Nikon Af 35-70mm f/2.8D Reviews

A big clunky metal push-pull zoom from the dark ages, but it's so sharp it's well worth a look.

On a DSLR the equivalent angle-of-view is 52.5mm to 105mm, which is a great range for portraiture.

At f/2.8 images are a little soft but very usable, sharpness improves dramatically by f/4 and is very good by f/5.6.

I bought this lens new about 4 years ago. It is the most used lens and is used for about 80% of my pictures on trips. This is the first pro zoom I have owned and the quality of the pictures is crips and contrasty. It has excellent sharpness when used from 5.6 onward, but unless you use huge magnification then even 2.8 gives excellent pictures. Flare from backlighting is a problem though. Since slide projection is the most demanding, showing up any lens flaws, this one always gives outstanding pictures.

I use it together with my FUJI S2 and I love it.

The lens preform excelent! And this days you can buy one almost 1/3 of the list price.

The negative aspect might be the close focus, 0,6 meter. There is a macro function in 35mm.

The single best value in an autofocus zoom in the entire Nikkor lineup up to now, period. More money won't buy a better quality Nikkor zoom, only one with a different focal length range or handling characteristics.

It's sharp and contrasty, with accurate color rendition for the digital era - no odd color casts that must be corrected in camera or during post processing.

It's a remnant of the heavy metal era and uses the "screwdriver" type AF autofocusing mechanism. If you have one of the newer entry level dSLRs be sure it will autofocus with lenses other than the AF-S Nikkors (and similar types from third party makers).

Despite the weight of the rotating front element, which, along with the HB-1 shade, can shift back and forth franticly when following action. Not a problem. There's very little jolt felt or perceptible through the viewfinder. Even my older N6006 could autofocus quickly enough with this lens to capture skateboarders mid-air at a local park.

This has become my favorite midrange zoom for photographing indoor school sports in poorly lit gyms. I don't use my variable aperture midrange zooms unless I need the wider range or plan to use flash exclusively.

Some folks say the focal range is useless on 1.5x dSLRs because it has no true wide angle. Suits me. It works out to roughly 52-105mm, just right for close range action and portraiture.

Don't be fooled by the huge knurled ring around the middle of the barrel - it doesn't rotate to adjust focal range or focus; all it does is slide trombone-style for focal range adjustment. The push-pull zoom mechanism doesn't facilitate convenient focal length adjustments, but with a little practice it's good enough for action photography. Still, many folks may prefer a two-touch zoom.

The focus ring is narrower and forward. Not my favorite location, but the feel is smooth. Not as good as a well tuned manual focus lens, but good enough for most purposes.

Flaws? A few. It's subject to ghosting flare (iris or blob shaped) when light sources are directly in frame. Even then it's surprisingly resistant to veiling flare, that annoying indistinct fogginess that reduces contrast.

The front element rotates with focusing, making it less convenient to use a polarizer. Makes no difference to me because I'm not in a hurry when using a polarizer. You'll have to decide for yourself.

I don't consider it huge or heavy, but it weighs about the same as the small to medium weight/size film and digital SLRs.

Addendum: I neglected to mention the closeup focus feature. Slide the large knurled ring to 35mm, press the little button and twist the ring. You lose autofocus but can focus by either turning the ring or simply moving closer or farther away. Autoexposure is retained on compatible cameras.

It's okay for casual closeup or "macro" photography. Most zooms featuring this tacked-on "macro" option perform poorly in closeups. The 35-70/2.8D AF Nikkor actually isn't too bad. Better than my old 28-85/3.5-4.5 AF Nikkor, which offered the same feature.

There are no increments to specify magnification or distance. And distortion will make it of little use on subjects with straight lines, especially near the corners and edges of the frame. But for the occasional flower or similar subject it's not bad and beats lugging an extra macro lens if you're traveling light.

I find this lens to be one of the very best all-round zooms. Very much better than the kit lenses of today: sharpness, contrast, colour. A full 1 to 2 stops faster, too. The compatibility for DLSR depends upon the camera, not the lens.