer inspection, this does not appear to have 8 legs and therefore isn’t a spider. Oh well, “spider” reads better than “insect”.]
I was all set to go to my first Roller Derby game tonight, but unfortunately I underestimated the popularity and the tickets sold out as I got to the line. I could have bought tickets yesterday online but didn’t bother. My mistake.
That means no new pictures for tonight, but next time I’ll order ahead and spring for the ‘VIP’ ringside tickets. Hopefully tomorrow will be more successful.
I stopped by the Gizmodo gallery briefly before I came home today to look at all the gadgets. It was a bit odd seeing a Newton Messagepad 2100 sitting there on display when I now use one daily for work. The selection wasn’t too big, but included a truly massive TV, “3-D” etch-a-sketch (using stereoscopic projection), a mud computer, and a variety of smartphones.
Tesla Coil — Nikkor 180mm f/2.8 AI-S
The highlight was a robotic drummer and some tesla coils that were hooked together by ArcAttack and played music. I’m not really sure how the whole thing worked, but I can now truthfully say that I’ve heard the Doctor Who theme played on the tesla coil.