£199.
Bjorn Rorslett's review
Not long after the Nikon 35mm f/1.8G lens was announced, Bjørn Rørslett reported his findings based off a test sample in a NikonGear forum post (requires a free registration). A summary of his remarks follow:
1. It is a small lens, and quite similar in shape to the new Nikkor 50mm f/1.4G AF-S lens, but a little tinier.
2. The focusing ring is placed near the front section of the lens, making it easier to reach with the fingers when mounted on the smaller DSLR cameras from Nikon such as the Nikon D40, D60, D80 and D90.
3. There is an A/M (Auto / Manual) focus switch, but manual override of the focusing is always possible even in Manual mode (this is great news!)
4. The projected image in the viewfinder is clear and bright, so it makes manual focusing is easy even on the Nikon D60 and D40.
5. The small image circle is designed to fit DX / 1.5x crop cameras from Nikon, and as expected, produces heavy vignetting when focused on normal to distant subjects. The image circle only fills an FX (full frame) format frame when focused at subjects on the close focus limit, which is about 0.3m. This is a hint that the Nikon 35mm DX is not of a telecentric optical design.
At the time of writing, Nikon has three FX digital SLR cameras, the Nikon D3X, D3 and D700. Nikon's top DX camera is the D300, which is the successor to the D200.
6. When shooting into the sun, there is a tendency for ghosting (a few rainbow-colored spots can be observed in the images), but the propensity to flare is kept well under control.
7. You'll get a considerable vignetting when shooting with this lens on a D3 in 5:4 format and aperture stopped down to f/3.5, but the sharpness is fairly acceptable over the entire frame.
8. Bjorn demonstrated the bokeh quality of the 35mm DX by shooting a holly up close, against a busy background. Aperture values of f/1.8, f/2.8, f/4, f/5.6 and f/11 were tested. I agree with his conclusion that the lens does a good job of rendering a smooth background, especially considering its short focal length.
9. Bjorn then compared the 35mm DX lens with the older Nikon 35mm f/1.4 Ai-S lens. What the newer 35mm lens has over the older is superior sharpness at f/1.8 and up to f/2.8. Contrast is also very high starting from f/1.8, and the even at f/22, acceptable sharpness is demonstrated by the 35/1.8. From f/4 onwards, the older 35/1.4 lens gets the upper hand in sharpness.
10. The 35 DX lens is based on a double Gauss optical design, so will exhibit a tendency for mild barrel distortion (the same applies to the 35/1.4).
11. Bjorn shared many test photos, so be sure to log in to the forum to view them.
